This summer, my family and I took the much-anticipated two-week trip to Italy. Instead of staying in one city, we saw many different areas of the country by staying one or two nights at each destination. From Florence to Cinque Terre to the Dolomites, I am going to rate my Italian summer.
Siena 5.5/10
After a direct flight from SFO to Rome, we stayed the night in a hotel by the airport and drove to Siena on our second day in Italy. As one of the major towns in Tuscany, Siena’s high walls, narrow streets, and walled city make it seem like you’ve stepped back multiple centuries. Siena was beautiful to walk around and had many delicious food options. However, to get to any other towns in Tuscany, you pretty much need a rental car. Also with the intense heat, it’s hard to explore the countryside without quickly becoming exhausted.
Cinque Terre 9/10
The five colorful and adorable cities along the coast are popular tourist destinations, but considering we went in the heat of the tourist season, the towns did not seem super overly crowded. Although the heat and the hills in the towns were intense (and I accidentally booked us a hotel with a 200-stair climb from the train station), the ocean was the perfect temperature for a swim. Many tourists hike between towns, but my family and I opted to take the beautiful ferry ride between the 5 cities. Also, an honorable mention to the best bruschetta I’ve ever had at Nessun Dorma in Manarola.
Florence 6.5/10
Another popular tourist destination, Florence seemed a lot more crowded than Cinque Terre. Having only one night in Florence, the only thing we ended up doing was walking around a little bit and getting food. We also stopped at the Ponte Vecchio (a popular bridge) during sunset which was beautiful. Almost anywhere you walk you end up passing the Italian church, the Duomo (along with hordes of tourists and multiple large tour groups), but the church was stunning. Some of the best gelato we had in Italy was from RivaReno Gelato Firenze in Florence.
Dolomites 10/10
By far my favorite part of the trip, the Italian Alps right by the Swiss borders were breathtaking. Along with the crisp air and lack of tourists, the mountains are a perfect place for a trip if you want to avoid the heat and crowds and take some time outdoors. We stayed in Cortina d’Ampezzo which is one of the major ski towns in the Dolomites. With a cute downtown area and huge mountains for hiking and driving, Cortina was the perfect place to stay. One of our mornings in the Dolomites, we took the 50 minute drive from Cortina to Lago di Braise (possibly the most popular lake in the mountains). Because of its popularity, parking can fill up fast and the lake can become pretty crowded. I researched ahead of time and we showed up around 15 minutes before they start sending out boats and the timing worked out well for us (you can rent a 5-person rowboat to go on the lake—I highly recommend). There is also an easy 2-mile hike around the lake which generally has a lot of foot traffic but is worth it for the views.
Lake Como 2/10
If not for the good food we had in Como, I would have rather skipped this leg of our trip. I’m not sure if it was the lack of AC in our rental (our room was 87℉ day and night) or just my general dislike of how crowded Como and Bellagio were, but the two cities were not ideal. My main issue was the lack of transportation between Como and Bellagio. The options (and we took both) were a two-hour bus ride along winding roads with a lot of traffic, or a two and a half hour ferry ride where you’re stuck on the top deck roasting as if you were on a grill. You could also rent a private water taxi with prices upward of 100 euros per person. The one saving grace of Como was the Oakberry Acai bowl shop and the home of the best pasta I’ve ever eaten.
Overall, Italy was an incredible experience but make sure to research places before you go to plan the best trip possible!