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If you don't want to queue for hours book your Colosseum ticket before you go, on line.
We arrived at the Colosseum and found a long snake of a queue. For ticket holders you can head for a different ticket office with no queue.
This is highly recommended especially if you have children.
A day trip to fantastic Siena and an excellent lunch at this osteria. It made our day.
Great Italian food, great Italian wine and great atmosphere.
Arrive early or book as this is a popular restaurant.
We had to wait a half hour for a table, but it was definitely worth it.
Via del Porrione 33, Siena, Italy
0577/48-013
Google map: tinyurl.com/y8dhz2j
What great Italian food and service at this Trattoria situated in a small back street.
Just ask the owner Carlo what is the special today, relax and take your time sampling the excellent food and wine.
This is a must for anybody who likes fresh genuine Italian food.
Vicolo del Popolo, 9, 05018 Orvieto, Italy
0763343916
Google map: tinyurl.com/y9vaxed
From the shore of the large Lake Bolsena at Capodimonte hire a small motor boat and venture out onto the lake and to the scenic island of Bisentina. Dive overboard and swim in the crystal clear water and sun bathe on the deck. My kids (14 & 12) loved having a go at driving the boat.
www.lagodibolsena.org/
Google map: tinyurl.com/yf35sn3
What a great day out we had as a family rafting near Norcia on the river Corno. It was great fun and thrilling. The guides were excellent, we even had water splashing fights with the other groups. The scenery is fantastic.
It certainly made our holiday a holiday to remember.
Best to book before on line.
www.raftingumbria.it/
Google map: tinyurl.com/yb68aqg
Locanda palazone near Orvieto is a great place to stay.
The owners have done a great job at restoring the place and are excellent hosts. You must stay for dinner as they serve excellent Italian cuisine served by the charming owners. A pre dinner drink of wine produced by them before dinner to meet the other guests is a must.
We had a great time there and would recommend it for anyone staying in the area.
www.locandapalazzone.com/
Rocca Ripesena - Orvieto (TR) Italy - Tel.: +39 (0) 763 344921
Google map: tinyurl.com/y8kydy2
I went to Florence a good few years ago for the first time and loved it. Subsequent visits only improved the place for me as I found more and more I missed the first time! I even proposed to my wife on the Pontevecchio bridge and bought the ring there the next day!
I would recommend staying either in the city centre for 1-2 days and then taking a villa to also see some of Tuscany and then you can compare to other towns like Siena or San Gimignano. Try www.qualityvillasitaly.co.uk
We rented this one bedroom apartment for a week and we really enjoyed our stay. The apartment has clearly been recently renovated, it was very clean and well-equipped. The location is extremely convenient for visiting the city and exploring some other cities in the area, like Lucca and Florence. There is a supermarket right around the corner, and plenty of bars and restaurants. The owners were very helpful and even came to pick us up at the airport, which saved us quite some money and hassle, as we arrived quite late in the day. They left guidebooks and brochures for us and a nice bottle of wine, pasta and meat sauce for our first dinner. That was a nice touch, because it was too late to go buy some groceries.
The property has a website www.behindthetower.com
stay@behindthetower.com
Casa colomba is a fantastic family house with a private pool available for rent. It is just outside Sant Angelo in Pontano, a charming medieval hilltown with restaurants, bars and all the shops you need for your holiday.
Trattoria Anita is a great restaurant in Florence. They have the greatest food and really good prices. The waiters are really nice and funny and make you feel right at home. I go there anytime I'm in Florence and have never felt sorry.
2 Via del Parlascio, Firenze, +39 055 218 698
If you want a good value three-star hotel near the station in Florence and a couple of minutes from Il Duomo, I can highly recommend Hotel San Giorgio. It costs about €30 ppp night, the breakfast was excellent and the staff and manager Piero are mines of information on good value local bars and trattorias.
www.hotelsangiorgioflorence.com
Via San Antonino 3, Florence, 50123
Tel. 055/284344
Google map: tinyurl.com/ydtujew
A mini-studio located right off Via Giulia the location is absolutely fantastic for a solo traveler or couple who like to be independent and explore on foot. Of course there are still lots of buses, but Via Giulia is great because central as it is, it's all restricted traffic and really preserves the traditional Roman feel. What I really found charming was not just the structure and general feel of the apartment, but the loving way the owner restored it. He's a true Roman who really appreciates his own history, which is refreshing, and he preserved as much of the original structure as possible, including brick arches and the ruins of no less than three ancient dwellings in the floor that are now on display with found artifacts under a glass tile in the floor. It's just like having a personal museum to come home to! Aside from that, the owner is absolutely the sweetest, speaks wonderful English, cares for his guests like family, and leaves all the little extras you wouldn't necessarily want to travel with (coffee, sugar, olive oil, salt, pepper, etc) and leaves a lot of helpful info in the studio. It's comfortable, pretty, romantic, and in the best spot one could ask for. And the agency that rents it out is really pleasant too. I've used them before for friends and have always had positive results and perfect service so I do feel confident recommending them. It's also economical and a much better offer than B&B's in the area, and worth a stay!
