Your question is a bit like are there any good hotels in England. Well, yeah, of course there are great hotels in Italy. But where do you want to go? North, south, countryside, coast, culture, lakes, mountains? Mainland or island? With or without kids? And, crucially, how much do you want to spend? A few suggestions though. First the Grand Hotel Palazzo della Fonte in the Spa town of Fiuggi. A nice little town with the bonus of being near enough to but also far enough away from Rome. (Can't remember about tennis courts though). Or if you want a beach The Forte Village Resort on Sardinia has more facilities than you can shake a stick at with 10 different pools serving 7 different hotels in different price brackets. Check out www.fortevillageresort.com. Then there's the bit of coast near Pisa handy for Ryanair and Queasyjet flights into Pisa which has a huge choice of hotels with the added bonus of being close to both Pisa and Florence.
Have just booked our holiday to Tuscany. Staying in a campsite 30kms south of Florence then having 3 nights at a Hotel in the Chianti hills. Flying into Bologna.
Thankyou for your answers , sorry for being ambigious CAFC , i last went to Italy 22 years ago , things have moved on a bit since then i'm sure , interested to hear from people who had been there recently that could recommend any nice hotels in Italy that they'd stayed in , the swimming and tennis would probably be the 2 first drawlines , providing it was in a reasonable location , and had nice food , not looking for nightlife as i have 2 young lads, would like to do daytrips out as well rome , Pompei etc..
Can't recommend any hotels but I've been to Tuscany and to the Italian lakes back in the late 90's.
Tuscany is just awesome I challenge anyone not to be blown away by the scenery and the villages. Sienna is a really lovely city too and well worth a visit. If you go to Pisa - just look at the tower (seeing is believing) and the buildings in the immediate vicinity and then GET OUT QUICK. It's not dangerous or anything - it's just that outside that small area where the tower is there's just NOTHING else worth seeing, but so much more to see as soon as you get in to the Tuscan countryside, where just about every village has something about it.
The Italian lakes are also worth a visit albeit they are full of Germans. It's like an extension of ze fatherland - all the waiters just come up to you and start talking German. Still it is really lovely. Stresa is lovely. The lakes I went to were Maggiore and Garda. Drove all the way there from blighty in fact - over the Alps even!
Verona is a really beautiful city and if you want some 'cultcha' go to the amphitheatre (sp?) and see an open air opera.
Venice I found over-rated. Smelly and too crowded.
We stayed at the Hotel Caesius Spa in Bardelino (spelling) a little while back. Loved it. Little bit of a walk into the main town but not really a problem. Not got direct access onto Lake Garda but it's only over the road so really wasn't a problem. The lakes themselves are fab and you can get local bus into Verona from there, Venice and Dolomites not too far either. Dunno about any tennis courts but would be suprised if they didn't have them.
I went to Sorrento last month flew into naples do not bother with even even half hour there its a rubbish lined dive.
The main shopping centre is just full of armed police.
However sorrento was beautifull and the amalfi. On the other hand I wouldnt recommend driving these areas as they are narrow and there seems no rules to driving!! as i found out to my cost.
Capri is a fantastic day trip from there although this was possibly one of the most expensive places i've been once your on the island.
Rome - stunning place and lots to do and see. Don't drive though
Milan - Industrial. Might as well go to coventry
Naples - Slum
Sorrento - Beautiful. If you are confident, drive and head to Positano. The whole Amalfi coast is worth a look
Tuscany - Stayed there last year and loved it. Florence, Siena - beautiful places. Pisa was a bit "meh" aside from the leaning tower which is worth a visit.
Disagree with Swisdom on driving in Rome. You just have to do it - half the fun of the holiday! For some reason the Romans seemed to see my old TVR as a bit of a challenge but then the Italians always like losing don't they?
agree re sorrento, Capri (pricey touristy day trip), Naples (dive), Rome (amazing mix of culture and antiquity, Forum, Colleseum, Pantheon, etc - did a mini honeymoon there and stayed in the centre of town, its all walkable) really love Italy and will do more hopefully next year.
Pompei deffo worth a gander when in sorrento too, I believe there is another similar but less well known ruin also worth a good look.
Herculano is the another pompei type trip both worth a look at the very easily accessable by train from Sorrento.
You can climb vesuveus as well and see right accross naples from there although this was extremely busy whilst i was there.... i cant imagine what it would be like in the summer
I fancy doing a camping 'grand tour' next year, might have to persuade the missus, anyone know what bnbs are like generally in Italy, are they similar to UK?
Menonca - probably very high. Can be reached for a day from Sorrento easily.
