Which and when Italy
My husband and I are considering Italy for our 2024 touring. We know we want to go either in the spring or fall due to weather and crowds. Also we want to maximize expensive airfare and stay at least 2 weeks.
Two questions:
- Assuming this may be our only Italy tour, would Classic Italy be best or maybe 1-2 of the other tours? We enjoy architecture, history and food.
- What are the pros/cons of April vs October?
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Hi Claudia,
Absolutely, the Classic Italy is your best choice. It gives the best overview of Italy and hits the most iconic sights. Classic Italy was our first Tauck trip and is still our favorite. We've done three other Italy trips with Tauck since then and, while we enjoyed them all, none compared to Classic Italy. Other Tauck Italy trips are more regional and better suited to a return trip once you've done Classic Italy.
Your fondness for architecture, history, and food will surely be indulged on the Classic Italy tour. Never a bad meal in Italy.
As far as April versus October, both are great choices, but may be a little cool. It's a toss-up. We tend to favor September, though the crowds better in April or October.
I would suggest the 14-day classic Italy tour. Gives you a little bit of everything and you can add on at the beginning or the end of the tour on your own if you wish. I went in September some years back but think either late April or early October would be fine weather-wise and crowd-wise.
For those who have previously done the 14 day Classic Italy, how's the weather first 2 weeks in May?
Claudia - Choosing Rome as a midpoint, geographically, there's less rain in the Spring vs the Fall, per this site:
https://weather-and-climate.com/average-monthly-Rainfall-Temperature-Sunshine-fahrenheit,Rome,Italy
You can check other cities, as well.
We did the Classic Italy Small Groups that started last May 1st. The weather was perfect, mostly in the mid 70s with just a bit of rain on 1 of the days.
Classic Italy is wonderful. We've been to Italy a few times in April, Sept, and Oct. Sept was our favorite, then Oct. We had LOTS of rain in April - but that, of course, changes year to year. We just booked Tauck's Umbria and Tuscany for mid Sept 2024. When we've been in Oct, it was in the mid 80s during the day and the 70s at night (that was in Venice, Florence, Rome, Sorrento)
if you decide on 2 tours - I'd say do the Venice, Florence, Rome one - followed by the Tuscany and Umbria one (which is a total of 2 weeks - the Tuscany and Umbria one is a very 'foodie' tour, with great history from what we've been told).
We have been on the following Italy tours: Classic Italy, Bellissima Northern Italy, Puglia, and Tuscany and Umbria. We only have travelled to Italy in the Spring, and have had very little rain. While we enjoyed them all, our favorite was definitely Classic Italy, but the group chemistry was also fantastic. That trip is definitely packed and felt higher energy than the other Italy trips, which felt more relaxed. If you do that trip, I would stay one extra day in Venice, and at least 2 extra days in Naples or Sorrento, unless you plan to return, or even more if you wish to visit the islands or experience the Amalfi Coast.
We are hoping to return to Italy in the fall some day, and I think Tuscany and Umbria would be especially beautiful then. Umbria was more "woodsy" than we expected, and the color changes should be spectacular. You may wish to also look up national holidays in Italy to see if that would impact your travel. The cities get very crowded during their national holidays. Restaurant bookings fill up quickly and museums may not be open, however Tauck is very good about working around holidays. This was not a huge deal for us, just an FYI.
Claudia, I took the Classic Italy tour May 1st of 2022. The weather was perfect! We heard there was rain on the tour that preceded ours, but we were blessed with sunny warm weather. I only needed a sweater. This tour is wonderful, filled with all the things you love about traveling. Sorrento is heaven. I added on an extra day pre-trip and hired a guide to take me to Herculaneum. It is totally different than Pompeii which you’ll see while on tour. I made arrangements through driverinitaly. They were great. Had the Archeological Museum been open that day (I think they’re closed on Tuesday) I would have included that too. Both are very close to Naples, which you could do by starting out in Naples and then meet the group in Sorrento.
