Sounds like going in the winter would be just fine. Now that I've settled that,
what are the best places to visit. I absolutely have to see Venice. Other than
that, I assume Rome and Florence are also top attractions. Is Pompeii worth
visiting? What about Sicily or Sardenia, or should I just stay on the mainland?
Any other suggestions? I'm wide open to ideas.

Ksu93dlv wrote:

    > Is Pompeii worth visiting? What about Sicily or Sardenia, or should I just
    > stay on the mainland?


If going in the winter, don't bother with Sicilia and Sardegna. Also,
visiting Pompei in the winter may be a colder idea than you think.


-- -----------------------------------------------------
Luca Logi - Firenze - Italy e-mail: [email protected]

"Luca Logi" wrote in message
news:1fqt4y3.pbunm51g7c6u3N%[email protected]...

    > Ksu93dlv wrote:
    > > Is Pompeii worth visiting? What about Sicily or Sardenia, or
should I just
    > > stay on the mainland?
    > If going in the winter, don't bother with Sicilia and Sardegna.
Also,
    > visiting Pompei in the winter may be a colder idea than you
think.


I don't know about Sardegna or Pompeii, but I think the winter is
a good time to visit Sicilia, at least if you stick to the
coastal sites. The weather is milder than most of the rest of
Italy, and is usually comfortable.

--
Ken Blake
Please reply to the newsgroup

Go get Rick Steves Italy guide book. We found his suggestions invaluable. Depending on how much time you have available you can base yourself in the following areas:

Venice - you already stated you have to see Venice

Florence - historic and beautiful Tuscany is all around you. From Florence you should visit Sienna, Pisa, San Gimignano, the Cinque Terra.

Rome - is Rome. Awesome.

Sorrento - from this base you can visit Naples, Mt Vesuvius, Pompeii, Herculaneum, the Isle of Capri, the Amalfi Coast cheaply and easily.

"Luca Logi" wrote in message
news:1fqt4y3.pbunm51g7c6u3N%[email protected]...
    > Ksu93dlv wrote:
    > > Is Pompeii worth visiting? What about Sicily or Sardenia, or should I
just
    > > stay on the mainland?
    > If going in the winter, don't bother with Sicilia and Sardegna. Also,
    > visiting Pompei in the winter may be a colder idea than you think.
    > -- -----------------------------------------------------
    > Luca Logi - Firenze - Italy e-mail: [email protected]

pompeii is definitely worth visiting. don't know about winter but i can
tell you that middle of summer is VERY hot.

    > pompeii is definitely worth visiting. don't know about winter but i can
    > tell you that middle of summer is VERY hot.

And there is virtually no shade.

Ksu93dlv wrote:
    >
    > Sounds like going in the winter would be just fine. Now that I've settled that,
    > what are the best places to visit. I absolutely have to see Venice. Other than
    > that, I assume Rome and Florence are also top attractions. Is Pompeii worth
    > visiting? What about Sicily or Sardenia, or should I just stay on the mainland?
    > Any other suggestions? I'm wide open to ideas.

In your other posting, you said your trip would last 10 days. If Venice
is a must, I would visit only one other city, at most two. Forget
Sardegna and Sicily. I wouldn't even dream of visiting both Sicily and
Venice in a 10-day trip.

If you tell us what sorts of things you enjoy, we can maybe help you
decide which city to visit.

By the way, you did see the warning about acqua alta in Venice, I hope.
It is fairly common in Venice in the winter that high water floods all
the streets. I have never seen it, but the last time I was in Venice
there were still all the raised walkways in place from the most recent
flood.

Barbara

In article ,
[email protected] (Ksu93dlv) wrote:

    > Sounds like going in the winter would be just fine. Now that I've settled
    > that,
    > what are the best places to visit. I absolutely have to see Venice. Other
    > than
    > that, I assume Rome and Florence are also top attractions. Is Pompeii worth
    > visiting? What about Sicily or Sardenia, or should I just stay on the
    > mainland?
    > Any other suggestions? I'm wide open to ideas.

How long will your stay in Italy be? What's best to visit is entirely a
matter of personal preference and the amount of time you have. Its hard
to go wrong with visiting Florence and Rome though. Is Pompeii worth a
visit? That's up to you. I was terribly bored there; others I know found
Pompei fascinating.

In article ,
[email protected] (Ksu93dlv) wrote:

    > Sounds like going in the winter would be just fine. Now that I've settled
    > that,
    > what are the best places to visit. I absolutely have to see Venice. Other
    > than
    > that, I assume Rome and Florence are also top attractions. Is Pompeii worth
    > visiting? What about Sicily or Sardenia, or should I just stay on the
    > mainland?
    > Any other suggestions? I'm wide open to ideas.



