Mini Travel Guides

An hour from Palermo, sits Castel De Tusa. Along the coast (a tiny walk from the train station) is Atelier Sul Mare, the most wonderful hotel I’ve ever had the pleasure of staying in and it has to be one of the best hotels in Sicily. I’m still sad that I ever had to leave. If they’d had wi-fi, I might had just moved in.

This Art Hotel is a little gem in a perfect landscape. The hotel is an art gallery of the very best kind, meaning that your hotel room is a piece of art in itself. And you can’t fail to be impressed by the fact your bathroom has a shower like a carwash, or that you’ve got a giant sculpture in your room. Or the door opens like a drawbridge (that was my favourite). There’s even a room that’s based on a camera shutter, with a balcony all around the outside. It’s utterly wonderful.

You pick the room you’d like to stay in on your first night, and then the next day? You move. And the next, and the next. This stops someone renting out one of the art rooms for their entire stay, and gives you an entirely different experience each night. Of course, you can’t guarantee that every single room will be free (getting an early start will help that), but all of the rooms have something special about them.

Then there’s the restaurant. Overlooking the bay, I literally sat there for hours. Mostly because the beer was cheap and my boyfriend’s flight had been delayed, but honestly, I don’t think I’d have moved anywhere. Warm, peaceful, and utterly beautiful. Why would I want to go anywhere else? That said, unless you’ve hired a car (it was with said boyfriend), you can’t really go anywhere. There’s a very small strip of restaurants, but you either need to hop on the train or drive around.

And you should drive around, because there are about 20 sculptures dotted around the local area as well. You’ll need a few hours and a map to find them all, but it’s a lovely drive and you’ll see some stunning countryside. Make sure you pop into the gallery in the hotel too. Or, find yourself ‘borrowing’ on of their arty plates when your boy sneaks breakfast into the hotel room. Ahem.

The downsides to the hotel? Well, there might be a little beach, but it isn’t sandy. Which is a shame. But it’s yours. And so tiny you’ll probably only have to share with three other people. I learnt to swim in that sea, I didn’t really care about sand. And the hotel is pretty old, so it’s rough around the edges. One of the hotel rooms needed some serious work doing to it. And don’t, whatever you do, go for dinner at the restaurant right at the end of the bay. Not if you want your evening ruined by bad service and awful food. Luckily the service and food and the hotel is excellent.

And as prices for an art room tend to come it less than €100 (and much less if you go off peak), I can forgive them their downfalls. I adore it here. I want to stay in every single room. This is a really special hotel and I don’t think I could take another trip to Sicily without coming back to the Atelier Sul Mare . In fact, I might just go and check out the flight prices to Palermo now.

Atelier Sul Mare, Sicily’s Art Hotel

Browse through our Europe travel tips to find the best places to visit in Europe. Content published on Europe a la Carte.

Venice is one of those Europe destinations that nearly every tourist wants to head to, and usually I try to avoid these places – but Venice is special. My most recent trip to this beautiful city was just for a long weekend and I almost left without taking the obligatory Venice gondola trip.

No gondola ride in Venice? It’s a sin! Initially I thought I would try and skip what I saw as a tourist trap, but then as I walked alongside the canals of Venice and saw people floating along in shiny black gondolas I started to get jealous. That’s why I spent a Sunday morning down in front of Piazza San Marco asking around for prices. It was pretty early in the morning and few tourists were around, so a number of the gondoliers were standing around with nothing to do.

Prices varied dramatically at this time of day but eventually an entrepreneurial gondolier offered my friend and I a forty-five minute ride for 60 Euros, much less than half the price most of them were quoting. It was well worth it – one of those experiences you reminisce about later. Basically, I’d say if you want your Venice gondola ride, go for it. My Europe travel tip is to try to avoid peak tourist times and be prepared to haggle to get the lowest price.  But don’t miss out on one of the best things to do in Venice.

If you’re planning a trip to Venice,  use the price comparison search box below to find the best price for your accommodation in Venice.

Touristy Venice gondola trips still a must for me

Browse through our Europe travel tips to find the best places to visit in Europe. Content published on Europe a la Carte.

