Pienza is a beautiful little Renaissance town in Tuscany with a fascinating history. It’s located between Montepulciano and Montalcino, and is less than an hour’s drive or bus ride from Siena. As a perfectly preserved Renaissance…
It’s a long way from Nanaimo to Venice, and I wanted to make the journey as fast as possible. Alas, my chauffeurs had a different idea. I really should be grateful to them for hauling…
Another Italy travel tip is to purchase a multiday pass for the vaporetto (water bus) in Venice. It’s a great deal that many tourists aren’t aware of or aren’t confident enough to use. Buying a…
One of my favorite Venice things to do is a vaporetto (water bus) tour on the Grand Canal. On Day 2, before we went out to dinner, we spent a couple of hours doing just…
My number one tip for Venice things to do? Walk. Take a break from maps, guidebooks and lineups, and simply wander the streets. Leave your list of “must see” buildings behind in the hotel. If…
If you want to experience riding in a traditional Venetian gondola, but you don’t want to pay the 100+ euros that a private gondola ride costs, try a traghetto ride. A traghetto is a public…
Calli, Campielli e Canali is generally agreed to be the ultimate map of Venice. With this book in hand, you will be able to find even the most out-of-the-way places in Venice. However, it is distinctly…
We’d just arrived in Venice after a 20 hour flight. Somehow I had mislaid the map with directions to our guest house. Tired and confused, I went into a tiny little snack bar. I figured…
Even though I thought I was organized, somehow I had forgotten to bring the piece of paper that had the directions to our guest house in Venice. At this point we’re 23 hours without sleep and…
Guest post by Judy Toth If you have traveled abroad at all, you know that you need some patience to navigate the large airports. Add to that the fact that you just got off a…