Spend all 10 days in Florence with a day trip to Tuscany.
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Different strokesā¦I enjoyed the museums and food in Florence but definitely a one and done. Most commercial of all the European cities Iāve been to. I donāt want to see every US chain store when I leave the US.
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Spend all 10 days in Tuscany with a day trip to Florence!
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I have been to Florence many times. Last week D2 and I were there for 3 days on our way to a house in Umbria. We didnāt do any shopping in Florence except for a visit to a designer outlet outside of Florence. We went to the Central Market, Uffizi museum, over few bridges and had many great meals. We stayed at a different part of town this time (closer to the train station) and nit as close to the river. It was a different experience.
We have been exploring different small towns in Umbria while staying in a villa. Today we are going to our last stop - Rome.
I want to add that train is a great way of getting around Italy. Itās inexpensive and efficient if you are going to major cities. A car is needed if you are staying at a small town.
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We stayed near the river, there were mosquitoes, thatās something to be aware of. But we both enjoyed Florence and Rome, been to each city twice. Almost didnāt want to go into Vatican until the manager of our hotel said to go while weāre there, so we did.
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If you want leather anything the place to go is Florence. Son just bought an absolutely gorgeous leather bag for travel for 200 bucks. He did some resarch to find the place.
Visit Siena while thereāwell worth the visit. Probably one of my favorite places.
If you havenāt been to Rome then you need to. Visit the Colosseum, Forum, Vaticanātake a tour and youāll skip long lines and learn a lot more. Well worth going.
Lake Como and Bellagio are absolutely beautiful.
I really enjoyed Venice. Definitely the Doges Palace. Take a gondola ride. But if you are short on time I might skip it.
French Alps are beautiful but the winding roads in the car about did me inānot returning.
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I was surprised how much we saw of Rome in a cruise shore excursion (which involved a 90? minute bus ride each way). It really helped to have the tour guide and bus. But of course we saw even more going back a few years later with the grown kids. Loved renting an apartment near Plaza Navona - did a few repeat visit and lots of new stuff too.
Two other shore excursion days, also with long bus rides, enabled us to see Pompei/Sorrento and Florence. The shore excursion days were pricey splurges - in 2012 over $200/day each, with fabulous lunches. But they were fantastic way to see things on our Europe sampler cruise (Western Med).
On the 2015 trip with kids, we took the train to Venice and spent a night there. In May it was much cooler and less crowded than when our son had been there on a high school music trip in July. Then we took the overnight train to Munich.
What weād really like to do someday is spend more time in Florence (rental apartments seem reasonable, especially away from the core tourist areas) and the more rural areas - Tuscany etc.
PS - The advice from Rick Steves travel books on both of our trips was extemely helpful.
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We rent an apartment within walking distance to the Duomo in Florence, had coffee at my favorite Italian pastry and gelato place everyday. We knew itās good, I think they only took cash and the locals went there. And another place where they had head cheese, so rich, the only time I made an exception of drinking something with my food. Itās obvious, Iām a foodie, not the hiking type when I travel, lol.
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Lots of recommendations hereāIāll just add one for Venice (I went there as an add-on to vacation time in Slovakia/Croatia). If you are interested in art glass, you need to visit Murano (just north of Venice). The Glass Museum there is amazing. Dale Chihuly (a famous American glass artist) studied with glass masters in Venice and brought several of these masters to teach at his Pilchuck School in Washington state.
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Been following this thread, as H and I are planning a trip to Italy for either spring or fall 2023. The areas we are most interested in seeing are Tuscany and Amalfi coast. is it ridiculous to go to Italy and possibly only see one major city (Florence)? We do like cities well enough (me more than H, honestly), but the things that intrigue us most about Italy (food, wine, natural beauty, beaches, light hiking) are leading us to these two areas.
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Iāve done Italy both ways. I did a forced-march tour that took me to Rome, Pompeii, Pisa, Florence and other places. The second time we stayed in Florence the whole time, with a day tour to Tuscany. Iām glad Iāve done both. I fear without the forced march I wouldnāt have gone to all the places we did. But my favorite of the two was staying in a neighborhood in Florence for more than a week and doing that one city really well. No rushing around and lots of time to see everything we wanted to see. So much good food away from the tourist spots plus neighborhood parks with great views. We learned the bus system and walked so many places. Never used a car, though we were invited to an amazing dinner at a friendās friendās villa so had to taxi there.
Maybe I travel differently. We went to Disneyland when the kids were little for one day. I know people who spend a week there! But we said what is the ONE thing each of us really wants to see and we did those and then everything else was icing. I like not rushing around so thatās why my vote is doing one thing well. However, if you are never going to get back to Italy I could see doing a few days in Florence and then a few days in Rome.
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I love Italy, France and Spain. So much fun travel but do yourself a huge favor and read up on pickpockets and how to protect yourself from them. Itās a way of life in some of the best cities you want to travel to. Good reason to pack light and wear a waist belt at all times.
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If someone tries to rob you by creating a diversion (with or without small children be alert).
Ladies, raise your purse quickly above your heads and walk to an area where there are more people. Never use a waist belt, they will know exactly where your money ( and passport are). Carrying a larger bag that can be slung across the shoulder and zipped is useful. So are sandals with a wooden heel. Use them to hit someone on the shoulder who is trying to steal you bag. Has worked for me multiple times. I even have a favorite pair of sandals for this reason. And watch yourself by the Trevi fountain, other sites with lots of people and crowds.
Also never use a backpack. Thieves love those. And donāt carry a small shoulder bag where someone on a Vespa can ride by and snatch it ( Sicily).
You can also carry a small sling with just passport, credit card and some cash and stash inside your shirt. My husband never carries a wallet. Most European men have a money clip.
Many have tried to rob me in Italy but none have been successful.
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I think the hill towns of Tuscany and Umbria are wonderful. We loved Cortona, Siena, Montepulciano, Assisi etc. Also though much further away, San Marino was great.
We rented a car and stayed outside Florence then took the train in when we wanted to see the city itself. The Ligurian coast (Portofino, Cinque Terre) are an alternative to Amalfi and are much closer to Florence.
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I do mean a waist belt worn UNDER your clothes vs a fanny pack that is just around your waist.
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Sorry, I misunderstood.
We got robbed in Southern France in 2019. Our three brand new backpacks were stolen from the trunk of the car in the first week of a month-long trip. While transfering from one charming village to another, we decided to take a hike, parked the car at the trail head which had a big parking lot with lots of cars. When we came back, the trunk was closed but out luggage wasnāt in it. Luckily, we always keep the moneys, passports and cell phones with us. We ended up going to their REI in Aix-de-Provence and the local Decathlon and buying everything again. The worst part was that my sonās supply of contact lenses and his spare pair of glasses were in the backpack, everything else was easy to restore (but not cheap).
Later the locals told us that there are gangs that hide around and they can intercept the code to the trunk when you close it with a remote control. Itās either that, or my H forgot to lock the car - we wil never know for sure. But the trunk was closed when we left.
As a side note, this is also when we discovered that we carry way to much luggage and can travel with half the things we usually bring
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I agree with others about being vigilant with your belongings. Iāve been safely traveling for 30 years but was the victim of a pickpocketer on the train in Rome. They got most of our money and green cards which made it very difficult and expensive to enter the US to come home.
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I just returned from Italy - both my brother and my daughter were pickpocketed (separately) on previous visits. I purchased a Travelon purse that has several anti-theft features and managed to avoid any theft.
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I purchased an anti-theft bag from AAA before our trip. I like it so much Iāll use it for every day.
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