Now that fares have come down a bit, it's time for that topic. And I'll start it, as I'm the one with plans to go to Rome with my granddaughter in April.
We'll be going in May - Martina Franca, Santa Margherita Ligure, Lake Como and Venice followed by a trip on the Danube from Budapest to Nuremberg then over to Prague.
Fred
Posts: 300 | Location: Santa Barbara, CA | Registered: 19 November 2002
I am headed to Rome on March 7! I am traveling with my adult son and I am really looking forward to sharing my favorite city with him. We will be there for only ten days, but will have to spend two full days traveling each way. (Not exactly the travel time I like. In the summer I can get from Fairbanks to Rome in 9 hours.)
I'll be meeting Pokey in Florence and then we'll be based in Bologna (with side trips to Parma, Ravenna, Modena and perhaps Ferrera) for a week. Then I'm off to Rome by myself for 2 nights. Amazingly, one of the eves I'm in Rome, Context Rome is offering their after hours Vatican tour! I couldn't resist despite the steep price tag. You only live once.
You bet Jan! Though in Bologna we're part of a very small cooking tour and most of are meals are accounted for. Leave it to me and Mindy to angle our way around that if the restaurant choices aren't stellar.
Our son has not been back to Italy for several years, so we are really looking forward to visiting again with him. This is also our first trip to the Piemonte area.
Sharon J
Posts: 1145 | Location: Houston, TX USA | Registered: 01 November 2003
We ate at Trattoria al Tribunale and thoroughly enjoyed our meal. No English was spoken; menu is on chalk board and spoken to you by server. One of us did have a slight problem, he ordered seasonal vegetable and it turned out to be a salad...at the end of October no less. Maybe in Parma they don't say insalata. We are very particular where we eat; trying not to go to "touristy" places. As we were roaming the sides streets looking at menus and into restaurants, I saw some older Italian ladies walk into this restaurant. We followed them inside and were not disappointed.
About 6 months later I was reading "Playing for Pizza" and read that they ate here after winning a big game.
For my DH 60th I was "generous" enough to give us a two week trip to Benvenuto Brunello. Leaving Feb 11th and return Feb 12th.... staying in our home town of Radda.
We'll be back for 5 weeks and then back for one month. Two weeks in Radda, one with customers on a wine food tour near Cortona and then one week inside the walls of Siena.
Husband and I are taking our first trip to Italy, after having planned several trips, only to have them canceled for various reasons. It just wasn't meant to be. Hopefully, third time's a charm
We have 12 nights and have decided to start off with Rome for six, (April 18-23), and the next 5 in Florence (April 24-28). Last night near the Rome airport. Just concentrating on these two cities for our first trip. We're hoping it will be the first of many trips.
I'm in the throes of planning and while it's fun, it can be daunting, too. Trying not to pack too much into our days (it's so tempting) so that we can really enjoy the atmosphere.
So far we've booked a Scavi tour and an after hours tour of the Sistine Chapel (April 22nd) with Context. I think I'm looking forward to that more than anything else.
Posts: 29 | Location: Colorado | Registered: 06 August 2008
My 25 year old daughter and I are going to Rome this spring - April 25-May 2. I went to college in Florence many years ago and she attended John Cabot University in Rome in 2005. My husband, son and I spent 3 weeks in Italy while she was there, and none of us have been back since. My husband and son are going to Africa for his college graduation gift, so my daughter and I decided it would be fun for us to spend a week in Rome. We are flying Iberia Air and staying in one of the Residenza Giubbonari apartments. We are so excited!!
We're headed over in May, with a few days in Rome, a few days in the Assisi area, a few days in Montepulciano, a few days in Siena, some time in Florence/Lucca, and a couple of days in CT.
This is to primarily a laid back "hill town" tour with no set agenda. A week in an agriturismo, rest of the time in hotels.
________________ When life gives you lemons, make limoncello.
Does June count as spring? We'll be there for most of June in Lucca and Sestri Levante with a few side trips. We are still considering leaving a little early to visit a friend in Rome.
If June counts as spring, then add me to the list. We start with a week in Emilia Romagna, then a week in Bagni di Lucca and environs, and a week outside of Pienza, ending with a few days in Florence.
Counting the days already.
Judy
Posts: 3924 | Location: Berkeley, CA | Registered: 22 March 2005
I will be in Italy with my husband from May 14th to June 1st.
First 2 nights in Milan, then we are driving down to our rental villa (Infinito) outside Sinalunga in Tuscany. Back up to Lake Como on the 23rd for a couple of nights with my mother-in-law and brother-in-law and a few other friends.
On the 25th, Greg and I are heading to Piemonte (Villa Sampaguita) til May 31st. Our last night in Italy will be in a hotel near Malpensa, so that we can make our flight home on the 1st.
Tery
Posts: 253 | Location: Mission Viejo, CA, USA | Registered: 18 May 2003
Originally posted by Gaia: I will be in Italy with my husband from May 14th to June 1st.
First 2 nights in Milan, then we are driving down to our rental villa (Infinito) outside Sinalunga in Tuscany. Back up to Lake Como on the 23rd for a couple of nights with my mother-in-law and brother-in-law and a few other friends.
On the 25th, Greg and I are heading to Piemonte (Villa Sampaguita) til May 31st. Our last night in Italy will be in a hotel near Malpensa, so that we can make our flight home on the 1st.
