Last minute advice before I book Italy?

SingingMom

DIS Veteran
Joined
Jul 4, 2001
I'm about to call ABD to book October 2020 Adult Exclusive Italy. Will be me, Dh, and DD 25. Our 6th ABD, 3rd "adult exclusive". We will plan on flying into Rome the day before. I feel calmer starting Adventures after a good night's sleep! Do you suggest a post night in Venice, also?

Any MUST SEE - DO NOT MISS spots/activities on this tour? I try to go with guides suggestions, but if there is something we shouldn't miss, I like to see if I can fit it in. (IE: Seeing the original "Infant of Prague" statue in the little church in Prague, with an exhibit of all the handmade vestments given as gifts from around the world. Amazing!)

How crowded will the accommodations be for 3 adults? (One hotel in Central Europe - the tour doesn't use it anymore! - the roll away wasn't even a cot size. Good thing DD is petite. Her feet hung over the edge big time!)

Are there spots to sit for a second during the walking tours? I have found my back needs just a minute to rest if I'm on my feet long. (my favorite word in Spain was "banco". LOL)

Thank you for any words of wisdom you can share before I make my call!!!
 
We did the adults only October 2018 trip and you will enjoy this trip.

We came in two days early to tour the Vatican and other areas. ABD in 2018 would only take us to their hotel for the transfer, which we used, and then took a taxi to our own hotel. It did save us a little money but wasted a lot of time. Starting in 2018 Diisney had changed hotels. The Gran Melina declined to hold our bags and said they would only accept these while we were actually checked into the hotel. (See some of the other reports where people would drop bags up to 24 hours before check in at the hotel and then take off and come back. This hotel was the least accommodating of any place we've ever stayed, including a motel 6 in Knoxville TN). We even tried to leave a message for the ABD guides and they refused to accept it. Please tell us your views. The bathrooms put you on "display" to the rest of the room with solid glass walls - even when showering...it is not a "family" style hotel...so we did not stay here for any pre-days. During the ABD it was also (consistently) the worst food we had on any ABD.

Anyway, we stayed before the trip at a fantastic hotel across from the train station in central Rome - Marriott Palazzo Naiadi, The Dedica Anthology, Piazza delta Repubblica 47 (all on Marriott points) and we took the Dark Rome small group tour to Pompeii and Sorrento tour for the day, which left from the train station on the high speed rail. (and yes this hotel had no problem with us dropping bags here). It was terrific as a pre-day activity. We also arranged for the Scavi tour at the Vatican down to St. Peter's tomb (This took months to arrange but was amazing to be "behind the scenes" in the non public sections of St. Peters.) We also had tickets to attend the Pope's presentation in St. Peter's square - an amazing event. If you do nothing else, wander St. Peters OYO at your own pace. ABD does not give nearly enough time here.

We were very satisfied with the programs as presented in Rome and did not find a great deal of OYO time. The extra days helped immensely.

Post trip we stayed at the ABD hotel - at the Hotel Molino Stucky. This is an excellent hotel. Do not miss the rooftop pool. The bar at lunch is empty and they offered multiple free tastings of many things including their own homemade lemonchello. MMMMmmm. We enjoyed Venice the most - early mornings before the cruise ships disgorged people and late evenings. Don't miss the last boat back to the hotel though! We wanted to try true Italian opera and on our extra day did so. This is what we visited:
Musica a Palazzo is a cultural association and therefore admission to performances is allowed to members only. It is necessary to fill in an application form (one per person). It is possible to become a member of the association just before a performance, by printing the application form attached to this message, filling it in with your personal data and handing it in at the front desk. Please DO NOT send the forms by email. In case you don't have access to a printer, you will be provided with empty forms at the front desk upon your arrival. There are no additional charges or tickets.

However, you must make a reservation to do so. The program is presented in an old Doge's Palace. It is limited to about 30 people. Each scene is in a different room in the palace and there is no stage-the opera takes place in front of and around you. I was not an opera fan. Okay, this is one of those times when my DW was 100% right. I was blown away. Not what I was expecting. To wander the back streets of Venice at night is magical. It is an amazing city!

We found all of the Italian cities bursting at the seams with tourists at all times and we felt the ABD group was too large for what we did on this trip. We never got to know all the other people and it is the only ABD where we did not establish close ties with people. We felt that was the group size, mixed with crowded venues. Find what you want and do it. I believe this is one of ABD's most popular trips, and the venues all speak for themselves. Enjoy!
 
We went as a family of 3 June 2018.

Our extra day in rome we used a private tour company (livitaly) to pick us up at the hotel and drive us to pompeii and vesuvius and arrange for our tours. Highly recommend this. We were able to sleep in the car on the way there and the way back. The Gran Melia was a little tight for 3 but was okay and the bed was a twin. The glass walls in the bathroom have screens that can be lowered to block them so don't be worried about it not being family friendly, it really was no issue. We found the hotel and staff to be very accommodating but the hotel restaurant while tasty was very overpriced in my opinion and we found much better options out and about. The front desk was great about areas to go explore.