Via Giulia, 105
tinyurl.com/bbmwyl
www.leisureinrome.com/_apartments_in_rome-in-campo_de_fiori/campo_de_fiori_short_let_rent,S,134.html
I'd like to suggest you to contact Rome Sweet Home, we absolutely loved this apartment www.romesweethome.com/apartments-rental/rome/spanish-steps/corso-panoramic-terrace.asp and it made our stay in Rome extra special. What you might not have known is that this particular to visit was to mark our 40th wedding anniversary so we truly considered have this apartment to be a special gift.
www.romesweethome.com
+393357713580
Starting in the town of Abbiategrasso (meaning "Have Fat!" i.e. Good Luck!) I ride down the valley of the river Ticino to Pavia, the
wonderful ancient university town south of Milan; there, using one of the few bridges spanning the Ticino, I go west to San Marino
Siccomario before then heading north again, this time riding towards Vigevano. For those who have never been there - Vigevano is famous for its Piazza Ducale (the Duke's Square), a beautiful renaissance ensemble with a lot of cafes in the arcades. This is where I will have a cup of Cappuccino (or a hot chocolate) before heading back to Abbiategrasso. I hope to have burned enough fat during the past four or five hours to be ready for the Boxing Day dinner...
Here's the route on bikemap.net:
www.bikemap.net/route/358624
This must be one of the very best mountain restaurants, high above the Passo Pordoi, in the great, majestic bulk of the Dolomites. Sass Pordoi is a very well visited mountain top restaurant, viewing station, and walking base for many reasons. First off it is convenient, easily accessed off the major pass of Passo Pordoi that connects the main resort centres of the region. Second, the journey up is by cable alone, one of the truly great cable car ascents. Third, you can walk for miles, take in the sun, or simply sit back and marvel at the glorious views. Fourth, you can simply marvel at the glorious views. Fifth, well, you get the idea. And, while you are there, you can enjoy proper mountain food. Hearty, nourishing, and with a healthy side plate of views. Oh, did I mention the views. So, a simple menu. Convenient drive for starters, followed by a great cable ascent for our fishiest course of the day, hearty fare with a side of glorious views for main, views for dessert, and maybe a chance to drink some views as you relax afterwards. Stunning.
www.fassaski.com/en/sasspordoi/index.htm
Google map: tinyurl.com/ycoa5l9
A fairy tale malga (hut for summer pastures) serving delicious rustic fare of fresh eggs and ham from the chickens and pigs who are lucky enough to live in this idyllic spot. There may even be a weekend barbeque if you are lucky. The stupendous peaks of the Croda Rossa tower immediately in front of you and on the slopes of the sheltered col, there is mountain golf, a tree swing and home built trebuchet. Weissbeer or elderflower cordials refresh and sustain you on a walk through a truly astonshing landscape.
Best accessed on the Northern Dolomites walk at the junction of Trails 28, 3 & 4. Alternatively accessed by bus from Brunico - Monguelo - Villabassa or Lago di Braies to the Hotel Ponticello then trails 18 & No.3. If you don't like steep ascents then getting the shuttle bus up to Prato Piazza might be an alternative.
For one thing this close to the Duomo, it's just in the perfect spot and I was so glad to be here. Walking is important to us, and the next thing I like is that they accepted dogs because many places we tried to book did not. And of course he got to walk with us! The staff were friendly and the hotel itself is just absolutely beautiful; we couldn't have asked for better.
Via Dei Servi, 2 - 50122 Firenze
www.niccolinidomepalace.com/
Google map: tinyurl.com/yhgw4ac
Cute little subterranean dining room in Bari's old town, by the market. Scrumptious four course meal plus coffee at a very reasonable price. Heavy bent on seafood, fresh from local waters.
Really liked their riso, patate e cozze (risotto, potato and mussels) -- a signature Bari dish, and a grilled whole baby Octopus! Divine.
Strada Vallisa, 23
bit.ly/90HZ5v
Google map: tinyurl.com/y8c3jtk
Amazing little eatery near the Jewish quarter. Moody chef Francesco Zorzetto turns out amazing hot and cold local seafood delicacies.
Best thing to do is to simply ask for a few of the chef's recommendations -as we did - and you're in for a treat.
Campo San Felice, Cannaregio 3689, just off the Strada Nuova
Venice, Italy
Tel: +39 041 52 28 258
bit.ly/12oRlt
Google map: tinyurl.com/ybbheu8
This is a peninsula far from for the mainland just 2 kilometers trough a handmade pathway in the middle of estuary. The almost-island is an inhabited mountain named Monte Argentario. Porto Santo Stefano is one of the two small tipical fishing village in the area. You can enjoy looking at the sea from the central square place at Porto Santo Stefano, placed in the middle of the bay and also is the center of town. The streets here are steep. All the houses'windows on the hill look at the sea.
You can enjoy a great pizza and specially all the most-freshly seafood just some minutes after the fishing people carriage it from the boats.
You can have a bath in the sea, sunbathing, having a mineral water bath in the nearest(near to Orbetello), hiking on the mountain, walk round the town, go on a leisure boat trip...or just plan a trip to Siena or Firenze, only and hour and a half far from here.
It is like the paradise, you'll enjoy the historic places like the Spanish fortaleza (castles), the seaside walk, the mountain views, the excellent wines and food, the calm and tranquility, and the sea bathing and of course, the nearest to Firenze and Rome.
You should take some of the numerous, almost every 2 hours, trains from Rome, in direction to Milan or Lucca. You should stop down at Orbetello Station and there rent a car or a taxi. In some minutes, just about 10 kilometers far you will be in an almost unknown italian paradise.
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