Dear Fellow Travelers:
I have been lurking, reading, and taking copious notes for my upcoming trip to Italy in May. My Best Friend and I are going for 14 days, and although she is doing a great job learning about the wine and getting up to speed on Renaissance Art, I have been tasked with the remaining 99.5% of the planning.

Could you all give me a reality check on my trip? I am planning too much, is one restaurant better than another (Dean, I must have read your reviews 10 times), have I missed something?

I PROMISE to write a trip report--the blog is already set up!

Here goes:

Day 0:DFW to Venice via London Gatwick
Day 1Day 1::Arrive in Venice via water taxi, courtesy of BF's hubby's "extra" euro (he's a pilot) to Pensione Accademia. Walk around, check out San Marco. Vivaldi and Cantina do Mori for cichetti.

Day 2:"Secret Itinerary" tour at 10:45 , lunch at Acqua Passo, shopping (I must buy furlane slippers, I must!). Dinner at Rivieri

Day 3: Sta. Maria della Salute, church at St. George's Anglican, nap time, then Accademia. Dinner at Fiaschetteria Toscana (or is Rivieri enough? any other suggestions for Sunday dinner?)

Day 4: Titian/Tintoretto time at dei Frari and San Rocco. 2:30 Eurostar to Florence and Hotel Casci. Dinner at Trattoria 4 Leoni

Day 5: 10:15 resv for the Uffizi, nice walk to Oltarno (gloves to buy at Madova--everyone gets gloves for Christmas), Pitti Palace, the Masaccios at Branacchi (BF is now huge Masaccio fan). I would really like to have dinner at Osteria Chingale Bianco, since I saw the Cucina Toscana guys make the chingale with polenta on PBS--is it way too tourisy, and are there better spots for the same dish with great wine?

Day 6: We head off to Castello Brolio with our driver, and then to Greve and La Cantine (thanks Diva, for your recommendation--we found a great driver!) for even more vino. I've found three choices for lunch--Osteria di Passignano (they have lots of Antinori vino the BF craves) or La Cantinetta di Rignana or Taverna del Guerino in Montefioralle. Obviously, dinner will be a moot point.

Day 7: Accademia, San Marco for the Fra Angelicos and maybe the Medici Chapel.

Day 8: Sta. Maria Novello then off to rome on the 2-ish ES. Arrive in Rome at Hotel Capo d'Africa (I know, but the BF is treating, since I cashed in miles)

Day 9: Classical Roman tour with Daniella Hunt from Mirabilis, Pantheon

Day 10: Porta Portese Flea Market, Borghese Gallery (guess who has to see Apollo and Daphne now?)

Day 11: Scavi Tour (Dear Vatican, please write to me!!!), Vatican Museum Tour, lunch at Dino and Tony's Hosteria.

I know this is long, but the responsibility of planning this is starting to get to me.

As the little boy on the Disney commerical says, "I'm too excited to sleep!"

Well, it can be done, but how come you don't leave enough time for just wandering around without an itinerary, especially if you have really nice weather?

Agreed - doable, but contrary to the spirit of slow travel.

We loved Osteria Cinghiale Bianco and had dinner there twice on our trip last year. I ordered something different each time, but my husband stuck to the pasta with wild boar ragu.

Thanks Chris V.--the Carrabba cousins make that place sound so good--glad that it was good enough to go to twice.

Also, we really are trying to travel as slowly as jobs/time/money will allow. I didn't post our copious journaling/wandering/wine drinking times, just the highlights. Not trying to violate slow travel guidelines, just looking for a little help.

It seems to me, at a glance, that none of your days are overcrowded and that there is plenty of time in there for sitting in cafes, sipping wine, watching the world go by.

I would urge you, though, to reconsider giving your Sunday morning in Rome to the Porta Portese flea market. Nothing that I have ever heard, from other tourists or, chiefly, from Romans, has ever made it seem worth my while. And I have read that at a certain point it becomes so crowded that you can only advance at a snail's pace, not to mention that it is a favorite haunt for pickpockets.

A very helpful group here!

I find that on each ensuing trip, we travel slower than the prior trip.

My first trip to Europe in no way qualified for slow traveling: two weeks commencing in Barcelona, then train to Geneva, then to Milan, then to Florence, then to Nice, and then back to Barcelona. We were nuts, it was summer, we had to get reservations for each train, we had no hotel lined up except for Barcelona, but based on that trip, I realized that Italy had stolen my traveling heart. This was 9 years ago.

