Tips for Stress Free Travel through Italy

Travelling as a foreigner in another country is not always easy.

As beautiful as Italy is it can be difficult and frustrating at times to travel from place to place. I thought it would be useful to put together a few tips to ease some of the stress.

If you decide to rent a car,  familiarize yourself with the sign Zona Traffico Limitato (ZTL):

This means you can not drive in this area because it is a limited traffic or pedestrian zone.

Many small towns have them in their historic centers, and most cities have them in certain areas of the city.  For example, Lucca is a medieval walled city that does not allow cars within the walls.

There are usually cameras that take photos of your license plate. If you do happen to drive in these zones you may be surprised with a ticket in your mail at home months later.

Travelling by train? 

This is one of the easiest and fastest ways to travel from city to city.  When you are ready to purchase your tickets you can do it on line with Trenitalia or Italo Treno. If you purchase on line you don’t’ need to print your ticket, you can just show your ticket on your phone to the conductor.

If you are purchasing the tickets at the train station do not forget to validate the ticket in the machine before you get on the train. The machines are normally located around the train stations as well as on the platforms and look like this:

If you are nervous about travelling around Italy on your own you can hire a private transfer. This is a private car that will drive from place to place.  You can also ask for an assistant.

This person will speak English and will be help you get from Point A to Point B, actually coming with you to show you where to go.

My last tip

When travelling by foot wherever there are steps, make sure to ask the distance to get to the steps, how many steps there are to your destination, and how long they will take to climb or descend.

This past summer I had the pleasure of sta

ying on the Amalfi Coast and was told the beach was 300 steps away. What I didn’t know was that it was a 20 minute walk to get to the 300 steps!

But in the end the walk was worth it!!!