Take a Vacation

[Commando]

When Jesus is carrying people on the beach - is He wearing a speedo - or surfer shorts? Does He have his hair tied back?

What an inappropriate question. But the answer is a modest pair of board shorts--- not too baggy-- and a rash guard. Close trimmed hair style.

[grapevine]

Weren’t there but prints in the sand? I seen that poem before. Your not doing your part I won’t help you.

[Northwestcoug]

I really need to get serious about planning an Italy trip with my mom. She’ll be 80 this year and has always wanted to go. I’ve been twice and I think I could make a decent itinerary, but I wonder if doing some senior tour would be best for her. Some tours on the internet look like they hit the good spots on an appropriate for seniors clip.

anyone have experience with taking an elderly parent on a European vacation? Tour or no tour, even if you’re stuck with a bunch of seniors? thinking we’d go April of next year.

TIA.

[Jeff Lebowski]

I really need to get serious about planning an Italy trip with my mom. She’ll be 80 this year and has always wanted to go. I’ve been twice and I think I could make a decent itinerary, but I wonder if doing some senior tour would be best for her. Some tours on the internet look like they hit the good spots on an appropriate for seniors clip.

anyone have experience with taking an elderly parent on a European vacation? Tour or no tour, even if you’re stuck with a bunch of seniors? thinking we’d go April of next year.

TIA.

Italy is wonderful. Heading back next year - hopefully.

How healthy is she? We took my grandmother on a DC tour when she was 80 or so and had a great time (she was a real sweetheart). We took a wheelchair and pushed her around a lot but sometimes she walked. It worked out great. I wonder if you could arrange for a wheelchair.

[Northwestcoug]

Italy is wonderful. Heading back next year - hopefully.

How healthy is she? We took my grandmother on a DC tour when she was 80 or so and had a great time (she was a real sweetheart). We took a wheelchair and pushed her around a lot but sometimes she walked. It worked out great. I wonder if you could arrange for a wheelchair.

she’s pretty healthy and can walk around. She’s a little too proud about her state of health, so I think she might be ok with anything I say. I just remember when I went we packed the days with a lot of walking, and I think she would get worn out if I wasn’t careful.

[Jeff Lebowski]

she’s pretty healthy and can walk around. She’s a little too proud about her state of health, so I think she might be ok with anything I say. I just remember when I went we packed the days with a lot of walking, and I think she would get worn out if I wasn’t careful.

Yeah. We clocked our mileage using the apple health app and we walked an average of 8 miles or so with the students. Did 12 miles one day. It adds up. But I think there are ways to be more careful. Skip things like the Roman Forum. Take more taxis. Etc.

You could do fine in Florence as it is a smaller city. But maybe get a wheelchair for things like the Uffizi. That place wore me out last time.

[Northwestcoug]

Yeah. We clocked our mileage using the apple health app and we walked an average of 8 miles or so with the students. Did 12 miles one day. It adds up. But I think there are ways to be more careful. Skip things like the Roman Forum. Take more taxis. Etc.

You could do fine in Florence as it is a smaller city. But maybe get a wheelchair for things like the Uffizi. That place wore me out last time.

I’d like to split our time between Rome and Florence, being careful to hit just one site a day. Vatican, catacombs, colliseum, academia +/- uffizi, duomo. And maybe a side trip to either Lucca or Pisa. I know she’d love to see Venice (me too), but traveling there would be too much. That’s the one good thing about a tour I saw. It was a 12 day excursion and it included a trip. I think it also had you flying out of Venice so you didn’t have to take a train back to Rome.

[tooblue]

I’d like to split our time between Rome and Florence, being careful to hit just one site a day. Vatican, catacombs, colliseum, academia +/- uffizi, duomo. And maybe a side trip to either Lucca or Pisa. I know she’d love to see Venice (me too), but traveling there would be too much. That’s the one good thing about a tour I saw. It was a 12 day excursion and it included a trip. I think it also had you flying out of Venice so you didn’t have to take a train back to Rome.

