Published on Thursday, May 12, 2016 by Kathy McCabe If your Italian travel plans include Venice this summer, be aware that your wait for a classic vaporetto (water bus) ride may be longer than you expect. As reported in The Local, Venetian authorities have authorized residents to board first. Starting in June, at eight water bus stops (including Canal Grande, Santa Chiara, Santa Lucia e Rialto, San Marco, Lido, Mura...

Published on Monday, January 25, 2016 by Kathy McCabe Carnevale in Venice is Italy’s biggest party. Alive with the revelry of costumed partygoers enjoying centuries-old traditions, during Carnevale, La Serenissima (the Most Serene) is anything but. This year, the festivities stretch from Jan. 23 to Feb. 9, Shrove Tuesday. Like all other times of the year, the famous and beautiful St. Mark’s Square is the cente...

Published on Sunday, February 22, 2015 by Kathy McCabe Gazing at the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel or admiring Leonardo’s The Last Supper are must-sees, but Italy also has plenty of other ways to engage your sense of sight. Don’t neglect outdoor vistas, especially the ones here: We know you probably have a few favorites, but if you haven’t seen all of the views on our list, you haven’t seen everything. 1. Villa...

Published on Wednesday, February 11, 2015 by Kathy McCabe Let's face it, ALL of Italy is romantic. But in honor of Valentine's Day, here are five great spots to celebrate romance! 1.  A gondola ride in Venice At the top of every hopeless romantic’s bucket list is a private gondola ride through the canals of one of Italy’s most beautiful cities. As the gondola floats through the peaceful waterways and the gondolier ...

Published on Monday, February 9, 2015 by Kathy McCabe The Italy Mix is a weekly post about the most interesting Italy and Italy travel news and human interest stories around the Web. Here are our top picks for this week: Guide to Carnevale 2015:  Venice is the places to be through February 17th. Learn how to make the best of a visit - from where to get the best masks to how to find the best parties . (The Telegraph...

Published on Thursday, January 8, 2015 by Kathy McCabe Landing in Rome and traveling directly to Florence and Venice, just got a whole lot easier with trains running a new route from Rome’s Fiumicino airport to Venice. Two trains a day – at 11:08 a.m. and 3:08 p.m. from Rome, and 5:40 a.m. and 9:25 a.m. from Venice – travel along the route, which ends in Venice and stops in Florence, Bologna, Padua and central Rome�...

Published on Saturday, November 15, 2014 by Kathy McCabe Excellent design features in every aspect of Italian life, from furniture to automobiles to eyeglass frames to grocery packaging. Of course bookstores in our favorite country are well designed—and often also extremely beautiful. This list is of the most visually arresting stores. They aren’t necessarily the ones in which you’ll find titles in English (but isn’...

Published on Wednesday, November 12, 2014 by Kathy McCabe Say “Clooney effect,” and many people will think of George himself, and go weak in the knees. But the sexy actor has had an equally strong impact on Venetian tourism. After his September nuptials with Amal Alamuddin (now proudly “Amal Clooney”), The Daily Mail reported that UK travel searches to the city known as La Serenissima went up by more than 100%. Bu...

Published on Monday, October 27, 2014 by Kathy McCabe The Italy Mix is a weekly post about the most interesting Italy and Italy travel news and human interest stories around the Web.  Here are our top picks for this week: Swiss Guards Launch Cookbook: Sure they guard the Pope, but did you know that they can cook too? It includes the favorite recipes of Pope Benedict and Pope Francis.  (Wanted in Rome) Sparkling ...

Published on Sunday, October 5, 2014 by Kathy McCabe The Italy Mix is a weekly post about the most interesting Italy and Italy travel news and human interest stories around the Web.  Here are our top picks for this week: Rowing in Venice: “There is no better way to connect with Venice than with an oar and discovering the original way of life that so few sustain,” says Nan McElroy.  (The New York Times) Rom...