I'd reccomend Alghero (Sardinia) and Palermo (Sicily). The Cinque Terre near Genoa are fantastic towns. I speak Italian though, which sometimes makes life easier.
While I see where folk are coming from on Napoli, it's also got some very cool things, great atmosphere and probably the best food in the world.
wasn't that impressed with Sardinia or AG myself, it was rather inclement weather (Whitsun a few years back) so that probably didn't help, Castelasardo was nice though I thought
Wouldn't try to chew to much off though. Would choose an area and stick to it. That said rail travel is reasonable cheap and reliable. Great scenary also. So getting to/from Rome is easy enough. So could add a few days in Rome in addition to region you choose.
Tuscany is awesome: In fact the best places are the one's that don't get so much publicity: Lucca/San Gimigano etc. Obviously Florence/Sienna are stunning but get v crowded. Wife has Italian Aunt so stayed in their village north of Lucca, could just hang out there all day...Tuscany is full of great towns/villages. Easy to drive around also.
Amalfi coast (Sorrento/Positano etc) is also beautiful. I think the towns etc have been covered above. Capri is real expensive but worth seeing, great restaurants on top at Ana Capri, looking across Bay of Naples etc. Sorrento close to Pompeii, which is a must see. Kids will love that. If you travel thru' Naples, watch your back. Worth checking Old Naples, but leave valuables in a safe place.......!
I mention those 2 areas as they are total contrasts and illustrate the divide in Italy.
I love Italy, one of my favourite places. Great food, wine, people, mad drivers (you must drive in a city during rush hour!).
Definitely consider the Amalfi coast, great base for Capri, Pompeii, etc. Can be expensive, and I would avoid Naples like the plague. Positano is worth visiting.
A friend just came back from Pompeii/Capri. Said Pompeii was awesome but Capri somewhat over-priced and he probably wouldn't go back there. i dunno exactly how expensive, but this guy cerainly has a lot more money than most.
Should also mention the Cinque Terre. 5 Mediterranean coastal villages linked by cliff top trails in Liguria, south of Genoa & Portofino. Stunning coast line, great walks, architecture, food, drink etc. Close to Paris- Naples railway line so very accessible and just a few hours north of Pisa by car. Less tourists, more locals.
Stayed here with my family last summer and it was great, not sure on the price though, as we got it cheap because my Uncle created the website. It's close to Siena, Pisa and Florence so good if you want to go to those places. Has a pool and tennis courts also.
Florence is beautiful - if you go - you must book a table at Borgo San Jacabo - where me and Les_says got engaged - its amazin, team it up with going to see Fiorentina - we saw the Fiorentina v Siena local derby
If you go there visit Pisa - but dont spend much more than a few hours there - not a lot to see
Rome amazing for a weekend - we went the weekend of Lazio v Roma and got tickets in the Curva Nord - what an experience.
Sorrento brilliant - and defo go to Pompeii - take lots of water if you go in July - HOT!
Venice is great - but best to go this time of year or in September/October when not so hot and crowded. Freezing in January, Far too hot in July. The Mask Festival in March is meant to be superb.
Plenty of great hotels and use Trip Advisor. As I've only been to city's I wouldn't know much about hotels with tennis courts as the buildings are usually old and traditional - not that modern - from what I found anyway. But I'm sure on the outskirts of any of these places you can find some great places.
I thought Capri was nice until I went swimming and found an old sanitary towel bobbing along in the water next to me. If I'd wanted that I'd have stayed on Canvey Island. That said the trip up the chairlift at Anacapri is well recommended.
Here's a tip, if you go on one of those all day taxi rides around the island, get them to write down the price they quote at the beginning, that way there won't be an argument at the end.
Ischia is nice and I agree Sorrento is lovely, though if there's a proper beach we never found it (just decking at the foot of the cliff). Pompei well worth a visit, thought Vesuvius was too.
Love Rome to bits. Went there for Valentine's Day a few years ago - spent the entire three days walking round in awe. Beautiful, the food is unbelievable, and the people are pretty friendly too (as in most of Italy).
However, my favourite part of Italy is Sicily. It's one of the friendliest places I've ever been to, the scenery is stunning, weather (usually) fantastic, beaches in the South (Agrigento) are excellent and all the tourist stuff (the temples, Etna, Cammarata, the shrine to Sta. Rosalina di Quisquina etc) are great. Highly recommended
Cheers Leroy, I'm going to Agrigento in the Summer (mate's marrying a Sicilian). Anywhere in particular I should check out ? We're going the first week in August, have you any experience of the heat at that time of the year ?
