So now what....Italy?

Never travelled to Italy but this thread, has certainly got me thinking...

 

The almafi coast is one of the most beautiful parts of the world fantastic scenery food and weather and there’s culture to can’t recommend it enough

 

Literally every me ever of my family and friends have been except myself, always go on about how I’m missing out. Like you definitely thinking of taking a tour there. Was due to pre Covid…

 

I've some time off in September and was looking for a new excursion, certainly on the wishlist.

 

It’s OUTstanding Dave.

 

Last "big" birthday we spent a month travelling around Italy. Mrs IB hired a 1970s Alfa Spider as she like the one in The Graduate.
As @Park bantam says the Amalfi coast is spectacular.
Personally I liked Bologna (mainly for the food).

 

Some fabulous walks, if you don't suffer from vertigo do the Walk of the Gods. Some of the coastal resorts are a bit honey pot touristy, but you can always get good food and wine. Some inland villages are quite special. Don't miss Pompeii. Naples is a bit rough and actually pretty filthy, but has a fabulous museum. We got the train from there out to the Roman ruins at Paestum, recommended.

 

Is it magic?

 

We're like legal aliens over here mate

 

No that's Gary Jones.

 

I've been to Lake Garde in Italy. Very nice.

Where else would you recommend?

 

Everywhere!

Venice is out of this world. Unlike anywhere I've ever been. Try not to go in the summer months when it's rammed. But even then, once you move away from St Marks Square and the Rialto bridge, where all the day trippers congregate, it soon thins out and you can just wander through all the small backways and canals. It's magical.

Rome is astonishing. Everywhere you look is ancient history. I've only been for a couple of days but would love to go back for longer.

Tuscany is beautiful countryside. Sienna and Florence are outstanding cities.

The coastal areas of Amalfi and the Cinque Terra in Perugia are lovely.

Sicily is great too.

Etc etc. There are too many fantastic places to mention. Not just the big city destinations but hundreds of small towns that are beautiful, ancient and packed with charm.

And the food is to die for. It's so much better than the limited range you get in most Italian restaurants in Britain, which tend to focus on pizzas and the same boring range of pasta dishes. The food in Italy is incredibly regionally varied. Move an hour up the road and the predominant diet changes from seafood, to rabbit and game casseroles, to pasta, to rice-based dishes etc etc.

It's hard to go wrong in Italy.

 

Agree totally. Some of my favourite places are in Puglia. The hilltop white town of Ostuni is lovely, so is the small city of Lecce and just over the border in Basilicata is Matera, a fascinating place. Up until the 1950s people lived in caves in real poverty. Now some of the caves are done up as fancy hotels. We stayed in 1 for a couple of nights but too claustrophobic for me.
Have been to Rome 3 times now and I am sure we will go back again at some point.

 

Bloody hell marmite season has already started , come on here for latest transfer rumour and now reading about travel.

If you cant beat them, join them....

I'm going to Vietnam for a couple of weeks next March - April

Just checking flights, best I can find is Singapore airways from Manchester to Hanoi, then return Saigon to Manchester
Prices currently around £700+ .. Are these likely to increase nearer the date, or get cheaper ?
Also has anyone else else toured Vietnam on here, I'm looking at Hanoi, Ha long Bay, Hue, Da Nang, Mekong Delta, Saigon ( Ho Chi Min City), then home, it that the best itinerary ?

 

@Allotment Bantam is the one for advice regarding Vietnam I believe she's been.

 

I've not been to Puglia. It's definitely on my list to go to.

I'm going to a wedding in Fano, which is a medieval walled town on the east coast between Ancona and Rimini. Both my kids and their partners and our grandson are staying with us. We've got an Airbnb for a week beforehand in an agriturismo with a pool outside Fano. Then we move into central Fano for four nights around the wedding before heading for Bologna for four nights. I can't wait.
Only problem is I'm struggling for car hire, which we'll need for the first week - prices are extortionate!