Sunday, March 28, 2004 9:28 PM
Carole,
We are back from our trip to Italy and wanted to thank you for your
help in making the arrangements. Also thought you might like our impression
of the hotels and transportation for your future reference.
Taking the train was definitely the way to go. We are still not sure
if he had to,* but we were told we had to
pay extra to reserve seats on the express trains where as our
passes were fine for the slower trains. (All within Italy).
The flights were fine. We were bumped to business class on the way
there when we mentioned being on our honeymoon. Nice seats! On the
return flight no such luck. The return was a lot longer and it was
hard to sit that long, but Lufthansa did a great job.
I am unsure what is common in hotels in Italy so I will share the
oddities we experienced...
4
nights Regency Hotel in Rome – 42 Via Romagna
In Rome, the hotel was older. While they said the rooms were non-smoking,
they had ash trays and the place smelled of cigarettes - everywhere
all the time. Of course we quickly learned everyone smokes in Europe
- everywhere. The hotel had hard wood floors and thin walls so if
people are walking or talking you hear it all. The windows are single
paned so all the road noise is there. They regulated the heater, so
even when it was cold, THEY turned on the heater for the whole building
beginning at 6:00pm - so warm cigarette smelling air would blow in.
The location of the hotel was good. We quickly figured out the bus
and walking routes to get us where we wanted to go. Rome was great!
We got our fill of museums, statutes, important historical buildings,
etc...We enjoyed having choices of places to eat on every corner.
We liked taking a pizza to go, walking and eating. It was a lot of
fun. Busy! Lots of hustle and bustle!
4
nights Adler Cavalieri Hotel in Florence – 40 Via Dell Scala
The hotel in Florence was THE BEST. It seems like it has been recently
redone. Everything was nice. There were double windows; not double
paned, but actually two sets of windows which did a lot to keep the
street noise out. The bed was comfortable as were the pillows. The
shower, while still the odd little square thing we found in Rome,
was a little bit bigger; could actually turn around without turning
the water off! They list a spa but when we asked about it, they said
it wasn't fully up and running yet. The location was just beyond the
train station and again, perfectly located for walking around town
and then taking train trips. We never got on a city bus in Florence.
We did to a wine tour (by bus) and took the train to Pisa and Lucca,
then back. We would recommend this hotel to everyone!
3
nights Giorgione Hotel in Venice – Canareggio 4587
The hotel in Venice was also nice however after staying in Florence
we were spoiled. The people at the hotel in Venice were VERY nice
and helpful. The hotel is just down the way from a church that rings
bells throughout the day. They begin at 7:00am, we counted 41 rings
- must have been its time to wake up and they continued until sundown.
I spent each night awake trying to eliminate the mosquitoes buzzing
us. It was warming up when we got to Venice. We threw open our windows
the first day, but once we figured out the mosquito deal, we kept
them closed and it got hot. There was a full size bath which was a
pleasure to soak in after a week of walking. The location was good
- I don't know if there is a bad location in Venice. After being in
Rome and Florence, Venice was easy to navigate. But it was very near
a nice area where we could get food or other items. This was the only
city where we had to be very watchful of the time as we got caught
wanting to eat and places were closed. Venice, as a place to visit
was our least favorite. In fact, we took the train back to Florence
one day to finish up some souvenir shopping since the shopping in
Venice wasn't as good.
If we had it to do again, we would probably go straight to Florence
and then fan out from there. It was just the right pace for us.
We had a great time and we have some great memories to carry with
us of our experiences in Italy! Thanks again for your help!
Kathy
* Notes from Europe Traveler: Seat reservations are required on certain
trains, such as any intercity train or other express train. This is
true even if you have a rail pass. If you know exactly where you want
to travel and when, I can make the reservations for you before you
leave for Italy—as long as you ask
me to do so at least a month in advance. There will be a charge
of $15-$20 per seat reservation, prices subject to change without
notice. If you prefer more spontaneity (which I advise), you can wait
until you are in Europe before you purchase seat reservations. Just
go to the ticket counter in the train station and reserve your seats.
If you are planning on going on a popular train on a date when it
is likely to be crowded (e.g., going to Venice in the days before
Carnivale or to Siena before the Palio), then you should
purchase your reservations as early as possible. Otherwise, you may
not be able to get a seat on the train you want to go on.
