ScottS said:
We want to go from Paris to Cannes to Venice to Rome. (with stops in Geneova, Cannes, Monte Carlo, Pisa, Venice, Rome). Best to go by rental car or train to these stops?
I love driving in Italy, but I will warn you, finding parking in major cities is a PITA. I would also highly recommend you NOT go in July. You will be miserable touring sights, unless you plan to just hit beaches. I would go in Mid April, weather is great and crowds are less.
I loved renting a 300cc scooter in Rome. Only way to get around IMO. Easy to park overnight and easy to find parking! A 300cc scooter is great for two people. Also, get a phone holder for the scooter so you can watch google maps while you drive. Definitely see all the normal sites in Rome but also go out to Tivoli and see Hadrian's palace. It's stunning and you will be with about 10 other people. Then take you scooter and go see the Appian Way outside Rome about 4-5 miles. Again, way fewer people and awe inspiring to see it and consider it was built in 312 BC and ponder the 6,000 Spartacus revolutionaries crucified from Rome to Capua on the Appian Way around 79 BC. Spine chilling to me.
We based our tour of Tuscany via car out of Arezzo, Italy. It's about an hour south of Florence and much easier to find parking. Also, once a month they have a huge antiques fair in Arezzo that is fantastic. See the link below. Well worth it to check out! It was an easy drive from Arezzo to Sienna and other great places in Tuscany. We plan to rent a place in Tuscany for two months next year.
https://www.visittuscany.com/en/topevents/arezzo-antiques-fair/I have a fantastic place for you to stay in Arezzo if you are interested. Send me a private message and I can give you the name of the Airbnb. It's an extremely fun place to stay.
Take the high speed train from Rome to Naples and go visit the National museum of Naples. So much cool stuff to see in it from Pompeii and Herculaneum. I have a friend who is a tour guide and archaeologist at Pompeii I can hook you up with if you want a personal tour. She is great. You can chat with her via Facebook ahead of time if you like. Then I'd spend some time in Sorrento if you can and again rent a scooter and ride the Amalfi Coast. Don't listen to the naysayers about riding the coast in a scooter. It's easy and so much fun. Ride all the way to Ravello, you will not be disappointed.
Depending on your phone, setup either Apple Pay or Samsung Pay. I paid for virtually everything with my phone. It's way more secure and you don't have to give anyone your real credit card. I setup several cards in Samsung Pay in case one didn't work for some reason, but the main card I linked to it was a card that had no foreign transaction fees. The app generates a one time token that can never be used again in case someone intercepts it. Europe is much further ahead with pay by phone, than the U.S. is.
Setup an esim app on your phone too. You can text and call much cheaper in Europe that way. Just google esim and you can figure it out.
I pay for travel insurance, lost luggage, canceled flights, medical insurance, especially to get back to the U.S.
I have found, and read, the best exchange rates are from simply withdrawing cash from an ATM once you land in Europe. When I landed in Rome I just took out 300 Euro's and replenished it with a periodic ATM run if I needed more cash.
You don't need a Visa, unless you plan to stay longer than 90 days. A passport alone is fine.
Last but not least, I had no trouble with pick pockets but I didn't ride local trains either. From what I hear the local trains are the worst, not the high speed trains. When you come out of places like the Vatican, vendors will try like heck to get you to buy stuff from them. NEVER take anything from them. Once it's in your hands they become very aggressive and try to force you to pay for it. Simply keep on walking and do not engage with them.