Day 59
I’ve never felt more a part of Italy, which makes for a sad goodbye. Spending so much time in its mountains (even shaping them with my own hands!) and all the people I’ve met over the last two months of travel—these are things I’ll never forget. Georgeta Perhald, Sommelier and Manager of PR for Rocca delle Macíe winery, spoke of how Italy changed her life, and how she could see it changing mine. “You cannot help it,” she said. “You stop thinking about what you put on the outside of your body, and begin thinking about what you put inside.”

Italy changes you. Witnessing such ancient traditions as the trulli, meeting smiling Italians who, as part of their culture, say hello and goodbye every time they enter and exit a store or café, walking among buffalo and tasting cheese only a few minutes old. The senses are heightened by the influx of carefully prepared dishes composed of carefully produced ingredients.

Suddenly, a 25-euro bistecca fiorentina seems more important than a new pair of sunglasses. The array of powerful flavors and aromas is so intoxicating that you forget to do what makes sense and begin to just do what you enjoy. You do it for no other reason than because you want to, as Armando, of Il Parma Delizie Alimentari, might say .

I’ve been able to watch the terrain change region by region, from the bottom to the top of Italy—from Puglia to Veneto—and I’ve seen a plethora of unique cuisines and landscapes. Every 30 miles brings a new Italy, with different traditions; different mountains, islands, or beaches; different wines made with different native grapes. Italians are proud of their regions, and even if one or two try to chase you off their property with a pitchfork , most will take the time to share some secrets. Massimo Criscio knows this, and shares his knowledge.

To know one region of Italy is not to know Italy. You must dig deeper. You must visit the small towns in the quieter regions. Then you will begin to see Italy as a whole.

I’m at that point in a trip, only two days from its end, when every bone in my body aches for extra time. I hold each breath of Italian air a moment longer, hoping to incorporate it into my body. I watch Kristin packing her backpack, carefully wrapping the bottle of ’98 Brunello di Montalcino so that it won’t break in transit.

Tomorrow we’ll catch a train to Naples, where we will spend two nights before boarding a plane for JFK International Airport. Direct flights run between Naples and New York City during the summer months, and Meridiana Airlines offers some of the best deals.

We’ll say goodbye to the friends we made at Italy Farm Stay and to Antonello Siragusa and his family, and then we’ll say goodbye to all of Italy. But all of the people I met—Italian, American, Romanian, German, etc.—all of their words and smiles will remain. Life is beautiful, and as Giuseppe Siragusa says ” Don’t make problems.”

I’d like to thank everyone who accompanied me on this journey. I’ll continue to publish articles on EuropeUpClose.com, so always feel free to contact me with questions in regard to your own travel plans. Until then, so long from Italy From Bottom to Top.

Written by and photos by Mattie Bamman for EuropeUpClose.com

Finding a good place to swim in the crystal-clear waters of the Gargano peninsula in Italy’s Puglia region isn’t difficult. The region, which forms the spur of the Italian boot,  has kilometers and kilometers of wide, sandy beaches that are easily accessible.

But my European travel tip this week is to seek out the best Puglia beaches amongst the wilder coves, cut into the stunning white cliffs of the Gargano coastline. These are located between the pretty town of Vieste and southward towards the town of Mattinata.

To reach these beaches, you must park your car along the road and walk down a trail – be sure to have decent walking shoes on hand – in order to reach these pretty pebble beaches.  It’s well worth the effort. Here are some of the best:

Campi

This pebble beach is located south of Vieste, just after the Felipe coastal tower, and in front of a small island with the same name.

The waves are gentle and the water clear. The trail is quite short and most of it is gentle, only the last section along the rocks is a bit slippery. Unlike most of the beaches in this area, this beach does have a snack bar and  a restaurant, so you can purchase snacks and beverages there.

Cala della pergola

This is the easiest beach to reach, with a driving path that leads you almost up to the beach.

The beach itself is very tiny and can fill up quickly on weekends. Nevertheless, it’s nestled in a  pretty spot along the rocks. There are no bathrooms or snack bars on this beach. Bring your own water.

