Fifteen things to know before visiting Italy 

Are you planning a trip to Italy? Well, stay tuned because today we will give you fifteen things you need to know before taking your trip, so you’ll be prepared, and it’ll make your trip much more authentic. Andrea and I live in Italy, and we travel around the country all the time. For this reason, we want to share our Italian knowledge with you, so you too can have a true Italian Experience on your trip.

15. Consider visiting some less popular areas

When you think about visiting Italy, everyone immediately thinks about Venice, Rome, Florence, or maybe the Amalfi Coast if there’s enough time. Those places are amazing, and you should visit them on your trip. However, you should also consider adding one or two less popular areas in Italy that tourists do not go to. Every city or town in Italy is rich in unique history, architecture, and great food, so consider taking a side trip to some less popular cities or towns, and you will experience an authentic Italian lifestyle. For example, if you are travelling from Florence to Venice, consider spending a day in the stunning city of Bologna. There, you will discover an amazing city centre and some of the best food that Italy has to offer. (And hey, you might even run into us!)

If you are travelling from Venice to Milan, why not stop and visit Lake Garda? – Now, Lake Garda is not as popular as Lake Como, but let us assure you that you will be amazed by its beauty! If you want to know more about lesser-known places in Italy to visit, take a look at this video up here!

14. Avoid the peak of summer

Most tourists come to Italy in June, July, and August, but those are not the best months to come. In fact, during those months, cities are packed, prices are at the highest, and it is difficult to find availability for museums and attractions (by the way, if you come to Italy always buy your attraction tickets in advance if you want to skip the long lines at the ticket office, follow this link for the most common attraction tickets in Italy). Also, in the peak of summer, temperatures can be really hot. Today, it is July 31, and outside, the temperature is °C7 °F98 °F.

If you don’t like the sweltering heat, consider visiting Italy in early spring or late fall (May and October are wonderful months to visit). During those periods, temperatures are much better, cities are not as busy, and prices are reasonable.

13. Food is not the same all over italy

So, we get it. You are coming to Italy, and maybe you think I am going to have pizza, pasta carbonara, pasta al pesto and bolognese everywhere! Well, let us tell you that you would be very disappointed if you did that! One very key thing to keep in mind is that when eating in Italy, the food is very regional. Something is very popular in one area might not even exist somewhere else. For example, pasta alla carbonara is a typical dish of Rome. If you order it outside Rome, it might not be as good or authentic (or worse, it could be from a box). We recommend doing a little research before your visit to check the specialities of the areas you are going to visit and try the typical food. This will ensure you have the best food Italy has to offer. 

Also, keep in mind that the Italian food that you are used to eating back home is not what you will find in Italy. Things like garlic bread, chicken piccata, or spaghetti with meatballs are not authentic Italian food, and if you see a restaurant serving those dishes, you can be sure that it is a tourist restaurant.

Now, when it comes to pizza, we realise this is the most common, perhaps the most loved food on earth. If you want true, authentic pizza, you should visit Naples, the birthplace of pizza. Everywhere else in Italy has its own variation of pizza that is often very different from the ones you’ll get in Naples. Also, one very important thing to remember when you want to have pizza, no matter where you go in Italy, is to go to a pizzeria that has a pizza oven that you can see. If you don’t see the oven, stay away because you will be eating frozen pizza!

12. Dinner doesn’t happen before 7:30

In Italy dinner time is between 7:30 and 9:30 pm, and this varies a lot based on where you are. In the north of the country, 7:30 – 8:00 is com, while in the south dinner can start much later, like around 10 pm. Regardless, restaurants are usually closed before 7:30 pm. Now, if you see a restaurant serving dinner at 5 pm, you can be sure that they are catering to tourists, and it might not be the most authentic Italian restaurant. If you get a little hungry around 6 pm, you should try an aperitivo. This is a great Italian tradition. Basically, it is the Italian version of happy hour, and you can learn more about aperitivo in this video up here!

11. Pedestrian be careful

When you are exploring Italy, you will walk around a lot. For this reason, we want to make sure you are careful. First, some of the streets in Italy are hundreds of years old and very uneven. For this reason, we recommend that you be careful not to fall and hurt yourself. We mentioned before in several videos, and articles, that wearing comfortable shoes is a simple thing that allows you to walk safely. The streets are often uneven and have cobblestones that are thousands of years old, and all of that can mean problems if you aren’t careful. So, keep the flip-flops and sandals for the beach. And high heels? I don’t recommend it. 

