Northern Italy to Tuscany
Two Week Trip Report October 2009
From R&R Travel News®
By Thomas Connolly USNR-
Two couples (Tom and Laura, and Jim and Carolyn) traveled together on this trip. It’s always more fun to share experiences with your friends.
Tom did the general planning. The detailed itinerary was developed through discussion with all four travelers. General tourist information is readily available from travel books, travel tour brochures, the internet, discussions with other travelers, etc. During each city visited, we did quite of bit of walking throughout the tourist/historic areas. Needless to say, all of us were fatigued by the end of each day.
We love Italy, and both couples have previously visited Rome, Florence, and the Naples area. It was time for Northern Italy, the Italian Riviera, and Tuscany.
Jim did the driving, about 1500 miles over 12 days. In Northern Italy, we found that the Italians drive the same as US drivers. They use the same defensive driving techniques. We had no mishaps and no close calls. The car (diesel engine) averaged about 30 miles per gallon, and fuel is about $6.50 per gallon. The absolute key to this successful driving trip was taking Jim’s Garmin GPS equipped with the latest English language chip. We used maps and road signs to verify the GPS as the data base for the latest chip was about two years old.
We used the internet from the lobby of each hotel to line up several alternative hotels in our next overnight destination. The Garmin GPS took us to the front door of each selected hotel without a problem. Due to the Euro, the cost of everything: food, hotels, clothes, etc. is about a third higher than the US. Europe is no longer a “shopping” destination, unless a specialized European item is sought. A four star hotel costs about 100 euros, which includes breakfast. A four star hotel is about the same as a nice Holiday Inn in the US. The 100 euro charge results as a $150 charge on the credit card bill. Three star hotels usually cost around 70 euro, including breakfast. We opted for breakfast at each hotel, the cost being usually reasonable, and the quality usually excellent.
On Wednesday morning, we left Wilmington, NC and drove to the BWI long term parking area. The shuttle took us to the AMC terminal. We departed BWI late Wednesday evening on the weekly Patriot Express contract flight. All Space A passengers were accepted on this flight which first stops in Ramstein. Following arrival at the Aviano Air Force Base about noon, local time, on Friday, we learned that the Mountain View Lodge was full and no rental cars were available from the base PX vendor. We were tired, and it was also raining, so Murphy’s Law was 100% correct that afternoon. Taxis cannot access the main base, so we rode the base shuttle to “Area Two”. Just outside the “Area Two” gate, we found a rental agency, rented a Fiat, and drove to Hotel Oliva (less than a mile away) for the night. The hotel staff recommended a local restaurant which was excellent.
