Bella Italia/Italy and the Amalfi Coast – Completed 8/29/16

[DD's Prince]

I love Sorrento! It is a great beach town with a laid back atmosphere. Every night we were there they closed the main roads to traffic and all the shops were open. This was our last night in Sorrento so we walked the town after supper. We were out til almost midnight just soaking up the atmosphere, which is friendly and fun. The breeze from the ocean cools the area and it was really pleasant to just walk around and people watch and eat some gelato. From Raki, of course. Ate gelato from there everyday we were in Sorrento. There were street performers out every night entertaining the crowds.



This is our last dinner in Sorrento was at I Giardini Di Tasso. The is another great recommendation from our guides. The setting is fantastic. Most of the seats are situated outside in the lemon grove. There are several tables situated within an old Roman aqueduct. I think the guides were able to get us a table under the aqueduct. There were three groups from our trip eating here tonight and each had a table in the aqueduct. This is a family owned restaurant. Food is very good and the house wine is also very nice and made by the owner's brother. 3 euros a glass! Service was SLOW!!!!!!!!!.



Tomorrow we head to Pompeii and then on to Firenze!

 

[DD's Prince]

Pompeii is such a cool place. Hard to believe this is from 2000+ years ago. We spent about 2 hours here which I thought was about right for everyone.













Pic of all the kids with Magic Mike our tour guide.

 

[DD's Prince]

After leaving Pompeii we bid farewell to the Amalfi coast. From Pompeii we took a bus the the train station and boarded the high speed train to Florence. It is about a 3 hour trip. Lunch was provided and was nice. this was a chance for everyone to relax and get a nap. The kids sat together and played for most of the trip. They had a great time watching the speed of the train which is posted inside the cars. 300km/hour!

We arrived in Florence and boarded another bus into Florence then took a short walk to the hotel. Hotel Bernini is very nice and the location is fantastic. The rooms are a little smaller that La Favorita but still very nice. We had a room with 2 twin beds and a pull out sofa. The pull out was not very comfortable for my kids so we were moved to another room so everyone could sleep in a bed.







After arriving in Florence we had a few hours of free time to walk around and see Florence. We took a few pictures then got ready for the Welcom to Florence dinner at Hotel Bernini. This was well done and food was very good. After dinner the kids watched a Disney Movie and the adults headed to the lobby for a wine tasting and maybe a few more glasses.

 

[DD's Prince]

Today was the only day we really got to sleep in. We were scheduled to meet in the lobby at 0945. I took advantage of some free time and went for a run along the Arno River. It runs through Florence and has a sidewalk or trail running along it on both sides. Great place for a morning walk or run. Very safe as I saw many others out doing the same thing.

After breakfast, we met at 0945 in the lobby and met Sam, our Florence guide. He took us on a tour of Florence. We started with a walk to Accademia Gallery to see Michelangelo's David. This is a must see for any art lover. The statue is much larger than I imagined and was a highlight for DW since she loves art history. After seeing the David we had about 30 minute to explore the rest of the gallery and then were on our way.



After leaving the gallery we toured some more of Florence. A cool city. Lunch was a group lunch at a small restaurant near the Basilica of Santa Croce. They had great lasagna. Very light.

Basilica of Santa Croce


The Duomo! After lunch we had a few pictures at the duomo


Next we headed to the Uffizi Museum for some more art. The kids were whisked away for a scavenger hunt in the museum while we were led by Sam the Man for a quick 2 hour visit. This gallery is huge. I can't imagine trying to do this on my own. Sam did a great job of showing us the "important" pieces and then moving on. I think the kids were excited to be done.



Dinner was at Aqua al 2. It is family owned and known for its steak with blueberry sauce. They are a couple of these restaurants in the US and thoose are run by the same family. We ate with another family. The kids all got pasta and were very happy. The steaks were also very good. The house wine was 12 euros so we sampled that....and like it enough that we took a few bottles back to the hotel. That night we sat on the rooftop terrace and drank wine and visited with new friends.