Porto Greco

This is my favourite beach in the area and it also takes the most effort to reach, down a fairly long trail. But you’ll be happy to have made the effort.

This pebble beach is surrounded by dramatic white cliffs, boulders and lush green Mediterranean pines. The water is an inviting clear blue and it’s a pleasure to swim in this beautiful spot. There are no facilities here, so bring along any provisions.

The widest selection of hotels close to these beaches in Vieste, you can search for the best prices at Vieste Hotels using the price comparison search box below.

The best beaches in the Gargano Penisula, Puglia, Italy

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Follow me as I journey from the southern tip of Italy’s Puglia region all the way up to the Trento Alps. I’ll be focusing on budget-friendly travel, and I’ll rarely use a car. Along the way I’ll sample traditional foods, visit lesser-known ruins and cities, sample excellent wines, and visit local cooking schools, the entire two months living out of a backpack…

Day #48
The view from the patio of the Palazzo Tour d’Eau in Abruzzo is beyond words. When I asked Massimo Criscio, owner and director of Abruzzo Cibus Culinary Tours, for directions, he said they weren’t necessary: “We are at the highest spot in town.” The panoramic view from the town of Carunchio reveals the beauty of this undervalued region. Many of the surrounding hills are topped with a tiny town. These towns are compact, and the populations—composed of families, which have lived here for generations—are around 700. Cascading grapevines and bales of hay that turn to gold at sunset adorn the unpopulated hills.

Perhaps the geography is the reason the region has remained so pristine: You simply cannot do anything in a hurry. To get anywhere, you have to drive down from one hilltop, then up to the next. I realize that, at this point, I’ve rented more cars than I initially said I would. Budget travel usually doesn’t include car rentals, but some regions in Italy simply aren’t easy to access by public transportation. For the most part, Abruzzo is one such region. This car cost 43 euros a day through Atlas Choice , an online car rental agency that offers some of the best prices around.

Before arriving at the Palazzo Tour d’Eau, where I’ll be staying for the next few days (cooking classes included—I hope you’re getting excited!), Kristin and I spent the day in the Abruzzo, Lazio, and Molise National Park. The park is a short hour away from Rome, and known for its skiing and hiking, but after a restless night on the night train from Verona, we opted for a picnic and a nap on the mountainous slopes.

Getting to the park by car is easy. From Rome, take the A1 east, then take the Frosinone exit. I drove from Frosinone on the SR156 to Sora, then took SS666 into the park. I was pretty excited to see the mark of the beast running right through the center of Italy. If I’d had an Iron Maiden CD, you know we would have listened to it. Well, I would have. Kristin would have jumped out of the car for a local truffle sampling.

As soon as we hit SS666, advertisements for specialty food stores and farm stands popped up, featuring the area’s local summer truffles. Glimpses of the park from afar revealed snowy peaks and bald slopes covered with mountain flowers, as well as a few herds of pure white cows. Were they Chianina cows? I began to feel slightly better about missing out on the Alps. Picnic spots jumped out everywhere, and we ate with an expansive view. Afterward, we took a much-needed two-hour nap on the grassy hillside.
The Abruzzo, Lazio, and Molise National Park is free to enter. It’s full of tall pine trees, and hiking trails are accessible all along the road. The town of Opi is located in the very center of the park. It’s built on a knife-edge of rock and surrounded by vast, spring-green fields. To glimpse it between the pine trees is a surreal experience: like walking into a scene from Lord of the Rings. We walked though the town, lingered for a view of the mountains through a picturesque portico, then headed to Carunchio and Palazzo Tour d’Eau. Tonight, the palace’s chef, Dino Paganelli (who, like me, has a degree in philosophy), is preparing a five-course meal featuring the area’s local summer truffles, which will be served fresh. Tomorrow is an exciting day, jam-packed with a trip to a cheese factory and a cooking class. I hope to get some good sleep tonight.

