Best tasting rooms with options to buy bottles?

We will be in the La Morra are in July. Can anyone recommend the best winery for wine tasting that also gives a light lunch or some cold cuts.

Thanks

I will be staying in Arezzo for 4-5 days in mid-September 2021. I would like to take a wine tour in Montepulciano and/or Montalcino, but I don’t want to drive myself because I don’t want to drink and drive. Can anyone recommend a wine tour leaving from Arezzo or a driver/guide? Or is there a different option, ie., taking a bus and visiting a winery or enoteca without a tour? Thanks!

My husband and I visited Syracusa, Ortigia, and Catania a few years ago and promised we would return some day, and we are scheduled for 2 weeks in October! Can't wait!

We are interested in history, wine, biking, scenery, and local flavor. We do not want to be changing hotels every other day, so let me lay out what we are thinking and then get some feedback.

3-4 nights in Trapani: Fly into Palermo, rent a car at the airport, and drive to Trapani. If we aren't to tired we will detour to Segeste on the way. We would like to take the cable car to Erice, bike on Favignana, and then maybe visit salt flats.

Day 4: We were thinking that if we got up early we could make it to Agrigento, visit the ruins, and then continue on to Ragusa. If that's too much we would spend a night in Agrigento.

3-4 nights in Ragusa: We originally thought we would like to rent ebikes and visit wineries and other towns like we did in southern France and Tuscany, but as I'm researching I am wondering if that's a thing in that area. I couldn't find bike rental places in Ragusa and don't see any vineyards in that area either. (I did find a map that shows vineyards north of Vittoria and Comiso.)

3-4 nights in Palermo: We would do a day trip to Monreale cathedral, a day trip to Cefalu by train, and a day seeing the sights of Palermo.

Here are my questions:

1) Should we skip the Ragusa area and stay to the west, and if so, what should we do with those days? Should we stay in Vittorio or Comiso and try to rent bikes and visit those area wineries? Is that a pretty area? (I love the pics I've seen of Ragusa and Modica.)

2) Is there an area that has biking options (single day rides vs. multiple days). Ideally we would like to visit wineries on these rides, but scenery is a good incentive, too.

3) In my itinerary above I still have a few nights unaccounted for. Should I add another place, like Cefalu to the itinerary, or a place on the southern coast, or Marsalla, or should I just add the days to the places we are already staying?

4) We thought about visiting the Villa Romana del Casale, but it's about 2 hours north of Agrigento so not really on the way to any place unless we stayed in that area (Enna?) for a day or 2. Thoughts on that?

5) We also thought of staying overnight on Favignana to have 2 days of biking. Is that too much time allocated to see the island?

I will stop there. Vagabonda and others were so helpful on our last trip that I'm hoping for some common sense wisdom again this time. Thanks in advance!!

Kim

We are staying in Montepulciano, but will be doing day trip to Montalcino. I LOVE Brunello.

I realize there are so many to choose from. We will hit Enoteca la Fortezza to taste, but I want to do one vineyard tour. However, we want an experience. I've heard Banfi is large, impersonal - that's not what we are looking for. Yes, I want a good Brunello (is there one that isn't?) but I want more of an experience. We want a beautiful cellar (the older the better), views and a family feel. If I could compare it to Napa/Sonoma in CA - we loved Kuleto (not a very good tour, but the views were unbelievable) and Pride (amazing tour and in the cellars showed us the wines at different ages), but our favorite was a little vineyard in Alexander Valley where a family ran it. As one of the brothers told us stories and even gave us some vegetables from the garden.

We won't want to just taste wine - we want to remember the place, the people, the food, the wine and tell the story for years to come. I've read on TripAdvisor that Tornesi is family run and you can have a meal - seems right up our alley. Pordere il Cocco looked interesting.

What's the one experience/tour that you would recommend ???

We will be in Milan for 6 nights over Christmas (and one night in Verona). We will spend a full 4 days in Milan (Tuesday through Friday (also Saturday but that is Christmas so do not expect to do any tourist stuff) and spend 1 day in Bergamo. I have a good idea of the sites in Milan that are a priority for me and quite honestly there are too many. I don't want to be on a bus schedule but don't mind being busy. We arrive from the US around noon on a Monday ( I am not counting Monday as a day in Milan since its a travel day) and plan to just go to the Rinascente Department store for a drink/snack so I get the view of the Duomo and walk around the Christmas Market outside the Duomo and hopefully eat there before we crash back at the hotel. I will split my other days in Milan around the museums and churches I want to see (we will get tickets in advance to see the Last Supper (last time I saw it was 1976 which was the last time I was in Milan)). I plan to use the metro to get around (we are staying near Centrale).

My ask of this forum is if you could only go to 5 museums in Milan (see subject line above) which would they be? My list of must see museums as it stands is:

Pinacoteca Ambrosiana; Gallerie d'Italia; Pinacoteca di Brera; Castel Sforza;Palazzo Morando; Triennale Design and Armani Silos. Yes this is 7 museums so trying to cut 2 and also check to make sure I am not leaving off a wonderful place (like Foundation Prada, for example). My list of churches including the Duomo rooftop is manageable (though my husband will complain).

I am also having trouble limiting my list of potential places to eat and drink--thinking we need one place for drinks each night and another for food. I am not looking for fancy or Michelin rated places (not in the budget) but just great meals (we eat everything except escargot (allergy). Milan has too many places to choose from. I am trying to pick lunch spots near the attractions with amazing food/sandwiches and places to stop for a coffee/pastry.

