Hate to break it to you, but you aren't the only one who's noticed that flights to Italy are almost cheaper than flights across the US right now. Don't not go -- go! -- but understand that top dogs like Rome, Venice, and Florence will be even more zoo-like than in years past. Bucket list cities the lot of them, but Italy's unforgettable food, favor...
READ MOREAs the old adage goes: When in Rome, do as the Romans do. That means rent a Vespa and rule the road. Former New Yorker Annie Ojile runs a tour company called Scooteroma that offers cinematic, foodie, street art or general tours of the city (from about $158 per person). Ojile — who fell in love with Italy when studying abroad in Milan 20 years ago —...
READ MOREItaly is an enduring popular vacation destination. But if you’re looking for a luxurious getaway, it can also be pricey, according to Andrea Grisdale, the owner of IC Bellagio, a Lake Como-based travel company that sells trips to Italy. “Five-star hotels aren’t cheap,” Ms. Grisdale said. “And meals can also cost a lot.” But wallet watchers dreaming...
READ MOREItaly’s tourist industry fared quite well at Easter, and especially art cities were the undisputed queens of the holiday. They were able to attract the most sizeable number of visitors during the Holy Week. Let’s start with the numbers: according to Federalberghi between Thursday and Easter Monday 2.9 million travellers out of 10 million chose arch...
READ MOREWith a varied landscape encompassing mountains, beaches, and endless hills, plus more than its fair share of cultural heritage, Italy has attracted awe-struck tourists for centuries. During its time as the centre of the Roman Empire, Rome attracted people from the corners of the empire which stretched through modern day Europe, North Africa, and th...
READ MOREBookings in Italy are up 28% for the 2017 Easter period compared to last year, as tourists are viewing the country as a safe destination with a relatively low risk of terrorism, figures from online travel company eDreams Odigeo showed. EDreams, which offers flights, hotels, train tickets and car hires to clients in 33 countries around the world, sa...
READ MOREWe made a brief stop at Grassano, one of the two small southern villages where Mussolini exiled Carlo Levi to silence him during the fascist’s ruinous reign. But the real story of both Scotellaro and Levi is found in Matera. In Christ Stopped in Eboli Levi, a doctor and painter as well, also wrote briefly about the horrible conditions of Matera’s...
READ MOREMy first trip out of North America was to Italy. I was in college and my (overly kind) mother booked us a 10-day trip through Venice, Florence and Rome. Sure, I had seen plenty of movies, but I still didn’t know what to expect when I arrived in Italy for the first time. In fact, it is probably those very movies that color so many expectations for f...
READ MOREIf one picture is worth a thousand words, what are pictures and words worth? It’s through the power of movies, after all, that many of us have experienced the frozen tundra of the arctic; the thick jungle of the equator; or the dessert storms of the Sahara. But more than just seeing a place, movies can also evoke local attitudes and culture. Popula...
READ MOREBefore visiting Turin’s wonderful Royal Gardens, read author Giuseppe Culicchia’s short description: “The Royal Gardens are right in the city center, behind Piazza Castello. Surrounded by 17th-century bastions, they were redesigned by André le Nôtre, a superstar of garden architects in the 1600s, for Vittorio Amedeo II.” “In recent years, the Royal...
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