LOL - yes - the heat at that time will range from 'F***ING HOT' to 'UNBEARABLY F***ING HOT' to 'I WISH I WAS F***ING DEAD' hot
Seriously - if you aren't staying somewhere with decnt AC, don't go. That isn't a joke - I've been in Palermo when it's been 44 degrees, and it was the most miserable experience of my life. If you're in Agrigento you'll probably be by the sea, which will make things cooler - but it'll still be awful if you can't sleep at night because the AC is either non-existent or on the fritz.
As for things to do/places to go in Agrigento, the temples are an obvious one - they're magnificent. The whole area around the temples is wonderful to explore and walk around - you could take two days round there to see it all. The beaches - well, take your pick - Lido Nettuno is one of the famous ones - it's enormous, but gets absolutely rammed in summer. My personal favourite is a small cove/beach called Lido Rosello - it's about ten miles up the coast from Porto Empedocle (the main port in southern Sicily) towards Naro and is more than worth the effort of finding it because it's not that packed, and is one of the nicest beaches I've been to in Europe.
Outside Agrigento, Taormina is quite a way away from Agrigento (about a 3-4 hour drive) but worth the effort - it's breathtakingly beautiful, as is Siracusa (a bit closer - with lots of ruins). The middle of the country is wonderful - some of the smaller villages up in the hills of Caltanissetta (where my wife is from) and Enna are picture-perfect, and the welcome you'll get there is unparalleled anywhere else in Italy.
Comments
Your question is a bit like are there any good hotels in England. Well, yeah, of course there are great hotels in Italy. But where do you want to go? North, south, countryside, coast, culture, lakes, mountains? Mainland or island? With or without kids? And, crucially, how much do you want to spend? A few suggestions though. First the Grand Hotel Palazzo della Fonte in the Spa town of Fiuggi. A nice little town with the bonus of being near enough to but also far enough away from Rome. (Can't remember about tennis courts though). Or if you want a beach The Forte Village Resort on Sardinia has more facilities than you can shake a stick at with 10 different pools serving 7 different hotels in different price brackets. Check out www.fortevillageresort.com. Then there's the bit of coast near Pisa handy for Ryanair and Queasyjet flights into Pisa which has a huge choice of hotels with the added bonus of being close to both Pisa and Florence.
Enjoy!
Have just booked our holiday to Tuscany. Staying in a campsite 30kms south of Florence then having 3 nights at a Hotel in the Chianti hills. Flying into Bologna.
Cannot beat the food and vino.......
Used to stay with an ex-GF in Rome, so got to know my way a bit around there.
So much to see, experience and soak up.
Take the missus to Venice for a romantic long weekend ...... but avoid in the hot summer months.
And it's expensive.
The north is very picturesque; the south hot, dusty and random.
Something for everybody.
Remember watching a decent game of football in Napoli, Italia '90 World Cup.
Quarter final: England 3 Cameroon 2
Can't recommend any hotels but I've been to Tuscany and to the Italian lakes back in the late 90's.
Tuscany is just awesome I challenge anyone not to be blown away by the scenery and the villages. Sienna is a really lovely city too and well worth a visit. If you go to Pisa - just look at the tower (seeing is believing) and the buildings in the immediate vicinity and then GET OUT QUICK. It's not dangerous or anything - it's just that outside that small area where the tower is there's just NOTHING else worth seeing, but so much more to see as soon as you get in to the Tuscan countryside, where just about every village has something about it.
The Italian lakes are also worth a visit albeit they are full of Germans. It's like an extension of ze fatherland - all the waiters just come up to you and start talking German. Still it is really lovely. Stresa is lovely. The lakes I went to were Maggiore and Garda. Drove all the way there from blighty in fact - over the Alps even!
Verona is a really beautiful city and if you want some 'cultcha' go to the amphitheatre (sp?) and see an open air opera.
Venice I found over-rated. Smelly and too crowded.
Hope that helps.
Oh, and Trip Advisor is a useful tool.
Which is why I said ...."avoid in the hot summer months".
;o)
Venice is great in the spring time and autumn.
Much less crowded, with pleasantly warm weather.
Venice has a unique character, history and culture .......just visit out of season.
And it's cheaper if you stay just across on the mainland.
Definitely one of those places to visit once in a lifetime.
I went to Sorrento last month flew into naples do not bother with even even half hour there its a rubbish lined dive.
The main shopping centre is just full of armed police.
However sorrento was beautifull and the amalfi. On the other hand I wouldnt recommend driving these areas as they are narrow and there seems no rules to driving!! as i found out to my cost.
