Italy tour ..we don't have enough cash?

[LaDolceVitafor200]

Afternoon!

I have been reading alot of holiday threads here recently which has prompted my own dilemma

Me and friend booked a very cheap Italy tour for 9 days 8 nights leaving next week. It's staying in 4 different Italian cities in basic B and B accommodation, local taxes and breakfast not included. B and B are all outside main towns we are visiting so an hour's travel.

We also have to pay for transport from airport each way , tour is self guided and just includes flights, coach transfers between 4 different cities and B and B

My friend is taking 200 euros and says she won't spend more, I'm getting worried this won't be enough, we also have to pay B and B local taxes etc

AIBU to tell her we both will need more cash , or has anyone been to Italy and found it cheap?!

Even without the travel and taxes she's looking at £22 a day. How is she planning on feeding herself?

Yeah, 22euro a day is nowhere near enough. That'll be swallowed up by lunchtime, once you've paid for breakfast, transport to wherever you're going that day, maybe entry to an attraction, a coffee/ice-cream, a few bottles of water, it'll be gone.

Sorry 22 euros not £22 pounds.

Uhh the menu del dia is a Spanish thing (cue is in the language).

You might get a menu turistico in Italy or a cheap fixed lunch deal in some places. I doubt it will be 9 euros in places like Rome or Milan though.

You could get a bakery meal deal for that price (they are really common in France - not aure if they are as common in Italy) you usually get a drink, filled baguette or salad and pastry/cake for about 8 euros.

Hi, we are not really in Milan, but near, as our flights home are from there

Milan B and an B is near a place called Desenzano del Garda , apparently it's near the lakes

Desenzano is beautiful and a tourist hot spot. You're nearer Verona than Milan (direct train to Verona) It's on Lake Garda.
It's not cheap as it's a tourist/package tour hotspot, but you're going in low season, so you might get a set menu deal. It won't be €9 though.

She just totally underestimated the costs in Italy, to be fair I wasn't much better

After reading alot of comments on this thread from people more familiar with Italy we are taking alot more cash and will also be mindful that it's expensive

For anyone tempted, if you Google cheap 8 night Italy tour they are still selling them, but looks like 499 now

Be aware that flights are budget, hand kuggage only and at unsociable times!

If you're intending to go to Milan from Desenzano, then you should start thinking about tickets now, the slow regional train takes 90 minutes and the prices for those won't go up. About 10-15 euro.
The fast Freccia trains will go up in price the nearer you get. Currently showing about €30 and takes about an hour.

I’d be inclined to take a good book with you because if you don’t pay for her and you don’t want to have a bag of crisps and an apple for dinner each night, you’re going to be doing quite a few things on your own. Is she prepared for this? Or is she expecting you to stay with her?

Also, are you prepared for her to have spent all her money on food halfway through the trip, leaving you to pay for local taxes and expenses?

Can she change the dates to give her longer to save?

There's currently an offer on Trenitalia (download the app- also in English) where you can get cheaper tickets on the fast trains if there are 2 of you.

If anyone wants details I can PM them the website we used and the tour operator it turned out to be from

Desenzano to Verona is just half an hour and about €5.

Exactly this, better for Verona than Gioto tbh! We found it pretty £££ to eat out a few years back. Milan is still quite a trek away and your route would probably go via Verona. Were you hoping to visit the city? The airport is outside it. What order is your tour?

Does hand luggage mean under the seat or in the overhead locker? There's a big difference in price these days

Look at the Rome to Rio app. It will give you the travel options & costs from wherever you are staying into the cities you are visiting.

Your friend's budget definitely isn't big enough & very unrealistic. If you still want to go you need to decide exactly how much to sub her and if it's a loan exactly how she will repay it before you leave. Any way she get a loan from her family perhaps so it's not a source of tension on your hols?!

Ah forget that - seen your update re: vouchers I thought the transport into the cities wasn't included.

You need more money if you plan to
do anything besides eat snacks
from the grocery store and just sit at your accommodation. We’ve been in Italy for the last two weeks, mainly self catering and driving our own car. I think we’ve spent about 200/day, not including lodging and transport. We’re a family of 5, so it’s a bit cheaper as the kids don’t pay to use some kinds of public transport or enter certain attractions, and they eat less than adults. We are pretty frugal though, in that we cook for ourselves several times/week, have cereal for breakfast, etc. I’d say you need maybe 75-100/day to be able to enjoy things like entrance to museums or archaeological sites, a glass of wine when you get tired and hot from walking around, dinner out, a ferry ticket to Capri, etc. It’s not a cheap country, and they are drowning in overtourism, so they can and do overcharge in certain hotspots.

We land in Rome, 2 nights, then to Venice, then to Verona, then to Milan, and fly back from Milan, 2 nights in each place

It means under the seat in front, not overhead!

Oo they're only little. Highly recommend packing cubes you can fit loads in

Hi, we have something called flexi bus vouchers from city to city, but not for city to B and B if that makes sense

No vouchers for travel from Rome airport to place we are staying ( flight lands at midnight approx) and no vouchers to get from place near Milan to Milan airport

So only really one day in each? You could pack a picnic for each of your travel days. Does your route from Rome to Venice not pass through Verona?

No vouchers for travel from Rome airport to place we are staying ( flight lands at midnight approx)

Have they advised on how to get to your B&B. Will you have to pay for a taxi?

Honestly, no idea, flexi bus vouchers show us the stop we need to be at, and where to get off