June 2, Republic Day

Hi there,

My family of 4 (kids aged 9 and nearly 5) are planning a trip to Sicily for 4-6 weeks in 2023 (and other parts of Italy too after the 4-6 weeks are up). We will rent a car for most of our stay.

We are planning to come in mid-June, which is the earliest we can arrive that spring.

My main question is: We aren't certain though if we should stay through to the end of July (6 weeks)?

We don't really know what its like in July, as we've been to Sicily in different periods befo

* early-mid June a few years ago (a bit north of Catania, Ortigia, Agriturismo Silitti near Caltanisetta, Marsala, Scopello); and

* a few days in early October for our honeymoon about 10 years ago (Ortigia and an agriturismo called Zottopera near Chiaramonte Gulfi).

We would ideally like to have a relaxing time with the kids in Sicily - and are hoping to avoid extreme heat (e.g. over 33 Celsius) during the middle of the day, crazy busy-ness and the worst of the Italian school holidays.

We are planning to stay in 2 or 3 spots as bases (about 10 days each): something like beachside near Noto/Ragusa, another near Palermo; and possibly an agriturismo in a central region or near a nice village (in a different region) as a third base. With possible weekend stays in Ortigia, Palermo, Cefalu and San Vito lo Capo.

Most places in Italy we'd like to visit mention September/October as ideal timing to visit, which I believe is also true for Sicily. But if we can visit Sicily at the start of our trip, we can leave September for areas like further north like Tuscany, Urbino, Ascoli Piceno.

Hi we are considering this park for June 2022.

Can anyone tell me what days you can fly to Pisa from Shannon/Cork/Dublin? Hoping to fly late June but can’t book it until I know the flights will match.

Hello. We are planning our trip next summer, which will be based in Italy since our daughter already has a school trip scheduled there.

We're planning to spend about 12 days in Italy, ending in Venice. We have 5-6 more days to play with, and were debating between going to Switzerland for the first time, or going to Milan/Lake Cuomo (also for the first time).

I'm hesitating to add the Switzerland portion onto our trip, out of concerns that it might complicate our travel next summer for Covid-related reasons. I'm worried about things like a difference in entry requirements, extra testing requirements, etc. We are all four fully vaccinated, but who knows what the rules will be concerning that by June 2022?

Since nobody has a crystal ball, I was hoping someone could at least talk about how easy it was to travel between Italy and Switzerland this summer (for vaccinated Americans, if that is relevant).

Thanks in advance for any advice you can give. :)

Group of 7 including 3 teenagers traveling at the end of June 2022. Flying into Venice and spending 2.5 days there and will finish the trip with 4 days in Rome. Half of the group has been to Italy before, 1st trip to Europe for the other half.

One member of the group wants to meet up with a friend in Milan for a day.

Thinking it might be nice to spend a few days at Lake Como for these reasons -

Would be an easy trip back and forth to Milan for the friend meet up.

Nice relaxation time with swimming, boating, laying out by the lake etc.

Lake Como is gorgeous!

If you were traveling from VCE to Rome and had 3 or 4 days AND needed to spend 1 day in Milan where would you go? Am I on the right track or should we be looking elsewhere?

Hello!

Last I tried planning this trip pre-Covid, I was trying to stuff too much into too small an amount of time. I'm hoping to find out now if I've got a good amount of time in each place or if I should shuffle things around in the plan.

Right now it looks like this:

Florence: 3.5 days (not including arrival day)

Rome: 4.5 days (including a day out to Pompeii)

1 day in transit

Lake Como + Milan: 3 days (not including departure day)

Is that a good amount of time in each place or should one place have more or less? I've a total of 12 days total (not including departure and arrival) that I can use. Pompeii is the only thing that I am not willing to cut if need be.

Thanks for the help!

I'll be flying from the USA into MXP, landing at 7:30 AM in a few weeks on Thursday. Flight out is Saturday at around 5:00 PM from MXP to France. I mostly want to go to Lake Como, but I was hoping to also see Milan city if possible. I will be using public transport and prefer to stay somewhere that isn't Como city.

If anyone has experience, can you please give some advice on what would be the best way to do this? I was thinking either go straight to Milan and get an early train Friday morning to the lake and then straight to airport Saturday, or go straight to Lake Como and then Milan either late Friday night or super early Saturday and walk around for a few hours before my flight. I am open to skipping Milan if the schedule is too tight - I have already taken pictures in front of many churches and fountains in Europe, and I also don't have interest in museums.

I guess my concerns are using public transportation for such a long trip with a lot of transfers after landing in Milan - I could be held up in immigration for hours and maybe the trains aren't frequent? And also using public transport for a long trip on the same day as my flight out - if I don't make a connection, I could end up stuck somewhere!

Appreciate any insight you can give!

Thank you :)

Looking for recommendations to hire a villa for 10 persons in Italy next June/July for 9 nights. Preferably within walking distance to town and coast or lake. TIA

We can choose to travel either mid-March or late June next year? I am leaning towards March so it will be cooler and less crowded.

Thoughts?

Dear All,

I'm trying to work out the itinerary for our visit to Sicily (travelling with my girlfriend) starting on the 10th of June. We arrive and also end our trip in Aeroporto di Palermo Falcone e Borsellino. I intend to rent a car through Auto Europe as suggested here in the forums. I also read it's best to avoid driving in Palermo and only hiring the car after departing the city. So as I understand we need to take the bus after flying in, and back again after 2-3 days to get the car?

Is the smallest category generally enough (C1, VW Up) for a couple or is it worth spending more (VW Polo, or upwards) for doing a road trip around Sicily?

Could you please help me to allocate the number of days appropriately? We are young, energetic, food and nature-loving people.

What I have in mind currently (open also for other suggestions):

Palermo, city and Monreale with the cathedral

Segesta with the temple, Erice medieval village

Mazzara del Vallo

Agrigento - Valley of Temples

Modica

Capo Passero

Pachino village

Siracusa

Taormina

Etna

Cefalu

Aeolian Islands

Mondello

In case this is too much for this amount of time, what questions should be raised to help with deciding what to skip/replace?

Also, is there any ticket that should be booked online in advance to avoid the crowds?

Thanks for your kind help and input!

Hello - we are a mid-30's couple who enjoy lots of outdoor activities (hiking, sailing, rock climbing), and good food. We are planning a trip to Rome/Amalfi coast over a ten day period in early September and I could use some help on where to stay. The plan:

Sept 4 - Fly into Rome and take the train + car to get to the Amalfi coast

Sept 5 - 10: Spend on the Amalfi coast. This would include: visiting Capri, Rock climbing for a day in Punta Campanella, Visiting Positano and Ravello, Doing the Path of the Gods Walkway/Hike, maybe another hike and visiting a nice beach.

Sept 10-12: Train from Salerno back to Rome, Spend 1.5 days in Rome before flying out.

With this itinerary, I'm trying to figure out:

- Is there one location that we should stay in on the Amalfi Coast or is it better to split it up (e.g. few days in Sorrento before heading to either Positano, Amalfi or Ravello)? Note: I know Sorrento is not Amalfi Coast. I'm also interested in thinking about great restaurants for dinner and if one location would be better for nice dining (and not having to deal with catching the ferry/bus too late.

- Is it worth considering one night in Capri, and if so, the best way to work this into the logistics? I've been there before and definitely felt rushed on a day ferry from Sorrento.

- Is there anything else I'm missing from the list?

Thanks for your help!!