Why Italy
Traveling to Italy this summer. Need recommendations?
I am traveling to Italy in the summer with 5 other friends (ages 23-27). We are going for 8-10 days however we are not sure if we should do a guided tour or come up with our own itinerary? What will come out cheaper? What will be a more rewarding experience?
Public Comments
- If you have no idea where your going, I would try the guide. But being in the 20's it might be pretty boring. More older people go on the tours. If it was me, I would come up with an itinerary.
- Where in Italy are you going? I assume it's your first time and you're going to hit the tourist cities (Venice, Florence, Rome, Milan)? I HATE guided tours. I don't have anything against them, but I don't like being told what time to get up, where I'm going to eat, and what I'm going to go see. The times that I have been there, I've always come up with my own itinerary. You can go wherever you want, whenever you want; on your own schedule. And to be honest, yes, I did get lost in the cities that I was in. But all the walking around I did just meant that I got to see the areas that not every tourist gets to see, and that's something no tour guide will show you. Most tour groups travel by bus, and you always have to tip the guide and the driver by the end of the trip, so I don't think it'd be cheaper if you went with the guide. You can always set your own itinerary and get guides for the places you visit (like take a guided tour of the Sistine Chapel, which, by the way means Sixteen Chapels and you really have to walk through all of them to get to Michelangelo's Final Judgment). Get yourself a very good map of the cities you will be in, and as goofy as it sounds, a compass. I have a compass that came with my little cousin's book. It's handy when you're trying to figure out where you're going to go. Use tripadvisor.com to plan your trip. It's a good place to go to look up hotels, attractions, etc., as well as reviews and photos from other travelers! If you are going to Florence, Rome, or Venice, feel free to e-mail me with questions. I've been to Milan, but I didn't care for it so I don't know much about it. But I can recommend places to stay and places to see in those three cities (if those places still exist! I haven't been there in a few years). The reason why I know so much about it is that I actually do recommendations and "travel booklets" for my friends that have asked me about Italy, so the information is fresh in my mind! Ooooh, I'm jealous! (Oh, and the e-mail is my skokiesam@yahoo.com.)
