Our family had the pleasure of taking this trip in 2012. Italians tend to dress up much more than Americans. It
was not uncommon to see a women in a very nice dress and 4 inch heels ride away in a scooter. Tennis shoes are
usually reserved for the gym in Italy, and we also did not see many people wearing jeans or shorts. This is a wonderful
trip. You will have a great time.
You will se jeans worn but most were skinny type designer jeans. Also you can always tell the American tourist because they usually are wearing white sneakers. It is amazing Italian women wearing high heels traversing those cobblestoned streets. But that being said we just wear what is comfortable for us. There is a lot of walking (again as much as you prefer) in the times you wish to explore on your own especially in Venice where just wandering the alleys and bye ways is a treat in itself.
Thanks everybody for your help. Really looking forward to this trip. First time traveling to Europe. I was planning on wearing sneakers, but I heard Italians consider them "clown shoes" so I was afraid to bring them along. I want to be comfortable if we intend to do a lot of walking.
You may look into purchasing a "Pacsafe" shoulder bag or hand bag ( which ever fits your style). They are pick pocket "proof". Although Italy is very safe there does seem to be more pickpockets than here in the U.S.. We have traveled many times and so far never had a problem but having grown up in a gritty city I am naturally suspicious anyways. We just like to feel that we are being pro-active rather than reactive. As far as footwear we wear sneakers and also use after market inserts. You do a lot of walking for there is so much to see and so little time.
Comments
was not uncommon to see a women in a very nice dress and 4 inch heels ride away in a scooter. Tennis shoes are
usually reserved for the gym in Italy, and we also did not see many people wearing jeans or shorts. This is a wonderful
trip. You will have a great time.
What you need is a good pair of leather walking shoes that give you good support. I would not recommend that you wear sandals.
Sue