Bernie Mac

hi, all

i'm planning to vacation in rome, florence and venice. can anyone
recommend the following:

1) vacation package (or is it better to just buy a round trip airfare
and then book your own hotels, train rides, etc.)

2) which hotels/b&b's are recommended in each city? i'm looking for
quiet areas, away from the crowd congestion.

3) i'm planning to spend six days in rome, two days in florence and
three days in venice. are these lengths of time sufficient for each
city.

i appreciate the help and the website address i can visit, relating to
these questions.

thanks.

Marty Hinman

Ron Hand could fill you in. See his post on Italy Pictures.

Bernie Mac wrote:

    > hi, all
    >
    > i'm planning to vacation in rome, florence and venice. can anyone
    > recommend the following:
    >
    > 1) vacation package (or is it better to just buy a round trip airfare
    > and then book your own hotels, train rides, etc.)
    >
    > 2) which hotels/b&b's are recommended in each city? i'm looking for
    > quiet areas, away from the crowd congestion.
    >
    > 3) i'm planning to spend six days in rome, two days in florence and
    > three days in venice. are these lengths of time sufficient for each
    > city.
    >
    > i appreciate the help and the website address i can visit, relating to
    > these questions.
    >
    > thanks.

Dan Stephenson

I recommend getting Rick Steves' guidebooks on Rome, Florence, and
Venice. They should help you plan you stay. But, based on my own
travels to those places, I'd split Rome/Florence/Venice 5/4/2, not
6/2/3. There is just more to do in Florence, especially in terms of
art museums. There is one big one in Venice, but...<counting> at least
4 in Florence.

Lil

I went through the math for a package vs buying air and choosing my
own hotels. I came very close to buying an air and hotel package but
the hotels weren't necessarily in the nicest or quietest area or if
they were in the nice area, they were really expensive.

My only advice is go through the packages that you like, then compare
it with what you can come up with.

Good luck and happy planning!

Lil

(Bernie Mac) wrote in message news:<>...
    > hi, all
    >
    > i'm planning to vacation in rome, florence and venice. can anyone
    > recommend the following:
    >
    > 1) vacation package (or is it better to just buy a round trip airfare
    > and then book your own hotels, train rides, etc.)
    >
    > 2) which hotels/b&b's are recommended in each city? i'm looking for
    > quiet areas, away from the crowd congestion.
    >
    > 3) i'm planning to spend six days in rome, two days in florence and
    > three days in venice. are these lengths of time sufficient for each
    > city.
    >
    > i appreciate the help and the website address i can visit, relating to
    > these questions.
    >
    > thanks.

Frank F. Matthews

Given your very restricted time if you insist on 3 cities, I would spend
one more day in Florence and steal it from Venice. FFM

Bernie Mac wrote:

    > hi, all
    >
    > i'm planning to vacation in rome, florence and venice. can anyone
    > recommend the following:
    >
    > 1) vacation package (or is it better to just buy a round trip airfare
    > and then book your own hotels, train rides, etc.)
    >
    > 2) which hotels/b&b's are recommended in each city? i'm looking for
    > quiet areas, away from the crowd congestion.
    >
    > 3) i'm planning to spend six days in rome, two days in florence and
    > three days in venice. are these lengths of time sufficient for each
    > city.
    >
    > i appreciate the help and the website address i can visit, relating to
    > these questions.
    >
    > thanks.

Terryo

"Frank F. Matthews" <> wrote in message news:<evTib.29820$>...
    > Given your very restricted time if you insist on 3 cities, I would spend
    > one more day in Florence and steal it from Venice. FFM
    >
I disagree. Spend two intense days seeing the museums in Florence,
then three days sightseeing and exploring in Venice. If you feel you
need another day in Florence, I would steal it from Rome, but with
great regret....

    > > 1) vacation package (or is it better to just buy a round trip airfare
    > > and then book your own hotels, train rides, etc.)

I prefer to do it myself. I find it's usually cheaper, and you have
the fun of planning the trip. Also, you can usually find a better
hotel than the one a package will put you in. You also sometimes have
more flexibility with meals; packages sometimes include the evening
meal at the hotel, which means you pay double if you want to go out to
a restaurant.

