First time Europe travelers - Italy
Feb 26, 2015, 7:28 pm
#61
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: SFO
Programs: AA, UA lowly commoner
Posts: 782
That makes more sense. I don't know why they are advertising as south of the Pantheon, perhaps to make it sound more attractive. Technically it is south of the pantheon, but it is not in the same neighborhood at all. If I was going to describe it I'd say southwest of the Colosseum.
It's not a bad area at all, so if you are getting a good deal and have vetted the apartment itself well, the neighborhood wouldn't dissuade me, provided you're OK walking 15-20 minutes to get to places. Apartments are almost always better than hotels, it's just that most of them are on the outskirts of Rome and you have to take a train or a bus to get where you want to go. This is walkable to everywhere if you're a decent walker. If the apartment is OK and you're getting a good deal, the area is not prime, but Very OK.
It's not a bad area at all, so if you are getting a good deal and have vetted the apartment itself well, the neighborhood wouldn't dissuade me, provided you're OK walking 15-20 minutes to get to places. Apartments are almost always better than hotels, it's just that most of them are on the outskirts of Rome and you have to take a train or a bus to get where you want to go. This is walkable to everywhere if you're a decent walker. If the apartment is OK and you're getting a good deal, the area is not prime, but Very OK.
Feb 27, 2015, 8:57 am
#62
Join Date: May 2004
Programs: BA blue, LH Senator, KQ (FB) gold
Posts: 8,215
In general, south of the Pantheon is a nice area, but it's difficult to say because Via in Publicos does not sound like a valid address to me. I don't think Publicos is an italian word, and I don't know why "in" would be there. A Via can't be "in." Not at least in Italian grammar as I know it. You can be in a house, in a bank, in a gym, in a post office but you can't be in a publico, and I don't think publico is an italian word. Sounds Spanish to me. More info could help.
Incidentally, while the word publico is not an Italian word, pubblico is, with the same meaning as public in English.
Feb 28, 2015, 7:57 am
#63
Join Date: Mar 2013
Posts: 31
Sorry to divert here...
ghiaaa -
I don't know if you are male or female or are traveling alone to Abu Dhabi/Dubai? I was there 2 years ago. My boyfriend at the time had just gotten a job over there and I visited for a week. He was staying at the Radisson Blu on Yaz Island (most expats stay at the hotels on there when working.) It was ok - but I am a woman and would not travel there alone. We did go to Dubai one day - huge city, traffic, construction - like Chicago or worse. Was happy to go back to Abu Dhabi. We didn't venture far from Yaz Island though. We did go one day to a zoo near the Oman border. On the way back, we took an exit where we thought we might see camels (you see some from the highway). We ended up at a camel racetrack. That was interesting! I would not care to revisit though. Nothing special.
ghiaaa -
I don't know if you are male or female or are traveling alone to Abu Dhabi/Dubai? I was there 2 years ago. My boyfriend at the time had just gotten a job over there and I visited for a week. He was staying at the Radisson Blu on Yaz Island (most expats stay at the hotels on there when working.) It was ok - but I am a woman and would not travel there alone. We did go to Dubai one day - huge city, traffic, construction - like Chicago or worse. Was happy to go back to Abu Dhabi. We didn't venture far from Yaz Island though. We did go one day to a zoo near the Oman border. On the way back, we took an exit where we thought we might see camels (you see some from the highway). We ended up at a camel racetrack. That was interesting! I would not care to revisit though. Nothing special.
Mar 1, 2015, 10:03 pm
#64
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Catania, Sicily/South Jersey (PHL)/Houston, Texas/Red Stick/airborne in-between
Programs: United Global Svs, AA PlatPro, WN RR, AZ/ITA Freccia, Hilton Diam, Bonvoy Gold, Hertz Prez, IHG
Posts: 3,548
Via in Publicolis is near the Piazza Benedetto Cairoli, north of the river and south of the Via Florida and just a smidge southeast of the Vatican. My wife and rented an apartment somewhat nearby that was suggested by the USO but that was 9 years ago so I am not sure if they are still any good. There are plenty of good apartment rentals around the larger overall vicinity however. It is close to a lot from the Jewish Ghetto to the Vatican and there is a tram nearby if you are so inclined.
Who said anything about homicides? Or Crime against locals?
We were discussing tourists and precautions, and I noted facts about those.
Someone intimated tourist muggings do not happen when in fact they still do, that is the only point I was making and it is a fact. That does not mean people should not visit Italy, nor will not be safe (as I said also).
(And let us not get into the fact much of the crime in Italia, especially in the south is still not reported to police by the locals, but that is for another thread. As is the fact property crime is actually higher in Europe than much of the US...but I digress, back to the tourists.)
Again, the fact is petty street crime can and does happen in Italy including to tourists. Pickpocketing is still an artform practiced by many, and muggings still do happen so visitors should just be alert. Not every thief is dressed like a gypsy, some are dressed as business men or priests or a myriad of other ways.
My uncle is a Carbinieri in Napoli dealing with tourists every day and my wife's cousin, and our wedding witness, is one near Trieste, formerly in Catania, and dealt with the same. I hear the stories and see the stats all the time. And while military are not tourists per se, I am including the NATO stats when I discuss what I know and have seen first hand. In November while at a contracting meeting at the consulate in Napoli two of the new folks to the team had their passports lifted in less than 30 minutes in country. And of course it is always fun comparing the prices everyone paid in cab fare even though all were coming from the same location-not exactly robbery at gunpoint but still all to common. Like any other spot on the planet Italy has a subset of people that look to take advantage of tourists because they know they are out of their element. This happens all over the world and is not unique to Europe.
