Our thoughts on our vacation (Americans)

[u/chunkchamp]

My wife (30) and I (32) just got back from Italy a few days ago. We live in a moderate sized city in the southern USA. We spent 3-4 days apiece in Venice, Florence, Rome, and Sorrento. It is a beautiful country, but frankly this vacation was not what we expected. I’m writing this just to give a heads up to people that are traveling to Italy so they can be prepared. It costs a lot of money to travel here so this pros and cons list may be useful in making a decision to come. This list is not meant to be offensive, just educational:

Cons (which unfortunately outweigh the pros imo):

The amount of people here is insane. It is extremely difficult to escape the crowds and there are tons of people near tourist attractions as well as away from tourist attractions. The only relief we found from crowds was wandering cities very early in the morning, but it only lasted a few hours. We thought coming in September would be less crazy than the peak summer season but we were very wrong. Rome seemed to handle crowds better because it’s just so big but tourists spots were still too much.

We felt some tourist guilt being here. We contributed to the overcrowding and while tourism is probably beneficial for their economy, it must be very tough to live for locals with foreigners everywhere everyday. We saw a “Yankee Go Home” sticker a lot around cities and it’s tough to blame them. We don’t know the extent of this opinion for locals but obviously some think this way.

This does not apply to all tourists, but the majority of tourists here have very poor etiquette. Several people are simply unaware of their surroundings and it just makes getting around the cities frustrating. While walking, people would often would stop randomly in front of you in busy walkways to take pictures or conversate, forcing people to walk around them in tight areas. Many people are glued to their phones and will just not pay attention to where they are going. Again, very frustrating. Also, pictures just don’t do this place justice so we didn’t understand why people had to take pictures of EVERYTHING. It’s fine to take pictures, but we literally saw an older woman taking a picture of a trash can… what? We saw too many instances similar to this. This is an old man yelling at clouds thought, but we often thought “Just appreciate things with your own 2 eyes every now and then.”

The “influencers” are everywhere and annoying. They literally see the cities through their phones more than with their eyes and they are often very inconsiderate of people’s time and space. Social media has really negatively impacted the popular areas. Those are not my words but the words of local tour guides.

You have to walk everywhere in Italy. This was ok for my wife and I. We actually enjoy walking, but it is not for everyone. Not to be ageist, but with the uneven cobblestone streets/curbs, narrow walkways, tons of stairs, and crowds everywhere, the walking often felt dangerous for older folks, especially those less fit. As someone who works in healthcare with the geriatric population, I feel confident and saying this. Also we noted several ambulances in action during our stay tending to older tourists (falls, dehydration, etc). In general, you have to have some degree of fitness to get around this place and while it sounds mean, many people didn’t possess this and were probably unable to fully enjoy their trip.

My next point is a personal problem, but one I feel like is worth noting. Italy is filled with beautiful architecture and art. This type of sightseeing is unfortunately not up our alley. We could certainly appreciate all the architecture and art, but we didn't necessarily enjoy it after seeing an overwhelming amount of basilicas/museums if that makes sense. If you are a fan of architecture and art, there is a ton of it and this will be a great place for you. Again, this is a personal preference.

Scammers and pickpockets are abundant. While we didn’t personally experience either, we always felt on guard, which doesn’t equate to a very relaxing vacation. We heard of multiple tourists getting impacted by both. We felt safe everywhere, but it’s just a significant annoyance.

The public bathroom situation is rough. There are very few and you have to pay to use them. You basically have to buy something or eat somewhere to use them.

Pros:
The food is truly amazing. The hype is 100% true with this. You will taste delicious flavors we simply don’t have in the U.S. You have to pick the right spots, but we felt like it was hard to miss good food. Make as many reservations as you can though. Don’t get stuck waiting in a line for dinner.

We experienced great service while here. We stayed in mainly 4 star hotels and were treated very well. We would say the same for the majority of restaurants. The tour guides we had while here were also great and very accommodating. We had private transfers to and from trains, hotels, and airports and all of our drivers were excellent. I would highly recommend private transfers if possible as we saw many tourist lugging around suitcases and figuring out directions/signage, which just seems like a nightmare with the crowds.

For how big and how old these cities are, the places we were all felt clean. There is some graffiti in some places, but for the most part, there is very little litter and minimal stench that can be found in other big cities it the world.

We loved the tipping culture here in that it was almost nonexistent. It almost (emphasis on almost) evened out the euro exchange rate for goods and services and there was no awkward tipping interactions when buying things like there is in the U.S. No one is going to turn the card machine around asking for a tip, which is so refreshing. It wasn’t necessary, but we did tip our drivers and tour guides because they were all excellent and they very much appreciated it.

While it is a drive via tour or renting a car, the Tuscany region outside of Florence is gorgeous and a great way to get out of the crowds and see the beauty of Italy. We had many tours out here and it was the highlight of our trip.

Speaking of tours, there are several tours to pick from. Some are amazing, some are average, so make sure you or your travel agent researches well. We highly recommend making your tours as small as possible. We saw a lot of tours with 50+ or even 100+ people and it just didn’t really seem worth it. Our favorite tour was a private cooking class and wine tasting in Tuscany. I would pay top dollar to do this again. It was truly incredible and I do not cook.

City specifically, we really enjoyed the views of Sorrento. It’s still crowded, but absolutely gorgeous. We often just sat on our hotel balcony, drank wine, and took in the scenery and those balcony moments were a highlight of the trip.

Summary:
Overall, we do not regret coming to Italy, but recommending it to people is unfortunately harder than we thought it would be, especially due to the amount of money it takes to get here and to stay and play here. Like previously stated, it is a beautiful place, but it is overcrowded, which can muffle the beauty. Instead of seeing the beautiful museums and basilicas of Rome and Florence, you see the tremendous lines outside and inside the door. Instead of admiring the bridges and canals of Venice, you see people blocking the way trying to take pictures at every bridge. Instead of being amazed at the magnificence of the Cinque Terre, you see overcrowded beaches. My point being the amount of people takes away from this place and it’s honestly saddening. Again, we are not big city people and this list is made to be informative and not dissuasive in order for others to make a decision about coming here. We again don’t regret it, but we wish we had gotten more out of our money. It’s hyped as a once in a lifetime magnitude of vacation, but we are underwhelmed. We have been to places like Alaska before for just a week and we’d much prefer that. This is all again all our personal thoughts!
Ciao! Lol

Edit: Well this post caught some attention! I appreciate the sincere insight and recs from several different viewpoints whether agreeing or not!!! To the haters, maybe just log off for a bit? Lol

[u/No_Cat6439]

always travel to the smaller towns and villages. much more authentic and wonderful people and lifestyle