O/T Rome

[aflo]

Anybody visit Rome or live there? Visiting in May for 7 days, also going Venice for 2 days. Any places you fellas recommend visiting sight seeing wise? Food wise? Activity wise? We planned the typical colosseum, Vatican, gondola ride etc.. Any further suggestions?

 

[01dragonslayer]

My wife and I were there about 7yrs ago. Your gonna eat yourself to death....the food is absolutely the best in the world due to the fact that EVERYTHING is made fresh. Nothing is processed and it hasn't been sitting around in a cooler for 2wks.

Most beautiful place to go is the Amalfi Coast....just south of Naples. Best towns on the coast were Sorrento and Positano.

Venice was OK. The city itself is unique and cool but it is very dirty.

Also went to Pisa...go just to see the tower...other than that its too touristy.

Also went to Florence and the Tuscany region. Assisi was very cool....people there were extremely friendly....and a small town near Assisi called Spello.

Also be very aware of gypsies...they are very good at picking pockets....they are gone before you knew they were there.

Gelato is heaven....the best ice cream you will ever have.

We would ABSOLUTELY go back again....we are planning on it.

 

[Elvia1023]

My wife and I were there about 7yrs ago. Your gonna eat yourself to death....the food is absolutely the best in the world due to the fact that EVERYTHING is made fresh. Nothing is processed and it hasn't been sitting around in a cooler for 2wks.

Most beautiful place to go is the Amalfi Coast....just south of Naples. Best towns on the coast were Sorrento and Positano.

Venice was OK. The city itself is unique and cool but it is very dirty.

Also went to Pisa...go just to see the tower...other than that its too touristy.

Also went to Florence and the Tuscany region. Assisi was very cool....people there were extremely friendly....and a small town near Assisi called Spello.

Also be very aware of gypsies...they are very good at picking pockets....they are gone before you knew they were there.

Gelato is heaven....the best ice cream you will ever have.

We would ABSOLUTELY go back again....we are planning on it.

Great info. I may book a weekend away to Italy later in the year. I was thinking Ireland but now it will probably be Italy.

 

[01dragonslayer]

Great info. I may book a weekend away to Italy later in the year. I was thinking Ireland but now it will probably be Italy.

IMO you gotta go for just longer than the weekend. You can spend a week in Rome and still not see everything.

We were there for 2wks and would have stayed longer but....ya know...we all have that annoying thing we gotta do...called 'work'....lol. Just kidding...we loved our stay over there.

We have been to Europe on four different occasions but my wife and I both agree that Italy was our favorite by far.

Exchange rate at the time was $1.00USD = appr. 0.6EURO. Not sure what it is now.

 

[GreenEarth]

I actually just came back from Italy about a month ago...rented an apartment in Rome for a week and took a few trips via TrenItalia to see other towns in the country.

Most of what dragonslayer is saying is true...especially about the food (look up the best gelato places and hit at least one every day ), but I actually disagree about not being able to see Rome in a week. I spent the first 3 days walking around Rome and easily saw everything within the city limits...assuming you're in decent cardiovascular shape, it's a very walkable city and IMO I could have seen it in 2 days if I wasn't trying to relax and take it in along the way.

It all depends on personal preference, but I actually wish I would have gotten a place somewhere in the Italian countryside and commuted into Rome one or two days. Rome was easily my least favorite part of Italy, mainly for the inhabitants of the city. Everyone I met in the Italian countryside and small towns were extremely friendly and very welcoming/helpful, but the people in Rome...it just seemed they couldn't be bothered. Their attitudes and general disposition really left a sour taste in my mouth.

I second Assisi...I spent one day there. About a mile outside of Assisi there's a winery called Azienda Agraria SAIO that I stopped into and had a wine tasting at. Excellent wine and a very cool/friendly atmosphere, if you spend and entire day in Assisi you'll have more than enough time to check it out.

 

[Pekkerwood]

My fifteen year GF is from Rome. I spend between 3 and 6 weeks a year there. Going with some friends from US in early June. I have an absolute crapload of "insider" info, however, Italy is one of those places, and Roma in particular that Rick Steves is as good as it gets. I can help you the second or third time you visit when you have more time, more money, and have already done the "must haves".

The only thing I would do differently on a short visit is delete Venice and add the Amalfi Coast. I actually booked a sailboat for 5 days this weekend as I have already done it a couple times on land. Pompeii, Sorrento, Positano, Amalfi, Capri... These are so much better for me than Venice and so much closer (2.5 hours) or so. Feel free to pm me.

PWood

 

[love2build1]

My wife and I have gone every year since we got married (had our honeymoon there) so been 6 times. Last year did a run around of italy (milan, rome, Florence, Naples, Pompeii, Venice). Shoot me a PM, we've got it down to a science by now. You'll have a blast - and 2 days in Venice is more than enough.

 

[aflo]

All great ideas!! I looked up the weather for May and it looks like 70s and 80s! Sounds perfect? Should I bring a jacket? Amalfi sounds amazing!

 

[Elvia1023]

IMO you gotta go for just longer than the weekend. You can spend a week in Rome and still not see everything.

We were there for 2wks and would have stayed longer but....ya know...we all have that annoying thing we gotta do...called 'work'....lol. Just kidding...we loved our stay over there.

We have been to Europe on four different occasions but my wife and I both agree that Italy was our favorite by far.

Exchange rate at the time was $1.00USD = appr. 0.6EURO. Not sure what it is now.

Thanks for the info. I know I haven't been but I don't think I would need more than 1 week there to see most things (from what I have heard). Please note I live next to Italy now so it makes things completely different for me. If I were travelling from the US there is no way I would just go for the w/e... would be horrible going back after a few days. The flight time for me is 90 mins and it would probably cost me $100 return per person. If I were coming from the US I would want to visit a few places over at least 1 week. Where else in Europe have you been?

