[duffysmom]

We will be touring the lake district this fall, then we'll board a cruise ship in Venice that stops in Italy, France, Spain, Portugal and ends up in Ft. Lauderdale. I'm getting too old to schlep luggage. I unpack only once on the ship and that's it and I love having a home away from home.

You can never go wrong with a trip to Italy. Have fun...

[cab1948]

duffysmom, can I ask what cruise line you are going to be on? It sounds like a wonderful way to get home.

[chachacha]

But tell us what you will be doing and where you'll be going in the winter! I can't get DH to go in winter. He's afraid we'll slip in the ice on those hills.[/QUOTE]

i spent three months in rome before i bought my home here, nov, dec, jan and the weather was no problem...up in venice and florence it would be a little chillier but nothing unbearable (i was living in north dakota at that time so it was lovely to me) bought an extra sweat shirt in siena but really, no ice or anything like that in january! of course everything is more beautiful in summer but the christmas decorations and concerts are a plus in that season. piazza navona in rome is alive with little bufane (witches who bring the presents) in all shapes and sizes...i even got to go to midnight mass at st peter's... and the nativity scenes in all the churches are lovely....fewer crowds, shorter lines, many pluses to going in winter....and no blisters from walking in the heat

[duffysmom]

Originally Posted by cab1948

duffysmom, can I ask what cruise line you are going to be on? It sounds like a wonderful way to get home.

cab, the cruise I'm taking is on Princess but all the big cruise lines have them. . There are many transatlantics (repositioning) in the Spring and Fall. In the Fall the ships are returning from Europe and in the Spring they go back to Europe. Go to an online travel agent like travelosity.com and do a search for transatlantics and you will see dozens of them, they are usually cheaper than Caribbean cruises but you have to factor in airfare. Some have many stops in different countries and some only a couple. Usually you have 6 to 7 days out at sea for the crossing. Crossings are fun with lots of activities or if you like to read and relax you can do that to. You get a tremendous bang for your buck. First class ship, meals, stateroom, activities, lectures, entertainment every night. Actually TV is like a cruise ship on land.

[Houselover]

Originally Posted by Minnesotalyn

My husband & I are planning to travel to Italy in the next 2 years. We' re looking into some of the tour groups, Trafalgar, Globus, Perillo's. Not planning on going on our own. Has anyone used any of these or someone else & what were your views good or bad? Did you book through the tour company or do it though a travel agency?

We have been to Italy twice in the last 5 years and used Grand European both times.. We had excellent lead tour guides as well as local guides in the various cities we visited. The hotels and meals very good..We are going back to Italy in 2014 and will use them again..Go to GETOURS.COM...

[NJblue]

We recently toured Germany, Austria and Switzerland with Insight tours. We selected them because they use busses with only 40 people in them, giving substantially more legroom. The hotels, however, were spotty. They claimed 4-star hotels and for the most part they delivered. However, some of the rooms were very small. Most of our fellow travelers were repeat customers who swear by Insight. If you have long legs, it may be important to you to consider a company that gives you extra legroom.

There are advantages traveling this way, but cost is not one of them. In the future we will either rent a car or pack very light and use trains. I calculated our per-day cost to be over $800 per day after meals and optional tours were factored in.

[Madelaine Amee]

We are leaving this coming week on a European repositioning cruise. Fly to Italy and cruise back to Ft. Lauderdale. Been on the waiting list for a year, yes a year and heard just a month ago that we had a cabin. So if you want a repositioning cruise you had better book now for this time next year.

[duffysmom]

Originally Posted by Madelaine Amee

We are leaving this coming week on a European repositioning cruise. Fly to Italy and cruise back to Ft. Lauderdale. Been on the waiting list for a year, yes a year and heard just a month ago that we had a cabin. So if you want a repositioning cruise you had better book now for this time next year.

Are you sailing on Princess out of Venice?

[l2ridehd]

Italy is a great vacation with lots to see, wonderful food and wine, and great sights. Our last trip we rented a villa in Tuscany and rented a car and did day trips all around the region. Will probably do the same thing next trip except someplace on the East coast. Still need to do the lake Como area as well. I like this venue much better then a tour group. Now we are fortunate that my better half speaks Italian to a degree that gets us everything needed. Directions, information, places to see, etc.

[Madelaine Amee]

Originally Posted by duffysmom

Are you sailing on Princess out of Venice?

Yes.

[Raen Dear]

We had good luck with Trafalgar but they do add on "extra" day trips to see things you want to see, i.e., Michaelangelo's David was not on the regular itinerary. Still, it was a pleasant trip with good accommodations and the food of course was great.

I did Northern Italy with Road Scholar and really enjoyed the trip. I've done several Road Scholar trips and liked them all. I especially like the fellow travelers on RS tours, all well read, friendly, and ready to enjoy the experience. Not usually big complainers. The guides are always knowledgable and there is usually ample off time for your own exploration.

[OldManTime]

Originally Posted by Minnesotalyn

My husband & I are planning to travel to Italy in the next 2 years. We' re looking into some of the tour groups, Trafalgar, Globus, Perillo's. Not planning on going on our own. Has anyone used any of these or someone else & what were your views good or bad? Did you book through the tour company or do it though a travel agency?

I have been to Italy about 6 times now, visited 50 towns and cities, I will not use a tour as they will steer you to where they want you to see, and take you places to shop, where side deals are always made. I make all my own reservations, all bookings all bus and train, no taxi's, and typically tour with the natives for 4 weeks each time.
Ciao

[Snowbird13]

Originally Posted by Minnesotalyn

My husband & I are planning to travel to Italy in the next 2 years. We' re looking into some of the tour groups, Trafalgar, Globus, Perillo's. Not planning on going on our own. Has anyone used any of these or someone else & what were your views good or bad? Did you book through the tour company or do it though a travel agency?

I took a 17 day tour with Insight Vacations to Italy and Sicily in September. I booked through an on-line tour company, Affordabletours.com. I had a great time and would recommend this trip and the company. We had a great tour guide and we stayed in good hotels that were centrally located. If you want to talk with me, let me know and I will send you my phone number.

[teamC]

We used Perillo for Italy (7 years ago) and were so satisfied that we used them 4 years ago for Hawaii (since no matter how hard I tried I could not find cheaper prices for multiple islands with inter-island flights in Hawaii on my own). They use great hotels, good restaurants & are extremely accommodating. My friend's husband got sick & had to be hospitalized in Italy during a tour-Perillo called my friend everyday and updated passengers on the trip daily with his condition & diagnosis (since some people were naturally concerned if he was contagious). They also found my friend temporary accomodations in Rome and picked up and dropped off her luggage at the rental. They arranged return flight weeks later & also followed up with a letter when they returned home.

They are also very flexible. When you book with them you can fly over with a tour-leave the tour for up to thirty days and fly back with another tour (as long as you leave from a tour city). This allows you to stay in Europe longer & do other things. We love trains, so we chose to leave the tour and book our own train from Venice to Milan-they took our luggage-gave us contact info and hotel address & said enjoy yourselves-we will see you in Milan. At the time, meals included a glass of wine. We never waited on a line-even at the Vatican or Pearl Harbor.

They also offer add on trips of their own which are very reasonable. The mix up the hotels. in one city-they stay at best location, in next city, slightly outside of city center. This was never a problem for us. They tell you hotels they deal with so you can make your own decision.

[jet10s]

can speak from person experience -- Trafalga Tours -- very highly recommended