 

[sayhello]

Dinner was at Aqua al 2. It is family owned and known for its steak with blueberry sauce. They are a couple of these restaurants in the US and thoose are run by the same family. We ate with another family. The kids all got pasta and were very happy. The steaks were also very good. The house wine was 12 euros so we sampled that....and like it enough that we took a few bottles back to the hotel. That night we sat on the rooftop terrace and drank wine and visited with new friends.

These types of moments are sometimes the most memorable moments from an ABD!

Sayhello

 

[TXTransplant]

Today was the only day we really got to sleep in. We were scheduled to meet in the lobby at 0945. I took advantage of some free time and went for a run along the Arno River. It runs through Florence and has a sidewalk or trail running along it on both sides. Great place for a morning walk or run. Very safe as I saw many others out doing the same thing.


Dinner was at Aqua al 2. It is family owned and known for its steak with blueberry sauce. They are a couple of these restaurants in the US and thoose are run by the same family. We ate with another family. The kids all got pasta and were very happy. The steaks were also very good. The house wine was 12 euros so we sampled that....and like it enough that we took a few bottles back to the hotel. That night we sat on the rooftop terrace and drank wine and visited with new friends.

I'm kinda bummed to hear there was a rooftop terrace at the Bernini! I had no idea, otherwise, I would have spent some time there!

 

[DollyM]

I'm kinda bummed to hear there was a rooftop terrace at the Bernini! I had no idea, otherwise, I would have spent some time there!

I love a good rooftop terrace and also had no idea the Bernini had one.

 

[DD's Prince]

I'm kinda bummed to hear there was a rooftop terrace at the Bernini! I had no idea, otherwise, I would have spent some time there!

Very small rooftop terrace. They have a hot tub up there but it is closed at night. The terrace has some comfortable outdoor furniture so wee were able to sit back and relax.

 

[DD's Prince]

The next day was Lucca and the Leaning Tower of Pisa. We started early the next morning with breakfast and then took a 90 minute bus ride to Lucca. Another great small Italian town. Lucca was built within walls that are 30 meters thick to keep out invading forces. It now has a bike/walking path along the top of the wall. We spent about an hour riding along the wall. Great activity as you can ride at your own pace or even just walk if you want.







After our ride we had about an hour guided tour of Lucca and visited The Basilica of San Frediano. Here you will see the tomb of Saint Zita.



After our tour we had lunch on our own. We went to a panini shop and then walked the streets of Lucca until we met up with the group. Once the group was back together it was time for more gelato. This was part of the "Battle of the Gelaterias." After grabbing some gelato we headed for Pisa.

 

[DD's Prince]

I was really looking forward to visiting Pisa because we've all heard about the Leaning Tower and Gallileo. Now I can say I've seen it and can move on. It is like a mini tourist trap with people trying to sell things everywhere you turned. Our ABD guides did a great job of warning us before we got off the bus and also discouraging them from approaching our group. We toured the church and the Baptistry and then did group photos of each family holding up the Tower.

Taking the "train" into Pisa!





The Baptistry!


Holding up the tower!


If you notice we have very few people in our picture. This is because our guides did a Great job of keeping the background as clean as possible for hte group photos. They did not hesitate to ask people to move and block the way (nicely, of course!) while we were taking pictures. Everyone in our group got pretty good picture because of the guides.

After about 90 minutes in Pisa we boarded the bus back home to Florence. When we got off the bus we were walking back to the hotel and got caught by a pretty heavy rain storm. Fortunately we found a covered alley to duck into. The the guides sprung into action. They immediately started calling cabs to get us all back to the hotel without getting too wet and they picked up the tab. These little things are what I see as the "Disney Difference"

Dinner that night was on our own and we chose Alfredos. It was a block from the hotel. Family owned and very good. Even saw our guides having dinner there. Once we made it back to the hotel we met many of our fellow travelers at the bar and closed it down with a few more glasses of wine!