Written by and photos by Mattie Bamman for EuropeUpClose.com

Otranto, the picturesque Adriatic town in Italy’s Salento region, is so beautiful and peaceful, that it seems hard to believe this was once the site of the gruesome “Sack of Otranto”.  Luckily for today’s tourists, Ottoman invasions are no longer a threat to this tranquil coastline.

Lovely Otranto – my European travel tip this week – with its whitewashed buildings, winding streets and sparkling blue water, today plays host to tourists seeking sun, sea, excellent food and wine and beautiful art and architecture.

Photo courtesy www.viaggioadriatico.it

Charming streets and piazze are abundant in this tiny town in Puglia and, while the most beautiful beaches lie just to the south of town, visitors can also swim in the crystal-clear waters right off the picturesque town walls.

The 12^th century cathedral is the top Otranto attractions. The cathedral’s simple exterior of local stone changes colour with the changing light throughout the day.

Not to be missed is the spectacular 12th century floor mosaic which occupies nearly the entire nave. Visitors should take their time to examine the lovely, intricate designs, including an image of  “Rex Arturis”.

Image courtesy V&A online journal (http://www.vam.ac.uk/images/image/62268-popup.html)

The cathedral also houses a gruesome reminder of the famous “Sack of Otranto” of 1480, back when the town was an important outpost in the Byzantine Empire. Modern Italy’s coastline once lived in constant fear of Ottoman invasions. Most of Otranto’s population died in the famous siege of  July 1480. To the 800 townspeople who survived, the Ottomans offered the option of conversion in exchange for their lives. Down to the last man, woman and child, they refused and the martyrs’ bones are still prominently displayed in cases in the cathedral.

Photo courtesty steynian.files.wordpress.com

Otranto is a fantastic European destination and should certainly be on your itinerary on any trip to the Salento.

Other beautiful, nearby destinations are Gallipoli and, if you are headed farther north, the town of Trani and Vieste .

You can find the lowest rates at Otranto hotels using the price comparison search box below.

Otranto, Puglia – The sleepy seaside town with a bloody past

Browse through our Europe travel tips to find the best places to visit in Europe. Content published on Europe a la Carte.

The small city of Tivoli to the west of Rome, once an important stop on the “Grand Tour” of Europe,  is today a bedroom community of Rome, yet it still maintains its distinct character. It makes a wonderful Rome day trip, either by car or with frequent trains leaving from Rome’s Tiburtina train station.

My European travel tip this week is to visit Tivoli to see the Renaissance Villa d’Este and its spectacular Italian garden and water fountains.

The villa and its gardens were completed in 1549 by Cardinal Hippolyte d’Este, son of Lucrezia Borgia and grandson of the infamous and universally feared Pope Alessandro VI.

This villa and its frescoes are beautiful, but it is the villa’s lovely Italian garden and its numerous, whimsical water fountains that has made this such a popular destination for visitors over the past centuries.

The garden and water fountains were designed by Pirro Ligorio, who would later go on to construct the Monster Park of Bomarzo. In many of the sculptures, visitors can catch a hint of the strange creatures Ligorio would later create in the Monster Park.

The park is filled with fountains, waterfalls, pools and wonderfully refreshing caves. Visitors should leave adequate time to wander the extensive paths and discover the hidden corners and fountains.

Take a break from your wandering at outside seats at the Villa’s cafeteria. In the evenings, there is a picturesque restaurant, with views out over the valley below.

The Villa d’Este is open Tuesday-Sunday from 8:30 am to one hour before sunset. Admission is 10 euro for adults; children are free.

I also recommend the beach resort of  Sperlonga as a Rome day trip.

Rome day trips: The Villa d’Este in Tivoli

Browse through our Europe travel tips to find the best places to visit in Europe. Content published on Europe a la Carte.