Have done early thru mid-may and earlyl thru mid-oct. Weather was fine in both times. Had a little rain but not a lot.
A follow-up to what Wan said about holidays and openings.
In Italy, "Monday is the traditional day of closure for museums and heritage sites. There are some exceptions, but generally you shouldn't rely on being able to visit any archaeological site, museum or gallery on a Monday."
"In Rome, all year long, Italian state sites and monuments are free for everyone on the first Sunday of every month."
"This is true across Italy and includes other well-known sites like the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, and Pompeii."
Note, What may not be evident to the visitor is that archeological sites and museums are managed by several different entities. all site are not run by the Italian State, e.g. Vatican, but even some state-run museums are not free on the Free Sunday, e.g. includes MAXXI (modern art) and the Domus Aurea. Some that are free, still require reservations.
Anyway, be careful in your planning- if it is a Monday, many sites will be closed. If it is the first Sunday of the month, entry into some sites may be free, but also extremely crowded with locals.
I did a bunch of research and did extra stuff on this tour. I posted about it in 2016 after we did Classic Italy, Small Groups tour
I second what Fran said. We used DriverinItaly for three excursions in 2016. The person who originally ran it (Roberto Melaragno) tried to do so after he got married and moved to the US- it didn't work so well. I believe he is back in Italy now and DII is running like it was before. They have a website and I think still have a toll-free US number. To truly appreciate Heculaneum you need a guide like we had. (don't hire any of the "guides" who hang around the entrances to sites.) If you can, try to fit in a visit to the National Archeological Museum. Note what I said in the Positano thread about Naples area traffic. We didn't have any problems. The traffic was heavy but no back-ups, however our driver said he has been stuck in the tunnels to Sorrento for over an hour, due to traffic and accidents.
Hi Alan, I couldn’t find a U.S. number, but Marco was very responsive via email. Claudia, it did take over an hour to drive to and from Sorrento to Naples to go on tour, so if seeing Naples appeals to you and you’re arriving Naples anyway, you could stay in Naples and tour from there. I seem to remember Diriverin Italy is based in Naples. Driver in Italy will drive you to Sorrento for the beginning of the Tauck tour. Do go to Capri. Hopefully the weather will be favorable to go to the blue lagoon. I stayed in Sorrento and I must say, I loved The Grand Excelsior Victoria Hotel. It’s beautiful and is just a short walk into town. On the other hand, I would have loved more time touring!
DriverinItaly is actually based in Rome where they have offices and tour managers, but they use (licensed) contract guides and drivers throughout Italy and used to and may still be able to arrange for guides/tours outside Italy.
Our driver for Naples and Herculaneum came from Amalfi or somewhere south of Sorrento. Our guide for the day lived near Pompeii so we picked him up on the way from Sorrento to Herculaneum. At the end of the day, he met his wife and left us near Pozzuoli while the driver took us back to Sorrento.
DII arranged for our city walking guide for our all day tour of Capri (Tauck didn't offer the Capri option then.). He met us at the hotel, and we walked to the nearby elevator that took us down to the ferry terminal. At the end of our day in Capri our guide got us on the ferry back to Sorrento, while he took another ferry to Naples.
In Florence we had a DII driver only, take us to Pisa. He spoke excellent English and we had some interesting discussions on the way to and from Pisa.
In October it rains a lot, I would do April...
Let me see the tours...
If you have been in Italy before, I would do Venice and the Dalmation Coast. The Dalmation Coast it's beatiful, amazing food, history and great monuments. Croatia it's expectacular!
If it is your first Italian tour, do the Classic Italy it covers the main cities and sight.
Northen Italy is very Chic and from the architecture point of view It's classic Italian/Hollywood movie scenery, lots of small little towns, great lakes and very traditional.
