After coming back from our previous trip to Netherlands and Belgium, we started doing our research for our next family travel destination. We considered either, Italy or the Middle East (Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Oman). After doing the numbers we decided on Italy. For a 2 weeks holiday Italy we found to be approximately $3000 cheaper than the Middle East!
So, for our eight family travel adventure we chose Italy because:
1. The flight tickets were $1,200 return with Emirates (low season fare)
2. Berlin by now is a seasoned long flight traveller
3. Italy has (good) train network between cities (thought always late)
4. Cheap accommodation – average $150/night (see our detailed post here)
5. Super yummy food – no worries with our son not eating
6. Last but not least – Italians in general are very friendly to kids!
During the trip we based ourselves in 5 cities: Bologna, Siena, Florence, Verona and Venice.
All these cities are only within a short train ride away from of each other. So moving around is super easy – with frequent train connections. In between, we also did a number of day trips to smaller towns.
BOLOGNA
We spent 4 nights in the birthplace of: Tortellini. Bologna was absolutely the perfect place to start our Italian adventure. It is not crowded and we didn’t see any tour groups here. We got a hint of local life too by staying at L’8 Boutique Apartments. The biggest highlight in this city is none other than the beautiful foods and lambrusco wine (for us parents). We just loved walking around the city, seeing the beautiful porticos, hanging out at Piazza Maggiore and going up the roof terrace of Basilica di San Petronio (with a construction lift!).
We did a day trip to Modena to visit the Ferrari museum. And another side trip to San Marino (the fifth smallest country in the world). We visited the latter during a very snowy day much to our son’s delight. We had the town almost to ourselves.
SIENA
We had a memorable stay in this city. Despite only spending one day, we visited the beautiful duomo – renowned for “zebra church” for its black and white marbles, climbed up the Facciatone for a great view over Piazza del Campo. Also we head out to Via Camporegio for amazing views overlooking the old town of Siena – best kept secret of this city! This place must be added to your family travel bucket list!
FLORENCE
As soon as we got to Florence, we started seeing a LOT more tourists. Not surprising though, as Florence is absolutely gorgeous! This city is like a walking art – so much beauty and history lining up the streets. We stayed 4 nights here; 2 at a budget hotel opposite the train station, and the other 2 nights we splurged at the most amazing Airbnb Renaissance Apartment – which is literally RIGHT ACROSS the Duomo! We visited many Piazzas across the city, the major museums: Uffizi and Accademia. Climbed the bell tower and the 463 steps of Brunelleschi’s Dome.
VERONA
Even though we only stayed for one night in this Shakespeare’s home of “Romeo & Juliet”, we were quite surprised as to how modern it is. It felt much younger and modern compared to the other cities we visited. The city is so compact, we were able to cover almost everything in one day. Our highlight was the arena Verona. We went inside and just amazed at its construction (older than Rome’s Colosseum).
VENICE
Our last stop and of course the most touristy: Venice. Usually tour groups arrive here in the morning, overcrowding St Mark’s square. But by late afternoon, these groups would have left and we were able to explore in peace. Venice is absolutely gorgeous and we stayed for 4 days. The first 2 days, we had beautiful weather –picture perfect blue sky and all. The last 2 days we had light shower throughout the day which was impractical as some areas were flooded and we had to walk along the wood planks (or brave the water with gum boots). Getting around Venice isn’t quick as you need to reply on the Vaporetto water bus (which makes so many stops along the way).
We did a day trip to Burano village which is about 40 minutes boat ride. The whole village looked something out of a fairy tale book with all the houses painted so brightly. We also indulged in beautiful seafood feast here.
SO WOULD WE GO BACK TO ITALY?
ABSOLUTELY – in a heartbeat! Italy has got to be THE BEST family travel we’ve had so far. Our almost 4 year old son, felt the same way. None of us was ready to go home. We just loved everything about Italy; from the sights, the people, the food. Everything!
HOW MUCH WAS THE FLIGHT AND HOW LONG?
