04/06/2026
5 big mistakes to avoid when you come to Italy:
1. Over-scheduling your days.
Plan only one big event like the colosseum or the Vatican in one day, then have some smaller things up your sleeve that you can visit if you have time and are not too exhausted, plus block free time for just wandering and enjoying.
2. Packing the wrong shoes.
Italy is all walking, all day.
Make sure you pack the right shoes, opting for function over fashion.
You’ll be walking on cobblestones and uneven flagstones and even the flat towns have uneven and hilly streets. Your shoes will make or break your trip.
3. Overpacking.
Don’t pack too much. Create a capsule wardrobe with intermixing pieces to create tons of outfits. Traveling with too much luggage or too heavy luggage is a night mare in Europe.
4. Only hanging out in the super touristy areas.
That’s where you’ll be constantly surrounded by crowds and pickpockets. Do a little research (read my Glam Italia travel guide books) and experience the equally fantastic sites that are literally just around the corner from the tour-bus favorites but have hardly anyone there.
5. Eating in tourist joints. You didn’t fly all the way to Italy to eat over-priced, sub-standard food!
Don’t eat near any of the big attractions. These places have crappy food catering to mass-tourism folk who’ll get back on their bus and never come back.
Instead go a couple of streets back from the crowds and look for smaller mom & pop eateries full of Italians.
If there are pictures on the menu and multiple languages, just keep walking.
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