Ciao! Grab a cappuccino so we can get all caught up on our recent 7 day trip to Italy. Garrett and I returned from our trip to Italy a little over a week ago now, and so I am trying to get all of my thoughts out into posts before I start forgetting specific details! 🙂 With only 7 days in Italy, you can definitely do and see a lot if you plan and are strategic enough.
From the moment we stepped foot in this beautiful country, I knew I was in for a whirlwind of pasta, pizza, gelato, and, of course, some incredible history sights. So, buckle up and join me on this roller-coaster ride through the land of romance, history, and incredibly delicious carbs!
First Stop: Milan, Italy
After a WILD travel day (Garrett’s bag got lost by British Airways and both of our flights were delayed multiple hours… oof)– we landed in Milan late at night. Somehow we navigated the Milan metro system on a few hours of sleep and prayers, and made it to our hotel for the night. We stayed at the Spice Hotel, which was not anything extravagant, but was not a far walk from the metro station and was a very close walk to the Milan Central Station. The latter was the most important detail because we were jumping on the train early the next day to head to Florence.
We unfortunately did not get to see much of Milan when we landed because it was late, we weren’t hungry for dinner, and we were exhausted from our travel day. So we literally just went to our hotel and tried to sleep! But have no fear, we did get to explore Milan at the end of our trip, so we will discuss it later!
Second Stop: Florence, Italy
Onto the train we went to head to our first real stop on our Italian adventure: Florence! A note to add, that the high speed train system in Italy (and the rest of Europe) is so phenomenal. It made me so jealous that we don’t have a high speed rail in the US! It was easy, clean, comfortable, and fast. We were going over 175 mph at multiple points!
Florence stole a pizza my heart (pun totally intended). The art, the architecture, the gelato… it was all on another level. The iconic Duomo left both of us in awe, and I couldn’t resist taking an obligatory picture with Michelangelo’s David at the Accademia Gallery.
We stayed at Hotel Balcony which was comparatively inexpensive to a lot of other options. It is definitely a no-frills kind of place and pretty small, but the owner was so kind and helpful and you cannot beat the location. It was only a couple minute walk to the Duomo and many of the other places we wanted to visit. Plus, it was a relatively short walk from the Santa Novella train station, so we didn’t have to haul our suitcase along the cobblestone streets for too long.
The thing I really liked about Florence is that you can walk anywhere. There is public transportation if you are staying more on the outskirts, but if you are staying in the action (which I recommend you do!), you probably won’t need to bother with figuring out the busses or trams in Florence.
I wrote a post with more specific details of everything we visited, ate, and did in Florence, but The Basilica di Santa Croce, the Florence Duomo, and the food tour of Florence that we did were definitely our favorite parts!
Florence Duomo
Just a little insider tip: if you see a gelato shop, don’t hesitate – indulge! These calories don’t count when you’re on vacation. 😉
Gelato #1
Gelato #2
Third Stop: Rome, Italy
Ciao, Roma! We utilized the train again to get us from Santa Maria Novella station to Rome Termini in just under 2 hours. Walking around Rome is like stepping into a time machine and being catapulted back to the days of gladiators. You’ll just be walking down a regular street and there will be ruins of the Roman empire on the side of the road. It’s so cool, but odd!
We stayed in an area known as the Jewish Ghetto region of Rome. Instead of booking a hotel, we booked an AirBNB apartment. Rome is a lot more spread out than Florence, so we did have to utilize the public transportation here (we avoided taking expensive Ubers and taxis our entire trip!) which was SO easy. We never used the metro while in Rome, but the bus system couldn’t have been easier. There’s a main bus station at Rome Termini (the train station) and we were able to take a super quick bus to a stop very close to our AirBNB.
Gelato #3
For our first day in Rome, we wandered around for a bit, got gelato #3, had some dinner, and then pregamed with some limoncello. What did we have to pregame for, you ask? A nighttime Colosseum tour! Spoiler alert: I didn’t have my Lizzie McGuire moment at the Colosseum 🙁
This is the specific one we booked:
It was a really awesome way to see the Colosseum. Not only is it going to be less crowded, but seeing it lit up at night was cool. It is a guided tour, which I think is the best way to go. You will learn so much more about it that way, rather than just going without any information. We did a few things during our trip without a guide, and we ended up just having so many questions and wishing we had more information. The Colosseum is so special, that you will not regret paying for a guide!
On our second day, we did have the totally un-fun activity of having to take a bus back to the train station, then taking a train to the Rome airport and back in order to pick up Garrett’s lost bag! What should have only taken us a couple hours ended up taking 4 HOURS, but we got it and decided we were going to cram the day full of as much stuff as we could to turn the day around.
Gelato #4
We visited the Trevi fountain, Navona square, the Pantheon, the Spanish Steps, Tiber Island, and explored Trastervere. We worked up the biggest appetite and had some amazing pizza at a place called Dar Poeta in Trastervere. We finished off the night with an amazing cannoli and the best gelato (#5 unpictured) we had our entire trip!