    > > 2) which hotels/b&b's are recommended in each city? i'm looking for
    > > quiet areas, away from the crowd congestion.

In Rome, take a look at the Lancelot. It's about 2 blocks from the
Colosseum, on a very quiet street, away from the crowds, yet a
convenient walk to many sights, and close to the Colosseum subway
station for sights further away. Excellent breakfast buffet, helpful
staff. It has a website.

In Venice, try Pension Calcina. It's in Dorsoduro, on the Giudecca
canal, again away from the crowds, but convenient walk to many sights,
scenic location, helpful staff. It also has a website.

In Florence, it's hard to get away from the crowd congestion. Lots of
luck!

Ptravel

"Bernie Mac" <> wrote in message
news:...
    > hi, all
    > i'm planning to vacation in rome, florence and venice. can anyone
    > recommend the following:
    > 1) vacation package (or is it better to just buy a round trip airfare
    > and then book your own hotels, train rides, etc.)

Vacation packages tend to be mass-market items. I avoid them like plague.
We travel to Europe once or twice a year, and always book our own travel and
accomodation.


    > 2) which hotels/b&b's are recommended in each city? i'm looking for
    > quiet areas, away from the crowd congestion.

That's impossible to answer without knowing your budget. In Venice, we stay
at the Giorgione, which is in a relatively quiet area, off the C'a D'Oro
vaporetta stop. In Rome, we stay at the Grand Flora on the Via Venetto, but
that's because we use my Marriott frequent stay awards. I can't suggest
anything in Florence off the top of my head.

    > 3) i'm planning to spend six days in rome, two days in florence and
    > three days in venice. are these lengths of time sufficient for each
    > city.

Do you mean days or night, e.g. two full days in Florence would mean 3
nights? If two days means a single night, then, no, you're really not
allowing anywhere near enough time. Otherwise, this would be the absolute
bare minimum I'd allot to each city. Don't forget, too, that your arrival
and departure days are pretty well shot -- you'll be jet-lagged when your
arrive and won't be able to put in a full day. Assuming you're travelling
from North America (and my apologies if this assumption is wrong), most
Italy departures back to the U.S./Canada leave early in the morning, so you
lose your departure day as well. However, since the total number of days in
your trip add up to 11, plus 2 for arrival and departure, plus 1 for the day
lost in the flight over all add up to 14 days, I'm assuming you're planning
a two-week trip.

    > i appreciate the help and the website address i can visit, relating to
    > these questions.
    > thanks.

Ptravel

"Terryo" <> wrote in message
news:...
    > "Frank F. Matthews" <> wrote in message
news:<evTib.29820$>...
    > > Given your very restricted time if you insist on 3 cities, I would spend
    > > one more day in Florence and steal it from Venice. FFM
    > >
    > I disagree. Spend two intense days seeing the museums in Florence,
    > then three days sightseeing and exploring in Venice. If you feel you
    > need another day in Florence, I would steal it from Rome, but with
    > great regret....

I agree with you. One day in Venice is not enough to really experience the
"aesthetic" of the city.

    > > > 1) vacation package (or is it better to just buy a round trip airfare
    > > > and then book your own hotels, train rides, etc.)
    > I prefer to do it myself. I find it's usually cheaper, and you have
    > the fun of planning the trip. Also, you can usually find a better
    > hotel than the one a package will put you in. You also sometimes have
    > more flexibility with meals; packages sometimes include the evening
    > meal at the hotel, which means you pay double if you want to go out to
    > a restaurant.
    > > > 2) which hotels/b&b's are recommended in each city? i'm looking for
    > > > quiet areas, away from the crowd congestion.
    > In Rome, take a look at the Lancelot. It's about 2 blocks from the
    > Colosseum, on a very quiet street, away from the crowds, yet a
    > convenient walk to many sights, and close to the Colosseum subway
    > station for sights further away. Excellent breakfast buffet, helpful
    > staff. It has a website.
    > In Venice, try Pension Calcina. It's in Dorsoduro, on the Giudecca
    > canal, again away from the crowds, but convenient walk to many sights,
    > scenic location, helpful staff. It also has a website.
    > In Florence, it's hard to get away from the crowd congestion. Lots of
    > luck!