I was reading another thread about why no one talks about visiting Milan, but it was the first Italian city I ever visited and when we were there - wow! Versace had been killed in Miami the day before we arrived and the atmosphere was electric. Since then, I've married a man who has family there and we always make a point to stay there for a while.

Thanks, Eloise for the info about Porta Portese. I picked it because I had a lovely time at the Vanves market in Paris (not the big one at Clignancourt), and usually find them fun. No need to visit pickpocket-ville, we'll skip it--so helpful, thanks, this is exactly what I was looking for.

Chris V, I am trying to talk a friend out of France-Italy-Turkey (in 10 days!!!), so I get where you are coming from. I'm a former art history minor, so the Venice-florence-rome trio has more art/sq inch for me. BTW, one of my best friends used to be the Director of Marketing for Versace.

Hi tmayson,

all the highlights you have picked are fabulous and I more than understand where you are coming from.

I cried leaving Rome after a week and felt I had less than scratched the surface, I felt the same when I left Florence and Venice I felt like I had only just a sense of the place after 1 week.

Your tour reminds me of a small tastes meal - a sample of lots. Have fun and you will know where you must return to after this - if you are anything like me it will be all of them.

Enjoy and I hope you get the chance to return and spend significant time in each place.

Anne

Throw away your itinerary, just wing it you will meet better people and have more fun.

quote:

Day 5: 10:15 resv for the Uffizi, nice walk to Oltarno (gloves to buy at Madova--everyone gets gloves for Christmas), Pitti Palace, the Masaccios at Branacchi (BF is now huge Masaccio fan). I would really like to have dinner at Osteria Chingale Bianco, since I saw the Cucina Toscana guys make the chingale with polenta on PBS--is it way too tourisy, and are there better spots for the same dish with great wine?

This day may do you in, anyway your feet and your back! The Uffizi, then the Pitti, and then the Masaccios? This is overkill. The Cinghiale Bianco is great for lunch, we've done it twice, and just a leisurely 5 minute stroll from Madova (how do I get on your Christmas list?? After 2 hours at the most in the Uffizi, I'd swoop down on Madova, then lunch at Cinghiale, then the Carmine and the Brancacci Chapel, and save the Pitti for another visit. Close to the Hotel Casci is Il Ritrovo, a wonderful restaurant. Consider leaving your bags at the Casci while you zip over to SMN church, zip back and get them and backtrack to the train station. They will be an encumbrance while you are seeing the church; so far as I know, there's no place to leave them there safely.

Have a great time! You've done wonderful planning!

Even if it's too "fast", I'd love be doing a trip like this anytime. I don't know if you've discussed with your best friend the possibility that you'll likely want some alone time during this intense visit (this is an issue that often comes up, and often seems to lead to hurt feelings for some reason).

I completely agree with Carol M's comments. I liked your daily plans, with the exception of Day 5 - it seemed like too much to try to take in. Of the items you've listed for that day, I'd also skip the Pitti. Touring the Uffizi is a given (right? ), and I'd rate the marvelous Masaccio frescoes in Brancacci Chapel as a higher priority than the Pitti Palace.

... But while you're on that side of the Arno, you might want to pop into the Giulio Giannini e Figlio shop across from the Pitti. Fabulous papers and paper products! On par with a visit to Madova, IMO.

I meant to comment on this, too:

quote:

[Venice] Dinner at Fiaschetteria Toscana (or is Rivieri enough? any other suggestions for Sunday dinner?)

We had good food but poor service at FT a few years ago. At those prices and for a restaurant of its caliber I expected much better. I understand that they'd naturally take good care of their "regulars," but the rest of us should get (at a minumum) *decent* service. We did not. For that reason, I recommend you look elsewhere for your Sunday dinner.

