Where I’ve Gone / Stayed On My Italian Trip (July 2022). The Pros and The Cons!

I’ve spent the last 3 weeks travelling Italy solo (apart from one stop) and I’ve had the time of my life (so much so that I cancelled my flight home and extended to stay another week in Rome!!!).

After receiving so many messages from you on instagram asking where I was staying - I thought I would share it all with you here!

Firstly, an important thing to consider here is that I booked all of this pretty last minute.

So, I’m sure there are PLENTY of other amazing places that could even be better but I was still extremely happy with every place (except for Milan) and hope you find this useful!

I will share where I stayed, along with the pros and cons of each place and area!

Stop 1 - Rome!

Where I stayed: Lifestyle Suites

Location: On Piazza Navona

Length of time: 5 days

Pros:

The view was breathtaking – a 10/10.
The room was also incredible, having a bath, plenty of wardrobe room, a robe, slippers, a super comfortable bed and the most beautiful, quiet rooftop. It was truly a dream to stay there.
Location wise – this was EVERYTHING I wanted and more. This area is surrounded by buzzing restaurants and pretty streets, which was perfect for being alone. So many spots to settle, sip on a spritz and people watch.
5 days was also a great amount of time to be able to see the sights but also not feel rushed to do so. You get time to just explore aimlessly, take time at lunch and take it all in. In fact – this wasn’t long enough for me because I just fell in love with the city and I decided to end my trip with it again!

Cons:

Super expensive – it was worth it for the location, room and view for sure. BUT, if I were to go again, I know that I would be able to find an airbnb that is just as nice (if not better, as they’re bigger than a hotel room!). I purely booked a hotel because I thought that it would feel more like a hotel... ie have a welcoming, vibey lobby, more people around etc to make me feel not so alone travelling. But, in fact, it sort of felt more like a serviced apartment.
However… after a day, I quickly realised that I wouldn’t even want to sit in a lobby or anything because I wanted to experience the city! But still, I could have stayed in a place that was still 5 stars for a bit less... just a thought to consider! You always pay more when it’s a hotel.

Stop 2 - Bergeggi (where I met my friend, Steph)

Where I stayed: An airbnb (link here)

Location: Bergeggi (on one of the highest hills) - it’s a small town so the whole town is similar

Length of time: 4 nights / 4.5 days

Pros:

The view was breathtaking – a 10/10 again.
The apartment was better than pictured in photos on the airbnb sight!! We both had our own big, modern bathrooms. I had a huge room upstairs. It was so spacious. For an italian building (which are usually so old), we were super impressed.
The town was extremely quiet and peaceful - with not many ‘have-to’ things to do. Meaning (for us) it was a great opportunity to work & relax.
It was also a great amount of time

Cons:

It was super quiet. It felt like a total, local, Italian holiday destination and there were no other tourists in site. I’m sure it would be packed in August in their holiday month. I’m only putting this as a con because you might want to be somewhere that has more buzz and vibe around at the beach clubs and restaurants. We liked it because we wanted to relax after both being in cities prior and focus more on work and relaxing!
I wasn’t a huge fan of the food compared to all of the other places I’ve been!

Stop 3 - Milan (which was VERY short lived…)

Where I stayed: An airbnb

Length of time: 22 hours (I was meant to stay for 3 nights but after arrival I quickly changed my plans to go to Verona)

Pros:

Hardly anything to be honest. I ticked the Duomo off the list though and at least I know that I don’t want to go back now – it’s not for me!

Cons:

SUPER busy - like CRAZY on all the touristy streets where you want to go visit the sites
You don’t get those old, beautiful, vibey, authentic feeling streets like you do in Rome – and that’s what I wanted. Feels much more like a big, industrial city.

I have to say though, I’m sure I would have had a better experience if I researched the exact area / street to stay on. This was the only place that I got the location wrong - and location is everything! However, I still walked to some of the best streets and wasn’t as impressed as Rome, at all. It’s certainly different!

Stop 4 - Verona!

Where I stayed: An airbnb (link here)

Location: Just off Piazza delle Erbe

Length of time: 2 nights (only because it was last minute decision to leave Milan and come here!)

Pros:

The apartment was literally in the BEST location, right in the centre of all the boutique shops and lots of restaurants
The apartment was super affordable compared to the rest of the places I was at - especially considering that it was in the best location! I was shocked! It was also spacey, comfortable, very clean, modern bathroom, walk in wardrobe…!
I fell in LOVE with the city. I thought I couldn’t love anything more than Rome, but Verona is like all the best streets in Rome combined in to one city - it’s amazing.
Cons:
Not enough time! I mean, if you’re someone who wants to only see the sights and rush - you can absolutely do this in 2 days. If I knew I was coming here (and it wasn’t a last minute decision to leave Milan), I would absolutely book at least 4 nights. I will be back!!
I’m sure I could have booked an even better airbnb (because I booked this one the day before so options were limited…). It was great - but it didn’t have as many windows as I’d like. The bedroom had no window and the one in the living room you had to lean out to see the view. BUT - it was totally fine anyway because of my short length of stay.. because I never wanted to be home! I Wanted to explore as much as I could.

Stop 5 - Lake Garda!

Where I stayed: Lefay Resort

Location: Gargnano (but up the very very top of the hill, so about a 20 min drive from town)

Length of time: 4 nights

Pros:

The view was breathtaking AGAIN – a 10/10.
The room was also incredible - having a bath, a walk in wardrobe, robe, slippers, a large marble bathroom, super comfortable bed and living area - it was amazing.
Location wise – it was exactly what I needed! It’s far from the town, but the hotel is so nice that you just want to stay there anyway.
There were a couple of cheap, amazing, authentic restaurants within walking distance.
Beautiful views and walks through the mountain with breathtaking views.
4 days was also a great amount of time, just enough to be able to relax.

Cons:

It’s an expensive place to stay at (but can see why when you’re here - you get what you pay for). BUT, the restaurant and spa services were just too ridiculous in my eyes (for my personal budget). I love spending money on food and self care… but massages starting at $250 and meals starting at $50 is beyond me!
Like I said with Bergeggi, it’s more of a quiet vibe. So, if thats what you’re after (which I was - to work and relax), then that’s great. If you’re looking for more things to do, with vibey bars close etc - it wouldn’t be your place.

Stop 6 - Back to Rome!

I just spent one weekend at this first place below and then, moved to another because I spontaneously decided to extend my trip and stay another week to work and immerse myself even more in this amazing city. And, this first place wasn’t available for longer - otherwise I would have stayed put! It was AMAZING.