Follow me as I journey from the southern tip of Italy’s Puglia region all the way up to the Trento Alps. I’ll be focusing on budget-friendly travel, and I’ll rarely use a car. Along the way I’ll sample traditional foods, visit lesser-known ruins and cities, sample excellent wines, and visit local cooking schools, the entire two months living out of a backpack…

Day #41
To travel through Tuscany’s Chianti region is to visit the den of Bacchus (the god of wine and merriment) and forget about reality’s freeways and traffic jams. Its only a 45-minute drive once you get out of Florence, but first, you have to get out of Florence. I made the mistake of thinking that we should go and pick up the rental car (30 euros/day), then pick up our luggage from the hotel. This resulted in driving through Florence’s congested one-way streets for 1 ½ hours in order to get back to our hotel—which was a mile away. Many people believe that Rome and Naples are the worst cities in Italy to drive in, but Florence is definitely at the top of my list.

Taking the dips and turns of Chianti roads is very similar to driving in California. Locals often joke that the windy roads were designed for driving under the influence. I drove straight—straight to Greve in Chianti. This centrally located town often has an open-air market, but it wasn’t open. I headed for the tourist office and arrived just before it closed for the afternoon. Tourist offices in Tuscany are much like tourist offices in Puglia when it comes to helping visitors taste wines. They don’t have maps or lists of the wineries that offer tastings (although the tourist office in Gaiole di Chianti is quite helpful). Luckily, the countryside is absolutely full of wineries and signs that advertise wine tastings. Not two minutes outside of Greve on SP222 we came across Casaloste Winery, which turned out to offer some of the best wines I’ve tasted so far on this trip.

Like most tastings not booked in advance, this one was free. The tastings in Chianti that cost money usually have two characteristics: 1) they are located inside of castles, and 2) they require reservations and an obligatory winery tour. I’ve toured at least a hundred wineries, and I don’t usually like to take tours unless they include in depth information on a winemaker’s technical approach to wine. However, if you want to save yourself time (in other words, if you don’t want to drive around getting lost on dirt roads) making reservations is the way to go. Me, I like to get lost.

And we did. After one minute of driving on Chianti’s steep, pothole-ridden dirt roads, visitors know that they’re getting a unique experience. It makes for a great adventure that ensures you’ll be even happier when you reach the winery at the end.
Today we tasted at eight wineries. The standouts were the little Pruneto winery and the Il Molino di Grace winery. I visited Pruneto in 2007 when I was just beginning to get into wine. When I tasted today, I was happy to confirm that my taste buds were on the right track: the wines were expressive of their creators, Giuseppe and Riccardo Lanza: nicely rustic and dry, yet a little fruity. The winery Il Molino di Grace likes to release their wines late, so, unlike most tasting rooms, which are featuring wines from 2006, theirs is featuring 2005 wines. The good years in Chianti during the past decade are 2004, 2006, and 2007. 2005 is noted as a dull year, but Il Molino di Grace has managed to make unique wines with good character from that year. They appealed to my Californian senses with big dark fruit and a clean finish.

Right now I’m sitting beside a lake in San Cipirano at Hotel del Lago (56 euro/night). The grounds of this hotel are immaculately cared for and the rooms are elegant, if small. I decided to stay here because of the beautiful lake and good reviews on Trip Advisor. However, there’s a pink elephant in the room that no one wants to talk about. Less than a mile away is a giant electrical plant that looks just like a nuclear power plant. Driving in, I couldn’t believe my eyes. The plant cannot be seen from the hotel, but its presence is unforgettable. On one hand, the hotel is beautiful, located on a lake, has a decent price, and serves a decent breakfast. On the other, it’s beside an electrical plant, and the majority of Chianti’s wineries are a 40-minute drive away. The hotel is really only a good option for highly budget-minded travelers.

That doesn’t mean that I’m not going to enjoy this bottle of Casaloste’s 2005 Chianti Classico, the deep silence broken only by frogs croaking, ducks diving, and swans sliding across the night lake.

Written by Mattie Bamman for EuropeUpClose.com

After years of living in Italy, I can honestly say that it is filled with some of the best European destinations. My tip this week  is the lovely, perched seaside town of Vieste, located in the Gargano peninsula (the spur of the Italian boot) in the region of Puglia.  It’s an ideal location for an Italian holiday by the coast as there are plenty of things to do in Vieste and the surrounding area. If you travel outside high season, you can find some good deals at Vieste hotels.

