2 weeks in Italy
Sep 26, 2016, 11:20 am
#31
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2013
Posts: 17,457
Thanks again. Now that I'm settled with the dates and means of transpo between cities, I would like to ask for hotel and location suggestions.
1st, for Rome.
I am thinking of staying near the Spanish Steps as I think it's walkable to some attractions and near a Metro Station. Also near shopping area for the wife. I have read from some threads that some of the hotels don't have elevators. And I will definitely need an elevator to bring our suitcases up the floors. How will I know if the hotel will have an elevator?
1st, for Rome.
I am thinking of staying near the Spanish Steps as I think it's walkable to some attractions and near a Metro Station. Also near shopping area for the wife. I have read from some threads that some of the hotels don't have elevators. And I will definitely need an elevator to bring our suitcases up the floors. How will I know if the hotel will have an elevator?
There is a justifiably famous evening walk ("passeggiata") in Rome that starts say Piazza Navona, passes the Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain, and goes along Via di Propoganda to the Spanish Steps. Returns west along Via del Condotti.
This defines imo the best area of Rome to stay in. The Metro has a stop at Spanish Steps, but the Metro is really limited. The sites a first time visitor wants to see are all walkable from this area. As I described, many are simply minutes away. In fact, the entire walk from Navona to the Steps can be done in a half hour of leisurely strolling (no stops). From Navona to the Forum/Coliseum also takes about half an hour by foot. The Vatican about twenty minutes stroll.
And it's not like you're walking on the shoulder of some fast food/convenience store/trailer park festooned highway. This is Rome. You want to walk around Rome (actually you want to walk everywhere in Italy - it's amazing what you'll come across that way).
So I'd start by considering properties in this area. Once you've settled on three or four good candidates, you can solicit previous experiences to help make your ultimate choice.
Sep 26, 2016, 7:31 pm
#32
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: CRK MNL
Programs: CX Gold
Posts: 1,288
I am thinking of staying near the Spanish Steps, as it's near to some sites and also shopping. And also near a Metro stop.
And if possible, I would prefer a large hotel room. Is Piazza di Spagna hotel a good place to stay?
And if possible, I would prefer a large hotel room. Is Piazza di Spagna hotel a good place to stay?
Sep 26, 2016, 8:18 pm
#33
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: SEA
Posts: 3,955
Their website says rooms range from 12-20 square meters. That's a max of 215 sq ft. That's tiny by my standards.
Sep 27, 2016, 9:17 pm
#34
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: CRK MNL
Programs: CX Gold
Posts: 1,288
Sep 27, 2016, 11:59 pm
#35
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: SFO, VCE
Programs: AA EXP >4 MM, Lifetime Plat
Posts: 2,881
The first time I visited Venice, there was no FT or anything like that. I didn't have the benefit of the collective knowledge that we can now access while planning and traveling. I had a guidebook.
So I believed that the best place to stay was as close as I could afford to the Danielli. Then I chose as I described. The hotel was just down a small calle across from S. Zaccaria C/D and then along a canal (this hotel had a dock, but I wasn't paying for a taxi that trip...well I've never used a taxi in Venice on 6 visits). The other hotels I was "guided" to were in the Rialto Bridge area. Even though it wasn't as crowded as it is now, I was extremely happy I chose the place I did. This I repeat was my first visit. (Three days - just enough to fall in love with the city.)
On that first visit, I walked all over the city and it's pretty obvious that staying away from the San Marco/Rialto area is relatively easy and certainly preferable. I never stayed near them again. I have posted my agreement with you about this on a number of threads.
I'm not certain why you thought my description of the streets as alleys was perjorative. They are in fact my favorite part of Venice. Walking, even wandering, the streets of Venice late at night is incomparable. But to any first time visitor...c'mon, a lot of them are the width of alleys. It's an observation, not a judgment.
Remember, I was addressing a first time visitor with a lot of luggage. I only mentioned my first experience in reference to trying to negotiate Venice with luggage, even one roller, if you've never been before. I haven't any idea where the OP is staying, but no matter where, he needs to consider getting there in Venice.
I'm not sure a kayak would work for him. (A joke - I know you weren't suggesting it)
/post heavily edited due to incomplete initial posting/
So I believed that the best place to stay was as close as I could afford to the Danielli. Then I chose as I described. The hotel was just down a small calle across from S. Zaccaria C/D and then along a canal (this hotel had a dock, but I wasn't paying for a taxi that trip...well I've never used a taxi in Venice on 6 visits). The other hotels I was "guided" to were in the Rialto Bridge area. Even though it wasn't as crowded as it is now, I was extremely happy I chose the place I did. This I repeat was my first visit. (Three days - just enough to fall in love with the city.)
On that first visit, I walked all over the city and it's pretty obvious that staying away from the San Marco/Rialto area is relatively easy and certainly preferable. I never stayed near them again. I have posted my agreement with you about this on a number of threads.
