Have any of you travellers taken kids to Italy before? Ours are 6 and 8. We have a trip planned this September and I'm starting to get nervous about how this is going to turn out! We will be in Tuscany, Pompeii/Naples and Rome. Any "Travel Italy with kids" tips would be really appreciated! Thanks!

Alicia
Tivoli is a spectacular day trip out of Rome. Florence is my absolute favourite--so walkable and so beautiful, I've been over a dozen times and there's always new treasures to discover. Naples is not my favourite and feels a bit sketchy, I'd imagine worse with kids.

I can't wait to go to Florence! I was thinking the same thing about Naples, wasn't really into it, but my husband is pizza crazy and "needs" to visit some centuries old pizza place. So we won't stay there but will visit for an afternoon. Thank you!

That's awesome! We had people shooting up (heroin?) like half a block from our otherwise nice airbnb, tons of needles and whippets in the streets and saw at least 3 muggings/purse snatchings. Plus there was tons of garbage, but this was like 2009, it was enough to put me off it for good.

oh shoot! I had Naples mixed up!! I was thinking of Sorrento!! Scratch that... I haven't spent time in Naples

We flew into Naples, but immediately bussed to Sorrento. LOVE Sorrento!

Lindsay Sorrento is gorgeous!!! I totally agree!

haha! There we go... now it all makes sense

Just came back from 8 days in Italy around Tuscany and Venice. Had a fabulous time with a 10, 13 and 15 yr old. So yours are a bit younger but we managed really well w an airbnb that had a pool, frequent gelato breaks and lots of stops to look at souvenirs that we normally wouldn't have.. They did really well even with the heat in end of July. Pack a refillable water bottle.. Cities had lots of fountains with potable water and buying new gets expensive. Plan that in cities you will have to find public restrooms that all cost a small fee so having some change In euros. Venice was great too.. lots to look at and lots of boat rides. If you go that way there was a great beach town I would have loved to stay longer in called Caorle.

Woo hoo! This gives me hope
our accommodations in Tuscany are likely quite similar. Thank you!

Vanessa Kids enjoyed Florence and Sienna (book ahead if you want to climb the dome.. we didn't) as lots to see just walking around, pizza was always a safe bet for picky eaters and one pizza (7-9 euro for cheese pizza) easily will fee 2 kids, good walking shoes, and amazing ice cream. San Giminiano was a hidden gem for us.. beautiful, slightly less touristy and smaller and amazing leather goods if you like that. Have a fabulous time!.

Thank you Allyson!! This is what I want to hear! Great info!

Also, in Rome take a moment and ride the pink hop on/hop off bus. It does a circle and shows you where are the "hot" spots are. You'll quickly see that everything is close and easy to get to, and where you want to go most. Then the map they give you is great for finding things later. If your kids are into archaeology at all, try and hit the Capuchin Crypt Museum where the artwork is made of bones. I was there last summer and the Spanish Steps were closed for renovations, so check beforehand if they're opened so you don't waste time going there if they're not.

Thanks so much for taking the time to share this info! We pre-booked tickets for hop on hop off so I'm glad to hear you felt it was a must. My kids would prob think the Crypt museum is very cool, we've done a lot of research but hadn't even heard of it.

Vanessa Lol, I'm a bone geek. I went with my friend and told her I would only let her drag me through the Vatican if we went to the catacombs under it and then the bone museum. Oh, and make sure to cover up if you go to the Vatican. No bare shoulders.

That sounds like a fair trade!

I was in Italy late last August. I don't have kids, but hopefully this helps. Rome was great to get around, should be fairly easy with kids. Pack water bottles as the free public fountains are some of the best water I've had. I'm not sure if they're off because of the drought though. Our favorite was a boat shaped fountain by the Spanish steps. You step down onto a sort of Lily pad in the fountain to fill your water bottle from a spout by the boat. Pompeii was neat, but I imagine it would be tough with kids and was exhausting for us. The train can get very packed. It really is like walking around a maze in a giant clay oven. It is hard to navigate with minimal signage and it is HOT. The frozen orange juice the vendors sell outside the gates is the best orange juice I've ever had though.

Really helpful info, thank you!

Lots of drinking required but be prepared to spend 1-2 euros for public washrooms.