I would go to La Spezia and Cinque Terre instead of Lucca and Pisa:

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You take the train from La Spezia into Cinque Terre, stop at the first improbably beautiful town and then get back on and go to the next. If your Mother was younger you could hike up over the mountains through vineyards to the next town, but that will not work for your trip.

[Moliere]

I really need to get serious about planning an Italy trip with my mom. She’ll be 80 this year and has always wanted to go. I’ve been twice and I think I could make a decent itinerary, but I wonder if doing some senior tour would be best for her. Some tours on the internet look like they hit the good spots on an appropriate for seniors clip.

anyone have experience with taking an elderly parent on a European vacation? Tour or no tour, even if you’re stuck with a bunch of seniors? thinking we’d go April of next year.

TIA.

We took my parents to France two-ish years ago. They are both in their 70s and my dad is in great shape but my mom not so much. She can walk fine but I had underestimated the amount of steps necessary to just get around town. The metro had a lot of stairs as did most of the sites we saw. The Louvre seemed to have steps at every room, which I had forgotten, and that slowed us down considerably. My mom finally just said to leave her in the Mona Lisa room and we did that so I could take my kids to see a couple more things. The oroblem with old Europe is that it’s not very accommodating to people that need wheelchairs or elevators or even escalators.

we are going to Italy with them in sep 2022 (hopefully) and we are already planning on seeing fewer things each day and also using Uber much more so they can avoid the subways. I’m not sure yet how we are going to get from rome to Florence to Venice to Milan. We want to just use trains but we are considering maybe having one vehicle to shuttle them to the next town.

[tooblue]

We took my parents to France two-ish years ago. They are both in their 70s and my dad is in great shape but my mom not so much. She can walk fine but I had underestimated the amount of steps necessary to just get around town. The metro had a lot of stairs as did most of the sites we saw. The Louvre seemed to have steps at every room, which I had forgotten, and that slowed us down considerably. My mom finally just said to leave her in the Mona Lisa room and we did that so I could take my kids to see a couple more things. The oroblem with old Europe is that it’s not very accommodating to people that need wheelchairs or elevators or even escalators.

we are going to Italy with them in sep 2022 (hopefully) and we are already planning on seeing fewer things each day and also using Uber much more so they can avoid the subways. I’m not sure yet how we are going to get from rome to Florence to Venice to Milan. We want to just use trains but we are considering maybe having one vehicle to shuttle them to the next town.

A few years ago we flew into Milan, saw the city and then started our tour by taking the train to Varenna (Lac Di Qomo) and then ferried to Belagio and eventually ferried back to Como, and train back to Milan (great day trip). After that we drove down to La Spezia did Cinq Terre by train, and then made our way to Florence by car, and then up and over to Venice, and back to Milan by car to fly home. It was a great trip; good roads, easy driving.

[Jeff Lebowski]

We took my parents to France two-ish years ago. They are both in their 70s and my dad is in great shape but my mom not so much. She can walk fine but I had underestimated the amount of steps necessary to just get around town. The metro had a lot of stairs as did most of the sites we saw. The Louvre seemed to have steps at every room, which I had forgotten, and that slowed us down considerably. My mom finally just said to leave her in the Mona Lisa room and we did that so I could take my kids to see a couple more things. The oroblem with old Europe is that it’s not very accommodating to people that need wheelchairs or elevators or even escalators.

we are going to Italy with them in sep 2022 (hopefully) and we are already planning on seeing fewer things each day and also using Uber much more so they can avoid the subways. I’m not sure yet how we are going to get from rome to Florence to Venice to Milan. We want to just use trains but we are considering maybe having one vehicle to shuttle them to the next town.

You can use trains to travel between these cities without a problem.

[Goatnapper'96]

You can use trains to travel between these cities without a problem.

This is great stuff folks- keep it coming. Two years ago we were planning a Northern Italy & Switzerland vacation that morphed into Rome + a Greek Island Cruise. Covid wrecked that and I think we got 3 days of rafting on the Salmon River and a couple of fly fishing excursions on the Henry's Fork and South Fork of the Snake. This summer we planned an Italy vacation but once again Covid wrecked it so we went to Mexico.

