Planning travel to Italy

Home
Up
Airline quality comparison
Planning travel to Italy
Hotel reservations
Miscellaneous tips for Italy

 

Suggested trips
If you have little time: Leave the U.S. the night of Thursday, 22 May, arriving in Italy on Friday; drive to Biella and spend the day resting and visiting the area. Fly back on Memorial Day, Monday, 26 May.

If you have a week/10 days: Leave the U.S. on 16 or 17 May and visit the Italian / French Riviera from Monaco to Portofino via the Cinque Terre at your leisure; there’s hardly any need for reservations at this time of the year, and you’re never more than a 3 hours drive from Biella. Or fly into Rome, spend 4-6 days there (or in Firenze, a one hour train ride away), and take the bullet train to Milano (4 hours) and drive to Biella. Fly back on Memorial Day, Monday, 26 May, from Milano or Torino (fares are generally cheaper for return before 31 May).

If you have two weeks/16 days or longer: you can either visit the big destinations of Roma, Firenze, and Venezia, or spend time in areas such as Napoli and the Amalfi Coast, Sicily, Toscana, or one of the many other destinations that Italy has to offer. However, don’t cram too much in your trip or you really won’t experience much; Italy is best visited slowly and a region at a time.

Mike will be glad to help with any planning and/or questions.

Is Italy safe?
According to official statistics, Italy is much safer than the U.S.: the chances of getting murdered are 4 times less, the prison rate is half as much, and even driving is less risky! Having said that, petty criminality is much more pervasive, so never leave any belongings unattended even for a second and watch out for pickpockets and jewelry thieves, especially in tourist-heavy areas and public transportation. Additional information can be obtained from the British Foreign & Commonwealth Office (updated often) or the U.S. Department of State (infrequent updates).

Traveling by train
Taking the train is often the best way to travel in Italy. The best place to find schedules is the Swiss Railroad’s website (it figures!); for fares use the official Trenitalia site, which, as you’ll see, isn’t as good.

Recommended travel books
(click on book for link to Amazon.com)

The Heritage Guide Italy: A Complete... We believe that the best books (bar none) about Italian’s sights and monuments are those by the Touring Club of Italy, which are written by Italians for Italians and have only recently been translated in English. Cities and attractions are rated with a star system; the Italy book includes an excellent map. Click here to see the entire series, which includes regional guides, detailed guides for major cities, and a few food guides.
cover The Frommer’s series of books is generally pretty good (is Mike’s preferred), and a spotcheck of the Italian version turned positive. It has the practical information for US travelers that the book from the Touring Club lacks. The text is also available online here.
This version of the Frommer’s book covers Northern Italy only, but in more detail.

cover

 Fodor’s seems to be used by many, so I’ve added it to this list. They post "miniguides" to major areas of Italy on the web here.

If you have any other recommendations, please let us know!

Up Airline quality comparison Planning travel to Italy Hotel reservations Miscellaneous tips for Italy

Home | Where is Biella? | About Biella | Traveling to Biella | Driving directions to Biella | Directions to the wedding

This page was last edited on 27-Nov-12