Good to know! We'll need lots of change

Went with my two kids, then ages 10 and 12, to Rome, Tuscany, Venice, Lake Como. It was great. In Rome, I recommend the ecocity tour (http://angeltours.eu/rome/eco-city-tour )on go carts...you see a lot and the kids don't get super tired. Well worth it, then pick and choose the must see points for you. For us, it was the Colosseum and forum (we purchased passes ahead of time) and the Vatican City. Everything else is walkable and an adventure. Take water bottles, you can fill them everywhere! Don't bother trying to go for dinner before 8 pm, hardly anything will be open for dinner. The streets will come alive after then. Use offline maps on your phone if you can, just try not to flaunt it. Most little places have washrooms you can use if you purchase something (water, snack).
ANGELTOURS.EU
Angel Tours - Eco City Tour, Electric Car, Clean Energy

Thank you for the info! Feeling a lot more confident about this trip

Vanessa Adri that's a good point. In Arezzo we had a hard time finding a restaurant that opened before 7 pm. However in bigger cities such as Florence it wasn't a problem. Only other feedback is grocery stores don't have the same hours as here. Oh and my kids found the milk tasted off for them but no issues with yoghurt, cheese or ice cream.

Yeah, I think there were two types of milk if I recall. I think we bought the fresca? It's the closest to our milk.

I took my 3 year old back in APRIL ! Italians love kids. WE WALKED and trained everywhere/ with a stroller. Was fantastic - A bit challenging to see museums but we took it easy and explored many places, Pompeii/ Sorrento, Rome, Florence and Venice. Buy tickets in advise for museums....etc...

Fantastic!! So glad to hear this was your experience! Thanks.

I agree.. I took me son to Italy including rome by myself when he was four.. No issues at all.

If you have to pick between the two, go to Herculaneum over Pompeii. It's smaller, but we found it more interesting and Pompeii had much of it blocked off because of excavating and reconstruction. Also, spend the extra and hire a guide, it makes it way more fun and informative.

Will for sure look into Herculaneum! We had planned to hire a guide and had heard this was the best way to do it. Did you hire your guide at the site? Or did you arrange beforehand? Did you visit Vesuvius as well? Thanks!

There are guides waiting right by the ticket booth at Herculaneum. You buy your tickets and then turn right and they'll be standing there. As well, you can buy tickets for all (I think) the attractions at once for a lesser price. They last a couple of days so you don't have to rush. We didn't visit Vesuvius as we only had two days in that area. I was with a group of Anthropologists so the actual mountain didn't appeal to us.

Italians are extremely friendly and family oriented so you shouldn't have a had time with them. It's all cobblestone though, I recommend good walking shoes for everyone as a must. Cobblestone is also deathly for suitcases but I managed with mine. Public transportation is great almost everywhere you go and walking if a whole adventure on its own! (Especially rome. Wander around rome if you can!)

Thanks for the tips Van!

My cousin just came back from Italy. They said what saved them was alternating days with hotel/swimming pool and sight seeing. Their kids are 3/7. I would agree same for your age group - playgrounds, soraypark, ice cream, beach, swimming.

Yes that's a good strategy, gotta manage our expectations! Glad they enjoyed it! Thanks

Looks like you're getting lots of great advice!
My husband and I took our daughter to Italy for a couple weeks last summer. She was 6&1/2 at the time. We had an AMAZING trip! My daughter loved it there
Lots of tasty kid-friendly foods. Very nice people. We mostly stayed away from the big cities... visited the Amalfi coast, Florence, The Cinque Terre & Venice. I'm sure your trip will be fantastic too! Enjoy :))

I'm encouraged by the comments and info! Glad to hear you had such a positive experience too! Thanks!

We backpacked for 2 months with our 4 kids when they were ages 4-9. It was amazing! We visited Rome, Milan, Venice, Pisa, Florence, Cinque Terre, Sestri Levante, and Bologna. The kids are going to love it! It's the land of pizza and gelato (and for the adults cappuccinos), and we had loads of it there!! So when we found the kids starting to get tired during our long walks, we stopped for a gelato treat
. The country is dripping with educational adventures for your kids: the history and the beauty of the country will astound you. I second the water bottle tip for sure. I loved buying books for souvenirs for the kids at the gift shops we visited (eg. Science and art books in Florence, books about the Coliseum in Rome). They were perfect for reading on long train rides and really established what they learned about the places they visited. Also, to put your mind at ease, the Italians love children and are very family oriented, so we found them to be very helpful and kind to family travellers. Bon Voyage!

Awesome! I am really getting excited now! Thanks for sharing

Join the Family Can Travel Facebook group. People from all over the world who travel with children. Loads of advice there from real people about everything travel related.

Awesome! Just did that! Thanks!

My suggestion is to buy ROMA Card in Rome. It allows you to skip lines (for example in Colosseum )

We were wondering if we should, good to know! Thanks!

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