Please understand, I am a planner but I do go off script and wonder around and deviate if something catches my eye and I always have a couple of options in the area/section of Milan we are visiting that day. For example, my plan may say wine tasting@Cantine Isola and food at La Ravioleria or Bosco Verticle and Osteria del Treno.

Ok it is all about the food. So second ask of this forum--if you were limited to 5 places for dinner (Osteria, Restaurant, Cafe, Deli or Enoteca) where would you go? No 100 euro a person places--top price around 75 euro a person but hopefully less. My ever growing list: All’Antico Vinaio; GB Bar,Panzerotti Luni ; Panarello; Boccondivino ;Cova Montenpoleone ; Caffe Leonardo;Il Secco , Rita, vinoir& Mag cafe in Navigli; Nebbia; Bele Ristorant; 28 Posti; Vino & Saporri Enoteca; Napiz Milano Pizzeria; A’Riccione ;Gelateria Antica Santori ;Casa /fontana 23 risotto; Olio Cucina Fresca ;La Dogana del Buongust; Delfino ; Ratana; Trattoria Milanese

So you see the issue, too many options--everytime I read about a place I add it to the list. Looking for advice --not comments just go with the flow and stumble upon a place and try it; not me. like to know my options and pick that day but from a list of places that will not disappoint. thanks in advance for suggestions and any help to "skinny" down the list.

We'll be in Florence at the end of June for 5 days. We would like to spend a few hours in the afternoon at a winery in the Tuscany countryside. We are not wine connoisseurs and are not looking for a tour, but are more interested in a very pretty winery with beautiful views so we may drink some wine and have a bite to eat. We are looking for a place that's within 45 minutes of Florence as we will take a cab. Thank you.

Hi everyone! I’m trying to find a good food and wine tour out of Florence. Specifically one that goes to San Gimignano and allows enough time to try the famous Gelateria Dondoli! Thanks for any suggestions :)

Hi! I'm planning on doing a long holiday in Italy from the end of September until November. I will be doing most of my transport via public transport, but biking/hiking or renting a car every now and then might be an option too.

What I'm currently thinking about:

- Enter sicily by train, hop off on the east coast. Visit Taormina, Catania, Siracusa, and possibly Ragusa as main sites. 5 days?

- Take the ferry from either Pozzallo or Augusta to Malta

- Spend about a week on Malta

- Take the ferry back, see (possibly Ragusa here) Valle dei Templi, and the north and west of sicily. About 10 days?

- Take the ferry from Palermo to Cagliari

- Spend about two weeks on Sardinia (not sure what places yet)

- take the ferry from Porto Torres to Barcelona

Is this a feasibily itinerary? The suggested staying times for these places seem to be all over the place (e.g. 5 days enough for Sicily, two weeks in Malta) so I'm wondering if I'm taking it easy enough or if I could include Amalfi for example. Is two weeks in Sicily enough if I go by public transport? I want to see the main sites and take some relaxed days off too. I don't need to spend days in every town exploring every alley.

I plan on staying in hostels and cheap hotel rooms mostly. I can also bring camping gear but I'm not entirely sure if it's worth it as I think a lot of campings will already be closed in October. I don't particularly have a set budget but I prefer to spend my cash on good food and perhaps some guides. I don't have a need for luxury hotels or driving a car everywhere.

Hello!

We're headed on a month long trip to Italy mid July-August and could use any input / advice on the best places to stay. We're two musicians planning to do some music work and find an Airbnb to bunker down in for the month while we work on projects.

The current goal is to find a city near some water (lake or sea!), a small to medium sized city that doesn't feel overwhelmed by travelers or city bustle and has a small town more authentic feel to it. Since we'd be staying in and exploring the local area for a big part of our time, the local feeling is very important!

Ideally it'll be a place that we can get to from Rome without a car (we don't mind if its a long train ride) & it would be a place that could allow for little weekend trips to other cities and areas again without a car.

We've explored Como, Siena, Pisa, Bologna & Florence as possible options, but still having a bit of trouble sorting through the options. Hoping to get some advice from people with a bit more experience and knowledge than us!

Thanks so much !!

Hello all,

Planning a trip to gorgeous Positano. We understand stairs. We can and will do stairs. But we want to try and hit the sweet spot of a wonderful few and the fewest stairs possible. (surely such a thing exists?)

Looking for a very good+ hotel or rental without too much of a knee-busting vertical climb up hundreds stairs (for example - while the Miramare has great views, it must be accessed via 200 stairs, which just sounds too strenuous to be worth it). We are mostly interested in good restaurants, wine bars, a little shopping and maybe a little beach time. And breakfast / sunsets on a great balcony or terrace. Walking up and down Via Pasitea or Cristopher Columbo would not be a problem for us.

We would like to keep the cost at not much more than $1K per night. Therefore, Sirenuese is not an option, lol.

Not sure about Ancora, either - rooms look pretty dated and it appears only one room has a full terrace with a view. Also unsure about Buca di Bacco. (so close to the beach. Assume it is noisy - am I wrong?)

I’ve checked Summer in Italy for rentals, and, unsurprisingly, there are few options left for our dates in mid-September. ( I do love how this company’s transparency about the number of steps to reach lodgings. Wish there were more options for our dates).

Finally - how long is the staircase from Via Cristopher Columbo down to Piazza Mulini, for example?

I’ve tried research on google maps and have learned that much of Positano is not mapped. Unsurprising since auto traffic is blocked in the town. (Have they ever heard of GoPro, lol?)

Thanks for suggestions!