I think that you have planned an excellent first trip. I made my first trip to Europe in 1990, I visited 9 cities in in 20 days and did not make any plans or reservatios other than my Air reservation and a 21 day euro-rail pass. I went again the next year and did the same sort of trip but this time with a 28 day Euro-rail pass. I was Younger, single, and traveling alone.
You will likely acomplish more in terms of good eating, good wine, and quality sight seeing on your first trip than I did on my first two. Planning is good.
Now I am marrried and my wife and I travel to Italy twice a year. We love the Wine, we love the people, we love the beauty in the country side, the art in the cities, and we love the wine (worth mentioning twice). After A number of trips to Italy we have become the ultimate slow travelers, in Fact we have become the lazy travelers. We try to see a few new things each trip, but we now have other priorities.
Rule #1 for the Lazy travelers is a room with a view and if possible a terrace or a balcony. When we are enjoying a lunch consisting of that wonder local wine, bread,cheese, and salami it is important to have a good wiew. After lunch we we may take a walk or we may take a nap. Later we start thinking about where we are going to eat supper and what we going to eat. Next day may have slight variations like renting a scooter instead of taking a walk. Rule #2 is we never stay less than 4 nights in one place unless we are just passing through.
I guess the point of all this is that your first trip should be a well planed adventure and if you fall in love with Italy rest of the Italiafiles on this site you will return again and again. Each successive trip becomes more enjoyable and relaxing because the pressure is off, all we have to do is enjoy ourselves. We do make reservation now but that easier too because we know where we're going.
I noticed that you are staying at Pensione Accademia, this is very near to the hotel where we stay in Venice, Hotel Galleria which is just to the left when you descend from the Accademia Bridge. One of our favorite restaurants in the area is "Tavera San Trovaso" >www.santrovaso.it<, about 200 feet from Pension Accademia, you will pass it between your place and the Accademia bridge. They have wonderful food at very reasonable prices and a good wine selection.
I have also read some place that the Pensione Accademia is the place where Katherine Hepburn's Character stay in the movie "Summetime" which was filmed in venice in the mid 1950's. Sorry for running on so long.
Have a great first trip and if on one of your trips to Italy you see a couple om Americans in their mid fifties drinking wine and smiling at their food. That may be the wife and I. Rick

In Florence:
1) Go to Casa Buonarroti- great art, period rooms, etc. Also- see the Artemisia (maybe read LaPierre the book before you go). This will also give you tremendous history about Rome and Florence and many of the streets and churches you will visit.
2) Do not miss walking to the top of the dome in the Doumo. A MUST read prior to going is Ross King's "Brunelleschi's Dome". Great and short read about the dome and about Renaissance Florence.
In Rome- make sure you do the English language tour at the Gallerie Borghese. Reading Artemisia first will also give tremendous appreciation of the Borghese family.

While each of your days seems to be not too ambitious, my feeling ws that you are trying to cram the big 3 into too short a time. you only have 8 days full days in your chosen cities. You will get much less done on your transition days thyan you think!

By only going to Venizia and Rome, (or Firenze and Roma if you can change your airfare) you will have 9 full days or a 12.5% increase with no added cost. Plus I have always found that staying somewhere 4/5 days is much more relaxing and enjoyable than 2/3 days. That little bit extra slows you down a lot and lets you discover more things to see and do. There are things youw won't even notice in 2 days in Venezia that you will in 4. Of course in 4 days, you will not do as much as in a week or a month etc. But 4 vs 2 days more than doubles your knowlege adn experience in my mind.

As to Fischeteria Toscana, it is one of my favorites and I have, with one exception, never had service issues. But I have always requested Roberto as our waiter and have always let him order (after our first visit). But I would also recommend Vini da Gigio and La Frasca as well in Venezia. Much cheaper and both have outstanding food. The former has an amazing wine list at good pricing, while the latter doesn't have a wine list, and their house wine is dreadful but somehow satisifying. Also for cicchetti try La Cantina on Strada Nuova in Canareggio.

Thanks everyone for the info. Y'all rock.

I wish I could just throw away the itinerary, but having "the list" as a base works for me. Some of us are Virgos and astrologically incapable of "winging it" .

Carol and Colleen, thanks for the info about the Pitti Palace--I have a serious Raphael/Titian addiction, but that was the day I was most worried about. I guess we will see (poi vediamo) how our feet feel on that day.

Colleen, I am worried about Fiaschetteria Toscana as well. The BF is treating (am I lucky or what?), but I don't want it to be a disappointment, not at those prices. But, Dean raves about it, so I have decided to write them from the US, and let them know how much I am looking forward to eating there and having Roberto help us pick out wine.

Jim L, thanks for the info about Brunelleschi's Dome. Both the BF and I read that one. I also loved "Michelangelo and the Pope's Ceiling".

Everyone, thank you so much for your advice. I really do wish I could travel much more slowly, but vacation time, money, etc. just don't allow it. I'm hoping that by being open to new experiences, trying to roll with the inevitable surprises and learning as much Italian as I can, we will have as much of a slowtrav experience in a relatively short period of time. Thanks to your advice I've taken some of the overambition out of the tour.

And really, if you count the planning time, I've been in Italy for 6 months already, so it truly has been "slow travel" . Mille grazie, everyone.