Comments on: How To Enjoy Italy On 30E Per Day http://matadortrips.com/italy-cheap-travel-budget/ Just another WordPress weblog Sat, 21 Nov 2009 00:26:58 -0800 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Sarah http://matadortrips.com/italy-cheap-travel-budget/comment-page-1/#comment-1518 Sarah Thu, 26 Feb 2009 04:31:45 +0000 http://matadortrips.com/?p=55#comment-1518 There is also a few days a month where certain museums are free. The Vatican Museum is free on the last Saturday of the month, I believe... & there are other days when you can get free admission to many other museums in Rome. These days are usually very crowded, so getting there EARLY is a great idea. I 100% second the comment about apertivo. Buy a drink and FILLLL UP! :) Oh, and definitely don't bother with the bottled water in Rome... the street fountains are not only safe, but yummy and fresh. There is also a few days a month where certain museums are free. The Vatican Museum is free on the last Saturday of the month, I believe… & there are other days when you can get free admission to many other museums in Rome. These days are usually very crowded, so getting there EARLY is a great idea. I 100% second the comment about apertivo. Buy a drink and FILLLL UP! :) Oh, and definitely don't bother with the bottled water in Rome… the street fountains are not only safe, but yummy and fresh.

(Report comment)

]]> By: Foreverfreebird http://matadortrips.com/italy-cheap-travel-budget/comment-page-1/#comment-1517 Foreverfreebird Fri, 20 Feb 2009 21:45:30 +0000 http://matadortrips.com/?p=55#comment-1517 Umm....I live in Italy, and the advice about bus/train tickets is completely wrong. Trains: It is not true that you can buy tickets on board. Tickets must be bought beforehand, and, if they are not for a specific time, must be also validated before getting on the train. While I have been on local trains in which the conductor never came around to check tickets, I don't think that I've ever been on a trip of more than an hour in which my ticket hasn't been checked at least once. Especially for travelers, who are likely to be on long hauls between Venice-Milan-Florence-Rome-Naples, the conductor does check tickets! If you do not have one, the conductor will charge you the price of the ticket, plus a fine. Buses: Bus tickets are not expensive to begin with. In my city, Milan, a one euro ticket is good for 75 minutes. For three euro, you can have an all-day pass for all buses, trams, and the subway system. For thirty euro, you can travel all you want for a month! You can buy tickets at metro stations in cities with subways. In any Italian city you can buy tickets for the buses/trams/metro at most Tabacchi, which are bars/shops licensed to sell tobacco products. They are all marked with a prominent "T" sign outside. There's one on nearly every street in Italy. Many newsstands also sell bus tickets. In some places (not all--you can't in Milan, but you can in Florence, for example) you can buy tickets from the driver, but always at a higher price. That said, yes, you can often get away without having a ticket on the city buses. Transportation department officials randomly board buses to check for tickets. I am on the bus or tram every day. Sometimes I go three months without seeing any checks, sometimes I see three checks in a week. However, if they do a check and you do not have a ticket, you CANNOT just buy a ticket at that point. You will have to pay a fine. The way it usually works here is that if you pay it immediately, you pay the lowest fine (usually about 40 euro). If you take a ticket and go by the office to pay it later, you pay a higher fine. If you don't pay within 60 days, you pay an even higher fine. When you are obviously a tourist, they will of course want you to pay immediately because they know that you will otherwise just leave the country without paying. All of this is NOT hassling tourists; it is normal policy and well-posted and well-known. Italian citizens are treated just the same. Although they may occasionally decide to be nice and let you slide since you are a confused visitor, ignorance is not an excuse! You knew the bus wasn't free. You knew you didn't have a ticket. And here in Milan, at least, they've been cracking down lately. Public transportation is already heavily subsidized by the cities to make it affordable. You will not break the bank using public transportation in Italy. I don't know how you could possibly spend more than five euro a day on transportation. I agree with the above posters--yes, we are often relaxed about the rules here in Italy, but it doesn't seem right to instruct people on a site like this to deliberately plan to break laws. Especially since, if all travellers did as you suggest, all chaos would break out. I'm sorry if I come across as overly negative, but it hits a nerve for someone writing an article as an "expert" to give such blatantly misleading information. The rest of the advice in this article is good and useful, although only a first-time traveler to Italy would be likely to not know most of it. I do highly agree with the suggestion to get away from tourist-trap restaurants. If you are in a restaurant with a view of a major site, it will either be outrageously expensive or have mediocre food or both. Just walk four or five blocks, and you'll get much better, and more authentic, food for