I also have direct dealings with the US Military in Italy as part of one of my companies' government contracts and I have seen their stats as well, to include Sig, Gaeta and others. It is part of what my people do. There is a reason the metro in Rome makes pickpocket announcements in English...
HOWEVER, let me stress this again-As you noted, of course most tourist visits are crime free and anyone should consider visiting Italia; it is a numbers game in the end. Most visits to Gary, Indiana, and Detroit and DC are crime free too, yet they are still high crime areas and visitors are not loathe to take precautions.
Making it seem like theft and muggings do not happen in Italy is disingenuous that is all. As I said, that should not discourage a trip. A visitor needs just be prepared. If one wants to truly be safe go to Japan
Try noting context and entire posits next time.^
Bolding mine.
I can not emphasize enough how this is BS e misinformation.
Just have a look at statistics where crimes per capita/population density are listed and you'll be wondering.
Let's say comparing Naples/Palermo/Catania to Paris/London/Bruxelles.
Your "fairly often" is not applicable anymore even to Rio's stop lights.
Enlarging the issue to homicides for the whole country Eurostat can help: http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statist...ants)_YB14.png.
I can not emphasize enough how this is BS e misinformation.
Just have a look at statistics where crimes per capita/population density are listed and you'll be wondering.
Let's say comparing Naples/Palermo/Catania to Paris/London/Bruxelles.
Your "fairly often" is not applicable anymore even to Rio's stop lights.
Enlarging the issue to homicides for the whole country Eurostat can help: http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statist...ants)_YB14.png.
Who said anything about homicides? Or Crime against locals?
We were discussing tourists and precautions, and I noted facts about those.
Someone intimated tourist muggings do not happen when in fact they still do, that is the only point I was making and it is a fact. That does not mean people should not visit Italy, nor will not be safe (as I said also).
(And let us not get into the fact much of the crime in Italia, especially in the south is still not reported to police by the locals, but that is for another thread. As is the fact property crime is actually higher in Europe than much of the US...but I digress, back to the tourists.)
Again, the fact is petty street crime can and does happen in Italy including to tourists. Pickpocketing is still an artform practiced by many, and muggings still do happen so visitors should just be alert. Not every thief is dressed like a gypsy, some are dressed as business men or priests or a myriad of other ways.
My uncle is a Carbinieri in Napoli dealing with tourists every day and my wife's cousin, and our wedding witness, is one near Trieste, formerly in Catania, and dealt with the same. I hear the stories and see the stats all the time. And while military are not tourists per se, I am including the NATO stats when I discuss what I know and have seen first hand. In November while at a contracting meeting at the consulate in Napoli two of the new folks to the team had their passports lifted in less than 30 minutes in country. And of course it is always fun comparing the prices everyone paid in cab fare even though all were coming from the same location-not exactly robbery at gunpoint but still all to common. Like any other spot on the planet Italy has a subset of people that look to take advantage of tourists because they know they are out of their element. This happens all over the world and is not unique to Europe.
I also have direct dealings with the US Military in Italy as part of one of my companies' government contracts and I have seen their stats as well, to include Sig, Gaeta and others. It is part of what my people do. There is a reason the metro in Rome makes pickpocket announcements in English...
HOWEVER, let me stress this again-As you noted, of course most tourist visits are crime free and anyone should consider visiting Italia; it is a numbers game in the end. Most visits to Gary, Indiana, and Detroit and DC are crime free too, yet they are still high crime areas and visitors are not loathe to take precautions.
Making it seem like theft and muggings do not happen in Italy is disingenuous that is all. As I said, that should not discourage a trip. A visitor needs just be prepared. If one wants to truly be safe go to Japan
Try noting context and entire posits next time.^
Mar 1, 2015, 10:11 pm
#65
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Catania, Sicily/South Jersey (PHL)/Houston, Texas/Red Stick/airborne in-between
Programs: United Global Svs, AA PlatPro, WN RR, AZ/ITA Freccia, Hilton Diam, Bonvoy Gold, Hertz Prez, IHG
Posts: 3,548
Thanks sophie sophie! I am a solo female traveler. Did you feel unsafe? Like many other FTers, I am traveling thanks to the $178 RT airfare. My initial thought was to just use it as a jump off point to visit Jordan but that seems impractical. I'm thinking desert safari, a couple mosques, Duabi mall.. certainly the price of admission. (Sorry to digress from the purpose of the thread)
Mar 2, 2015, 7:00 am
#66
Join Date: May 2004
Programs: BA blue, LH Senator, KQ (FB) gold
Posts: 8,215
Well, you'll be safe from crime, but perhaps not from:
Radiation, depending where you go.
Extortionate Hostess Bars
Earthquakes, Tsunamis, Volcanoes!
My tongue-in-cheek post is simply a recognition that no place is completely safe. It is useful to know what the risks are, but we should be thoughtful about these risks and take into account their significance to us personally. One thing to remember is that people tend to downplay risks with which they are familiar and exaggerate those with which are unfamiliar.
Radiation, depending where you go.
Extortionate Hostess Bars
Earthquakes, Tsunamis, Volcanoes!
My tongue-in-cheek post is simply a recognition that no place is completely safe. It is useful to know what the risks are, but we should be thoughtful about these risks and take into account their significance to us personally. One thing to remember is that people tend to downplay risks with which they are familiar and exaggerate those with which are unfamiliar.