I'm not certain why you thought my description of the streets as alleys was perjorative. They are in fact my favorite part of Venice. Walking, even wandering, the streets of Venice late at night is incomparable. But to any first time visitor...c'mon, a lot of them are the width of alleys. It's an observation, not a judgment.
Remember, I was addressing a first time visitor with a lot of luggage. I only mentioned my first experience in reference to trying to negotiate Venice with luggage, even one roller, if you've never been before. I haven't any idea where the OP is staying, but no matter where, he needs to consider getting there in Venice.
I'm not sure a kayak would work for him. (A joke - I know you weren't suggesting it)
/post heavily edited due to incomplete initial posting/
On TV they caught on video camera a guide from Asia taking a tour group to go on gondola rides. The guide was speaking to the gondola driver telling him, "Let's charge them 20 euros more than, and we'll split the difference." This was the actual guy taking them on the tour from China. The tour guide! The gondola driver was arguing with him, telling him that it is illegal, and he will only charge the mandated price.
And the streets along the waterfront and between San Marco and Rialto were packed, and beyond bearable. Most people will go there and say I didn't like Venice.
About a quarter mile away, I was having coffee in true Venice, and it was quite empty. Just children playing. This is where people should go, not to San Marco. It is wonderful. I stumbled into a great chicchetti place, and also a great restaurant I'd never been to before, even though it was close to where I lived (Oliva Nera).
Sep 28, 2016, 11:31 pm
#40
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: SFO
Programs: AA, UA lowly commoner
Posts: 782
For one comparison, the Rome Metro has less than 40 miles of track in total, while the NYC subway and London Underground each have something like 250 miles. And subway construction in Rome goes at a glacial pace, not least because of the need to deal with the huge number of archaeological remains under the city.
Sep 29, 2016, 12:50 am
#41
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: CRK MNL
Programs: CX Gold
Posts: 1,288
How does it compare? Rather laughably. It's got three lines that basically criss-cross at the Termini station. It's more useful for commuting between the city and some of the suburbs or for linking to outlying train stations or bus lines than for transport within the city center. It does have stations near a few of the tourist destinations, like the Vatican, Spanish Steps, and Colosseum, but the real central transport network is the extensive bus and tram system, not the Metro. You can easily Google and see the maps.
For one comparison, the Rome Metro has less than 40 miles of track in total, while the NYC subway and London Underground each have something like 250 miles. And subway construction in Rome goes at a glacial pace, not least because of the need to deal with the huge number of archaeological remains under the city.
For one comparison, the Rome Metro has less than 40 miles of track in total, while the NYC subway and London Underground each have something like 250 miles. And subway construction in Rome goes at a glacial pace, not least because of the need to deal with the huge number of archaeological remains under the city.
Sep 29, 2016, 7:10 am
#42
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: SFO, VCE
Programs: AA EXP >4 MM, Lifetime Plat
Posts: 2,881
Exactly. The Metro is not much help. The buses are confusing. Walking and taxi is best until you get some experience with Rome.
Oct 1, 2016, 1:46 am
#43
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: CRK MNL
Programs: CX Gold
Posts: 1,288
Which sites in Rome should I purchase tickets in advance?
I'm not a fan of guided tours. I just want to enter sites and appreciate it by myself. So I will only need entrance tickets to sites. Any suggestions for online ticket purchasing?
I'm not a fan of guided tours. I just want to enter sites and appreciate it by myself. So I will only need entrance tickets to sites. Any suggestions for online ticket purchasing?
Oct 1, 2016, 4:19 am
#44
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: CRK MNL
Programs: CX Gold
Posts: 1,288
Before I forget, I've heard from friends who've been to Italy that it's hard to find public toilets and restaurants don't let you use theirs if you are not a diner. Is this really true?
Also, does restaurants give complimentary drinking water in Italy?
Also, does restaurants give complimentary drinking water in Italy?
Oct 1, 2016, 1:49 pm
#45
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: SFO, VCE
Programs: AA EXP >4 MM, Lifetime Plat
Posts: 2,881
There are restaurants all throughout Italy with signs saying that after you've wiped, don't throw your toilet paper in the toilet. Throw it in the basket beside you. That's culturally completely different from the USA. The pipes in Rome go back to the year 300 AD. Venice is a collection of 104 islands, each with its own way of dealing with sewerage, which is usually just dumped into the canal when you flush the toilet.
On the other hand, many Italians, especially those from Naples, consider people in the USA to be filthy. That's because after defecation we use paper that just spreads the feces around. In Italy they use a bidet and soap and water, and clean themselves after defecation and urination. A napolitano is astounded to come to America to find out that we walk around with feces spread around our buttocks.
Yes, buy the water when you go into a restaurant. The water in Italy is safe, as in clean, but since it's been flowing through those same pipes for over a thousand years, it's full of pipe sludge, and is distasteful. Always buy the water. No one wants to drink that water that is clean, but that tastes so bad it can ruin your meal.