Europe (Italy)
What was the duration of your trip? When did you go?
17 days. 27th February-15th March
How big was your group?
5
What was your budget per person? How much did it actually cost?
Budget: 2.5L, Actual cost: 1.5L
The Planning Phase:
How did you organize your trip? Was it self-planned or did you take the help of a 3rd party?
With a group of globe trotters, planning wasn’t a Gordian knot to unravel. We self-planned our 15 days of road trip and added details to each day- places to go, detours to take, servings to have, things to shop, clubs to hop, everything.
Could you walk us through the process of how you decided on your destination and planned the trip? What factors did you consider during the planning process?
Being an ICSE student, Rome (Hail, Julius Caesar!) had always topped my travel bucket list. Italy thus was a natural choice for our Grad-Trip. But when we started our research, we realized that Italy was so much more than the grandiose of Caesar alone and this helped us choose Italy to be the destination. Here are a few factors that we considered before finalizing the Grad-Trip destination:
1. Places to Visit:
a. Rome: Capital of the world
b. Milan: Fashion capital of the world
c. Venice: Need I say more?
d. Colosseum and leaning tower of Pisa: Wonders of the world
e. Blue grotto & the beaches of Amalfi
f. The volcano of Pompeii
g. Bologna
h. Naples
i. San Marino: The destination for Urban detox
j. Vatican city
k. Florence
l. Cinque Terre (Of course my favourite)
2. Treat to the taste-buds:
The country that engendered pizzas, pasta, ravioli, risottos, spaghetti, tortellini and to top it all gelatos. Italy is nothing short of a gourmet’s paradise.
3. Soothing road trips:
To us, the bunch of footloose travellers wanting to re-write Dil Chahta Hai and Zindagi Naa Milegi Dobara, the grad-trip was about shifting gears on most exquisite sights of the world and Italy was exactly that. From the valleys of bologna and the mountains of Amalfi to the waves of Naples. The Italian road trip was a ride along the gallimaufry of the marvels of nature, full of colours and potent enough to heal wounded souls
4. The “oomph” factor:
What’s a bachelor’s trip without some “fun”? and on that metric, Italy stands out. It has arguably the best clubs to party.
5. The people:
Italians are pure epicureans who believe in “eating, drinking, and merry-making”. It’s a country which abounds with happy souls who would buy you bus tickets, offer you drinks, randomly wave and wink at you. They will make you feel one amongst them and at home.
6. Time of the year:
March is typically the fiesta season for Italy when the entire country fleets to Venice dressed like royals for the Venetian carnival. It’s a fortnight full of fun and an experience you just can’t miss.
7. The Language:
While Italian is the native language of Italy, the country has a large enough populace of English speakers. The native language itself is so infectiously melodious that we learned some words and ended up inventing a few.
How long before the actual trip did you book the tickets?
3 months in advance (cost us 35K).
What were the considerations regarding ticket booking and visa(if any)?
Price was the major concern.
Which websites did you go through for guidance?
o https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/italy/itinerary
o https://www.lonelyplanet.com/articles/italys-six-best-road-trips
o https://www.eatingeurope.com/blog/italy-road-trip/
o https://hoppingmiles.com/italy-road-trip-itinerary-self-drive/
How did you decide on which accommodation to go for?
We needed a place that we could accommodate all 5 of us and would allow us to cook, play loud music, booze and be our boisterous self and to encompass all of these we zeroed down to booking lavish Air B&Bs wherever we went.
Any challenges you faced during the planning process?
The visa process was a challenge. One of us got the Visa clearance on the last day.
Any other tips which we should keep in mind while planning for this destination?
o Travel light (very important)
o Carry some Indian ready to cook food and snacks
o Sunscreen and shades are a must for day travels
o Download Rick Steves’ app on your phone
The Trip
Could you share with us your itinerary of the trip (where did you stay-accommodation, what all places you visited, major attractions of the place, major expenses involved in accommodation, travel, food)
Day 1: Milan - The one at the Fashion capital of the world. From mounting exquisite churches to hopping clubs and shopping brands, Milan was just a dream come true.
Day2: Train Journey to Venice.The one at the Venetian carnival. Attended the annual Venetian carnival during the day and street partied with random bunch of strangers all night.
Day 3: Rowing the oar down the streams of Venice.
Day 4 & 5: Bologna - The one where we treated our taste buds If you equate Italy to food, Bologna is the place to be.
Road Trip Begins; Vehicle (Jeep Compass)
Day 6: San Marino - The one where we cooked our food, chilled, played with pet dogs, got happy high. San Marino was the Detox destination.
Day 7 & 8: Florence - The one where we soaked ourselves in culture and history. The paintings, the sculptures, the stories, the fables. Florence was all about living history for real.
Day 9: Le Spezia - The one where we savoured Gelatos
Day 10: Cinque Terre - The one where we were spellbound. Trekking up the terrain of Cinque Terre and discovering the unparalleled marvel of nature where the sea and mountain met each other to leave all spectators speechless.
Day 11: Pisa - The one when we posed with the leaning tower.
Day 11.5: Prato Del Mare - Detox day 2.0.
Day 12: Amalfi Coast and Positano - The one where we tasted wine in its real form
Day 13: Capri islands & Blue Grotto - The one with the cruise tour and the fancy ferry ride
Day 13.5: Pompeii - The one amidst the remnants of the catastrophic eruption of Mount Vesuvius
Day 14-16: Rome - The one at the capital of the world
Day 17: Vatican City - The one where they healed their souls at the St. Peter’s Basilica
That’s it, Italy will get you everything else laced with love and served in an accent sweeter than ever
About the Author
Pratik is an ardent aspiring marketing strategist. His passion for marketing multiplied multifold post his internship with Unilever, where he was conferred with a PPO. Bitten by the entrepreneurial bug & seized by afflatus to read, write & explore, this twenty-something believes in the power of dreaming with his eyes open. He is a columnist in various newsletters and is up for any discussion that involves the nuances of marketing and strategy. Having completed his MBA from IIM Lucknow Pratik is currently working as a consultant at the Boston Consulting Group.
Special thanks to Oculus, the Travel & Adventure Club of IIM Lucknow
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