I may have been off the grid for a while, but I promise it was with good reason! My husband and I just got home last weekend after two weeks traveling through Italy 🙂 I told you all a while ago about how nervous I was getting prepared for the trip, and how they’d be able to handle celiac disease. Not only was I impressed with what I found online before our trip, but let me tell you, Italy did not disappoint. I have plenty of restaurant reviews, tips, and experiences to share with you all…but for starters I thought I’d walk you all through our itinerary, and how we felt our time was best spent.
While I was in college, I had the privilege to study abroad in a little town called Paderno del Grappa. We were nestled in the Dolomite mountains, and though we didn’t have a train station in our town, we were close enough that we were able to take some great weekend trips through Italy while we were there. My main focus of this trip was to make sure my husband got to see everything he wanted to (this was his first trip to Italy), that we were able to meet up with his distant relatives near Rome, and to take advantage of going back to see anything and everything I may have missed out on years ago! We knew we wanted to spend two weeks over there, so once we found our flights it was time to hammer out where we’d be staying. Here’s the official breakdown we came up with:
- Rome: 5 nights
- Florence: 3 nights
- Cinque Terre: 2 nights
- Milan: 1 night
- Venice: 3 nights
Initially we were so overwhelmed with everything else in our lives that we though about reaching out to a travel agent. The more I thought about it, the sillier I felt asking someone else to figure out our accommodations…I KNOW Italy! Having studied abroad, I knew where we’d want to stay, how we’d get from town to town, and that hotels are definitely NOT the best option out there. We spent an entire Sunday looking through our options and tracking down the best Bed & Breakfasts, or in some cases, smaller hotels. Here are some of the resources I leveraged to find exactly what I was looking for, and why I used them:
- www.hostelworld.com – This site was one of my best resources studying abroad. If you’re thinking you’re too old for hostels, don’t worry! You can use the search tools to select exactly what you’re looking for. For us, that was narrowed down to either hotels or a B&B with an ensuite room (meaning a private bathroom). Depending on what else you need, there are other facilities that you can ensure the host can offer such as luggage storage, air conditioning, breakfast, internet access, etc.
- www.venere.com – For those smaller properties that might not be listed on other sites, Venere was a great resource. This helped us track down other B&B options that might not have been listed on Hostel World. Definitely be aware though, once you find the place you want to stay, check to see if they have their own website or contact information. You’ll usually get the best rates directly from the B&B or hotel, and not through a middle-man website.
- www.tripadvisor.com – This was our final line of defense in making sure we made the best choices. Once you think you’ve narrowed it down, check on TripAdvisor to see what people are actually saying about the place. Read the most current reviews, as things can frequently change, and you want to be sure that anything you’re reading is as accurate as possible.
We’ll be working on getting a review posted for each of the places we stayed, and once we do I’ll be sure to post a link to it here! For now, I hope you enjoy a few quick pictures from the trip….don’t worry, there will be plenty more 🙂
The Roman Forum, wandering around the city after flying in, but before we could check into our room!
The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Rome.
Getting a tour of Frosinone, a small town outside of Rome, from relatives of my husband’s family.
Overlooking the Ponte Vecchio and Arno River in Florence.
The front facade of the Duomo in Florence.
Miles and miles of vineyards in the Chianti region, stunning view from San Gimignano.
Looking out into the street from Sforza Castle in Milan. They’re really gearing up for the 2015 World’s Fair, the buildings on either side of the picture are from entrance tents to the fair.
Enjoying the streets of Burano after a day watching all of the talented glass makers in Murano.
Celiac Suitcase 