My first time on your board...here goes!

I will be travelling to Florence the first week in July with my two teenage daughters plus my friend and her two teenage daughters. Each of our families will have spent the two prior weeks travelling in France separately. I have travelled quite a bit in the past, but neither my friend nor any of the girls has been to Europe or taken as long of a trip as we are planning.

My question: we would like to visit Florence, but stay outside of town for the sun and air and to let the girls lounge around a bit, too. We can stay either at the Villa Fiesole in Fiesole (2 triple rooms, including breakfast) or at the Relais Villa l'Olmo in Imprenuta (1 2 BR apartment + 1 1BR apartment, breakfast and A/C extra). Prices are just about the same, =/- a few euros. I'm concerned that that the public bus trip in and out of Imprenuta will be long and the transport irregular. Nothing worse than crabby teenagers waiting for a bus! Anybody with experience at either of these locations?

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Bertie,

Yes, both and Fiesole wins hands down as a location without your own car!
I take it you mean Impruneta?
Wendy

Thanks, Wendy, both for the rec's and for the letter correction (oops!) I'm trying to pull this trip together so quickly that I'm not paying attention!

My friend and I have recently had second thoughts about staying outside the city at all. We're thinking it may be more convenient to stay in town so that we can freshen up at the end of a day of touring, but still hit a few more spots (dinner? entertainment? gelato?) in the evening. Again, we're thinking about those teenage psyches...

Any thoughts?

Bertie, I agree with staying in town, for all the reasons you give in your second post. OK, it will be a bit hotter than up in Fiesole - but the centre of the city is all very walkable, the kids will be able to go out by themselves (if they're old enough), there will be no transport hassles.

The first time I went to Florence was with our then 18-yr-old son & girlfriend; we stayed in an apartment near S Croce, and it all worked out very well for us, both independebtly and together.

Jonathan

quote:

independebtly

I take it you mean everyone paid his own bill?

Fiesole!!!
there are often summer concerts... there is an amphitheater in fiesole... and most Florentines go there to stay cool.

I think the bus runs to about midnight back up to Fiesole too!

Well, there's support for both options, town or outskirts.

A new wrinkle in our planning: My friend and travelling companion found a great deal on a new-ish in-town hotel, the San Gallo Palace in the Piazza Liberta. In fact, it's so great that it's hard to pass up. Big glitch: I'm travelling with two daughters, and the only room available is a double, with no guarantee of a cot or rollaway. The kids would get the bed, and I would have to try to figure something else out, like a blow-up mattress?

I'd love to save the money (to spend on shoes later, of course), but am I properly trading the fresh air and ease of Fiesole for the convenience of town, albeit without certain creature comforts.

Would love to have someone else obsess over this with me...any takers?

I vote 100% for villa fiesole. The air is cooler up there, and best of all, it has a POOL. So, your teenagers can laze there if they are sick of museums. Also from there, they can walk up to town to hang out -- that's where a lot of locals go -- or walk down to the pizzeria in san domenico, also frequented by a youngish crowd.

I noticed that hotel in piazza liberta, and although it is new and hence has thick windows, I would worry that it is very loud. That is a highly trafficked piazza, and really not all that advantageously located, in that it is still a major hike, or a bus ride, from the actual centro.

San Gallo as a sort of hospital clinic now turned hotel.. It doens't appeal to me at all..if I am going to be in Florence I would want to be in the heart of things where you could let the girls walk around.. San Gallo is on the other side of the Viale... a busy road... in a residential area...

Also, Fiesole is not like a tiny hamlet in the middle of nowhere. it's a largish community, that, while retaining some village feeling, can offer lots of things to do in the evening, although not of the clubbing sort. There are restaurants and gelato places, one cinema... Well, no nightlife: the girls would enjoy more the city, you may enjoy more Fiesole.

I think it might depend on how well you all tolerate heat and humidity. There are certaintly pluses to the cooler air and a pool if you're a wimp like me in the humidity. However, my teenagers loved the hustle and bustle of Florence in the evening.

As much as I am a BIG fan of Fiesole, I think your teens would probably like to be in the middle of Florence. There is much, much more to do there in the evenings than in Fiesole. I personally love Fiesole and would rather stay there and bus it into the city but I'm not a teen any longer and love to go back to a charming hilltown and the nice fresh, cool air after a long day in Florence.