Another thing to consider is crossing the streets when you are not in a pedestrian-only area. Pay attention to traffic; not every driver respects the pedestrian crossing, especially scooters, motorbikes, and bicycles. So pay a lot of attention when you cross. In high-traffic areas, we recommend you cross at traffic lights to be safe. Lastly, even when you walk in pedestrian-only areas, pay attention to electric scooters and bicycles (especially the food delivery ones) that usually zip around really fast without paying any attention to pedestrians.

10. Drinking in public is fine, just don’t get drunk

In Italy, it’s legal to drink alcohol while walking on the street, in public parks, or at the beach. In fact, wine is a huge part of Italian culture. Italians love to sit around with friends and sip a glass of wine or an Aperol Spritz, but the key is moderation. In fact, being drunk in public is considered really bad manners in Italy, and it can incur a fine between €51 and €309. So enjoy a glass or two of wine with your meals, but be careful not to exceed your limit.

9. Not everyone speaks english

This is particularly true if you are visiting a more rural area of Italy or if you are interacting with older people. These days, most of the younger generation speaks English to some degree. Also, in touristy areas, almost everyone speaks English enough to understand you. Now, Italians will be very appreciative if you try to speak at least a few words of Italian. Here are a few words for you to get around (we will leave a link in the description for you to download a list of Italian words to get you through your trip) 

Ciao = he, llo, and it is very informal. If you want to be more formal, especially if you are greeting an older personyou can say buon giorno = good day or buona sera = good evening. 

Per favore = please, and grazie = thank you. 

Il bagno per favore = where is the bathroom please?

Il conto per favore = the bill please 

Un caffè per favore = one coffee please

Vorrei dell’acqua per favore = I would like some water, please

8. Pack smart (trains, elevators, stairs, etc.)

One thing you must remember when travelling to Italy is to pack smart. Don’t take big, bulky bags. Chances are that you will need to carry them up or down stairs, trains, etc. If you book hotels in the city centre of most Italian cities, you have to remember that they can be in 200 -300-year-old buildings, and most of the time they will have very small elevators that won’t fit big bulky suitcases. Also sometimes they have one or more steps to climb.

Another thing to consider is the trains. If you are going to travel by train between cities, keep in mind that you will have to lift your bag up and down the train on your own. So avoid heavy, bulky suitcases. Bottom line: pack the essentials and avoid overpacking. By the way, check the video up here for a guide to packing for Italy!

7. Cold air or water is bad for you!

Italians are very afraid of cold drafts and cold air in general. They truly believe that cold air will make you sick or give you a sore neck, or get you sick. For this reason, they only use AC if it is really, really hot outside – and even then, it’ll often be on the lowest possible setting. For this reason, when you book a hotel, you have to make sure it has AC and, most importantly, it is turned on. Remember that time my mom came at the end of May? It was 35 °C outside, and the hotel hadn’t turned on the air conditioning… because it wasn’t summer yet!

Also, it is not unusual to hop on a taxi when it’s 40 °CC outside and the car has the AC off! Just ask the driver to turn it on. 

Italians are also afraid of cold drinks; they believe that they will give you an upset stomach or bad digestion. For this reason, you will not find more than one or two ice cubes in drinks in Italy. Except maybe for an aperol spritz… that’s kinda changing. In any event, if you want lots of ice, just ask for “molto ghiaccio”, meaning a lot of ice in your drink when you order it. Even the n you might get 3 cubes!

6. Driving is a good option.

Some areas of Italy can only be reached by car or by an organised tour. For example, if you want to tour the Tuscany countryside, you‘ll need to rent a car if you don’t want to take a bus tour (by the way, here is a link for some good tours of Tuscany from Florence).  – Actually, if you want to tour Tuscany, AND go wine tasting, we highly recommend taking a bus tour. Drinking and driving laws are much stricter in Italy than they are in the US. It’s just not worth the risk

Now, driving in Italy is not that difficult, and it is totally doable, but there are a couple of things that you should know before deciding to rent a car. First, we strongly recommend not driving on the Amalfi Coast. (Actually, I’d say, Rome or anywhere south, don’t do it) The roads are often very narrow and windy with a lot of traffic. For the same reason, you should avoid driving around Lake Como. 

