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Honeymoon to Italy (newly engaged!)
rfalias
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
So aside from the obvious stuff that comes along with engagement, the wife-to-be and I want to go to Italy for a honeymoon.
Neither of us have been out of the country.
What would we look at in terms of cost for an out-of-USofA trip to Italy?
Do Italians hate Americans?
Where is a good place to go in Italy?
Do they speak much English at said "good place"?
We are really noob at international travel.
Neither of us have been out of the country.
What would we look at in terms of cost for an out-of-USofA trip to Italy?
Do Italians hate Americans?
Where is a good place to go in Italy?
Do they speak much English at said "good place"?
We are really noob at international travel.
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Italians don't really hate Americans all that much, and are unlikely to hate you in the specific, as long as you're respectful and remember that their country is not a playground. They do love questions, they love talking about Italy, a good number of them do anyway, etc, in general you have no overwhelming reason to be shy.
You should probably ask yourself a couple questions about what kind of trip you're going on before you figure out where you're travelling to:
Are you going to be staying in one place, or moving around?
Are you going to be traveling through the countryside, or staying in a city?
Basically everywhere you can go is good, 95% of the food tastes good, there are great museums and things about every 4 blocks, and you'll find English speakers in most cities that are larger than villages. There are more English speakers out at night for some reason, not that hard to find at clubs and what not, but this could have been my limited time there and not that true.
Obvious places that are still awesome despite obviousness:
Florence - if you don't go here while you're in Italy, you're making a mistake. Sorry, no excuses.
Assisi
Pompeii
Rome is kind of obvious, but can frankly be a bit too much. You can spend decades here without seeing even a significant fraction of what's going on in the city.
Venice - I hear Venice is nice
Sicily - it's in the South! lots of rocks and tasty bread. Okay there are a lot of places to get tasty bread that are not Sicily - how many of them have crazy ruins all over the place huh.
Amazing food there as well. But yeah, you want to rent a car and prepare your journey otherwise you'll miss a lot of what makes the place special.
Florence is amazing, seconding that.
Edit: Also; spring is probably the best time to go to Italy.
Rome/sorento is good but as with all capitals, noisy, hectic, and full of pickpockets/beggars. It's still beautiful, and has and a mazing soul/atmosphere as a place. If you're staying for a decent amount of time I'd recommend it, but it'd be easy to get swamped with activities and not actually enjoy yourself. Amazing nightlife, though.
I'd be more likely to recommend northern Italy for a honeymoon, particularly Lucca, a walled medieval city. It's honestly unlike anywhere I've been before or after- there's artists studios everywhere, literally opening onto the streets, the restaurants were amazing, and good transport links to Firenze (Florence) if you want to spend a day or so there as well. There's also Barga nearbey, a town on the side of a steep hill, with more artists studios all over the place. The pace of life, food available and general experience were a lot more authentic and made a far greater impression than Rome did.
Just personal experience though
Unless you enjoy the constant threat of death, don't rent a car. Parking in cities is abysmal, and everyone drives like they hate you. Take the train everywhere.
Venice is like a movie trailer, the stuff you see in advertisements for Venice are really the only good things to do, the rest of it is kind of a mess.
Naples is a hole. Stay away from Naples.
My wife and I spent 6 days in Rome, we got engaged there actually. We didn't stay in the city though, we stayed in a small town about 30km to the south called Frascati. The hotel was much, much cheaper than had we stayed in Rome, and it meant we could relax and be away from the over-touristy areas if we wanted. The train ride in was only about 30 minutes, and cost $2 or $3 if I remember right. Overall the trip + flights cost about $1600, and we spent another $500 or so (we were being a bit frugal). We went in early March.
This, and if you decide to travel internationally for a honeymoon, make sure you book her flight in her maiden name so it matches the passport because otherwise you'll be SOL.
Also, congrats!
edit: Florence was great too, and offered a good mix of sight-seeing and just hanging out. Rome had all the sights you could ever want to see, and many of them are even bigger and more amazing than you imagine them...I was definitely not disappointed with the reality of the city vs its reputation. Pisa was...apparently not very memorable because I don't have much to say about it. Elba (the island where they sent Napoleon) was alright for walking around for a few hours, but probably not worth making your way out there.
Cinque Terre and Positano/Amalfi Coast are probably the best areas if you want to be on or near the water. Florence is my favorite city in Italy, and you can't go wrong with a trip mainly there and other areas in Tuscany. Venice might be nice for say two nights with the rest of your trip spent elsewhere.
