In the beginning stages of planning a 3-week trip to Italy.

I have been some 24 years ago and spent the majority of a 10-day trip in Rome and Capri.

This trip we will be doing Rome again, Florence, Venice and the Amalfi Coast.

This trip will be with my bride and two adult sons. One which is a history fan as myself and the other more the foody as my wife.

We definitely have our must see and do's for each location but was more needing any tips on places of stays and travel suggestion's.

We will hire a travel agent to make all the arrangements but was just interested if any Texaggers have any suggestions or tips that I could provide to the agent. Also, any suggestions for an agent would be appreciated.

Any tips or insights would greatly be appreciated.

Thank you

I've booked clients with some amazing itineraries for Italy lately!

I'd love to help you out!
lauren@breezecustomtravel.com

My parents stayed here for their 40th. I've recommended it to others and everyone who has stayed loved it. It's on the Amalfi Coast. Adults only.

https://monasterosantarosa.com/

Book the cooking class at La Tagliatta in Positano
You won't regret it

If you have not hired a travel advisor I would love to assist you. I just came back from 18 days in Italy with time in Florence, Rome and the Amalfi Coast. My contact info is in my bio.

I also wanted to add some pictures from my time this summer in Italy .

Check your Pm

The cemetery is on the must visit list!

Thank and advice taken

I sent you a reply earlier this morning. Looking forward to hearing from you

The highlight of my trip was the wine tour out of Sienna with Donatella at Wine Tour in Tuscany.


https://www.winetourintuscany.com/

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g187902-d1528690-Reviews-Wine_Tour_in_Tuscany-Siena_Tuscany.html

https://www.instagram.com/winetourintuscany/?hl=en

I found a lady on TikTok (ItalyWithJenna) who I paid to put together a pretty detailed itinerary. She has suggestions for restaurants, tour guides, transfers, hotels, etc. all put into an app with maps, websites, etc. We set up a couple of Zoom meetings with her and talked about our trip preferences/thoughts.

For hotels, we have booked:

Venice: St. Regis
Florence: Savoy
Rome: Singer Palace
Positano: Le Sirenuse

I am now going through and booking transfers, tours, restaurants, etc. We don't go until the Spring, so some of the reservations aren't open yet. It's been fun to plan with her guidance.

No matter where you go, highly recommend golf cart tours. You get to see more and walk less on those cobblestone streets. They often make stops at certain sites, so check itineraries. We did them in both Rome and Florence. Encourage you to take the one up to Michelangelo square in Florence, great views of Florence from there.

Favorite restaurants in Florence: Lo Scudo by the duomo and Cento Poveri closer to Santa Maria Novella. If you eat at Cento Poveri, highly recommend you go one block over to see the Santa Maria Novella Pharmacy - beautiful historic building. The frescoes are gorgeous and the building is well preserved.

In Florence, the best gelato is at Edoardo at the duomo. We took a pizza/gelato class while in Florence and that was one of 4 gelaterias they recommended for quality gelato. It's fabulous.

Also, if interested in gold jewelry, go to Gold Corner on the duomo side of the river. Mostly 18 karat, prices much lower than at Ponte Vecchio. Best to pay in cash unless you don't mind getting money back at the airport.

Our favorite place for ceramic dishes, plates, etc in Florence is Ricceri Ceramica - via dei Conti, 14r. We've had items shipped twice and nothing comes in broken. He can make any item in any pattern, just tell him want you want.

We've stayed at Hotel Spadai and Hotel Calzaiuoli in Florence, both were good, but Calzaiuoli had larger rooms. More breakfast options at Spadai, but both worked for us.

If you do day trips from Florence, recommend Lucca. Can walk the walls and look down on the city. Stop by Caniparoli Cioccolateria for the best chocolate. We also like San Gimignano.

Highly recommend doing the underground tour at the Colosseum in Rome. Stayed at Palazzo Scanderbeg in Rome and would absolutely stay there again. It's near the Trevi Fountain. Klass restaurant is around the corner and was one of our faves.

Enjoy your trip.

Going back to to my favorite festival ever. The white truffle festival in Alba, Piemonte region. Then depart via Torino which is one of my favorite destinations.

For an outstanding immersion into Roman history, go visit Ostia while in Rome. It is a must-do in my opinion for anyone with at least a passing interest in history.

If you're a history buff you probably know Ostia as Rome's port city. It was silted over at some point, which preserved it very well. After being excavated, it is now a mostly intact entire Roman city, the likes of which simply don't exist elsewhere outside of Pompeii. Most buildings still have at least foundations and partial walls, and some still have roofs intact, along with mosaics, etc. You are allowed to just walk through most of it unimpeded. Definitely a highlight of our trip.

The Dolomites area is one of my favourite on the planet. Interesting blend of German and Italian culture (most people in that area identify as Tyrolian and not Italian and speak German as their primary language) and such a powerful landscape.

Headed there in two months...got any recs?

We booked a couple tours around Rome with Cristina Giannicchi, crisgiannicchi@gmail.com. She is very helpful and responsive. Even gave us a few suggestions on things to do on a later trip to other parts of Italy.
Highly recommend the hotel Casa de' Coronari. It is a small boutique hotel. Very friendly and helpful people that run the hotel. When we went back to Rome we stayed there again.

I was inquiring about the Dolomites, but I appreciate the suggestion in any case.

I was mainly going for photography, so I watched some of Mads Peter Iversen's videos for composition ideas and hikes to do.

The first church is St. Johann, which is easy to find, and it's very close to the path up to the viewpoint of the second church (Santa Magdalena).

Tre Cime is a great hike but probably the best hike in the area is Seceda, just make sure you know what time the chair lift stops running, that time of year you might have to walk down, which might not be too fun in the dark if you're going for sunset.

Lago di Braies was absolutely stunning as well and a super easy drive.



We stayed in Cortina d'Ampezzo and it was a good jumping off point for the rest of the region. Food-wise, you'll probably see more schnitzel joints than you will pasta shops, which I thought was surprising until I learned the history of the area.

Going to Florence, Rome, Bologna in late October. I'm reading older threads for ideas. We're booking nice but inexpensive hotels and going by train for the most part but haven't looked into any tours at any of the cities yet. There's so much to see it is almost overwhelming but we want a mix of art, history, and culture. Plus of course food, and I think we will be able to find things. I just don't know if we should pre book or if we can do it when we arrive.

Also, we'll be in Rome for the LSU game (common humble brag meme on the football board) Does the city really have sports bars open all hours or should I just get a glass of wine at the hotel and try to VPN stream it?

Try the Highlander Pub

https://maps.app.goo.gl/sfggrzEpKZcKJfMn6?g_st=com.google.maps.preview.copy


https://www.highlanderome.com/

FriscoAggieFan said:

---

Book the cooking class at La Tagliatta in Positano
You won't regret it

---

My wife and I did this a few weeks ago and I cannot echo this suggestion enough, one of the best times we've ever had. I will say, I'm not sure it's for every personality. Look at the videos on social media and make sure it's for you.