Day three in Rome was the absolute best thing we did our entire trip, which was visit the Vatican. Garrett and I are Christian, but we are not Catholic. That being said, I cannot imagine what it is like to visit the Vatican as a Catholic, because [despite being non-Catholic], Garrett and I were so in awe and so moved by the whole experience. If you are going to invest the money in ONE thing to do skip-the-line and a tour, it NEEDS to be the Vatican. The lines alone at the Vatican will take you all day. Especially if you are like us and only doing a few days in Rome, doing a guide and skip-the-line will really make the most of your time and energy so that you can get the most from the experience. Plus, once you get into the museum, there’s just SO much to see that having a tour guide explain and show you the important stuff really will make the experience so much more enjoyable. This is the exact tour we booked and our guide was great:
We have friends who visited the Vatican a few years ago and they didn’t pay for skip-the-line or a tour, and they didn’t even get to see St. Peter’s Basilica because the museum, the Sistine Chapel, security, and waiting in line took them ALL day. The museum is amazing. The Vatican museum is the largest museum in the world and it took our breath away. The Sistine chapel is incredible. But St. Peter’s is so beyond anything I expected. Garrett and I were completely speechless at it. It was our absolute favorite thing we visited in Italy– words and pictures really cannot even capture it.
Gelato #6
Fourth Stop: Back to Milan
Our last train ride through Italy was the longest because it was back to our home base of Milan! When we originally planned this trip, we decided to fly in and out of Milan, not because it was a place high on our list of places to visit, but simply because it was significantly cheaper to fly in and out of. We knew it would be cheaper for us to fly into Milan and take the train to the places we really wanted to visit. What we didn’t realize was that we would enjoy Milan as much as we did! We actually both kind of wished we had planned to spend a bit more time in Milan.
This time in Milan, we stayed at the Doria Grand Hotel. This one was a little bit farther of a walk from the Milan Centrale train station, but it was much more convenient to metro stations. The metro in Milan is so easy to navigate. Once we dropped our stuff off at our hotel, we headed off to explore. We bought tickets for the Milan Duomo which is a MUST when in Milan!
The Milan Duomo is more of a gothic style architecture and it took nearly 600 years to build– it was only just completed about 80 years ago! It was such a different architecture from the other cathedrals and basilicas we visited in Italy, that it definitely stood out. There are definitely a couple of things that I recommend you do and look for while at the Milan Duomo:
The Holy Nail
One of the special things about the Milan Duomo is they claim to have one of the nails that crucified Jesus. I couldn’t tell you all of the history and why they believe this is the nail; but, it is one of the things that brings people to the Duomo to visit. It is kept high up in the rafters in a cross. You can identify it because there is a red light on the cross– that is the one with the Holy Nail!
“St Bartholomew skinned” by Marco d’Agrate
This is one of the most famous pieces of art in the Milan Duomo. Bartholomew was one of the disciples of Jesus and he was killed for his faith by being skinned alive and beheaded. This statue is pretty gory: you can see that his skin is slung over his shoulder and you can see all of his muscles that would be underneath his skin.
Climbing to the Terrace Gardens
Climbing up to the terrace gardens of the Milan Duomo does cost extra, but it is SO worth it! You get to climb up to the very top and you get to see details of the statues that are on the top of the Duomo that you otherwise would never be able to notice from down on the ground. Being up so high definitely made Garrett and I a little nauseated, and we were definitely exhausted after all the stairs, but the views are so unbeatable. It is so worth it to be able to see Milan from that vantage point!
After the Duomo, we got gelato #6, did some shopping, and had our last dinner in Italy! By the way, after all this gelato, I never want to see the inside of a gym ever again!
Gelato #7
Final Thoughts
Now, before I wrap up this whirlwind of an adventure, here are a few Italy tips from one regular folk to another:
Get lost in the side streets: Some of the best hidden gems are tucked away in the maze-like alleys. So, take a wrong turn and stumble upon a charming local trattoria or gorgeous little cathedral. We stumbled upon one amazing cathedral in Rome and while we were touring it, a wedding started happening! We stayed and got to watch the ceremony– it was so cool!
Make sure you pack cathedral friendly clothes if you plan on visiting: Most of the cathedrals we visited were just ones that we stumbled across and just decided to visit, but it is important to know that they have dress codes and expect people to dress respectfully while inside. This means covering knees (for both men and women), covering shoulders (I always carried this light scarf/shawl with me when I was wearing a sleeveless top), and no crop tops!
Don’t be afraid of public transportation: we didn’t have to pay for a taxi or Uber our entire trip. We relied soley on the high speed train, metro, walking, and buses to get around. The metro and buses in Milan and Rome are so easy to navigate. We just used the Apple Maps app and used the transit option and it tells you exactly which bus number to get on, which metro line to use, exactly where each stop is, and when the next metro/bus is. Just make sure you validate your bus tickets when you board and keep a close eye on your belongings. We used this money pouch and my Lululemon crossbody to keep our important stuff close and to avoid pick-pocketing!
Learn a few Italian phrases: “Grazie,” “ciao,” and “buongiorno” will take you a long way. It’s always nice to make an effort to speak the language of locals, even if it’s just the basics.
And there you have it friends! Our Italy adventure was everything we hoped for and more. The sights, the sounds, and the flavors of Italy will forever hold a special place in my heart. If you’re dreaming of your own Italian holiday, go ahead and add it to your bucket list. Trust me, it’ll be pasta-tively incredible (okay I promise I’m done with puns now)
Ciao for now! 👋
[…] A bit over a week ago, Garrett and I returned from our trip across Italy. We were able to visit Milan, Florence, and Rome in just about a weeks time, and were able to spend […]