Top Tips for Travelling Smart in Italy

Italy is one of those places that gets under your skin and never really lets you go. As an Italian who returns home regularly, I have had the pleasure of experiencing this extraordinary country in all its seasons, through all its moods and well beyond the places most visitors ever get to see. Over the years I have accumulated a very personal list of do's and don'ts that I am happy to share with you, because knowing a few insider things before you go can make the difference between a good trip and an unforgettable one. Here are my top tips for making the most of your time in Italy.

When to Go

If you have any flexibility with your travel dates, this is the single most important decision you will make. The sweet spot for visiting Italy is March to April or October to early November. The weather is pleasant, the light is beautiful, the crowds are manageable and you will feel much more like a traveller than a sardine. You will also save a considerable amount of money. In a city like Rome, for example, a good mid-range hotel room in winter can cost you around a third less than the same room in July or August, which over a week can mean saving up to €500. That is a lot of extra pizza and gelato.

If you must travel in summer, aim for early June or the early Autumn weeks of September rather than the peak weeks of July and August. The difference in crowd levels is noticeable and the heat is a little more forgiving.

Of course, we all have different ways of enjoying a holiday. Some of us, myself included, are perfectly happy travelling in cooler months and do not mind shorter days or the occasional grey sky in exchange for quieter streets and a more authentic experience. Others genuinely love the warmth of an Italian summer and would not trade it for anything. These tips come from my own experience and personal preference, so take what works for you and leave the rest. What I would say is that whatever time of year you choose, it is worth going in with your eyes open. If summer is the only time that works for you, then embrace it fully but go prepared the crowds will be real, the costs will be higher and the heat in July and August can be genuinely exhausting, particularly in the south. Adjust your expectations accordingly and you will still have a wonderful time. Italy, after all, is hard to get wrong.

Watch Out for Cruise Ships

This is a tip that most travel guides simply do not tell you. On days when large cruise ships are docked at port, the nearby cities and landmarks can go from pleasantly busy to completely overwhelming in the space of a couple of hours. Civitavecchia serves Rome, Livorno serves Florence and Pisa, and Naples is the gateway to the Amalfi Coast and Pompeii. Before you plan your visit to these places, it is worth checking the port schedules online. Arriving on a non-cruise day can make an astonishing difference to your experience.

I learnt this lesson the hard way myself. I once visited Pompeii in early September and, having been there several times before in late autumn and early spring, I completely forgot to check whether cruise ships would be docking in Naples that day. I regretted it almost immediately. When I arrived, I discovered that not one but two major cruise lines had docked that morning, and their passengers and guides were everywhere. What is normally one of the most atmospheric and moving ancient sites in the world felt that day more like a crowded shopping centre, with large groups moving in formation through the ruins making it nearly impossible to stop, look and properly absorb where you actually were. It was a very good reminder that even the most experienced Italy traveller can be caught out by this.

The Mediterranean cruise season runs at its peak from June through to early September, with May and late September also quite busy. During these months ships are arriving at Italian ports almost every single day, which means the cities and landmarks closest to those ports can be flooded with visitors at very short notice. If you are visiting Italy between November and February you will have very little of this to worry about, and even the shoulder months of March to April and October to early November are significantly quieter on the cruise front. This is yet another reason why timing your visit outside of peak summer makes such a difference to how Italy actually feels when you are there.

Look Beyond the Famous Cities

Rome, Florence and Venice are magnificent and absolutely worth visiting. But if you have been before or if you are the kind of traveller who wants to feel Italy rather than just photograph it, then I would encourage you to explore some of the places that most overseas visitors simply skip. Ferrara in Emilia-Romagna is a perfectly preserved Renaissance city with a beautiful moated castle and almost no international crowds. Vicenza in the Veneto is a quietly elegant city of Palladian villas and beautiful streets that most travellers speed past on their way between Venice and Verona. And Viterbo in northern Lazio, with its compact medieval centre and natural hot springs, sits just north of Rome yet is largely ignored by foreign visitors. These are the places where you will hear more Italian than English, find a table at a restaurant without a reservation and feel, even briefly, like you have Italy to yourself.

Getting Around: Train or Car?

My answer is depends on where you are going. If you are travelling between major cities, the train is simply the best option. It is fast, affordable, comfortable and drops you right in the heart of the city. Rome to Florence takes just one hour and thirty minutes and costs around €30 to €50 in second class if you book ahead. You arrive relaxed, with no parking nightmare to navigate and no ZTL fines to worry about.

ZTL zones, by the way, are restricted traffic areas that cover the historic centres of most Italian cities and towns. They are enforced by cameras that automatically record number plates, and if you drive into one without a permit you will receive a fine, often weeks after you have returned home when you have completely forgotten about it. They can be very easy to stumble into, particularly if you are following a GPS that does not know better. If you are driving, give all historic city centres a wide berth, park on the outskirts and walk in or take public transport.

That said, a hire car is wonderful once you are out of the cities and my tip is to use one strategically rather than for your entire trip. What works really well is to travel between your main destinations by train and then, when you reach a region where the places you most want to see are difficult to get to by public transport, choose a well-located town as your base, hire a car for just a few days and use it for day trips into the surrounding countryside and villages. When you are ready to move on, simply return the car and jump back on the train. The Tuscan countryside, the Dolomites, the back roads of Puglia and the hilltop villages of Umbria all lend themselves beautifully to this approach. You get the freedom of the open road exactly when you need it, without the stress and expense of driving into cities or paying for parking you do not need.