I would definitely suggest an extra day in Venice, we did not and really regretted it. We found the Hotel Stucky to be the worse one on the trip. We had unfriendly staff, buggy rooms and food and you have to take a water taxi to get to the main island of venice. The roof top pool was very cool but with the slightet sprinkle they would shut it down.

In Tuscany, our daughter had her own loft suite as part of our room. Very cool and the best hotel of the bunch.
 


We were just on the trip last month, but as a family of 4 with two rooms.

I agree that the Tuscany hotel would be the best for 3 people in one room, but it was not the best hotel of the bunch in our opinion. I thought it was charming. The rest of my family did not like it.
I liked the Venice hotel and the Rome hotel (even with the shower situation, which we called the circular shower of death since it didn't have any handles anywhere).
 
I went September 2019 with my best friend on an adult exclusive. This was my first ABD and I was blown away. I can't say enough about how well taken care of and how hard the guides work for you. The after hours tour of the Vatican museums Sistine Chapel was priceless. the smallest room was in Rome, the Tuscanny hotel and Venice is plenty big for three people. We arrived two nights before and took a walks of Italy tour to Pompeii and Sorento and the morning of the ABD tour did a walks of Italy tour of crips bones and catacombs. Two things not on the Disney tour that I wanted to see and glad I did. We stayed three nights post trip in Venice and we stayed at the ABD hotels both pre and post trip. One or two nights post trip is probably enough in Venice. as another poster said the roof top pool and view from the Hilton is fantastic. I was so impressed that Disney still provided transportation to the airport from Venice, having a representative meet us and take us by private water taxi and then escorting us to where we needed to go. In Florence we did a tour on our own of Santa Croce where Michelangelo and Galileo are buried. You are given a lot of on your own time in Florence. I really liked Orvieto and wished we had a little more time there. We also were fortunate to stop at a ww2 American cemetery in Florence that was very sobering and a surprise. It is not listed in the Itinerary. there are lots and lots of people in Italy, it's like going to Disney during spring break or Christmas, but it is what it is and I still enjoyed the trip and would love to go back again.
 
Just got back from this trip a couple of weeks ago. I was a bit apprehensive as it was our first ABD and the group was pretty big (over 40), but we were blown away by how much we were able to see/experience and the ABD touches/exclusives were definitely worth the price. My two favorite highlights of the trip were the after hours Vatican museum/Sistine chapel and the pasta making at the Tuscan farmhouse...both things that I wouldn't have done on my own.

We spent one post day in Venice and used it to take a boat to Murano and visit a glass factory/get a demonstration of glass blowing. All of that was arranged by and paid for by ABD.
 


Following along. Particularly wondering what there is to do with kids for the free time in Florence.
 
In Florence we visited the Uffizi (boring to the kids after a while even though we kept it mostly just highlights) and the Accademia (to see The David). I'd rec that museum over Uffizi because it is smaller and just seeing The David is a highlight.

We are probably the only people in the world who didn't love Florence. While beautiful, we found it extremely busy and crowded, difficult to find parking, and we were having to hopscotch on the sidewalk to avoid stepping on all the art people were hawking. We definitely preferred the smaller Tuscan towns and especially Rome.
 
Nope, not the only ones. I was not enamored of it either. We even left our Ufizi tour muttering "I see one more Madonna and Child..."

Loved Lucca, Sienna and some of the other Tuscan towns.
 
Florence struck me as a really nice outdoor shopping mall. We went at Christmas time so it was extra beautiful but that's really the vibe I got there...Not sure how kid friendly it is for most kids but our son really enjoyed the random toy stores!
 
In Florence we visited the Uffizi (boring to the kids after a while even though we kept it mostly just highlights) and the Accademia (to see The David). I'd rec that museum over Uffizi because it is smaller and just seeing The David is a highlight.

We are probably the only people in the world who didn't love Florence. While beautiful, we found it extremely busy and crowded, difficult to find parking, and we were having to hopscotch on the sidewalk to avoid stepping on all the art people were hawking. We definitely preferred the smaller Tuscan towns and especially Rome.
Oh yes! I was yelled at by one of the artists when I accidentally stepped on art laid on the streets. It was so hard to avoid and all over the place. Although I enjoyed Florence, it's not one of our favorite places to return to in Italy. We have visited so many areas over and over again and we never say to ourselves...I'd like to go to Florence again. But definitely worth a visit.
 
We even left our Ufizi tour muttering "I see one more Madonna and Child..."

I know nothing about art, so in museums I always get the audio guide. I distinctly remember that in the Ufizi the audio guided pointed out the difference in the flat icon Madonna vs. the curvy Renaissance Madonna. It was a good lesson!


-Paul
 
We were on a guided tour. We got all that, which is interesting. But ultimately, I was just done.
 

GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE

Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.

Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!





Top