Rubydo

Morning all,

I am trying to plan my summer holiday to Italy and so far got the flight booked! Does anyone have any recommendations for places to stay, itinerary as follows:
Fly to Naples
Pick up a hire car
Drive the Amalfi Coast - where to stay?
Drive up to Rome - where to stay in the centre?
Drive up to Tuscany - again where to stay fairly central?

Any advice on good locations and things to do and see would be of great help.

Thanks in advance

al dente

We do airbnb in Rome; try near piza navona or campo di fiori. Definitely do a bus tour.

Amalfi is fabulous but the driving in Naples is HORRIFIC. Capri is worth a visit and a stay too. We went to the Blue Grotto in the evening, after the hordes had left and swam inside. Magical.

Lonely planet is really useful.

We go back in in the summer for 5 weeks, but are in the countryside over the mountains from Rome. Heaven and I can't wait.

BEVS

Can't help with places to stay but just wanted to say that I am feeling envious.

I have loved visiting Italy in the past and hope to do so again in the future.

Rubydo

Thanks, I downloaded the airbnb app a few weeks ago so will take a look at that too. Looking for city centre in Rome and Spagna is coming up a lot, is that the centre?
We are hiring a car to drive through Italy but I think majority of the time when in the cities we won't be using the car. We will be picking the car up from Naples airport and then going straight to the Amalfi coast, is the driving bad to get there too? Blue Grotto sounds amazing just by the name.

Thanks for your help. Enjoy your summer over there too :-)

scrubbedexpat141

If you make it up to Tuscany etc then Pisa is obviously worth a visit. Florence - don't remember much of it....but the stand out place for me was Lucca. Absolutely beautiful city.

Not got shit loads to do but the piazza's, buildings etc are enough to just look at wandering around. Really loved it there.

Very jealous. I don't massively like the Italians but they've got a top country.

Rubydo

Rubydo

Will be driving up to Tuscany and returning the car to Florence airport before flying on to Munich so will definitely have a trip to Lucca ( I think friends of mine got married there and it looked stunning) , wanting to do a vineyard tour too whilst in Tuscany.

Going mainly for sightseeing so the not much to do should be fine, as well as all the yummy foods, I can't wait, although I'm sure I'll come back a lot heavier than when I went

scrubbedexpat141

Good. Tuscany is just generally stunning. I liked it a lot.

Munich after? Beer festivals?

I'm heading to Berlin in September, can't wait.

Rubydo

Flight back to AD is from Munich so got no choice ha. A friend works for Etihad so books my flights and couldn't get a return from Rome or Milan around the dates I wanted so now also seeing Munich

I love Europe, could spend ages travelling around seeing different parts. I loved Amsterdam and Paris when I went 2 years ago for summer. Never been to Berlin but sounds amazing too

DXBtoDOH

Why hiring a car? If you're spending your time in the countryside and moving around a lot, then I can see the purpose of a car. But if you're just going from main centre to main centre, then a car is useless. If you're going with some friends you may think it's most cost efficient to share a car rather than take the train, but you're not factoring in the need to park the car when you're not using it. Many urban hotels don't offer parking or sufficient parking, and parking on the streets in any Italian city is a mare. Oh, and of course, there's the actual driving in the cities. It's bad enough to ruin a holiday.

You can take the ferry from Naples to the Amalfi coast, or the train to Sorrento and taxis or a bus to your final destination.

I love Naples. I think it's worth at least one night because it has the best pizza and seafood in Italy, and possibly the best food overall. Fabulous ice cream too. It's an edgy city with real personality. Great museum.

Try to stop by Pompeii or Herculaneum if you can. Fantastic places. But in the summer make sure you have plenty of bottled water.

Capri is fun. You can easily reach Capri by ferry or stay overnight if you're inclined, although it's very expensive for hotels. There's a few swimming areas where you pay 10 euros or something like that, and get a towel and sun lounger and spend a few hours swimming in the sea. The water is brilliant.