Ken Blake

In news:,
Bernie Mac <> typed:

    > i'm planning to vacation in rome, florence and venice. can
anyone
    > recommend the following:
    > 1) vacation package (or is it better to just buy a round trip
airfare
    > and then book your own hotels, train rides, etc.)


There's no answer to this question that's right for everyone. I
personally prefer to make all the plans myself, for three
principal reasons:

1. I want to set my own itinerary, not to have to go along with
that set up by the tour company.

2. I prefer centrally-located hotels; tour companies often give
you good, but less convenient hotels.

3. I enjoy the process of planning. For me, it makes the trip
start before I even get on the plane.


    > 2) which hotels/b&b's are recommended in each city? i'm
looking for
    > quiet areas, away from the crowd congestion.


There are many good choices. Besides everything else, it depends
on your budget, needs for private bathroods, etc.

That said, here are *my* choices:

Rome: Arenula
Florence: Casci
Venice: La Calcina


    > 3) i'm planning to spend six days in rome, two days in florence
and
    > three days in venice. are these lengths of time sufficient for
each
    > city.


It doesn't matter what number of days you put after each city,
the answer is no. No length of time is sufficient for each of
these cities, since there is a wealth of things to see and do,
and a lifetime isn't sufficient.

I've been in each of these three cities many times. The last time
I was in Venice, I spent a week there. Next week when I go to
Rome, I'll spend four weeks there. For me, six, two, and three
days are nowhere near enough, but your mileage may vary. If it
were me on a first trip and I could swing the time and expense,
I'd want at least a week in each city.

How long to stay in each depends on you, and what your interests
are. I recommend getting a decent guidebook and identifying the
things *you* want to see and do. The guidebook should give you
some idea of the length of time required for each site. Then add
them up. Don't forget to put in extra time for relaxing and for
getting around.

Ptravel

"Ken Blake" <> wrote in message
news:...
    > In news:,
    > Bernie Mac <> typed:
    > > i'm planning to vacation in rome, florence and venice. can
    > anyone
    > > recommend the following:
    > >
    > > 1) vacation package (or is it better to just buy a round trip
    > airfare
    > > and then book your own hotels, train rides, etc.)
    > There's no answer to this question that's right for everyone. I
    > personally prefer to make all the plans myself, for three
    > principal reasons:
    > 1. I want to set my own itinerary, not to have to go along with
    > that set up by the tour company.
    > 2. I prefer centrally-located hotels; tour companies often give
    > you good, but less convenient hotels.
    > 3. I enjoy the process of planning. For me, it makes the trip
    > start before I even get on the plane.

I agree with all your points, but I particularly like No. 3. You're
right -- part of the fun of the trip is the planning. We have two Europe
trips coming up within the next few months, one to Italy and one to Spain,
and our dinner-table conversation is all about which hotels, how to get from
city to city, what we want to see, shop for, etc.


    > > 2) which hotels/b&b's are recommended in each city? i'm
    > looking for
    > > quiet areas, away from the crowd congestion.
    > There are many good choices. Besides everything else, it depends
    > on your budget, needs for private bathroods, etc.
    > That said, here are *my* choices:
    > Rome: Arenula
    > Florence: Casci
    > Venice: La Calcina
    > > 3) i'm planning to spend six days in rome, two days in florence
    > and
    > > three days in venice. are these lengths of time sufficient for
    > each
    > > city.
    > It doesn't matter what number of days you put after each city,
    > the answer is no. No length of time is sufficient for each of
    > these cities, since there is a wealth of things to see and do,
    > and a lifetime isn't sufficient.
    > I've been in each of these three cities many times. The last time
    > I was in Venice, I spent a week there. Next week when I go to
    > Rome, I'll spend four weeks there. For me, six, two, and three
    > days are nowhere near enough, but your mileage may vary. If it
    > were me on a first trip and I could swing the time and expense,
    > I'd want at least a week in each city.
    > How long to stay in each depends on you, and what your interests
    > are. I recommend getting a decent guidebook and identifying the
    > things *you* want to see and do. The guidebook should give you
    > some idea of the length of time required for each site. Then add
    > them up. Don't forget to put in extra time for relaxing and for
    > getting around.
    > --
    > Ken Blake
    > Please reply to the newsgroup