The South-Sicilian Odyssey it's a great tour.. the south it's very colorful, great weather, nice architecture and different from the classic Italian tour.
If you think this will be you only Italian tour opportunity and you are willing to do 2 tours back to back- do the Classic and then The sicilian Odyssey, that way you'll cover almost all.
For people that have taken the Classic Italy tour, did you feel like you visited too many churches?
Great suggestions guys. As soon as Tauck publishes the itineraries for 2024 I can do some serious research on options. Right now I'm only seeing dates - no prices or itineraries. Given the prices on business class lately I want to maximize our time.
BKMD,
I am sure the itinerary, except for Rome, has changed many times, but I did not find there to be too many visits to cathedrals/basilicas. Besides, you can always choose not to go inside; perhaps take a walk around the area or find an outdoor cafe and people watch. Just be sure to let the tour director know and be cognitive of where and when to meet back at the bus. I'm sure you do not need to be reminded of that!
I agree that the Classic Italy tour is the best option for an overview of the country. Then you can decide which regions you might wish to return to at a later date.
BKMD,
You have to remember that for centuries the Catholic Church was the prime consumer of artwork in the world. They also were a leading consumer of monumental architecture. As a major force in the western world, they were also responsible for shaping history. So, if you're interested in art, architecture or history, the churches have much to offer. While generally true in most of Europe, this is especially true in Italy, home of the Catholic Church and birthplace of the renaissance. While there may have been one or two less interesting churches on the Classic Italy tour, most are major tourist attractions, not to be missed. Indeed, there are many more churches that the tour could have visited that are of historical or architectural interest, or house exceptional fine art.
Since we started traveling with Tauck, over a decade ago, Classic Italy has also been called the "ABC" (Another Beautiful Church) tour!
To add to what Ken said, for many years after the fall of Rome, even into the first part of the Renaissance, the only painting that was allowed had to be approved by the church and was therefore about religious topics. It was only later, that humanism and secular themed art was allowed.
Remember the old tourism saying that goes something like, "the US has its landscape- mountains, canyons, and prairies, Europe has its churches and castles.
Some have called the J&E and Jewels of the Nile tours, "AT&T" (another tomb and temple) tours. Most of what you see fits in either or both categories!
It was also the rise of a wealthy merchant class - I'm thinking of the Dutch - who had the money to pay artists for pictures of themselves or their groups.
I thought the B stood for Blasted
Points taken, Alan and Ken. I was just curious how much of that there was on this tour. Just thinking for the future. It's been a number of years since I've been to the "first line" western European tourist destinations and considering returning to some of them in the future, once I complete my list of third world countries I intend to visit.
Classic Italy is a wonderful tour, there is such beautiful art work in the churches that is almost like visiting mini museums. The whole trip is worth it.
BKMD,
Here's a list of churches we saw on Classic Italy in 2005 from my fallible memory. Hope it helps you. You really should do this tour, churches or not. More recent travelers are welcome to amend my list.
Amalfi Cathedral - Dedicated to St. Andrew with his tomb and relics. Not sure if we got a tour or if it was "on you own."
Rome - St. Peter's and the Sistine Chapel. We also went to the Church of San Pietro in Vincoli to see the tomb of Julius II by Michaelangelo with his Moses statue. I don't think this was on the standard tour then or now, it was a substitution.
Orvieto Cathedral - Important frescos by Luca Signorelli.
Assisi - Basilica of St. Francis - Tomb of St. Francis of Assisi, some decent frescos.
Florence - The Duomo - important architecture (Brunelleschi's Dome) and art (Andrea Pisano's bronze baptistry doors). Also, the Basilica of Santa Croce - Some important art and many memorials to famous Florentines (da Vinci, Dante, Galileo, etc.). The current itinerary doesn't list either of these, so it may be an "on your own" visit.
Venice - St. Mark's.
So, maybe 7 churches over two weeks. Most of them I wouldn't want to miss.