Rome has some of the more famous sights, but doesn't go over as well as the other areas with many people for various reasons (crime, crowding, pollution...). I base this assertion on my time in the travel industry sending clients to Italy.
How long are you thinking about going for? A week? 10 days? 2 weeks? Recommendations for a good overall trip split between multiple areas would depend a lot on the length of the trip.
Oh, it's expensive but if you were to splurge at any point in the trip I would highly recommend this hotel in Florence. A family palace turned into a small hotel, right next to the Duomo. Beautiful rooms, great location with unbeatable views, very small and exclusive which is great for a honeymoon, and the staff there were always among the best and friendliest that I dealt with in Italy. Or pretty much anywhere else in Europe, for that matter.
Also, Italians do not hate Americans in my experience. A fair amount of English is spoken in the most touristy sites, and of course at any hotel, but getting some basic Italian phrases down would be a good idea. Can't help you as much on price - I've been out of travel for a couple of years, and most of what I did was at the absurd 5-star luxury level.
I spent over a week in Rome during the spring and had a fantastic, cheap time of it - I was able to get a nice double room with ensuite in a quiet hotel very close to the heart of the city and mail rail station for about 35 euros a night or so. This is strictly a low season price and if you go during high season then expect to pay a lot more for the same level of place. But as said above, Roman public transport is cheap, so it is possible to go for a cheaper place out in the sticks, so long as it is on a convenient train route.
An alternative place are the three northern lakes up past Milan - they are very pretty and covered in pretty resorts or hotels. I spent a few days on Lake Como at the end of last summer, which was fantastic and I'd highly recommend it.
I didn't find a lot of people who spoke English well outside of hotels, but it isn't hard to get by all the same if you have learned some phrases and are patient
Both are amazing cities (I'm a fiend for Museums; liking those will ensure you enjoy the trip, as both have some incredible ones) you shouldn't miss.
I would also highly recommend Orvieto:
The picture doesn't do it justice, but it is a city on top of a giant plateau about halfway between Rome and Florence. It isn't a "big city" but it has a lot to do and the views are incredible. So it's a good place for a day trip when you're travelling from Rome to/from Florence.
If you're interested in history and archaeology, I'd suggest a trip to Ostia, the old harbour city of Rome. The ancient ruins there are excellently preserved and you can move freely between the buildings. There's no entrance fee and there are very few tourists.
Italians don't hate Americans. There was a fair deal of anti-American sentiment going on in Europe during the Bush years, but things have cooled down since then. I also live in a country bordering Italy and perception of American tourists has always been very positive here, even back then.
Rome is a beautiful place to spend a honeymoon. We wanted to go somewhere interesting but also wanted the trip to be relatively easy. If we had gone to another city in Italy we would have had to add a third flight and the stress didn't seem worth it.
The great thing about going during the winter was that it wasn't crowded at all. This also meant we didn't have to worry about pickpockets as much. (But we were still cautious.) There were, however, a lot of foreigners (mainly middle eastern) trying to hard-sell you flowers and such. Avoid them as much as you can. If someone tries to talk to you they're probably trying to sell you something.
Rome is crazy expensive. I'm sure you can do it cheap but as honeymooners we didn't want to be bargain hunting all the time. Cash exchange places are a rip-off. The easiest was to get euro is from an ATM.
The hardest thing about the trip is probably the airport. FCO (Rome's international airport) is a really terrible place and can be confusing.
If you want more details or more specific advice PM me. We really had a great honeymoon there and it's a fantastic city to explore.
not only is the city kind of unique among Italian cities i saw, it's also very close to good wineries!
for instance, Castillo di Verrazzano gives a great tour of their winery and an even greater wine-tasting experience if you're into that sort of thing.
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Probably would have been better if I'd had a few thousand Euros lying about to buy my girlfriend a handbag or something though.
Itally is magic. Rome is just plain fantastic - you really cant screw up just getting a tourist map and exploring on the metro. I would recommend having dinner at one of the restaurants at the Pantheon. We loved that place. Pompei is absolutely amazing - I didnt realise how much of it was there - you atually walk around in an ancient Roman town - and then Herculanium is almost better, seeing as how preserved things are.
The Vatican is really worth a look, and will always spart interesting discussion as I've never met anyone that's been through it without feeling quite conflicted.
Everyone hates Americans ;-) But not in any way that would affect you. You'll have no issues.
