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Travel Agents

mejane123mejane123
10 Comments
in Pennsylvania-Philadelphia
I'm looking for recs on travel agents in the SJ/Philadelphia area.  We want to do 11 days in Italy, going to a few different cities with a bunch of side trips.  Airfare changes so much and some of the trips are a little complicated to book, so I wanted to consult with a TA to see what kind of prices we could get before booking anything ourselves.  
Thanks!
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Re: Travel Agents

  • ooodsieooodsie
    2500 Comments Fourth Anniversary Combo Breaker
    edited December 2011
    I don't have any recommendations, but when you do book your trip could you shoot me a PM with the details?  I want to book a similar trip this summer and love hearing other peoples itineraries to get ideas for my own.
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  • mejane123mejane123
    10 Comments
    edited December 2011
    No problem!  Right know we're thinking to start in Rome for 3 nights, take the train to Florence/Tuscany for 5 nights, then head back to Rome for the last 2 nights, since we'll be flying out of Rome.  We're trying to do (from Rome) Pompeii and hike Vesuvius (apparently it's a fairly tame hike, maybe 40 minutes or so), Ostia Antica, probably Naples, and wander the city to see all of the ancient ruins and the Vatican.  

    From Florence, we want to do a few wine tastings/tours in Tuscany, visit Pisa, hike Cinque Terre, visit the Accademia and Uffizi, and some other stuff in the city of Florence, probably a wine and cheese tasting if we can find one reasonably priced, and maybe a day trip to Montepulciano.  

    I'll definitely PM you when we have our itinerary nailed down, though, because so far the biggest thing I've encountered that may end up being confusing is the public transportation.  From what I hear it's the best way to get around, no real need to book escorted tours for everything, but I would like to book some tickets ahead of time, mainly for the trains between cities, so I'm hoping a travel agent can help out with that.  Plus there are so many options for things to do and ways to do them that I'm starting to get a bit overwhelmed!  

    Oh, and if you aren't already, definitely use Trip Advisor to find hotels, restaurants, and activities.  It's be so helpful!
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  • Bean32Bean32 member
    1000 Comments
    edited December 2011
    I went to Italy a couple years ago and did Venice, Florence, Bologna, Pisa, and Rimini. The only things we had booked were our flights into/out of Venice and the hotel for the first and last nights. We bought a 10-or-so ride ticket for the train and basically used that to get from one city to another. Then we did taxis, trolleys, boats to visit things outside of the immediate city. I think it makes sense to book the big things you want to do - like climbing Vesuvius. Things like Pisa, the Uffizi, wine tastings, etc don't really need to be booked in advance. We did so many random things while in Italy, that I think it's better to not lay out your entire itinerary. Some of the best things in Italy are what you accidentally stumble upon.
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  • ooodsieooodsie
    2500 Comments Fourth Anniversary Combo Breaker
    edited December 2011
    Bean - How many days did you stay, and did you feel you had enough time to do everything you wanted to do?
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  • Bean32Bean32 member
    1000 Comments
    edited December 2011
    We were there for 11 days. We got to do most of the things we had wanted to in each city. We fell in love with Venice, so spent more time there than we thought we would. It meant we didn't have time to get to Verona, but an extra 1.5 days in Venice was worth it. We were very conscious of our limited time, so we decided before we left to stay north of Rome and do everything we could in that area. We didn't want to lose precious time traveling very far. We're hoping to get back some day to do the South.
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  • mejane123mejane123
    10 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Bean, limited time is kind of why we want to do two base-citites and a bunch of day trips.  Florence and Rome have a lot in the immediate area, and we're definitely leaving a few days as "wandering" days.  There are a few trips we definitely want to do, but for the rest of the time we'd like to just experience as much as possible.  Since we're doing 6 days in Florence, we may end up renting a car while we're in that area if it looks like that might work out better than public transportation.  That way we can maybe to Tuscany at our own pace.
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  • amy727amy727 member
    Sixth Anniversary 1000 Comments
    edited December 2011
    If you can try to spend a day or two up in Lake Como.  It is beautiful and so relaxing. 
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  • ooodsieooodsie
    2500 Comments Fourth Anniversary Combo Breaker
    edited December 2011
    We want to get down to the Amalfi Coast, too.
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