If you’re considering, or have already decided to take a vacation in Italy, it’s a given that the experience will be well worth the cost.
I’m sure that while you’re on your Italy vacation, you will spend some time seeing the sights. With the history of the country dating back thousands of years, and buildings and structures still standing, even if you aren’t specifically looking, the attractions would be staring you in the face.
Museums, castles, palaces, piazzas, bridges, fountains, catacombs and various other attractions await you if sightseeing is a part of what you are planning to do while touring in Italy. | As a center for high fashion and the home of the Catholic Church, the sightseeing only has to finsih when you’re too tired to do any more.
Part of the fun of going on a holiday is planning it. With all the possibilities in Italy, it is necessary to take some time to plan which places you will go to and what sights you will see. If you choose to go with guided tours then your decisions will have to be which ones to go on, based on what sights are offered within the packages.
What are the popular places to tour while on vacation in Italy?
Rome seems to be one of leading targets on tourist’s lists. Here the attractions seem almost endless. The famous landmark the Colosseum is a huge elliptical amphitheatre (open air theatre) that was built by Emperor Titus in AD80 for games and gladiatorial battles. With an original seating capacity of around 60,000, events were well attended. The Pantheon, Vatican City and St Peter’s Square, the Spanish Steps, the Catacombs are all popular sights to see. The list in Rome goes on and on.
Coined as being one of Europe’s most romantic cities, Venice is a great place to visit. Here you will find such places as St Mark’s Basilica, the Grand Canal, Piazza San Marco. Sometimes there are so many visitors in Venice that the city itself actually becomes quite crowded.
If your holidays in Italy take you to Florence, you will not be alone. From April to October the tourists actually cause the population of the city to more than double. Florence is defined by arts and architecture. The Uffizi Gallery is one of the oldest art museums in the Western world. Wait time to get in to the gallery can be up to five hours at peak season if you don’t have tickets prebooked. Other popular sights to see include the domed cathedral of the city, Santa maria de Fiore, and nearby the Campanile and Baptistery buildings. The Fountain of Neptune, a marvelous marble sculpture is located in the city’s Pizzas della Signoria. Go for a stroll on the Ponte Vecchio, a bridge with the distinctive feature of having shops built long its edges.
In Milan, the Duomo, Milan Cathedral is the fourth-largest church in the world, having taken five-hundred years to complete this Gothic structure. The Castello Sforzesco is a castle that originally was home to the ruling family of Milan. A number of museums and art collections now call this castle home. There’s an exquisite street in Milan called Via Monte Napoleone. You will want to check it out, especially if you have an interest in fashion and jewelry. Milan also has bragging rights to being the home of the world’s leading opera house and ballet theatre, the Teatro alla Scala.
Naples is one of the oldest cities in the world, so has a great deal of history to offer. There are squares, museums, palaces, castles, churches, buildings, etc., to see. Also, underneath Naples is a series of caves and structures created from centuries of mining, as well as catacombs in and around the city to see.
Pisa is a smaller city but it is world famous for its Leaning Tower. This bell tower in the Pisa Cathedral is made up of a group of 4 beautiful white marble buildings. Construction on this originated in 1173 and went on for 200 years due to numerous interruptions. Since the construction took so long, the bell tower started to lean, hence the name.
To really make the most out of an Italy vacation, many choose to book guided tours to insure they get to see the popular sights. With guided tours you also have the benefit of hearing the facts they share as they take you through these remarkable attractions, plus you have the chance to ask questions.
Guided tours tend to follow a pre-set route through a city or town. Some tours on your ‘Italy Tourist Attraction’ excersion let you get off the tour vehicle to explore and then catch another tour vehicle from the same company later on.
If walking is a challenge for you or you’re played-out, you can just sit back and enjoy the attractions without leaving the bus. To fit your budget, guided tour packages come in a range of prices, depending on their length and the number of tourist attractions visited. So find some one you like today.
