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Hello from Victoria, BC, Canada

Johnny Canuck

10+ Posts
Hello fellow travellers

I’m so glad that Sloweurope has picked up the reins where Slowtrav left off. My wife and I were planning on a trip to Italy about 15 years ago and I found a lot of useful information browsing on Slowtrav. Unfortunately, the trip never came off, but now we’re on again.

We’re taking a Celebrity Cruise from Fort Lauderdale, Florida to Rome arriving on Monday 4th May 2020 and will have an as yet unidentified period of time in Europe before travelling back to the west coast of Canada. Two friends will be joining us in Rome and it will be the first time in Italy for all of us, so to begin with, we are looking for recommendations of where to stay in or close to Rome for a few days. After that, it could be anywhere.

My wife and I are in our mid 70’s and although we could be considered to be reasonably fit, I wouldn’t say that we are hardened hikers. We are part of the ‘SWALLOWS’ group (Short Walks and Long Lunches on Wednesdays and Sundays), so whilst we like to amble around taking a rest now and again, we are not up to hilly walks or anything too strenuous.

My wife and I were born and raised in the UK and have some experience travelling in Europe, as have our friends. Our flights home have not been booked yet, so our European travel may well take in more countries than Italy, though with the assumed time available, I think we’ll be limited to Southern Europe.

Looking forward to the experience.
 
My key recommendation is that you book the Colosseum Underground tour in advance.

As far as hotels or apartments, I would go to Trip Advisor and search based on your preferences.
 
My key recommendation is that you book the Colosseum Underground tour in advance.

As far as hotels or apartments, I would go to Trip Advisor and search based on your preferences.
Thanks for the info re the Colosseum. I will check Trip Advisor and AirBnB, although I've had mixed results with Trip Advisor.
 
I think that due to the time available, we will only be spending 2 to 3 days in any one place, so if we can find short term apartment rentals, they will be fine as long as they offer reasonable comfort for four at a reasonable price. Having said that, I am not opposed to modest hotels or B&Bs either.

Thanks for the links. It's less than 24 hours since it was confirmed that we are going, so everything is up in the air right now.

We have a young Golden Retriever (just over 11 months) who will have to go into kennels and we don't want to leave him for too long, even though the kennel seems to be as well kitted out as our home.
 
Well this was 7 years ago, but from the subsequent reviews they have appeared to keep up their standards. Among other things I liked about this place is it was next to the American Embassy. Not that I needed the Embassy or safety, but security was all over the place and it's a high end neighborhood.

Are You Bored Reading All These EXCELLENT Reviews?
Review of Deko Rome
Reviewed January 2, 2013
Well then book your next stay in Rome at the Deko and get excited! We stayed there for our two nights in Rome and everything you've read in previous reviews is true.

Marco arranged transportation from the airport. A driver was waiting for us at the gate exit and drove us in his Mercedes for 50 euros. We had tickets for the symphony and Marco made reservations for us at a restaurant near the Parco della Musica (not a typical tourist area). For the next day I had a walking itinerary planned, but with Marco's help we fine tuned it to be more efficient and scenic.

And Serena, all I'll say is, "what a sweetheart"!

I dare say there is nothing Serena and Marco won't do to make your visit the very best.More
Date of stay: December 2012


 
Well this was 7 years ago, but from the subsequent reviews they have appeared to keep up their standards. Among other things I liked about this place is it was next to the American Embassy. Not that I needed the Embassy or safety, but security was all over the place and it's a high end neighborhood.

Are You Bored Reading All These EXCELLENT Reviews?
Review of Deko Rome
Reviewed January 2, 2013
Well then book your next stay in Rome at the Deko and get excited! We stayed there for our two nights in Rome and everything you've read in previous reviews is true.

Marco arranged transportation from the airport. A driver was waiting for us at the gate exit and drove us in his Mercedes for 50 euros. We had tickets for the symphony and Marco made reservations for us at a restaurant near the Parco della Musica (not a typical tourist area). For the next day I had a walking itinerary planned, but with Marco's help we fine tuned it to be more efficient and scenic.

And Serena, all I'll say is, "what a sweetheart"!

I dare say there is nothing Serena and Marco won't do to make your visit the very best.More
Date of stay: December 2012


Just wanted to let you know that I have emailed Deko Rome to ask for availability for our first 3 days.

I'm now thinking that we should look for one place to stay for 5 nights, either in Tuscany or Umbria, with a view to driving to various towns that are easily accessible in a resaonable time frame, so any recommendations are welcome.
 
I think a longer stay in one place will work better. Tuscany could be a good choice. Lots of great restaurants for long lunches and nice towns to walk around. Have you been to Tuscany before? You could base in Chianti, between Florence and Siena, or south of Siena near Montepulciano or Pienza.

Have a look at Aiolina in Chianti near Siena.
It is run by Cristina, an American expat and her Italian husband. She was a SlowTrav regular.

Or around Montepulciano consider Saint Antonio.
I’ve stayed there and it is a great place and location.

Read our reviews in the reviews forum to get more ideas. And we have a great selection of trip reports. They give you an idea of how to structure a trip.
 
I have indeed been busy reading through various pages of the website and after reading reviews have booked 4 days at Sant'Antonio. We wanted 5 but the 5th day was taken so we settled on 4.
Since it's the first trip to Itally for all 4 of us, we must see Rome and have allotted the first 3 days to stay there, but finding suitable accommodation there at a reasonable price seems to be a bigger problem.

We are open to suggestions. Deko Rome has no availability. We initially thought of sharing an apartment with 2 Bedrooms and 2 Bathrooms, but that appears to be more difficult to arrange at this short notice than separate rooms.

Our flight leaves from Naples, so we want to head south after Tuscany and stay for a few days within striking distance of Naples.
 

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