Capri is a fantastic day trip from there although this was possibly one of the most expensive places i've been once your on the island.
Milan - Industrial. Might as well go to coventry
Naples - Slum
Sorrento - Beautiful. If you are confident, drive and head to Positano. The whole Amalfi coast is worth a look
Tuscany - Stayed there last year and loved it. Florence, Siena - beautiful places. Pisa was a bit "meh" aside from the leaning tower which is worth a visit.
agree re sorrento, Capri (pricey touristy day trip), Naples (dive), Rome (amazing mix of culture and antiquity, Forum, Colleseum, Pantheon, etc - did a mini honeymoon there and stayed in the centre of town, its all walkable) really love Italy and will do more hopefully next year.
Pompei deffo worth a gander when in sorrento too, I believe there is another similar but less well known ruin also worth a good look.
R
Herculano is the another pompei type trip both worth a look at the very easily accessable by train from Sorrento.
You can climb vesuveus as well and see right accross naples from there although this was extremely busy whilst i was there.... i cant imagine what it would be like in the summer
cool
I fancy doing a camping 'grand tour' next year, might have to persuade the missus, anyone know what bnbs are like generally in Italy, are they similar to UK?
Ta
I'd reccomend Alghero (Sardinia) and Palermo (Sicily). The Cinque Terre near Genoa are fantastic towns. I speak Italian though, which sometimes makes life easier.
While I see where folk are coming from on Napoli, it's also got some very cool things, great atmosphere and probably the best food in the world.
Agree with Swisdom re: cities to visit.
Wouldn't try to chew to much off though. Would choose an area and stick to it. That said rail travel is reasonable cheap and reliable. Great scenary also. So getting to/from Rome is easy enough. So could add a few days in Rome in addition to region you choose.
Tuscany is awesome: In fact the best places are the one's that don't get so much publicity: Lucca/San Gimigano etc. Obviously Florence/Sienna are stunning but get v crowded. Wife has Italian Aunt so stayed in their village north of Lucca, could just hang out there all day...Tuscany is full of great towns/villages. Easy to drive around also.
Amalfi coast (Sorrento/Positano etc) is also beautiful. I think the towns etc have been covered above. Capri is real expensive but worth seeing, great restaurants on top at Ana Capri, looking across Bay of Naples etc. Sorrento close to Pompeii, which is a must see. Kids will love that. If you travel thru' Naples, watch your back. Worth checking Old Naples, but leave valuables in a safe place.......!
I mention those 2 areas as they are total contrasts and illustrate the divide in Italy.
I love Italy, one of my favourite places. Great food, wine, people, mad drivers (you must drive in a city during rush hour!).
Stayed here with my family last summer and it was great, not sure on the price though, as we got it cheap because my Uncle created the website. It's close to Siena, Pisa and Florence so good if you want to go to those places. Has a pool and tennis courts also.
I've stayed here a few times: www.ariotto.it
Roughly half-way between Milan and Turin in the Asti wine region. Naturally the stuff they serve you is much better than the plonk that is exported.
However, my favourite part of Italy is Sicily. It's one of the friendliest places I've ever been to, the scenery is stunning, weather (usually) fantastic, beaches in the South (Agrigento) are excellent and all the tourist stuff (the temples, Etna, Cammarata, the shrine to Sta. Rosalina di Quisquina etc) are great. Highly recommended
Seriously - if you aren't staying somewhere with decnt AC, don't go. That isn't a joke - I've been in Palermo when it's been 44 degrees, and it was the most miserable experience of my life. If you're in Agrigento you'll probably be by the sea, which will make things cooler - but it'll still be awful if you can't sleep at night because the AC is either non-existent or on the fritz.
As for things to do/places to go in Agrigento, the temples are an obvious one - they're magnificent. The whole area around the temples is wonderful to explore and walk around - you could take two days round there to see it all. The beaches - well, take your pick - Lido Nettuno is one of the famous ones - it's enormous, but gets absolutely rammed in summer. My personal favourite is a small cove/beach called Lido Rosello - it's about ten miles up the coast from Porto Empedocle (the main port in southern Sicily) towards Naro and is more than worth the effort of finding it because it's not that packed, and is one of the nicest beaches I've been to in Europe.
Outside Agrigento, Taormina is quite a way away from Agrigento (about a 3-4 hour drive) but worth the effort - it's breathtakingly beautiful, as is Siracusa (a bit closer - with lots of ruins). The middle of the country is wonderful - some of the smaller villages up in the hills of Caltanissetta (where my wife is from) and Enna are picture-perfect, and the welcome you'll get there is unparalleled anywhere else in Italy.