You Might Call Naples “Trashy,” This Week At Least

An escalating trash crisis in Naples that has left the city in almost unlivable conditions since Monday. “Doctors described the situation as “dramatic” and warned that the city faced a health emergency,” according to a report from Italian news agency ANSA. Locals are fed up with the mountains of trash that have been piling up on the streets in and …

How I Realized My “Dream of Italy”

As editor and publisher of Dream of Italy, I write about so many topics related to Italian travel, but what I haven’t written about much as how I ended up with this “dream” job in the first place. It is often the first question people ask when I meet them at a conference or cocktail party. I haven’t had the …

Venice May Be Drowning in Tourism

Would Venice still be one of the world’s hottest tourist attractions if there were no Venetians left in the city? This question is a serious one given the alarming rate of decline in the local population. This article in The Times (London) highlights the urgency of this situation and even illustrates the matter by comparing past and present population statistics: …

Searching for Heavenly Hotel Rates in Italy?

Would you consider renting a hotel room…from a nun? More and more people are turning to convents as a more affordable way to get some shut-eye in the Eternal City, not to mention the warm hospitality, clean, private bathrooms and serenity that is conducive even to praying. Although this trend started in 2000 when 25 million tourists and pilgrims visited …

Florence Nixes Calcio Storico This June

Every June, Florence engages in a city-wide historic soccer (calcio storico) tournament, which rivals even the pomp and ceremony of Siena’s Palio, but this year’s tournament has been called off due to increasing violence surrounding the event. The historic game of calcio storico is a predecessor to modern soccer and combines elements of soccer, rugby, “Greco-Roman wrestling” and “bare-knuckle fighting.” …

Umbria Hotel Review: Relais Alla Corte del Sole

(An excerpt from theApril 2007 issue of Dream of Italy.) Relais Alla Corte del Sole is one of the four charming Umbria hotels reviewed in this issue by Rosanne Cofoid: Well, if George Clooney stayed here, it’s good enough for just about anyone. The romantic 18-room Relais began its life as a 13th-century monastery that belonged to the order of …

The Two Sides of Capri

Tuesday, May 1 is a holiday in Italy thus providing Italians with a four-day weekend and it seems everyone is seeking out the sun, sand and the start of summer. This weekend is something like the equivalent of our Memorial Day Weekend. Striving to “do as the Italians do,” I headed to the Amalfi Coast and yesterday spent the day …

Ciao d’Abruzzo

Your friendly editor has been out of touch as she has been touring the region of Abruzzo as part of a special symposium for American tour operators, travel agents and journalists. An exhausting but rewarding experience. I took this photo from the fortress in the town of Civitella on a beautiful Sunday afternoon. More details as I have time to …

Tips for Finding Kid-Friendly Accommodations in Italy

Updated 2018. I know many of you are taking your children or grandchildren to Italy this summer. Sometimes it can be hard to figure out which hotels or villas will be kid-friendly. Amie O’Shaughnessy, founder of Ciao Bambino!, the first-ever international association of vacation properties for families, shares her list of must-haves. According to Amie,”First, its physical construction and amenities, …

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