 

[Elvia1023]

IMO you gotta go for just longer than the weekend. You can spend a week in Rome and still not see everything.

We were there for 2wks and would have stayed longer but....ya know...we all have that annoying thing we gotta do...called 'work'....lol. Just kidding...we loved our stay over there.

We have been to Europe on four different occasions but my wife and I both agree that Italy was our favorite by far.

Exchange rate at the time was $1.00USD = appr. 0.6EURO. Not sure what it is now.

I forgot to add the excahnge rate now is $1 = 0.88Euro so much better for you guys now. Although I am not sure what you would get if exchanging money in the US but still much better.

 

[01dragonslayer]

Thanks for the info. I know I haven't been but I don't think I would need more than 1 week there to see most things (from what I have heard). Please note I live next to Italy now so it makes things completely different for me. If I were travelling from the US there is no way I would just go for the w/e... would be horrible going back after a few days. The flight time for me is 90 mins and it would probably cost me $100 return per person. If I were coming from the US I would want to visit a few places over at least 1 week. Where else in Europe have you been?

Ahhhh.....thats cool. It would be just like a backyard trip for you guys then, Regardless how long you stay you will definately enjoy it.

If you don't mind me asking....where do you live now?

 

[Elvia1023]

Ahhhh.....thats cool. It would be just like a backyard trip for you guys then, Regardless how long you stay you will definately enjoy it.

If you don't mind me asking....where do you live now?

I live in Geneva Switzerland.

 

[Phidias]

I spent a whole summer in Rome a few years ago (had rented a flat Piazza di Cinecittà for the occasion... very conveniently located though not the best/most historic area), and have often returned to various parts of Italy since then, for my gf is native from Sicily.

I can't even begin to tell you how much I love this country... Huge difference between north and south in terms of economic development, but every region has to be seen for they are so different from one another. Toscana is definitely my place of choice, with cities like Sienna or Firenze whose beauty can't be beaten IMHO.

 

[01dragonslayer]

I live in Geneva Switzerland.

Thats another place my wife and I would love to visit.

 

[Pekkerwood]

All great ideas!! I looked up the weather for May and it looks like 70s and 80s! Sounds perfect? Should I bring a jacket? Amalfi sounds amazing!

May is the perfect time to go. Next? September. Not quite as crowded, not yet a sauna. The temps are more pleasant as it is just starting to heat up. You can get a bit of a cool breeze at night. I bring a light jacket but never really need it. It is warm but not August warm. My favorite trip is last two weeks of May and first week of June. The one downside is if you are traveling to Pulia or around the Adriatic the beach towns are not really open until June. BTW the beach culture in Roma is strong. I had no idea until I started going there. there are stretches that are general public, stretches that are Rasta, Stretches that are "alternative" etc.

If you were staying longer or had been there before I would recommend a day trip up in the higher elevations past the Popes summer hangout.

 

[Elvia1023]

Thats another place my wife and I would love to visit.

You would love it. It's an amazing and beautiful place. Definitely just a long weekend destination though.

 

[Pekkerwood]

I spent a whole summer in Rome a few years ago (had rented a flat Piazza di Cinecittà for the occasion... very conveniently located though not the best/most historic area), and have often returned to various parts of Italy since then, for my gf is native from Sicily.

I can't even begin to tell you how much I love this country... Huge difference between north and south in terms of economic development, but every region has to be seen for they are so different from one another. Toscana is definitely my place of choice, with cities like Sienna or Firenze whose beauty can't be beaten IMHO.

Phidias:

You want to get beat up? Tell your wife she does not speak Italian, she speaks Sicilian! Duck!

 

[alfresco]

my 0.02 cents worth

Lots of great info here. Peckerwood and Phidias are the go to guys who have forgotten
more than I know about Roma, but my wife and I have been there many times
(never had more time than a week . . . other sights to see) but we love love Roma.

There is so much to see and do I think it helps to have some sort of plan, things to
see and do, at least for a few days and then again if is great fun just to wander
around and be surprised. Shoulder seasons are best, fewer people and better
weather.

Where to start? A good ‘guide’ book is helpful as is hiring a good licensed guide
(we had one, a friend of mine who lives and works in Roma) who can get you
to the head of the line and get you in places you could not otherwise go. And
they are very well informed, having to have passed a test to do what they do.

We have always stayed at the Hotel Manfredi on Via Margutta, a very artsy
fartsy beautiful cobblestone street. Fellini lived there as well as other well
known artists. Very conveniently located, walking, subway, bus, etc . . .

https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=hotel+manfredi

I am spending tomorrow with a friend who returned from Roma six months
ago (after having lived there for many years, and not to disappoint you,
he says the city has really changed (as all cities do) for the worse. . . but
the graffiti, the litter, the city just not being clean (like Paris) was far worse
than he remembered. Very sad. But still worth visiting by all means . . . the
art, culture, food, people, history, fashion, bla, bla, bla . . . all still world class.

Anyway . . . have a great time and I hope you get to get to do and see
everything you want. We will be going back again. It is that good. (Many
fotos of mine from Roma are on Getty Images.) It is a magical place. Enjoy.

 

[GreenEarth]

Thats another place my wife and I would love to visit.

Start saving your pennies!!! Lol...Switzerland is so pricey, but a beautiful area and worth the price of admission.

I forgot to add the excahnge rate now is $1 = 0.88Euro so much better for you guys now. Although I am not sure what you would get if exchanging money in the US but still much better.

Yes! I cannot begin to tell you how incredible it was to use ATMs in Rome to get Euros, and check my bank account and see that the upcharge was hardly significant. Last time I was in a country that was on the Euro was in 2007, and the exchange rate was painful!