How old are your teens? If you chose to stay in Fiesole, would you be comfortable letting them go back and forth into Florence on the bus by themselves? I think the bus only takes 15-20 minutes and runs into the evening.

I do have one suggestion. When we were away this past year, we had a cell phone for us and one for the kids. We felt very comfortable ocassionally leaving them on their own (after a few days getting to know the lay of the land) and touching base every hour or so. This worked out very, very well and we never had a moment of worry.

Thanks to all for your responses. My "teens" are on the younger side, although they don't think so...sixteen and thirteen. I'm not comfortable with letting them go in to the city by themselves at night, but I'm a night owl, so they'll always have company for a late run into town if they have the stamina to keep up with me!

We only have one phone that accepts a SIM card, but I had been thinking of walkie-talkies for everyone (we're traveling with another female threesome). Has anyone had any experience with these overseas? Would it make any difference where they were used, Europe or stateside?

In my mind, there would be no question but to buy two cell phones in Italy for the girls. For less than $100 for each you will be comfortable just in case they are out of your sight or voice for a time, which is inevitable as you tour around.

There have been endless and useful discussions about about buying and using cell phones in Italy. Just do a quick search and you will see what I mean.

Peter

Yes, I've seen many of the postings about cell phones. As a non-tech person, it seems daunting. That's why I was thinking of the walkie-talkie system.

On the subject of the phones, we'll be in Paris for the two weeks prior to our visit to Italy. Can we buy a single set of phones and then change the SIM cards? Where would we get the new cards?

quote:

On the subject of the phones, we'll be in Paris for the two weeks prior to our visit to Italy. Can we buy a single set of phones and then change the SIM cards? Where would we get the new cards?

I don't understand what you mean by "a single set of phones". You should have three phones--one for you and one each for the other pair of teens that will work in France and Italy.

I believe you would need a SIM card for France and SIM card for Italy. The unlocked, three frequency phones will be ok in either country. You can buy all the necessary equipment, SIM cards and time here but it would be much more expensive than buying in Europe. I am willing to bet that the Concierge at you hotel will be able to help you clarify the fog. And, I bet the teens would know exactly what to do .

Peter

I would go for the cell phones vs. the walkie talkies because you may get out of range for the walkie talkies. They will feel very much a part of life in Italy where everyone and I mean everyone has a "telefonino". And definately the kids would know how to use them...no doubt about that!

Ok...Four teenage girls...and two Moms...
Hmmm...
Fiesole with the pool all the way!
Best of all worlds: A place for you to "SPREAD OUT" in a controlled enviornment, with superb day trips available.
We did this,years ago(we are now Grandparents)and my own Parents took me to Europe as a teenager back in the 70's. So, we know about travelling with teenagers. Help them "OWN" the trip by having them participate in the planning.Show them the guidebooks and have dinners and discuss....
But, ultimately ,it is the leader of the trip who has to plan...especially in this case.
I recommend Fiesole with day trips to Firenze.
Philip

The kids already have telefoninos here without which they consider themselves undressed!

I think I'll go for the three phone idea, with SIM's for France and Italy. When we're in France, we have one week in a small town in Provence and I hope that they'll get the "wanders" once we've settled in. We planned it this way so that they could get used to being in a country where they didn't speak the language. Next, we'll be in a Paris apartment for another week, and by then, they should be comfortable enough in a foreign country to head to the local bakery on their own--in constant touch by cell phone, of course. Fiesole will be a cinch after that!

Well my vote goes for Fiesole. Seems like it would be lovely to "chill out" there, and as others have pointed out, there are diversions in the evening, short of night clubs/discos. Given the ages you mentioned (13 and 16) I am not sure passing up on night clubs is a bad thing . Of course, I am hopelessly old fashioned....
In terms of the SIM chips- are you sure you need separate ones for each country? Last year, we went to London and bought an "Orange" SIM chip and found we never needed it- our TIM chip worked fine in England! perhaps the cost per minute is higher- maybe one of the experts could clarify this.

And American walkie talkies present problems in Europe - this thread walkie talkies gives some details.

Hope you all have a great trip!