Two Weeks In Italy

In two weeks in Italy you can see a lot. You won’t see everything but you’ll fall in love with the country so you’ll want to return. I mean, legend has it if you throw a coin into the Trevi Fountain in Rome it promises it! In two weeks we explored Lake Como, Venice, Cinque Terre, Siena/Florence and Rome. To make navigating and traveling easier we flew in to Milan and out of Rome and rented a car - I’ve got tips for driving in Italy at the end of this post.

LAKE COMO

The Lake Como region was a little over an hour from the Milan airport. Our hosts gave great directions telling us that we’d pass a grocery store called Bennet’s. We stopped there to stock up on some basics for our four night stay in the town of Argegno. We were glad we did because Argegno is small. Everyone has heard of Bellagio and Como but I had never heard of Argegno until I read a book. My favorite genre to read is travel memoirs and in preparation for our trip I searched out Italian ones and came across “An Italian Home” by Paul Wright. I googled him after I was done, something I don’t normally do. However, I was glad I did because I found out that Paul and his wife had an apartment on Lake Como that they rented out! There was no question that was where we were going to stay and it was a wonderful start to our trip. Their place was an easy walk to the ‘downtown’ area of Argegno. We ate more than once at Hotel Argegno and had many espressos at Bar Doge. Ristorante Barchetta was another good spot.

While I could have sat on the balcony staring at the lake and Alps all day we did get out and explore. There is a boat that goes around to all of the towns on Lake Como. We took it to Bellagio and ate at Trattoria San Giacomo. You can also take to the sky by way of a funicular to Pigra, We were able to walk to the funicular stop from our apartment (just pay attention to the siesta closing hours!). At the top we had an espresso at a small restaurant there and then explored the trails that lead out to spectacular views of Lake Como. We also took a day trip to Switzerland because of how close we were. Our initial destination was Lugano (a 45 minute drive) but after talking to our hosts, we chose to drive to Lucerne instead. Lugano, we learned, was very Italian influenced. Turns out what architecture you saw or what language you heard in Switzerland was based off what other country was near. So, the area near Italy had Italian architecture and spoke Italian. Same for the areas by France and Germany. We wanted to feel like we were actually going to another country so off we went to Lucerne in the German influenced area. It was about a 2.5 hour drive that took you through a 17 kilometer tunnel (!) but once you emerged you saw the Alps. I am 100% a beach person but there is something magical about the Alps. On our trip to Switzerland in 2018 we returned to Lucerne so you can read more about it (and other Swiss towns!) in this blog post.

VENICE

Venice was our second stop. Staying on the actual island was pricey so we stayed at a Hilton Garden Inn just outside the city (plus this gave us free parking for the car). We had a bus stop right outside the hotel and with that, we were in the heart of Venice within minutes - be sure to pay attention to what bus stop you’re at so you know what bus to get on when heading back...not that I’m speaking from experience or anything. 🙈 We bought a Travel Pass from the front desk at the hotel that allowed us on the bus and the vaporettos once we were in Venice.

It’s easy to get lost in the maze of canals and that was how we stumbled upon All’Amabrone Vineria. We sat outside in a little Venice alleyway and had wine and charcuterie on our first afternoon there. We stayed two nights and each night, had great meals. The first night we ate at Osteria ai Canottieri. The staff there was extremely friendly as were the other patrons of the restaurant. I don’t suggest drinking the ‘canal water’ (officially known as grappa) but definitely try the limoncello or Montenegro for an after dinner drink! Our second night was at Cantina do Spade. We went there to get some of the Venetian/Italian things I’d read about like an Aperol Spritz for a cocktail and squid ink pasta. We also learned how much a liter of wine actually is. 😳

In between the eating we saw the famous landmarks of Venice - the Rialto Bridge, Doge’s Palace and St. Mark’s Tower. Which, BTW, is exactly like the Italy Pavilion in Epcot, just on a much smaller scale. Gondola rides ran about 100 euro so we were content to see Venice from the canals while on the vaporetto. Especially when we took it to Murano & Burano. These are two tiny islands off of Venice and had far less people and went at a slower pace. Murano is known for its glass so be sure to look for all the sculptures around the island. I bought a bracelet with the glass beads as a memento. Burano is said to be known for its lace but really I think it’s known for the colorful buildings. Each of the buildings sitting along the canals are a different color and a photographer’s dream.