We once again flew with Emirates, flying into Bologna, coming home from Venice. We are not fond of flying return as we prefer not to waste time on transit getting back to original city. Again we used 5% off discount code through Entertainment book. We also accumulated $100 each in skyward miles points from our last Emirates trip to Netherlands & Belgium. So we snagged a really great bargain of paying $1200 return.
There’s no direct flight from Perth to Bologna. The flight to Dubai was around 11 hours. We had a 3 hours transit at Dubai airport, which gave us enough time to have a meal, stretch our legs and go through security before heading on to the second leg. Dubai to Bologna took another 6 hours. By this stage all of us are used to the idea of long haul flights. We all embraced it very well including Berlin who absolutely loved the in flight entertainment system – watching Home Alone and Ghostbusters back to back.
HOW WAS THE JET LAG?
Perth is 6 hours ahead of Italy so there was a slight element of jet lag only in the first day. But as usual, we were too excited with sightseeing so it didn’t really bother us.
This time around the jet lag upon returning wasn’t as bad. Berlin took only 2 days to recover, and back to our local time zone.
WHAT WAS THE WEATHER LIKE?
We were blessed with good weather. Despite the winter chill, we still get the sun and blue sky on most days. Bologna and Siena we found to be a lot colder than Florence and Venice. There was snow in Bologna and San Marino. The coldest it got was -5 degrees Celcius.
We relied on our merino thermals, down jackets and winter boots throughout the trip.
HOW MANY LUGGAGES DID WE BRING?
As always we tried to travel as light as possible even though this proved to be more of a challenge travelling in winter. For the three of us, we had 2 big luggages and a backpack. Alfred was in charge of the luggages and Tara was in charge of Berlin and the stroller. We had multiple city changes using the train, so it was crucial we keep everything to the minimum and as light as possible.
WAS IT EASY GETTING AROUND?
Public transportation is relatively easy. Although trains in Italy never seem to run on time! And there was even a time when the train number displayed was different to the one printed on the ticket which caused a lot of confusion. Our tickets were rarely checked. Italy by far is the most lax compared to other European cities we have visited.
Buying the tickets was straight forward. Some tickets (intercity fast trains) we pre-purchased online at a cheaper rate. Regional trains which never sold out were purchased on the day through the vending machines and all have English option. You can pay via cash or credit card. Almost all stations have elevator – though signage in Italy is not the best.
WAS ITALY CHEAP?
Not cheap but it is very good value – definitely cheaper than England, Netherlands and Belgium. Choosing a budget friendly accommodation was easy with lots of 3 star accommodations close by to the train station. We found the 3 star hotels to be reasonable in size for the 3 of us averaging around 25m2. Our accommodation cost on average $150 per night for a standard room with an extra bed. We stayed at mixture of 3 star hotel, apartment and Airbnb.
HOW ABOUT FOOD AND DRINKS?
In a local restaurant 10 Euros will get you a very decent meal. As always avoid touristy restaurants. Note: most restaurants in Italy has a cover charge (about 2 Euros) per person. Take aways are generally very cheap. Parents will be spoilt with the local wine variety.
AND HOW ABOUT THE PEOPLE?
Italians absolutely adore children. SO many locals acknowledged Berlin, and smiled at him. The people working at hotels and restaurants always do their best to entertain him. English is spoken everywhere.
IS EUROPE SAFE?
YES! The cities we visited we felt to be a LOT safer than Rome (we visited Rome as a couple in 2014). Obviously the same rule applies everywhere – use common sense, be vigilant and don’t attract too much attention by wearing valuable items. In this trip Tara used a pacsafe anti theft cross body bag.
In every city, at the piazzas there would be a LOT of police officers and police cars (Berlin’s dream come to life). And we felt safe walking around, even at night.
Despite the fear the media has portrayed regarding Europe, it still proves to be a very popular destination. If you are considering whether or not to go, just book your tickets and GO!!