I love the Italian countryside - but in winter, cities are better.

With Venice keep an eye on the weather/flood situation. We passed on
Venice in winter recently when floods had everything closed, or under a
foot or two of water. It can be a real mess. IMHO Venice is definitely
a spring or early summer site. The joy of Venice is wandering aimlessly
under a blue sky --- not wading through flooded squares.

Florence and Rome are great in winter. We visited Pompeii on a sunny
cool spring day and it was one of the most interesting places I have
ever been -- endlessly fascinating -- and while you don't really want to
be slogging through it in the rain, a cool day would be ideal.

In article ,
Me wrote:

    > In article ,
    > [email protected] (Ksu93dlv) wrote:
    >
    > > Sounds like going in the winter would be just fine. Now that I've settled
    > > that,
    > > what are the best places to visit. I absolutely have to see Venice. Other
    > > than
    > > that, I assume Rome and Florence are also top attractions. Is Pompeii worth
    > > visiting? What about Sicily or Sardenia, or should I just stay on the
    > > mainland?
    > > Any other suggestions? I'm wide open to ideas.
    >
    > How long will your stay in Italy be? What's best to visit is entirely a
    > matter of personal preference and the amount of time you have. Its hard
    > to go wrong with visiting Florence and Rome though. Is Pompeii worth a
    > visit? That's up to you. I was terribly bored there; others I know found
    > Pompei fascinating.

be sure if you choose Pompeii to have a good guidebook [and forget the
local guides on site who spew the usual canned semi accurate spiel of
guides everywhere -- they can however unlock gardens and houses -- so in
a less crowded time, that may be what you have to do]

without a good detailed guide, the place is just piles of rocks -- it is
totally unsigned

In article ,
Goose wrote:

    > Go get Rick Steves Italy guide book. We found his suggestions
    > invaluable. Depending on how much time you have available you can base
    > yourself in the following areas:
    >
    > Venice - you already stated you have to see Venice
    >
    > Florence - historic and beautiful Tuscany is all around you. From
    > Florence you should visit Sienna, Pisa, San Gimignano, the Cinque Terra.

most of these places, escept perhaps Siena, would be far less charming
in the rain

ten days is nothing -- you could easily spend 10 days in Rome alone --
I agree with the person who suggested two places tops -- with maybe a
side trip or two e.g. from Florence, it is easy to day trip to Siena.
    >
    > Rome - is Rome. Awesome.
    >
    > Sorrento - from this base you can visit Naples, Mt Vesuvius, Pompeii,
    > Herculaneum, the Isle of Capri, the Amalfi Coast cheaply and easily.
    >
    > --
    > Posted via http://britishexpats.com

On 22 Feb 2003 23:07:04 GMT, [email protected] (Ksu93dlv) wrote:

    >Sounds like going in the winter would be just fine. Now that I've settled that,
    >what are the best places to visit. I absolutely have to see Venice. Other than
    >that, I assume Rome and Florence are also top attractions. Is Pompeii worth
    >visiting? What about Sicily or Sardenia, or should I just stay on the mainland?
    >Any other suggestions? I'm wide open to ideas.

I'm not being precious or anything, but there are so many good places to visit
in Italy that your question is impossible to answer.

Here is an itinerary. Three nights Venice, three nights in Florence, one night
in Siena, three nights in Rome. That is really stretching it thin. Better
might be three nights in Venice, two nights in Siena (it was a Renaissance
center and so you would get a nice dose of "Florentine" culture), five nights in
Rome. Or perhaps trade one of the nights in Rome for a day in a more laid-back
Tuscan hill town like Montepulciano or Cortona, to get a taste of Italy that is
not super-urban-tourist.
--
"If this is coffee, please bring me some tea. If this is tea, please bring me some coffee."
- Abraham Lincoln

[email protected] (Ksu93dlv) wrote in message news:...
    > Sounds like going in the winter would be just fine. Now that I've settled that,
    > what are the best places to visit. I absolutely have to see Venice. Other than
    > that, I assume Rome and Florence are also top attractions. Is Pompeii worth
    > visiting? What about Sicily or Sardenia, or should I just stay on the mainland?
    > Any other suggestions? I'm wide open to ideas.

Lucca for elegant small wall city charm and Levanto as a base for
hiking/walking the Cinque Terre. Genoa and the Ligurian Riviera are
also good for the winter. Genoa and the old part of town unveils its
charms slowly, as well as reasonable excursions to small coastal towns
which are not all that bad in the winter.

The Dolomites and Cortina if you like splendid winter scenery. Yes,
Venice in the winter has a special charm, quiet and all to itself. The
light is so special in the winter, you can have some spectacular clear
days and there is so little vegetation in Venice that you do not miss
any "greenery".