CINQUE TERRE

We drove to La Spezia from Venice. There we left our car at the train station and took the train to Vernazza in the Cinque Terre region. Cinque Terre means Five Lands for the 5 towns in the area. Almost all of the towns don’t allow cars so there wasn’t any point in driving. Plus, I love taking the train in Europe! The drive to La Spezia was still hilly and somewhat mountainous and I was still mesmerized by the Alps I’d seen earlier in the trip. But as the train came out of a tunnel to the first Cinque Terre town of Riomaggiore and I saw the Ligurian Sea and I was SO happy to be at the ocean.

We stayed at an Airbnb in Vernazza that I booked solely because of the cover photo on their page. The view was stunning and we spent a lot of time on the balcony enjoying it. Vernazza is one of the towns that doesn’t allow cars. The main street is narrow and there are equally narrow passageways off it. There are a LOT of stairs all throughout the town and no other way to get to around besides taking them. However, the hard work to get there is worth it when you are rewarded with the views. This included our Airbnb and the restaurant we ate at the first night, La Torre. Down in town we ate at Gambero Rosso on the water and also had lunch at Blue Marlin. The area is known for pesto so we had it on pretty much everything for two days straight.

Because of our short stay, we didn’t get to explore all the other villages like I would have liked. You can get to them utilizing the train or a boat but, if you’re feeling adventurous, hiking trails connect all of the towns. Sometimes weather can affect closures so be sure to pay attention to that when you are there. You can buy a Cinque Terre Ticket that covers travel on the train as well as your hiking pass. Some of the trails are flat and easy, others are not. It just so happened that the hardest section was the one we wanted to take - the one that lead from where we were staying in Vernazza to the last village of Monterosso (where the area’s beach is). The best piece of advice (that we got from Rick Steves) is to head out early. We hardly saw anyone at the beginning of our journey but once it was later in the morning we passed dozens of other people. The path can be extremely narrow and steep so trying to pass people got a bit challenging. After we made it to Monterosso, we treated ourselves to gelato along the beach. And then took the train back.

Vernazza and the Ligurian Sea in Cinque Terre

TUSCANY

After a week in Italy our drive to our next stop finally took us through what Italy is in my head - rolling hills of vineyards and Italian Cypress trees. We were heading south into the Tuscany region to Siena. Most people, when visiting Tuscany, will stay in Florence but we chose an Airbnb in Siena, south of Florence. We got to explore Siena but it also allowed us to take day trips to Florence and Montepulciano.

Our Airbnb was a short walk to get inside the walled city. We started off our exploring by having a drink at the San Paolo Pub. It had a wonderful view of Il Campo and the Piazza del Campo. Aside from Il Campo you can see the Siena Cathedral and explore the Fortezza di Santa Barbara for amazing views of the area. One afternoon, in a search for public restrooms, we found Casato. We stopped in for a glass of wine so we could use the facilities but they kept bringing us out free snacks. And the wine was really good so we stayed for hours and ended up eating dinner there. We also had a good lunch at Osteria Il Vicolo.

We took the train to Florence so we didn’t have to deal with parking. It was a bit of a walk to the train station from our Airbnb but the train ride to Florence was less than an hour. We went with a tour group to explore Florence but I wish we had stayed at least one night there so we could have explored on our own. While I didn’t love the large group on the tour, we did get to see a lot - the neighboring town of Fiesole, the famous Duomo, the Uffizi Gallery, Piazza Santa Croce and Piazza della Signoria. I only saw the Ponte Vecchio from afar so next trip I’ll be seeing that up close as well as going up to Piazza Michelangelo for awesome views of Firenze.

