Florence is one of the best home bases for exploring Tuscany and nearby cities. The most popular day trips from Florence are conveniently accessible by train, with destinations like Pisa, Lucca, Bologna, Arezzo, and Siena just one to two hours away. Renting a car or joining a guided tour provides access to Tuscan hill towns, […]
If you are trying to decide where to stay in Rome for the first time, you have a lot of options. Do you want to stay in the heart of Rome and easily walk to the city’s top sights? How about a romantic apartment tucked away in a charming neighborhood? Or a hotel with a […]
If you’re planning your first visit to Florence, where you stay will shape the entire experience. Florence is compact and walkable, which means a well-chosen hotel puts the Duomo, the Uffizi, and the Ponte Vecchio at your doorstep. A poorly chosen one means commuting to the magic instead of living inside it. We’ve visited Florence […]
4 days in Rome is a wonderful amount of time to spend in this city. Not only will you be able to visit the main highlights, but you will also have time to explore a few hidden gems and add in something like a cooking class, more leisurely time, or a food tour. The list […]
San Quirico d’Orcia is a small hilltop town in Val d’Orcia, one of the most scenic stretches of Tuscany. We first visited in late September, during harvest season, while staying at a nearby villa. We fit it in between stops at Pienza and Montalcino, not expecting much from a town this size, and left having […]
If you have plans to visit Alberobello, one of the best things to do in this small town is to stroll the picturesque streets. We came up with a walking tour of Alberobello that includes the highlights of a visit here: the top viewpoints, rooftop terraces, photography locations, and hidden gems. This Alberobello walking tour […]
Planning a trip to Tuscany? This guide covers everything you need to build the perfect itinerary, whether you have 3 days, 5 days, or a full week. How long should you spend here? Where should you stay? Should you rent a car? What towns are worth visiting? These are all questions that may be running […]
Paestum is one of the best places in Italy to see Greek ruins. Home to three ancient Greek temples dating back to 450 BC, this UNESCO World Heritage Site is often an overlooked destination in Italy. We visited Paestum in October, stopping here in the morning during our drive from Castelmezzano to the Amalfi Coast. […]
Visiting Orvieto, Italy? Here are the best things to do, including St. Patrick’s Well, the Orvieto Cathedral, Albornoz Fortress, and the famous Orvieto Classico wine. Perched dramatically on a volcanic tufa cliff, Orvieto is one of those Italian hilltop towns that stops you in your tracks before you’ve even set foot inside. Tim and I […]
Wondering how many days to spend in Lake Garda? In this Lake Garda itinerary, we’ll walk you through several different options, from quick one-day visits to a full week on Lake Garda. Lake Garda is long, beautiful, and bigger than it looks on a map. The towns that ring the lake span three provinces: Trentino […]
With its maze of cobblestoned streets, stone buildings and churches covering the hillsides, and unique viewpoints, Matera is one of the most picturesque cities in Italy. One of the best things to do in Matera is to eat. Matera is home to quite a few excellent restaurants, ranging from cheap eats to small cafes with […]
Monteriggioni looks almost too perfect to be real. Perched on a rounded hilltop in the Chianti countryside, its ring of medieval walls and 14 towers appears almost exactly as it did in the 13th century, a complete, intact fortification unlike almost anything else in Tuscany. We visited on a day trip from Siena, just a […]
Matera is one of the most photogenic cities in Italy. One of the best things to do in Matera is to stroll along the city streets and visit the viewpoints of the stone dwellings and churches that cover its hillsides. In this guide, we cover where you can get the best views of Matera with […]
From world-famous cities like Florence and Siena to quiet hill towns and scenic drives through vineyard-covered hills, Tuscany offers a wide range of experiences, but deciding what to do (and what to skip) can be overwhelming. We’ve explored Tuscany on two very different trips: a one-week highlights tour with our kids and a longer 10-day […]
If you are planning to spend one day in Rome, there are several ways you can do it. Do you want to spend the day visiting the highlights of Rome, including the Colosseum, Roman Forum, Vatican, and historic heart of Rome? With proper planning, you can do this ambitious itinerary, but it will be an […]
The best things to do in Sorrento include clifftop viewpoints over the Bay of Naples, beach clubs built out over the water, and easy day trips to Capri, the Amalfi Coast, and Pompeii, making Sorrento one of the best home bases in this part of Italy. We’ve been to Sorrento on two different trips: a […]
Visits to beautiful coastal towns, wine tastings, dinner and drinks with a view, shopping, boat tours, relaxing on the beach…these are all the wonderful experiences you can have on the Amalfi Coast. The itinerary that works best for you comes down to one key decision: do you stay in Sorrento, or in a town right […]
One day in Florence is enough to see the best of this city, if you plan it right. With a well-planned day, you can visit Florence’s top sights, including the Duomo, Michelangelo’s David, the Uffizi Gallery, and Ponte Vecchio. Watch the sunset over the rooftops, stroll through Florence’s scenic streets, and end the day with […]