less. Umm….I live in Italy, and the advice about bus/train tickets is completely wrong. Trains: It is not true that you can buy tickets on board. Tickets must be bought beforehand, and, if they are not for a specific time, must be also validated before getting on the train. While I have been on local trains in which the conductor never came around to check tickets, I don't think that I've ever been on a trip of more than an hour in which my ticket hasn't been checked at least once. Especially for travelers, who are likely to be on long hauls between Venice-Milan-Florence-Rome-Naples, the conductor does check tickets! If you do not have one, the conductor will charge you the price of the ticket, plus a fine. Buses: Bus tickets are not expensive to begin with. In my city, Milan, a one euro ticket is good for 75 minutes. For three euro, you can have an all-day pass for all buses, trams, and the subway system. For thirty euro, you can travel all you want for a month! You can buy tickets at metro stations in cities with subways. In any Italian city you can buy tickets for the buses/trams/metro at most Tabacchi, which are bars/shops licensed to sell tobacco products. They are all marked with a prominent "T" sign outside. There's one on nearly every street in Italy. Many newsstands also sell bus tickets. In some places (not all–you can't in Milan, but you can in Florence, for example) you can buy tickets from the driver, but always at a higher price. That said, yes, you can often get away without having a ticket on the city buses. Transportation department officials randomly board buses to check for tickets. I am on the bus or tram every day. Sometimes I go three months without seeing any checks, sometimes I see three checks in a week. However, if they do a check and you do not have a ticket, you CANNOT just buy a ticket at that point. You will have to pay a fine. The way it usually works here is that if you pay it immediately, you pay the lowest fine (usually about 40 euro). If you take a ticket and go by the office to pay it later, you pay a higher fine. If you don't pay within 60 days, you pay an even higher fine. When you are obviously a tourist, they will of course want you to pay immediately because they know that you will otherwise just leave the country without paying. All of this is NOT hassling tourists; it is normal policy and well-posted and well-known. Italian citizens are treated just the same. Although they may occasionally decide to be nice and let you slide since you are a confused visitor, ignorance is not an excuse! You knew the bus wasn't free. You knew you didn't have a ticket. And here in Milan, at least, they've been cracking down lately. Public transportation is already heavily subsidized by the cities to make it affordable. You will not break the bank using public transportation in Italy. I don't know how you could possibly spend more than five euro a day on transportation. I agree with the above posters–yes, we are often relaxed about the rules here in Italy, but it doesn't seem right to instruct people on a site like this to deliberately plan to break laws. Especially since, if all travellers did as you suggest, all chaos would break out. I'm sorry if I come across as overly negative, but it hits a nerve for someone writing an article as an "expert" to give such blatantly misleading information. The rest of the advice in this article is good and useful, although only a first-time traveler to Italy would be likely to not know most of it. I do highly agree with the suggestion to get away from tourist-trap restaurants. If you are in a restaurant with a view of a major site, it will either be outrageously expensive or have mediocre food or both. Just walk four or five blocks, and you'll get much better, and more authentic, food for less.

(Report comment)

]]> By: kuzak http://matadortrips.com/italy-cheap-travel-budget/comment-page-1/#comment-1516 kuzak Wed, 22 Oct 2008 11:49:30 +0000 http://matadortrips.com/?p=55#comment-1516 I was amazed to read the comment about travelling without a ticket - to me it seems disrespectful; you visit a country and shouldn't "use & abuse". Surely you have come to enjoy what it has to offer? On my recent trip to Italy I travelled all the busses / trams and had a wonderful time learning the lay of the land; it gave me the opportunity to identify (and visit) the sights I couldn't find on my last trips and of course, I paid for travelling! Imagine if everyone decided not to pay? In any event, I felt gratified when I experienced inspectors boarding the buses and meting out tickets (practically every day) - serve the offenders right! Oh, did they argue and shout and argue some more! I was amazed to read the comment about travelling without a ticket – to me it seems disrespectful; you visit a country and shouldn't "use & abuse". Surely you have come to enjoy what it has to offer? On my recent trip to Italy I travelled all the busses / trams and had a wonderful time learning the lay of the land; it gave me the opportunity to identify (and visit) the sights I couldn't find on my last trips and of course, I paid for travelling! Imagine if everyone decided not to pay? In any event, I felt gratified when I experienced inspectors boarding the buses and meting out tickets (practically every day) – serve the offenders right! Oh, did they argue and shout and argue some more!

