Things To Do
Venice
Visit the floating city! Walking or water taxis are your means of transport in Venice. When arriving in Venice we walked from the airport to the "taxi" station which was on the waters edge and shared a water taxi with a couple from our flight to our hotel. Our view from our hotel was amazing! Opening the window in the morning to boat traffic rather than car traffic was surreal. The central square - St Marks Square where you will often hear street musicians is beautiful to have breakfast or an al fresco vino. Of course, after our morning at the square we went on a gondola ride around the canals. Later we enjoyed dinner on the canals edge next to Rialto bridge and watched the passing gondola's, we actually got talking with two lovely American couples while at dinner who asked if we was enjoying our honeymoon (obviously looked young and in love in the floating city)!
Metropolitan City of Florence
Visit the capital of Italy's Tuscany region, home to many masterpieces of renaissance art and architecture. Florence is such a lovely city to walk round with something new to see round every corner! We would recommend spending an afternoon taking a walk across the 'Ponte Vecchio' jewellery bridge and up to 'Piazzale Michelangelo' where Michelangelo's "David" sculpture can be found and you will be rewarded with a stunning view of the city of Florence (as pictured). We also spent an afternoon visiting the central markets for great local and fresh produce (we enjoyed freshly prepared seafood for lunch and bought fresh strawberries to wonder round the outdoor clothing market with). There are two separate markets; an indoor market, known as the 'Mercato Centrale', or Central Market, home to all things food and the outdoor section that lines the surroundings streets of the large Mercato Centrale building, selling leather and clothing.
Pisa
Once a maritime power to rival Genoa and Venice, modern Pisa is best known for an architectural project gone terribly wrong. But the world-famous Leaning Tower is just one of many noteworthy sights in this compelling city. Education has fueled the local economy since the 1400s, and students from across Italy compete for places in its elite university. This endows the center of town with a vibrant cafe and bar scene, balancing an enviable portfolio of well-maintained Romanesque buildings, Gothic churches and Renaissance piazzas with a lively street life dominated by locals rather than tourists – a charm you will definitely not discover if you restrict your visit to Piazza dei Miracoli. We visited Pisa on a day trip to see the famous tower and took that all-important touristy photo holding up the tower!
Siena
Spend a day exploring the medieval city of Siena! Grab an aperol spritz or ice cream in the central square 'Piazza del Campo' where the 'Palio di Siena' horse race takes place twice a year. We took a walking tour with a local guide and it was definitely worth our while to hear the interesting history of this city and the Palio di Siena. If you are coming over before the wedding you could even try to get a ticket for the world-famous race which is taking place on July 2nd 2024 however, if not, we would recommend avoiding this area during the day of the race as it is extremely busy!!
San Gimignano
San Gimignano, a small walled village about halfway between Florence and Siena, is famous for its fascinating medieval architecture and towers that rise above of all the other buildings, offering an impressive view of the city from the surrounding valley. At the height of its glory, San Gimignano's patrician families had built around 72 tower-houses as symbols of their wealth and power. Although only 14 have survived, San Gimignano still retains its feudal atmosphere and appearance. Recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1990, San Gimignano offers visitors the chance to step back in time while enjoying its local products including saffron and its white wine, the 'Vernaccia di San Gimignano'. Another tourist hot-spot here is 'Gelateria Dondoli' a world-champion ice cream shop that is certainly worth a visit should you have a sweet tooth!
Rome
As far as popular Italian cities go, Rome is definitely at the top of everyone's list. Providing a heady mix of haunting ruins, awe-inspiring art and vibrant street life, Italy's hot-blooded capital is one of the world's most romantic and charismatic cities too. On our travels here, we visited all the must-go hotspots - which included the Trevi Fountain, Colosseum, Roman Forum and the Vatican City & Gardens.
Vatican City Relais
Why not visit the smallest country in the world and tick that off your bucket list?? The Vatican City is a must see when visiting Rome. We would absolutely recommend taking a guided tour of the Vatican city to understand all its history. Seeing inside the St Peters Basilica and the beautiful Sistine chapel ceiling painted by Michelangelo was definitely a highlight of this day trip.