On our day trip to Montepulciano we drove. It was a close town well known for wine but I’d also heard of it for being in one of the Twilight movies - but don’t let that deter you from going! We utilized a public parking lot and walked around from there. Our first stop was the Vini di Toscana Sapori Montepulciano. The inside was like being inside a wine cave. When exploring be sure to walk down the side streets for stunning views of picture perfect Tuscany. We ate dinner at Ristorante Ai Quattro Venti and had great Florentine steak.

ROME

We finished our trip in Rome. On our drive from Siena to Rome we stopped at an outlet mall. Yes, an outlet mall, like the ones in America. We were happy to have found it though because we needed to buy a good hard sided suitcase. We had bought so much wine that we had to buy one to bring it home in. Some places will ship their wine and we did try to find a UPS store to do it on our own but buying a suitcase and checking it ended up being the least expensive option. It was a carry on size and with cushioning, fit 6 bottles of wine in addition to a couple small bottles of balsamic vinegar and olive oil. 🍷 #priorities

Upon our arrival in Rome we drove straight to the airport to return the car. You can take the Leonardo Express train from the airport into Rome’s main train/metro station. From there you can get anywhere in Rome. We departed the train there and took the metro to our Airbnb. It was in more of a residential part of Rome but had easy metro access and you could walk to the Colosseum.

We found a few great places to eat - Duecento Gradi a sandwich shop by the Vatican, Su Ghetto in the Jewish Ghetto for their Carciofi alla Romano (fried artichoke) and Hostaria Rasella. We happened upon the latter on our last evening and loved it. We finally got to try Fiori Di Zucca Fritti (fried zucchini flowers) and sat outside as we washed everything down with sparkling water and vino.

We explored Rome one day with Walks of Italy. While I didn’t care for the group tour in Florence, I really liked this one. It was a small group and our guide was extremely knowledgeable. We also got to skip the line at the Vatican. As the name of the company implies, we walked a lot but did at one point get transportation via van from one area of Rome to the Vatican. In addition to the Vatican and St. Peter's Basilica we saw the famous Colosseum, Palatine Hill, the Roman Forum, Caesar’s Forum, the Victor Emmanuel Monument, the Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain, and the Spanish Steps.

On other days we saw the ruins at Circus Maximus and the outdoor market of Campo di Fiori. We also explored Villa Borghese which was like Rome’s Central Park. The grounds were beautiful, expansive and quiet. Very unlike what was outside the park. We also visited Castel Sant’Angelo. We were able to climb to the top for great views of Rome for less money (and with less crowds) than other similar sites in the city.

Rome and the Tiber River from Castel Sant’Angelo

TIPS ON DRIVING IN ITALY

In Italy they drive on the same side of the road as the US but everyone drives manuals (this goes for all of Europe, not just Italy). This means there won’t be many automatics to rent and the ones that are available will be more expensive. Luckily my husband knew how to drive a manual so we were able to save a good chunk of money by him driving the whole time. Everyone drove normally although several times on the highway drivers would get very close. It wasn’t in an aggressive manner, it was how the Italians drove. We did return the car upon our arrival in Rome. Between the traffic, lack of parking and plentiful public transportation we didn’t want or need the car.

My favorite thing about driving in Italy was stopping at the Autogrills while on the autostrada. I first learned about them from Elizabeth Minchilli, an American food blogger based in Rome. If you’ve ever been on the Florida Turnpike and stopped at one of the Toll Plazas, that is the basic idea of the Autogrill. However, the similarities stop there. They have a full on legit espresso bar which on it’s own would make me happy but they have an eye-catching array of pastries and panini to snack on - not just KFC and Dunkin.

If you are in the northern part of the country and want to drive into Switzerland (the Lake Como region is on the border of Switzerland) you will need what the Swiss call a vignette which is essentially a pass to drive on the highways. You can inquire on it when you rent your car to see if it can be included. If you don’t plan ahead, it's not a big deal as you can buy one from a gas station right at the border. It cost us $40 Swiss Francs. Not the cheapest for one day of driving but better than getting pulled over by the Swiss Polizei!

Panini selection at one of the Autogrills on the autostrada in Italy

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