Italy and France

[NAM-nam]

Hi All,


i am planning a trip to italy and france for next year, and was wondering if you guys have any tips or suggestions.

I will be with my GF and we like to do more tourist stuff instead of partying.

We plan on going for 8 days and was wondering if thats enough?

thanx for you're help.

[Lomac]

If you're only able to go for 8 days, I'd suggest choosing to visit only one of the two countries. Or, if you're set on doing both countries, be very picky about what you decide to visit and don't stray from your plan. If you're able to swing it, I'd suggest at least 10 days to visit both. Also, try to go during the off-season.

If it comes down to a choice between the two countries, I would honestly pick Italy over France. The overall atmosphere is just that much more relaxed, the food is better (personal preference), and there's just much more to see. The three places I'd suggest visiting there are Venice, Cinque Terra (Manarola and Monterosso al Mare, specifically), and either Rome, Milan or Turin. And when you go for food, avoid the big touristy restaurants and seek out the small hole-in-the-wall places. Trust me, the food at these places are just that much better.

France is a lot different than Italy. When I was in Paris last, it was '01 and they were vying to become an Olympics host city, so the city was far too clean... like, unnaturally clean. You couldn't find a wad of gum anywhere on the sidewalk. Despite that, though, it was still a nice place to visit. The museums are a good place to waste a day, and there's plenty to see by simply walking around the city over a two or three day span. Other cities in France I'd suggest visiting are Marseille, Lyon, Nice and Bordeaux. There are also plenty of old preserved WW2 sites and memorials scattered throughout the country, many of which are most definitely worth visiting.

[lowside67]

That is definitely not enough. That's not enough to do one country properly. That's enough to see the south of France or go pick a region in Italy. You can certainly take a tour that will take you to 4 or 5 major cities in Italy in that timeframe but you won't experience anything like what these countries actually are. You need to spend a day waking up in a small town, strolling through the village finding a little hole in the wall for breakfast, wandering and exploring through the day meeting new people and seeing the unbelievably different pace life happens at, trying the amazing regional cuisine, and really experiencing what life is like. Fair warning, language barriers are much bigger in small towns but with a good translation app and an open mind you can probably get by.

Mark