TIPS FOR TRAVELING TO ITALY (AND DON'T FELL IT)

Italy is a fascinating country, and we don't say it just because 50% of backpacking be from there. Being objective ... has it all: history, culture, traditions and gastronomy to suck your mustache! And you, as a good travel lover, are sure you have it in the peephole for a long time. But, Don't you know how to prepare a trip to Italy? Don't worry, here we bring you a few tips for traveling to Italy (and not screw it up).

Visiting Milan, Cinque Terre, Venice, Florence, Tuscany, Rome, Naples and the Amalfi Coast in 7 days is a real madness ... and also impossible! It is better to make different trips or center the days in a very specific area.

:: The best of the best for a first trip

Of course, this is easy to say for those of us who live in Europe, now, if you travel from far away and you only have a week of time we understand that you want to see the best of the best, so in your case we recommend you visit its 3 best known treasures: Venice (1 day), Florence (2 days) and Rome (4 days).

:: Plan several trips of 1 week

If instead you are lucky enough to be able to travel to Italy more frequently, we recommend divide it into 3 zones: north, center and south. Plan several trips with very, very attractive itineraries, such as ...

• 7 days in northwestern Italy: Milan (1 day), Lake Como (3 days), Genova (1 day), Cinque Terre (2 days).
• 7 days in the north-east of Italy: Trieste (1 day), Road trip through Friuli (1 day), Venice (2 day), Padova (1 day), Verona (1 day), Bologna (1 day).
• 7 days in Tuscany: Florence (2 days), road trip through Tuscany (4 days), Siena (1 day).
• 7 days in Campania: Naples (2 days), Capri (1 day), Pompeii (1 day), Amalfi Coast (3 days).

It is true that the "Holy Trinity" (Rome, Florence and Venice) is the one that takes all the honors, but Italy has much more to offer and that there are beautiful regions, areas and cities that are almost no visitors. Some examples are: the Aeolian Islands, Puglia, Friuli Venezia Giulia, or Calabria.

Clear things: Italians drive like crazy, and in certain areas even worse! However, one of the trips we remember best was the roadtrip through Tuscany, we also rented a car on Lake Como and we are weighing another 4-wheel drive through Sicily. So, unless you really feel unable to drive in another country, renting a car is a good idea in some areas of Italy. The website we use to rent cars is Autoeurope.

However, I would discard this option in the case of wanting to see only large cities: traffic can become very overwhelming and not even talk about parking lots! Also keep in mind that in most Italian cities there are limited traffic zones (ZTL) where if you get in, you will probably get a fine a while after returning the car.

To move between one city and another there are several options:

• Train: the ideal is to buy the tickets well in advance (tickets are usually available between 2 and 3 months in advance), you can get incredible offers. The two companies that manage long-haul transportation are Trenitalia and Italotreno. Always remember to validate the ticket on the little machines before boarding the train, if you don't do it they can fine you!
• Bus: you can find very, very good offers with the Flixbus company (trips for around € 5!). Of course, you have to be organized and buy the tickets a few weeks before. In this case it is also easier to find offers in advance.

There are some things you should know before entering the wonderful world of Italian cuisine:

1. No, the Italians we don't eat only pasta and pizza. The guys from Salta Conmigo (also 50% Italian) were cured these 3 posts where you can see the typical dishes of each region: north, center and south.
2. Yes, we eat very early: between 12 and 14 (at most!) at noon and we have dinner between 19 and 20. Try to get used to these times if you do not want to run the risk of finding the kitchens closed.
3. A today's menu It costs between € 10 and € 15, although there are many other ways to eat cheaply (without having to step on a fast food)… pizza, bruschette, piadine and a few more Italian street-foods will save your life (and the wallet).
4. Get crammed with ice creams... they are delicious and very cheap (the ball from € 1-1.50).
5. The appetizer It is a great idea to dine well and cheaply: they do practically all the bars from 18.30 / 19.00 until 20.00 / 21.00. It consists of having something to drink (cocktail, wine or beer) and you can eat for free in a free buffet (pasta, pizzitas, paninis ...). It usually costs about € 8-10.
6. The Coperto.In restaurants, they often charge a “fee” of between € 1 and € 2.5 per person as a “co-payment”. There is somewhere, especially in tourist locations, which include it in a closed menu, but as a general rule it is something that you will always have to pay… keep it in mind and if it is not specified in the menu ask!

It depends! We recommend booking in advance some tickets like that of the Vatican Museums, the Uffizi Gallery, Leonardo's Last Supper, the Tower of Pisa, or the Colosseum, but it is not necessary to keep everything closed.

As for the tours It depends on your tastes: if you are a machine that prepares a trip to detail, that studies the history of the place and already knows a lot, well ... I would not book any tour. If instead the trip has been “last minute” or you want to learn more about the history of Rome, the art of Florence or the curiosities of Venice it is interesting to hire a guide. And don't overlook the free tours(Free yes, but don't forget a good tip hehe)! The best website to find good tours in spanish It's Civitatis.

Do not forget the beaches of Italy: we have thousands of kilometers of beaches and many of them have nothing to envy to the Caribbean. And we don't talk only about Sicily Y Sardinia, if not from destinations less known as Puglia, Calabria or one of the many islets lost by the Peninsula (such as Aeolian, the Egates wave Elba Island).

It is very hot, the cities are full of tourists and the beaches too ... July and August are definitely the worst months to travel to Italy. So What is the best time to travel to Italy? The months of April, May and September are our favorites. Although in general Spring and Autumn are the best season to travel to Italy: fewer people, milder weather and lower prices!

As a general rule, Italy is a fairly safe country, so all you have to do is take normal precautions when traveling (check your wallet and bags in places with many people, do not get carried away by the typical street hustlers, etc. ...) Of course, there is some "scam"Quite recurring, look look:

• Tourist menus that do not include drink: always ask how much they cost… or a water can come out for € 5!
• In the stations there is almost always someone to be offered to help you with suitcases... if you do not want to leave a tip do not accept the help, it is not selfless.
• In big cities avoid drinking something in bars located in central squares (especially in Plaza San Marco in Venice) or the bill will be a full-fledged sablazo (we have come to see the espresso at € 6.50!).
• In Rome do not take off photos with fake gladiators: they will ask you for money in exchange for the photo (and we are not talking about calderilla).

We always recommend using a card when traveling. Both for payments and to get money. It is not very cool to carry large amounts of cash on top, let alone having to change it in destinations whose currency is not €. But watch out for commissions! Here we tell you the solutions to have money abroad.

For a long time, the solution we have found to our trips is to carry both the Bnext card and the N26 card. Both are free, complement each other perfectly and allow you to save a paste in commissions. Traveler word.

Already, we know that you want to appear in all the divine photos of death, but first of all it brings comfortable clothes and slippers, that if you are going to do something (besides eating) it will be walking a lot. A good idea in good weather is always to wear a foulard to cover your shoulders in case of entering Iglesias (in many they give you clothes to cover yourself, but in others they do not and if you are not dressed properly ... you stay without entering), or in places with butt air conditioning.

Do you know more tips for traveling to Italy? Have you visited the Belpaese? What did you like most?