So, when we did Classic Italy in 2006, I put together a group in 2 taxis to go to the Jewish district in Rome. I think it was a total of 9 of us. We get to the district and it’s a ghost town. Genius that I am took everyone to the Jewish district on Saturday. Everything was closed! Easy enough to get cabs to the district from the hotel but not so easy to find them in a ghost town. We walked for blocks in summer heat until we could find taxis. 17 years later it’s amusing to remember.
I'm generally in the ABC category. And that goes for the AT&T in Egypt (though I had not heard that before AlanS posted) -- and Roman ruins throughout the Mediterranean and Middle East. However, I think that my favorite church that I've been to in Europe is Santa Croce in Florence. It has amazing sculptures on tombs. It was not included on my Tauck tour that went to Florence, but I'm so glad that I went on my own (more than once).
My reply it's a general observation... Not directed to anyone..... if anyone gets offended it's on themselves
But, I really don't understand, why people would pay so much money , to go to Europe and complain about the churches or Museums... to start ,no one is pointing a gun for you to enter... people.....Yes! there are a lot of chuches- but it's not like you have to stay for mass.
look at each one as a piece of art and listen to the story behind.. Best art pieces are in churches- look at the Milan Duomo, it's Amazing!
To complain about how many churches they saw... sounds rude to say the least..
I was in a tour (Croatia) where a lady had a note book and every day all she would write was ABC till the tour director ask her what was she writting about- well , she in a very arrogant manner repied ABC ( Another Boring Church)
He's face turned purple.. he had a Doctorate. in Art and Architecture.. it was a slap in the face, once that happen he ask her to stay outside or skip the tour all together
Please! don't apply the ABC- (Another Boring Church) rule to the visits, let others enjoy. Just stay outside or even better, go to the Caribbean... not many churches there.
We stopped for photos and narrative, but didn't have time to go in during our Segway tour. Basilica Di St Croce has some really famous folks hanging around (interred.) When we were there they were setting up bleachers (left edge of my photo) and the "field" for the Calcio, Florence's version of the Palio of Siena. In Florence, the competition between neighborhoods is a no-holds-barred, bare knuckles version of football, rugby, wrestling, ultimate fighting, etc. all rolled into one.
Another, equally interesting church, not due to who is interred there, but because of who had a hand in its design, construction, ornamentation and art (a real pantheon of Rennaissance greats- Pisano, Ghirlandaio (and his apprentice, Michelangelo?), Brunelleschi, Ghiberti, Vasari, Botticelli, Giotto, etc.) is the Basilica Santa Maria Novella which we also stopped by during our Segway tour.
My reply is a general observation... Not directed to anyone, except mil..... if anyone gets offended it's on them
While I agree with Ken, Alan, etc. that the Italian churches should be looked upon as displays of architecture and art, it's hard for me not to think about what went into creating them. The vast majority of the population at the time of construction were poor, uneducated and living in squalor. Yet here's a small group of well-to-dos diverting resources, preying on the fear and ignorance of the masses for their own personal gain. It really wasn't much different than slavery or how the Pharaohs built the Pyramids. It's also not very different from The Breakers in Asheville, built by a Vanderbilt who didn't even earn the money he used to build his personal palace, but inherited it; or European royal families and their palaces. So I was just curious how many of these monuments to selfishness are seen on this tour, and whether it would be a tour I'd want to consider.
As usual, we drifted off-topic. Sorry about that, but after mil's post, I felt the need to respond. Class dismissed.
BKMD--I always ask the tour director/local guide about who built this stuff, how were they paid, where did they live, etc. You make a very good point. I think that about the mansions in Newport, San Simeon, and the plantations that some Hollywood couple is bemoaning the fact they had a wedding there. I see all of these places as opportunities for "teachable" moments. We need to learn from hgistory not hide from it because it's unpleasant. I'm sure we could have a long discussion about that.
AlanS that's a beautiful church.