We are now all in on Italy in summer '22. My clan has increased by 1 as my oldest got married, 13 days before her 19th birthday, so we are looking to take 2 couples and then twin 17 year olds and one 14 year old there next year. Thinking of splitting it between Venice, Florence and Rome. Love reading your various reports of previous trips there and perhaps we can all hook up for a pizza!

[Jeff Lebowski]

This is great stuff folks- keep it coming. Two years ago we were planning a Northern Italy & Switzerland vacation that morphed into Rome + a Greek Island Cruise. Covid wrecked that and I think we got 3 days of rafting on the Salmon River and a couple of fly fishing excursions on the Henry's Fork and South Fork of the Snake. This summer we planned an Italy vacation but once again Covid wrecked it so we went to Mexico.

We are now all in on Italy in summer '22. My clan has increased by 1 as my oldest got married, 13 days before her 19th birthday, so we are looking to take 2 couples and then twin 17 year olds and one 14 year old there next year. Thinking of splitting it between Venice, Florence and Rome. Love reading your various reports of previous trips there and perhaps we can all hook up for a pizza!

I can give you tons of tips and suggestions for Venice, Florence, and Rome. Might be easier to have a phone call. Or we could go to lunch next time you are in Provo.

[tooblue]

This is great stuff folks- keep it coming. Two years ago we were planning a Northern Italy & Switzerland vacation that morphed into Rome + a Greek Island Cruise. Covid wrecked that and I think we got 3 days of rafting on the Salmon River and a couple of fly fishing excursions on the Henry's Fork and South Fork of the Snake. This summer we planned an Italy vacation but once again Covid wrecked it so we went to Mexico.

We are now all in on Italy in summer '22. My clan has increased by 1 as my oldest got married, 13 days before her 19th birthday, so we are looking to take 2 couples and then twin 17 year olds and one 14 year old there next year. Thinking of splitting it between Venice, Florence and Rome. Love reading your various reports of previous trips there and perhaps we can all hook up for a pizza!

A couple of quick tips:

1. Lac Di Como is amazing. Catching the ferry from any of the small towns (Varenna, Bellagio, Como) is easy. We stopped at Villa Carlotta to see the gardens which were spectacular.

2. When in Milan the wait in line is worth it for a panzerotti at Panzerotti Luini just around the corner from the Duomo.

3. Visit the bone church in Milan: Santuario di San Bernardino alle Ossa: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped..._ossuary_2.jpg

[Clark Addison]

I would go to La Spezia and Cinque Terre instead of Lucca and Pisa:

We loved Cinque Terra (except for the previously mentioned a/c saboteur). We also liked Lucca a lot. It is nothing like Cinque Terre, but it was really cool. To be clear, unlike places like Florence and Cinque Terre, it is cool for a day or so, not multiple days. We got there at 4:00 or so one day, went to dinner and walked around. The next day we went to the flea market thing, rode a tandem bike around the city wall, climbed a tower, and went to the village square where the locals were had this big track set up and were racing, what was it? marbles? Little cars? I forget, but they had me be the official starter just because I showed up. We were out by 5:00 or so. One of the nice things about it was it was maybe our only day in Italy that felt quiet and devoid of tourists.

Agree about Pisa. We didn't go, and I don't regret it.

My wife and I both liked Florence a lot.

I loved Rome, my wife was "meh" on it (too crowded).

I haven't read every post, so I haven't seen if Venice is discussed (I don't actually even know whose vacation we are talking about). I will give my standard Venice advice as someone who is obviously an expert having visited once for three days (I've probably said it here before). If you go to Venice, stay on the island!!! We stayed in this little Airbnb in the middle of everything. During the day, Venice was nice, but crowded as Hades, the most crowded place we went, which diminished things a bit. But then, starting about 5:00, people would start heading back to their cruise ships and to their hotels on the mainland. By the time the sun went down, it was cooler and 80%-90% of the foot traffic was gone. Venice in the evening and morning (I would wake up at 6:30 and walk while my wife slept in) was one of my favorite parts of our trip.