(Report comment)

]]> By: Stu700 http://matadortrips.com/italy-cheap-travel-budget/comment-page-1/#comment-1515 Stu700 Tue, 02 Sep 2008 06:00:12 +0000 http://matadortrips.com/?p=55#comment-1515 Nice tips! I didn't know you could buy tickets on the train in Italy though and I didn't get checked very much. I always bought at the platfom on my recent trip there, but if I had know looking back, I probably wouldn't have bothered. I guess that's dishonest but ces't la vie. When in Rome, though, a good money saver is the Roma Pass for 20 euros. It gets you entry into two major sites of your choice (for example, the Colosseum and Sant' Angelo castle, reducd entry on a bunch more sites, AND free metro and bus travel for three days (so you don't have to worry about those pesky ticket inspectors). Nice tips! I didn't know you could buy tickets on the train in Italy though and I didn't get checked very much. I always bought at the platfom on my recent trip there, but if I had know looking back, I probably wouldn't have bothered. I guess that's dishonest but ces't la vie. When in Rome, though, a good money saver is the Roma Pass for 20 euros. It gets you entry into two major sites of your choice (for example, the Colosseum and Sant' Angelo castle, reducd entry on a bunch more sites, AND free metro and bus travel for three days (so you don't have to worry about those pesky ticket inspectors).

(Report comment)

]]> By: How To Enjoy London on $100 a Day : TerraCurve.com - Green travel news, places, people and events. http://matadortrips.com/italy-cheap-travel-budget/comment-page-1/#comment-570 How To Enjoy London on $100 a Day : TerraCurve.com - Green travel news, places, people and events. Sat, 19 Jul 2008 03:52:48 +0000 http://matadortrips.com/?p=55#comment-570 [...] For more general advice on Britain, as well as blogs, travelers currently there, local experts, and volunteer opportunities, please check out our UK page at Matador. Also be sure to check out some of the other articles in the Matador Trips Cheap Europe series: How To Enjoy Paris On $100 A Day, and How To Enjoy Italy On 30 Euros Per Day. [...] [...] For more general advice on Britain, as well as blogs, travelers currently there, local experts, and volunteer opportunities, please check out our UK page at Matador. Also be sure to check out some of the other articles in the Matador Trips Cheap Europe series: How To Enjoy Paris On $100 A Day, and How To Enjoy Italy On 30 Euros Per Day. [...]

(Report comment)

]]> By: How To Enjoy London on $100 a Day http://matadortrips.com/italy-cheap-travel-budget/comment-page-1/#comment-564 How To Enjoy London on $100 a Day Tue, 15 Jul 2008 21:17:37 +0000 http://matadortrips.com/?p=55#comment-564 [...] For more general advice on Britain, as well as blogs, travelers currently there, local experts, and volunteer opportunities, please check out our UK page at Matador. Also be sure to check out some of the other articles in the Matador Trips Cheap Europe series: How To Enjoy Paris On $100 A Day, and How To Enjoy Italy On 30 Euros Per Day. [...] [...] For more general advice on Britain, as well as blogs, travelers currently there, local experts, and volunteer opportunities, please check out our UK page at Matador. Also be sure to check out some of the other articles in the Matador Trips Cheap Europe series: How To Enjoy Paris On $100 A Day, and How To Enjoy Italy On 30 Euros Per Day. [...]