We also wouldn’t recommend driving in big cities for a few reasons. One is traffic, the second is the lack of parking, and the third is the infamous ZTL or limited traffic zone! These ZTL are city areas where only residents and taxis can drive. The fines for driving there are quite steep, and you won’t find out if you got a ticket for months, maybe even years later. And by that time, there’ll be a ton of penalties and interest to pay. By the way, if you want to know more about driving in Italy, check this video up here.

Our last suggestion if you rent a car in Italy is to rent a very small car because most of the cities have narrow roads and limited parking. Also, make sure to rent an automatic car because most cars in Italy are still standard.

5. Buy train tickets in advance

If you are planning on taking a train in Italy, we strongly recommend that you book your tickets in advance. In fact, lines at the ticket office at the stations can be really long, and you might waste a ton of time waiting in line to buy your ticket. Also, high-speed train tickets are usually cheaper if bought 2-3 months in advance. By the way, here’s a link to book inexpensive trains in Italy and in English.  You can scan it with your phone, or you can check the link in the description below for more.  

Moving on to our tip number 4 of our list of fifteen things to know before travelling to Italy, and we have:

4. The bill doesn’t come by itself

Service at restaurants in Italy is way different from service in North America. Here, people eating at restaurants don’t like to be disturbed by waiters asking how the food is or asking other questions. This is very different from back in the US or Canada where the waiters introduce themselves and try to become your friend, offer you a couple le drinks before dinner, and so on. Here in Italy, the waiter will usually come about 1-2 minutes after you’re seated and take your entire order. If you’re not ready yet, no problem, ask for a little more time. Then, things will start to come to the table. 

Now, if you need something else during your dinner service, no problem. Just flag the waiter and say: “scusi” and the waiter will come. But again, don’t expect the waiter to proactively come -this would be considered very rude in Italy. 

Another thing that’s considered really rude is to bring the bill without the customer asking.. Italians would think that the restaurant is trying to kick them out! So if you want the bill, just get the waiter’s attention and say “il conto per favore” or even better, if you say: “il conto e il pos per favore” that means the bill and the machine to charge my card. And don’t even think about asking to split the bill! If you bought a glass of wine and a bowl of pasta, and someone else had a beer and a pizza, restaurants in Italy will not try and figure out who got what. The common thing to do is split the bill evenly. So, if it’s 100 euros, and you’re 4 people, the restaurant will happily charge 25 euros per person. And of course, the tip. The tip is a big question in Italy that deserves its own video. Lucky for you, we created one.  Check out this video up here!

3. Early birds get the worms

If you are visiting Rome, Venice, or Florence, we strongly recommend that you go out and explore the city very early in the morning. That way you will be able to avoid the big crowds and, in the summer to avoid the heat. Also, it is nice to go out and explore late at night when the streets are quiet. This is particularly important in Venice, where at night, the lights reflect in the canals, making the view really romantic. 

Now, you might be wondering, what do you do during the day? Well, if it’s hot out, I’d say book indoor activities, like museums. They’ll usually / hopefully have air conditioning that will keep you comfortable.

2. City tax might be paid in cash

When you go to a hotel in Italy, you might be surprised that they ask you for some cash at checkout. This is a strange one that I’ve only ever seen in Italy. Hotels here will often charge city tax on top of your bill. The tax is different from city to city, and the method of payment varies. Some cities have a modern approach and allow hotels to charge the tax by credit card or even prepay the tax at the time of booking. But other cities will require the city tax to be paid in cash at the hotel. And that even applies if you prepay your hotels on platforms like Expedia or Booking.com – you might have to pay a few euros per person per day in cash. For this reason, we recommend you bring a small amount of euros with you when you check in at your hotel. 

1. Coffee is cheaper at the bar!

If you want to have an espresso in Italy, you need to know that if you have it at a bar, it will cost you between €1.00 and €1.50, while a cappuccino is usually around €2.00, no matter how fancy the coffee shop is! But if you sit at a table, you might be charged the servizio, and this can be quite steep, especially if you decide to sit in a famous area like Piazza San Marco in Venice or in the Piazzetta in Capri – you can pay ten times the price of the coffee just for the servizio! So if you want to enjoy a nice espresso at the historic Caffe Florian in Venice, just go to the bar and you won’t overpay! That is what Italians do-  and if anyone asks you how you know, tell them you subscribe to Travel Addicts’ life!

Well, folks, this is all we have for you today. As usual, if you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment below. We love to hear back from you and answer your questions. Of course, if you see us around, please come and say hi! We love to meet you all.