Somewhat spontaneously and mostly out of sheer exhaustion, my significant other and I booked a nine-day trip to Italy. Partly due to the fact we had booked our tickets a few weeks before our trip, we didn't prepare ourselves the way we normally do before traveling to another country. Here are 12 things that you absolutely need to know before traveling to Italy if you've never been before.

Prior to trips abroad, I typically take a few moments to educate myself on the basics of the country's dominant language. This trip, however, I was ill-prepared to navigate the basics of conversations in Italian. Thankfully almost everyone I met spoke either English or Spanish as a second language. Nevertheless, it's a good idea to arm yourself with the basics of any language.