(Report comment)

]]> By: Denise http://matadortrips.com/italy-cheap-travel-budget/comment-page-1/#comment-436 Denise Tue, 17 Jun 2008 21:00:23 +0000 http://matadortrips.com/?p=55#comment-436 It's regrettable that you are advising young people to break the law and be dishonest just because the odds of getting caught are low. Didn't your parents ever teach you to do the right thing because it's the right thing, not just to avoid the consequences of gettiing caught? It's pretty easy to get away with lots of crimes (shoplifting, cheating on exams, jumping turnstyles, etc.) but it doesn't mean we do it just because we probably won't get caught. It’s regrettable that you are advising young people to break the law and be dishonest just because the odds of getting caught are low. Didn’t your parents ever teach you to do the right thing because it’s the right thing, not just to avoid the consequences of gettiing caught? It’s pretty easy to get away with lots of crimes (shoplifting, cheating on exams, jumping turnstyles, etc.) but it doesn’t mean we do it just because we probably won’t get caught.

(Report comment)

]]> By: Denise http://matadortrips.com/italy-cheap-travel-budget/comment-page-1/#comment-1514 Denise Tue, 17 Jun 2008 13:00:23 +0000 http://matadortrips.com/?p=55#comment-1514 It's regrettable that you are advising young people to break the law and be dishonest just because the odds of getting caught are low. Didn't your parents ever teach you to do the right thing because it's the right thing, not just to avoid the consequences of gettiing caught? It's pretty easy to get away with lots of crimes (shoplifting, cheating on exams, jumping turnstyles, etc.) but it doesn't mean we do it just because we probably won't get caught. It's regrettable that you are advising young people to break the law and be dishonest just because the odds of getting caught are low. Didn't your parents ever teach you to do the right thing because it's the right thing, not just to avoid the consequences of gettiing caught? It's pretty easy to get away with lots of crimes (shoplifting, cheating on exams, jumping turnstyles, etc.) but it doesn't mean we do it just because we probably won't get caught.

(Report comment)

]]> By: Ilene http://matadortrips.com/italy-cheap-travel-budget/comment-page-1/#comment-370 Ilene Thu, 29 May 2008 02:00:33 +0000 http://matadortrips.com/?p=55#comment-370 Thank you for the great travel tips. However, I cannot disagree more about not buying a bus ticket - several years ago, on our first day in Rome, we boarded a bus bound for the Colosseum, without first getting tickets (we couldn't find any place to buy them). We decided to stay on the bus anyway, and somewhere along the route, in the middle of nowhere, the bus was boarded by two uniformed policia who demanded (in loud Italian, of course) that everyone without tickets get off the bus. About a dozen of us were taken off the bus and given “fines” amounting to $55 US dollars each - all for lack of a bus ticket that cost less than one dollar! We asked for and got receipts, which gave us access to all the public transportation we wanted to ride for the rest of the day but it was an expensive bus pass and an experience that I would never recommend to anyone else! I've always supposed we were strong-armed by the local police but clearly, we had broken their law and didn’t feel like we had any other options. I’ve always wondered what would have happened if we hadn’t had the Euros in our pockets! Thank you for the great travel tips.

However, I cannot disagree more about not buying a bus ticket – several years ago, on our first day in Rome, we boarded a bus bound for the Colosseum, without first getting tickets (we couldn’t find any place to buy them). We decided to stay on the bus anyway, and somewhere along the route, in the middle of nowhere, the bus was boarded by two uniformed policia who demanded (in loud Italian, of course) that everyone without tickets get off the bus. About a dozen of us were taken off the bus and given “fines” amounting to $55 US dollars each – all for lack of a bus ticket that cost less than one dollar! We asked for and got receipts, which gave us access to all the public transportation we wanted to ride for the rest of the day but it was an expensive bus pass and an experience that I would never recommend to anyone else!

I’ve always supposed we were strong-armed by the local police but clearly, we had broken their law and didn’t feel like we had any other options. I’ve always wondered what would have happened if we hadn’t had the Euros in our pockets!

(Report comment)

]]> By: Dennis http://matadortrips.com/italy-cheap-travel-budget/comment-page-1/#comment-363 Dennis Wed, 28 May 2008 18:24:00 +0000 http://matadortrips.com/?p=55#comment-363 Oh and if you're a student, don't forget to get your ISIC card before you leave home...it can get you great deals on everything from museums, fares, and hostel prices. Dennis www.italytraveltours.biz Oh and if you’re a student, don’t forget to get your ISIC card before you leave home…it can get you great deals on everything from museums, fares, and hostel prices.

Dennis
http://www.italytraveltours.biz

(Report comment)

]]>