The Blue Grotto is a real hit or miss. It's a hit when it works but it's very dependent on the time of day and tide levels and when the timing is perfect it's a conveyor belt of boats zooming you through.

Lots of towns on the Amalfi coast. Plus scores of villas and hotels between the towns. Amalfi town is very pretty, as are Ravello and Positano. Sorrento itself is a package holiday tourist trap filled with dour Germans.

Rome is fantastic. Big city, though. Where to stay depends on the budget. I like the Trastevere neighbourhood, which is just south of the Vatican, because it's quieter than the centre proper but within easy walking distance just across the Tiber and has scores of top notch restaurants.

Don't stay near the main train station where the bulk of cheap hotels are because it's a bit sketchy and all the restaurants are crap.

Florence is the obvious place to stay in Tuscany, although San G is another great option, of smaller.

Be warned that you'll be traveling during peak tourist season and will pay top prices for everything. The euro has declined sharply against the dollar so the influx of American tourists is expected to be massive, then you have the Chinese, who are far worse. It's already late to be planning this trip so expect most of the better hotels to be fully booked.

DXBtoDOH

I like Munich a lot. Go to the Viktualienmarkt in the centre because 90% of it is stalls selling nothing but pork! Which is perfect after the UAE. Great beer, great food, good weather even in the summer. What more do you need.

If you have time, do a day trip out of Munich to Lake Konigsee or Salzburg or somewhere in the Alps.

Rubydo

Thanks this is great info. Hiring a car just seems like an easier option as we will be travelling around with cases so don't want the hassle of lugging them everywhere with us. As for parking it can't be any worse than tourist club area of Abu Dhabi ha. I see your point but I'd rather just have the car and be able to get up and go places if we need the car when we want rather than relying on public transport and timings.

I am just narrowing the searches down for hotels now in Amalfi - ravello and in Rome- centre. Not looked for Florence yet, it's on my to do list! There are still I quite a few nice hotels available for our dates in summer so not too bad with leaving it this late on.

Only staying in Munich for 1 night so will see what's the best option for that.

Thanks again

DXBtoDOH

I really have got to warn you against hiring a car. You may think it's more convenient, but it's not.

Parking in Italy is far worse than the Tourist Club area. And you have to worry about all the nicks and scratches the Italians will leave on your car, which the rental company will bill you for. You have to figure out how to navigate the city roads from the motorway to your hotel, and figure out the parking afterwards. And it's not always clear where parking is allowed and where it isn't, so getting clamped is always a distinct possibility. You will spend a lot of unnecessary time figuring out the routes and finding parking that it's not funny.

And you won't up and go anywhere in the car because once you've found parking, you're not giving it up! You have no need for a car whilst in Rome or Florence as you'll be walking or taking the metro/bus everywhere. Even in Amalfi, what do you need a car for?

You can stay in hotels on the motorway and taking trains or metro into the city centre, but it's never fun staying a long way where the action is.

I have driven on the Amalfi coast before and I wouldn't do it again. Traffic congestion is guaranteed during peak tourist season as the roads are all narrow and winding through the mountains. It's much better to take ferries from Naples to Amalfi and wave at the people stuck in their cars.

Besides, how much crap are you taking with you? One large knapsack should be enough for a 10 day - two week trip.

Rubydo

I understand and take on board what you are saying and will think it through and plan the trip and then decide if to go ahead with hiring a car.

We are taking cases as we are in the UK first for a wedding and other things and then onto Italy and Munich before flying back to AD

al dente

Spagna means Spain, so just by the spanish steps. Personally, i prefer to be away from all the shopping. I quite like travestere too, but do prefer to be on the other side of the tiber.

I agree with DXB's car comments. Really no need. Train from Rome down to Naples, taxi ride of death, then ferry to Capri (again, note advice to go to the Blue Grotto in the evening, when there are no boats only bus).

Ferry down to sorrento, trip to Pompeii etc, train up to Florence.

My husband wants to go back to Capri from Le Marche and writing this almost makes me want to too!!