Rick Steves's Blog, page 26

Buongiorno! I’m in Milan, doing research for the next edition of my Rick Steves Italy guidebook. I’m here with local guide Sara Cerri — and today, we visited the city’s massive cathedral.

Climbing through the forest of lovingly-decorated spires atop the Duomo, Sara reminded me that each flower and saint’s face we saw is an individual work of art, carved out of marble 500 years ago for the rooftop of this great cathedral — and left here by artists who believed that the public would never see i...

With the help of my friend Marco, I’ve discovered a wonderful new restaurant in Monterosso. The owner, Elisa, makes all the cakes they serve — and we got them all.

Here’s how I wrote up L’Osteria for the next edition of my Rick Steves Italy guidebook:

[$$] L’Osteria is a delightful little family-run place serving “cuisine with passion” at wonderful prices. Allesandro thoughtfully explains your options, and Elisa is understandably proud of her cakes. Their Possa wine, from vineyards close to...

I’m in Monterosso, in the Cinque Terre — and Father Renato just found me visiting a cemetery. He said he needed to talk to me about taking something out of my guidebook, and then he took me into his monastery for some homemade limoncello.

Capuchin friars are Franciscans — the “Jugglers of God” — and they like Lutherans (like me).

Join me for a quiet moment high above the port towns of the Cinque Terre. I’m enjoying a hike with local guide Marco Brizzi — and taking in a thousand years of heritage. We’ve dropped by a church that was built to serve the farming community that once lived up here, far from the coast, because they were afraid of Turkish pirates.

There are no crowds here, high above all the people complaining about crowds. With a good guidebook, you can find a local guide, ride a little bus to the top — and...

Meet Andrea, the entertaining waiter at Vernazza’s Ristorante Belforte. I’m here with my new friends from New Hampshire and Boston, having a great time in the Cinque Terre.

To get to the most out of your stay here, don’t just come for the day, as many travelers do. Instead, spend the night — and spend some money at a top restaurant like this one. I love family-run, personality-driven places like this, where I’m greeted by the same waitstaff year after year.

I’m in Riomaggiore, enjoying a simple lunch of bruschetta and wine at Dau Cila with my local guide, Amy Inman. This fine restaurant follows a “zero-kilometer” ethic, keeping everything — wine, oil, anchovies, basil — very local.

Listen in as Ferdinando gives us a little cooking lesson for pesto. I love visiting my favorite places and seeing the younger generation taking the reins and keeping up high standards.

I’ve come back to Europe every spring since the 1970s — and I love that here we are, in 2019, and the magic still survives.

Join me now for a thoughtful walk through Vernazza after dinner, when it’s quiet and empty. This is the busiest time of year in the Cinque Terre, but after hours it’s all mine. (Many travelers, ironically trying to avoid the crowds, “side-trip” to the Cinque Terre for the day, before heading back to Florence or their cruise ships at dinnertime. To really enjoy this place...

Buona sera from Lucca! I’m at the Piazza dell’Anfiteatro — a beautiful square that’s actually not square at all. This is the “Place of the Amphitheater,” a round piazza that echoes the Roman arena that stood here 2,000 years ago. I’m here with Chiara and Luca, two guides from Bikes and Bites food tours — and we’re discussing the very modern phenomenon of Airbnb.

All over Europe, you can see the impact that Airbnb has had on historic neighborhoods like this one. As an advocate for travelers,...

Buona sera from Siena. I’m here with Anna Piperato, a Rick Steves Italy guide — and it’s just so good to be here. I love this city and its gorgeous red-brick square, Il Campo.

Join us now as we consider the concept of “campanilismo” — the home-sweet-home spirit of local patriotism that makes the sound of your town’s bell tower the most beautiful sound of all.

While most Italian cities have a church on their main square, Siena’s Il Campo gathers around a symbol of an independent republic — its City Hall.

I’m here with my friend and guide, Anna Piperato, getting inspired by the Sienese commitment to good government. This message from the 1300s seems like it was addressed to us in 2019.