The area has ancient origins, evidenced by the 3rd century tombs and Ancient Greek vases discovered around the town. The town and the entire coastline suffered numerous attacks by Saracen and Ottoman invaders in the 16^th and 17^th centuries. Dotting the coastline are the impressive watchtowers, which once served to warn the population of invaders arriving by sea.

More recently, this little fishing village has developed as a popular tourist site. Vieste is a wonderful holiday spot. The town itself is filled with picturesque streets and lovely views over the sea.

There are many restaurants in the old town center and a colourful daily market off of Via dei XXIV maggio, in the new town. Stock up on the fresh pasta, local cheeses, wines, olive oil, fresh olives and peperoncino.

Vieste serves as a wonderful base for exploring the interesting Gargano region, with its beautiful Umbra Forest, the Gargano National Park, pretty coastal towns, dramatic coastlines, long stretches of sandy beaches and wonderful coves with pebble beaches, carved into the white cliffs.

There’s also a colourful local legend about the creation of the Pizzomunno rock formation, located on the long sandy beach just at the edge of Vieste. Long ago, a poor fisherman named Pizzomunno lived in the village and he and a local girl, Cristalda, were deeply  in love.

Pizzomunno was extremely handsome and each day the sirens would follow his fishing boat and try to capture his heart, but the faithful Pizzomunno was never tempted. One evening, as the young couple watched the sunset from the Vieste  beach, the jealous sirens snatched Cristalda from her beloved and dragged her down to the depths of the sea.

The next morning, the local fisherman found a white rock formation on the beach and they knew it was Pizzomunno, who had been petrified by his overwhelming grief and chose to stand silent watch on the beach where he had lost his Cristalda. Legend has it that every one hundred years, Cristalda returns from the depths of the ocean to be reunited – just for one night- with her Pizzomunno.

Perhaps Cristalda’s return will coincide with your visit to this beautiful town. Be sure to keep your eyes peeled and you might catch a glimpse of the innamorati in this spectacular Italian seaside destination.

If you are looking for other things to do in Puglia, consider visiting the towns of Gallipoli and Trani.

You can find the best deals at Vieste hotels using the search box below.

Vengeful sirens and star-crossed lovers in Vieste, Puglia, Italy

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The beautiful Tremiti islands (Isole Tremiti) lay 22 kilometers off the Gargano peninsula of Puglia, in the Adriatic Sea. A visit to these lovely islands – offering history, nature, sunshine and sparkling blue waters, all within a national marine park – is my Europe travel tip this week.

San Nicola Island is the historic, religious and administrative center of the archipelago.  It is here that the spectacular abbey-fortress was built, in the 14^th century and expanded upon during its golden age in the 16^th century.

This island serves as the port for the archipelago and arrival by sea to San Nicola is dramatic, as its imposing fortress looms into view. In 1567, tiny San Nicola even managed to thwart an Ottoman attack on the island.

The island fortress passed to the Bourbons in 1737 and eventually became a penal colony.

Today, the San Nicola abbey-fortress attracts numerous visitors, eager to explore its ramparts and glimpse the dramatic views to the tempting turquoise waters below.

Taxi boats ferry visitor to the neighbouring San Domino island. San Domino is much larger (2600 meters long and 1100 meters wide) and lusher. The island is covered with beautiful Aleppo pine trees. Its rocky coastline is dotted with dramatic grottoes and beaches, some of which can be reached by steep paths and others only by boat.

The island has one sandy beach, located just opposite San Nicola island, with stunning views over the abbey-fortress from the crystal-clear waters. All hotels and tourist facilities are located on San Domino.

The uninhabited islands of Capraia and Cretaccio complete the archipelago.

The Tremiti islands can be reached by boat from the Gargano peninsula, including Vieste , or from Termoli, in Molise. There is also a helicopter connection from Foggia.

This is a wonderful destination for a daytrip, or – better yet- a relaxing extended holiday.

Get away from it all in the Tremiti Islands, Puglia, Italy

Browse through our Europe travel tips to find the best places to visit in Europe. Content published on Europe a la Carte.