Tery
I live 15 mins from Sinalunga,in a village called Montisi. Its a good location for visiting charming little hilltowns. -
My wife and I are heading for Italy on April 21. We will stay on the Amalfi Coast for 3 nights. We then will rent a car in Sorrento and drive to Southern Umbria for a week.
My husband and I will be going over the last three weeks in May. We are still in the very early planning stages so I am not sure where we will be. It is really hard to decide because I want to see new places that we have not explored yet but I feel sad to leave out the places we've been and love so much.
My husband has some business in Parma so that seems like a logical choice. I am also thinking about the Maremma area of Tuscany for a second week and then who knows.
It is really hard to decide because I want to see new places that we have not explored yet but I feel sad to leave out the places we've been and love so much.
Since we're counting June as spring -- yay -- add me to the list as well! The spend the first two weeks in Emilia-Romagna, then back to Umbria for a final week (since I find I can't do without Umbria.)
Pokey and Colleenk, I'll be anxiously watching for your reports from Bologna! I'm thinking of a week there, with the second week split between Parma and Ferrara. With side trips to Ravenna and Padua.
We will be renting an apartment in Trastevere for a week on Apr 28th and are sure looking forward to spring flowers in full bloom, great food, wine overflowing (well almost)... and gelato rich and creamy as savored in the past....
We'll be in Italy from April 10 - 25. First week in Tuscany, with 3 nights in Florence followed by 5 nights in Cortona. We'll be sharing this time with BIL/SIL who are meeting us there from Israel.
The second week we'll be on our own, in Umbria, staying in the town of Spello.
Originally posted by Elizabeth Cochrane: I live 15 mins from Sinalunga,in a village called Montisi. Its a good location for visiting charming little hilltowns. -
Yes, Sinalunga is a great location for visiting all the neighboring hilltowns. This will be our 3rd time renting the same villa there (Infinito). It's about 5 km west of Sinalunga.
I haven't been to Montisi yet. I'll have to try and visit it while I am in the area this May.
Tery
Posts: 253 | Location: Mission Viejo, CA, USA | Registered: 18 May 2003
I'll be in Italy from May 8 to June 1, following the Giro d'Italia bike race.
I've done bike trips during the Giro for the past four years, but this will be the first time I've been there for the entire three weeks of the race. I'm very excited to see some parts of Italy that will be new to me, including the Abruzzo region and Napoli. We even get to ride our bikes up Vesuvius!
Posts: 20 | Location: Minnesota | Registered: 19 January 2009
All of your trips sound great. We will be in Italy and Croatia for most of May, starting in Peidmont, then Parma/Modena area, Venice, Istria, and Zagreb.
I need to get busy and finish planning the trip, time seems to be flying by.
Hi Kim, here's some more info on my Giro d'Italia trips.
I always go with an organized tour group for the last ten days or so of the race. I've gone with two different tour operators, one British and one Australian, both of which specialize in trips to bike races like the Giro and the Tour de France. For a bike trip that covers a lot of ground, it's a lot easier to use a tour operator with a bus and a trailer for the bikes. Also, I love meeting cycling and bike racing enthusiasts from around the world on these tours. Usually, the Giro starts in southern Italy and finishes in Milan, so my previous trips during the last half of the race have covered the Dolomites, the Alps, and the lake district. This year, in honor of the centenary of the first Giro d'Italia in 1909, they're doing a special upside-down route, starting in Venice and finishing in Rome. The organized tour I'm doing this year starts in Tuscany, then goes to Abruzzo, Naples, and Rome.
I like to use all of my (meager) vacation time in Italy, so I usually add on a week or so of independent travel before the organized tour. For example, two years ago, a group of friends and I did a week of mountain biking in Finale Ligure, and the year before that, we did a week of road cycling around Riccione, both times staying in "bike hotels." This year, for the first time, I'll actually be following the first week of the Giro independently (with my goddaughter), starting in Venice, then going to San Martino di Castrozza and Castelrotto for the two stage finishes in the Dolomites, and then on to Bergamo for three nights. I'll be writing reports about my experiences at the Giro for a cycling website, which I've been doing for the past two years.
Posts: 20 | Location: Minnesota | Registered: 19 January 2009
It makes me sooooo VERY happy to hear that folks are still traveling even in these challenging economic times. It refutes the "fear factor" that so many folks have taken on.........GO, GO, Go!
May 5-21 I will return to Assisi and walk the trails of St. Francis, and discover all the small towns surrounding this beautiful city. I have been running 5 miles a day to prepare. I'm looking forward to the vistas, the people and the spirit that permiates one's soul when in Italy.
Buon Viaggio a tutti!
St. Monica
Posts: 138 | Location: Laguna Niguel California | Registered: 08 August 2007
I'll be in Italy from February 25 until April 24. I'll visit Rome, Florence (2 weeks), Riomaggiore, Venice (4 blissful weeks), then Zagarolo for the last 6 nights. Yummy. This time, I'm packing a pedometer!!!
Posts: 315 | Location: Queensland Australia | Registered: 25 December 2007
I leave April 16 for a week in Turin, then four days at Lago Maggiore (Stresa) and finish with three days in Milan. First time to Turin and the first time to stay in Stresa.
Posts: 217 | Location: Alexandria, Virginia | Registered: 09 May 2005
this "Pokey-pig" is going! This will be my first time to Italy in the springtime. Florence and Bologna (with day trips to Ravenna and Modena). 
(Not exactly the travel time I like. In the summer I can get from Fairbanks to Rome in 9 hours.)
Hard work, I know 
