5. Have cash ready anytime
This is a key aspect of visiting Italy that every tourist should be aware of. Italians just don’t like the plastic – be it a restaurant, a service point or a shop that isn’t part of a chain, you might find your card rejected, no matter the amount of the transaction. Just have some cash on you and you’ll see how easy it is to blend in with the crowd. At the same time, be careful of pickpockets – they usually hang out at train stations or incredibly crowded touristic places.
6. Expect your train to be late
It doesn’t matter if it’s the ultra-fast Freccia Rossa or the leisurely Regionale – it will either arrive late or depart late from the station. This goes especially for mornings, when the amount of trains that pass through main stations in Italian metropolias clearly surpass the abilities of those stations to manage them. For maximum certainty when traveling by train, I suggest the private high-quality operator called Italo – it has great service, information point at every central station and a ticket machine which is unoccupied most of the time.
7. Need anything, just go to the tabaccheria
If there’s something you need but have absolutely no idea where to get it, just got to a tabaccheria. You can buy here all kinds of tobacco products, but also stamps, lottery tickets, sweets and treats, drinks, transport passes, top-ups for your cell phone – you can even pay your bills there. There are not many things that a seasoned tabacchiere cannot do!
8. Be patient
Finally, just be patient. What would be a simple formality in your home country, in Italy might grow into a bureaucratic task of enormous proportions. Just chill out, have an afternoon espresso with a sweet snack and look around – you’re in Italy!
This article was shared by Torri Myler who works as a project manager at http://www.bankopening.co.uk/