 

[DD's Prince]

Today was another early day as we were heading to Sienna. Sienna is a beautiful town very much like it was hundreds of years ago. Virtually no vehicular traffic. (We saw one police car and no other cars within the walls).





It is best known for the Palio which is a horse race contested every year. There are 17 districts or contradas in Sienna and each year they are allowed to enter a horse in the race. Only 10 horses run each year and this is done by lot and rotation. The fill the town square with dirt and then run the race around the town square. The winning contrada celebrates for a year!

Can't imagine a horse race here but this is the square.


Each contrada has its own museum and we were allowed to visit one as a group.

From here we traveled to Fattorio Poggio Alloro, a working Tuscan farm. We were served lunch which included fresh pasta and wine. The adults all participated in a wine tasting and the kids did a soda tasting. The food was fantastic and as were the views. Before we left we ordered some wine, olive oil and balsamic vinegar to be shipped home.















After lunch we boarded the bus back to Florence and got ready for the farewell dinner.

 

[DD's Prince]

Tonight was our farewell dinner. A lot of great memories on this trip and some wonderful new friends. Tonight was a celebration of that! Great food and a wonderful show, but I won't spoil it for anyone doing this trip in the future! The slide show at the end was great.

Marcello leading the way!


The dining room!


The kids table.




Our table.


After dinner we headed back to our hotel and headed to the bar...again. A great group of people that we really enjoyed spending our vacation with.

 

[DD's Prince]

Some final thoughts on this trip. It was our first ABD but definitely will not be our last. The organization made everything so easy. Our guides, Marcello and Marissa, were fantastic. They went above and beyond everyday.

This is a great trip for families. There is enough activity to keep the kids entertained and engaged. It is not just museums and churches. The amount of time in each location was about right to appeal to every type.

Spend some time walking around Sorrento in the evening. A great town with a family oriented and fun nightlife.

If you're not into shopping find the walking trails in Capri and take in the views. Well worth it!

If you go plan on wearing sleeves. Many of the churches require shoulders be covered to enter. If not they will provide you with a cover.


I wish the trip had scheduled a trip to the top of the Duomo in Florence. Looks like it would be a great view. We never made it up there because the lines were too long when we tried. If I were doing it again I would try to reserve a time before the trip and do it on the afternoon we arrived in Florence. With a reservation you can pass most of the line.

I also think the bus should stop on the way to Sienna for a few minutes at the Piazzale Michelangelo in Florence. It drives right by it and the view is fantastic! Of course it would mean losing some sleep because that day is already very full. We were fortunate that we were able to find some free time to walk over there.







We were sad to see it end but are already looking for our next adventure!

 

[carpenta]

Thanks for taking us along with you and your family DD's Prince. Love the pictures.

 

[tgeorge]

Thanks for the fabulous trip report and pictures! I've wanted to take a trip to the Amalfi coast for a long time and after seeing your report and TXTransplants report, I know it is a must do! Thanks for taking the time to share your experiences! Glad you guys had a great time

 

[BurleyGirl]

I very much enjoyed your trip report! Brought back great memories of our trips to Italy (not ABD, just on our own--would be wonderful to have someone do the organizing and transporting for you!!). Do you happen to know the name of the town pictured in the background of one of your pictures from Fattorio Poggio Alloro?

 

[TXTransplant]

I very much enjoyed your trip report! Brought back great memories of our trips to Italy (not ABD, just on our own--would be wonderful to have someone do the organizing and transporting for you!!). Do you happen to know the name of the town pictured in the background of one of your pictures from Fattorio Poggio Alloro?

It's San Gimignano

 

[BurleyGirl]

Ah! Thank you!!

 

[DD's Prince]

I'm so glad you remembered TXT Transplant. I couldn't remember. Great day at the farm though!!!

 

[mindeola]

Beautiful! Thanks for sharing. Looks like the kids all really bonded and had fun together.