You may remember that I recently wrote an article about the long lines in Florence in March for sights like the Uffizi - my goal was to try to implore you to buy tickets ahead of time so that you don’t risk missing out on some of the city’s biggest attractions and that you don’t have to spend your whole day waiting in line to see them. Well, reader Ray chimed in with what I think is an excellent tip - and it’s one I’d not heard of before.
Ray visited Florence last October, and when he learned that tickets for the Uffizi and Accademia were both sold out for the duration of his visit, he actually thought to mention it to the manager at his hotel. The hotel manager then told him about a ticket booth on the busy Via dei Calzaiuoli that usually has tickets, even if it appears that they’re sold out at the official venues.
So, with the directions from his hotel manager, Ray marched over to this mysterious ticket booth and managed to get tickets for both the Uffizi and the Accademia for the very next day. No waiting in long lines, and no booking in advance. What, I had to know, was the story?
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Before we begin, here’s a quick announcement - I’m sure you noticed, when you looked at this post that something was different this week. (You noticed, right? Please say you noticed.) I’ve been running this weekly feature of a list of some of the news & such from Italy that I find interesting, pertinent, or amusing (and sometimes all three) for quite awhile now - but it’s always been called “Italian News Snippets” in the past. Well, those days are gone, my friends! From now on, I’m calling this “Italy News” - because they aren’t really snippets, they’re my summaries …
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I’ve written in the past about arguably the most famous gelato shop in Florence, Vivoli - I felt it was my duty to you, my dear readers, to investigate whether Vivoli lived up to its reputation. You may remember that while the gelato itself is perfectly fine, it left me wanting more (specifically, I was wanting more gelato than the meager portions they dole out!). So I thought for this Tour del Gelato outing we’d head to one of my favorite gelaterie in Florence - Festival del Gelato.
Now, generally speaking, if you find a gelato shop with a big neon sign that’s a few short steps off of one of the busiest tourist thoroughfares in any Italian city, your best bet is probably to keep walking. But Festival del Gelato is different. It’s so close to the Via dei Calzaiuoli (the long primarily pedestrian street that connects the Duomo with the Piazza della Signoria) that you’ll notice it as you’re strolling by, if not by the gaggle of happy customers out front than by the giant flavor list out front that’s surrounded by neon. It’s hard to miss. And in this case, that’s a good thing - because the gelato is fabulous.
I first tasted Festival del Gelato’s wares in 2001 after reading about the shop in a Rick Steves guidebook, but I’ve since seen it listed in several other travel books and websites - including Frommer’s, Virtual Tourist and The Guardian Online. What I’m trying to say is that this isn’t an out-of-the-way spot you’ll feel like you’re discovering, or a place you’ll want to keep a secret so you’ll have it all to yourself. The word is out already.
So - with that out of the way, shall we talk about the gelato at Festival del Gelato? Yes. Yes, we should.
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Some Italian news for your Sunday reading pleasure:
What’s going on in Italy lately? First we have the couple having sex in a cathedral confessional box, and now we’ve got a couple that got arrested after having sex in the street.
Sometimes I’m a big fan of regulation, and in this case I’m jumping for joy: there’s some talk in Venice that the city’s water taxis will have a €30 cap on fares within the historic city center, which will be music to the ears of anyone who’s paid through the nose for a taxi ride in …
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If you own or operate budget hotels in Italy, hostel, agriturismo, guesthouse or any other budget accommodation – or you know someone who does – you (or they) should enter the information into the new worldwide Hostel Directory . This will be a really extensive and global directory of budget accommodations (from hostels to B&B’s and everything in between). Don’t worry about getting any spam from it but plan to get some extra bookings.
Hostel Directory is a new site but is part of a big travel network so …
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Personally, I’m not much of a car person. But I know plenty of people who love to travel in Italy love it partly because it is the land where so many shiny red and yellow fast cars are born. One of these people happens to be the husband, with whom I have visited both the Ferrari Museum in Maranello and the Lamborghini Museum outside Bologna, not to mention watched a Ferrari F1 car go around the Fiorano test track. I’m pretty sure at one point I saw the husband actually drooling.
But you don’t have to be a car fanatic or make pilgrimages to those car museums to see some of Italy’s finest automobiles - just keep your eye out when you’re walking through Italian cities and you just might catch a glimpse of some of the most expensive Italian cars.
I should say that I’m not talking here about the cars which have been sold at auction for $1 million or more - although that’s interesting, those are one-of-a-kind cars that you’re not likely to see cruising the streets in Italy. These cars, on the other hand, are bought by at least several people every year and are driven regularly throughout the country. In general, however, I think the old adage applies - if you have to ask how much it is, you probably can’t afford it.
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Venice is full of hotels, but there aren’t many hostels in Venice - the city just isn’t known for cheap places to sleep, unfortunately. In fact, it’s just not known as a haven for anyone who focuses on cheap travel. But Venice hostels are a great way to save money on your trip though the city - especially if the alternative is not seeing this magical place at all.
I visited one of the hostels in Venice on my most recent trip to the canal city, and you can check out the full review (with pictures) at the link below….
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Anyone who’s planning a trip to Florence has probably heard the horror stories of people who had to wait 5-6 hours in line to get into the Uffizi Gallery. And when you’ve heard those stories, I’m guessing you had one of two reactions - either you were shocked by the news and immediately did an online search for the words “Uffizi tickets” to buy them in advance, or you scoffed at the foolish tourists who clearly were doing something wrong to wait in such long lines. If you’re in the latter camp, you may think it couldn’t happen to you, but I’m here to tell you you’re wrong.
Travelers who think they’ve found a way around every single queue are in for a shock when they try to make last-minute decisions to see places like the Uffizi in Florence - because almost regardless of the time of year, there are long lines that stretch out the front door. Case in point, here’s Exhibit A - I photographed this line in early March 2008, and this line was not moving.
At. All.
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More and more travelers are choosing to stay connected with folks back home - as well as people they meet along the way - by purchasing prepaid cell phones in the countries they’re visiting. It’s both cheap and easy to stay in touch this way, but if you don’t know what you’re doing with a prepaid mobile phone it can be frustrating.
When I last visited Italy, I had to have a prepaid cell phone because my US-based phone doesn’t even work outside the US (don’t get me started on how stupid that is). So, I bought a prepaid cell phone in Italy - I actually picked it up en route from the airport to the hotel just a couple hours after I’d arrived! And then, a couple days later, I recorded a video to show others how to set up a prepaid mobile phone in Italy (or elsewhere), including how to insert a SIM card and how to add additional talk time to a phone.
How to set Up a Prepaid Cell Phone in Italy
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Because I work for a company that sells Eurail passes, and because I used to do customer service for said company, I often get asked, “Is buying a first class train pass really worth the difference in price?” So I thought I’d throw my two cents on this issue into an article here, as my most recent European train experiences are all on Italian trains.
In general, when I’m asked whether there’s enough of a difference between first class and second class on European trains to justify the added cost, I say no, there isn’t. This is partly due to my overall feeling that the vehicle is the same whether I’m paying for first class or second class, so it’s getting me there at the same speed. (It’s this rationale that will, regardless of how much smaller they keep making coach seats, probably keep me from ever paying for first class airfare - I’m just a cheap airline tickets kind of girl.)
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