The tourism industry is huge in Itally. Unless you venture off the beaten path, you wont have any issues really.
Protips: Dont drive in the cities. Seriously. Keep your wallets/purses near you. Do a taxi ride in Rome, it's an adventure - those guys are insane.
Congrats - you'll love it!
I wouldn't be able to live with my self if I didn't go see the Colosseum.
I absolutely do NOT plan on driving.
Where do you get currency exchanged? Can you do it in the US? or do you just go to some Italian bank and hand them a block of cash? Or can you use a card?
Are they a cash nation or is it like the US where everyone takes cards now?
Here's a ridiculous amount of pictures from our honeymoon in Rome.
Oh, and go here because it was awesome.
A lot of American banks will let you take Euros out of an ATM (for a fee, shouldn't be more than 3% unless your bank sucks...many are 1% or 0%). Check with your bank on this. Also, tell your bank that you're going, or they may freeze your accounts when a bunch of foreign transactions start showing up.
Also, in Western Europe, credit cards are issued with a "Chip and PIN" system that your card doesn't have. Most places still take cards the way we do here in North America (swipe and sign), but you have to tell them to do it that way.
I know this is a terrible idea, but when I spent a summer in France a few years ago I found it easiest to just have a decent Euro supply on hand (though never more than 150 Euro) and not bother with cards at stores and restaurants.
Here's a page with good info.
You'll be flying in too, so pretty much wherever you land, you'll see a bureau de change. I'd only really worry about things like traveller's cheques etc if you're overly concerned about the exchange rates.
Short answer is that you'll have no trouble getting money/being able to pay for things.
Me and the fiancee are planning our Italy honeymoon right now (great minds, huh?). Keep in mind that Italy has high-speed rail, so you can get directly from Rome to Florence quickly and easily. When I priced out the ticketing from Expedia, I didn't find any difference flying out from Florence than flying out from Rome, so I'd strongly consider seeing both.
Also, to save your feet and your budget, make sure to check out the subway in Rome for your sight seeing. While you can walk to most places pretty easily, cobblestones can be pretty painful after a full day. Also, taxi drivers in Rome are notorious for taking the very long way to your destination, so beware. When we went, we avoided taxis whenever possible after a few demonstrative experiences.
I very much second this. Sienna is amazing.
My wife and I honeymooned in Italy.
We started in Rome briefly, then to Florence, then to the Cinque Terre.
The Cinque Terre is a MUST visit, simply fantastic to hike the trails between those 5 fishing villages. Absolutely stunning. We also had the best meal of our entire lives in Monterosso (the largest city).
From there, we went North to Stresa, on the shores of Lago Maggiore and rented a car.
We drove all over the lakes region, and into Switzerland to visit several amazing towns and passes in the mountains - easy to do from a base in Stresa, it's only an hour or so to Switzerland. This was such an adventure, exploring the rural countryside at our own pace and totally alone. I would not trade the fact that we had a car for anything - easily a hallmark in the great trip.
We then went to Venice, which was certainly worth seeing - not to pass up if you can fit it in.
All in all, we enjoyed the rural/small towns MUCH more than the large cities (Rome/Florence).
The Italians across the country were VERY friendly to us as Americans, and were very willing to help/work with us. I spent the time to learn a bit of Italian, such as numbers and simple phrases. I highly recommend doing this, my efforts to speak the language were appreciated greatly by everyone we encountered.
Talk to the waiters and restaurant staff as much as you can. Ask them what's good (they will say everything!), but ask them about "local" favorites or specialities of the town. Italian regions are VERY proud of their individual dishes and wines, ask to try them (they're not always on the menu) and not only will you make a friend, you'll die in rapture with every meal.
Be sure to ask about local dessert wines as well, many regions grow/craft their own - especially in the Levanto/Cinque Terre area.
Final piece of advice: TRAVEL LIGHT.
I don't mean American-light either, I mean try and fit every single thing you want to take in one damn backpack. I'm not kidding. Trains/ferrys are crowded, you will do a lot of walking, and excess luggage is an anchor and a liability. Seriously, one bag each. You'll thank me.
P.S.
Sorry, more advice.
Take slacks, not jeans. No jeans. Wear comfortable slacks.
Tell your bride to take a long skirt, many churches/sites will frown on women in legged/form-fitting pants (and may refuse them entry in smaller, more conservative towns).
Yeah, the cobblestones are pretty hard on the feet. I don't think I've ever had quite such sore feet/legs as I did in Rome