Italy is a popular destination for many tourists because of its iconic countryside, famous tourist attraction sites, rich history, strong culture and fantastic wine and delicious cuisine.
If you are visiting Italy for the first time, you may feel overwhelmed with planning the itinerary, choosing the best routes and trying to blend in with the crowd. Luckily, there are important travel tips below that can tremendously help you and make your trip smoother and more enjoyable.
Learn basic Italian phrases
There are many Italians who speak fluent English, especially the younger generation. However, you should strive to learn a few basic Italian phrases. In addition, you should blend in with the crowd to become less vulnerable to pickpockets and scams, and get cheaper prices in normal shops.
Book tickets to popular places in advance
If you plan to visit famous places like the Colosseum, the Sistine Chapel and the David of Michelangelo, then you should book the tickets in advance, especially when you are going to visit Italy in the peak summer season.
Always purchase and validate your bus and train tickets
You should always buy and validate your ticket whether you’re riding the bus, train or tram as soon as you enter the vehicle to let authorities know you’re not using one ticket for multiple rides.
Alternatively, you can explore the towns in Italy using a scooter to get around faster and make day tripping to nearby sights easy. You can rent or buy a scooter if you plan to stay and explore the country for a couple of weeks or months, and you can always maintain it or replace faulty parts with high-quality parts from RMS.
Prepare for cobbled stairs and streets
Many Italian cities and towns have old cobbled streets and even though they are beautiful, dragging a nice rolling suitcase on them may not be the best decision. In addition, you may encounter a lot of stairs around town or in your hotel or apartment.
Therefore, it’s advisable to use a duffel bag or a backpack instead. Moreover, you should bring good shoes like flats, leather boots or combat boots to walk on the cobblestone streets.
Don’t use the currency exchange desk
You should avoid using the currency conversion desk situated in the airport and use the ATM (called a bancomat in Italy) and get the local currency. When you do this, you will not pay excess fees for currency conversion and fees for using their services and you will get more euros.
Avoid eating in touristy places
The nearer you are to popular tourist attraction sites like the Tower of Pisa, the Colosseum, the Vatican or the Duomo, the higher the prices you will pay in restaurants.
It is advisable to walk a few streets back from the popular tourist attraction site to get cheaper and more authentic food. Alternatively, you can do a research in advance of the affordable places to eat near the attraction site.
Conclusion
Italy is a beautiful country and you can get the most out of your trip by following the few tips above, which can help you to save money, avoid being scammed, blend in and stay comfortable throughout the day.
