Cycle touring Italy - Any wisdom to share?

[humankeith]

Good evening all,

I'm off to cycle Lucca to Rome next month. Very excited as it's my first abroad cycle tour.

I was wondering whether anyone had any wisdom to share on Italy, for example shop opening hours, whether villages usually have drinking fountains, whether shops or cafés are common in towns and villages, any customs etc.?

Many thanks!

[MrsHJ]

I’d recommend the Italy cycling guide written by a member here.

https://italy-cycling-guide.info/

As for cycling in Italy I did it for the first time in April/May this year. Good ice cream, mixed cycle facilities. Mixed on drinking fountains, I usually shop in the morning (ingrained after many years cycle touring in France) or at my evening resting place but I think the shops closed for a long lunch. Make sure you have roaming and use google maps for shops but pretty reliably in small towns- not so much in villages. I did some very rough gravel roads. Quite a lot more unpaved than I expected. But that was better than some of the faster roads. Generally very enjoyable though. I used Duolingo before I went to improve my Italian.

I'd suggest making sure you have enough food and water eg from a small supermarket/bakery by midday to get you through the hot part of the afternoon ie til about 4pm (for me that's usually around the end of the day and can be the hottest time). Obviously if you're planning on restaurant lunching in a nice town then no need to worry but if you are thinking of picnicking and there are no towns coming up soon plan ahead a bit. Also there weren't many appealing picnicking spots on the routes I was on but lots of small towns and villages with a shady bench that did the job nicely.

[MarcusT]

Small towns in Italy mean 3,000 inhabitants or less. If bigger, will have all services. The larger chain supermarkets are mostly open all day and many times, Sunday. Restaurants usually open from 12:30-15:00 and 19:00- 22:00. Pizzerias; later. Monday/Tuesday are their usually rest days
Walking into to any bar, restaurant, small store, say Buon Giorno/ Buona sera as a courtesy. Silence by tourists may be interpreted as snobbishness, so don't be shy about talking.
As long as a water fountain/tap does not have "non potabile" on it, the water is perfectly fine.
They know who the tourists are and understand the challenges, but you will run into a few impatient people.

[nirakaro]

Don't believe the myths about Italian drivers – they work to a different set of unwritten rules, but they're generally pretty cautious, and very considerate toward cyclists.
All rules can be considered as advisory – especially for cyclists. You can do what would be thought of as shocking misbehaviour in the UK, and nobody will bat an eyelid – they're used to it; this gets more true the further south you go.
If eating in restaurants, eat lunch at lunchtime, and dinner at dinnertime – the hours are quite tight. To eat well, avoid restaurants that have a menu in English. No need to tip – they don't expect it.
They'll really appreciate it if you have a few words of the language.

[Boring_Username]

To eat well, avoid restaurants that have a menu in English.

I did once regret this when I ordered lampredotto from a food stall.

[iandriver]

I cycled a couple of years ago from Pisa to Rome following the via francigena I don't recall any particular problems, but it's hot and very hilly. I always had plenty of supplies in board and lots of water. Some of the shrines on the pilgrim route had water taps, but generally found them few and far between. I didn't stumble across many fountains in villages and would certainly have taken advantage if I had. It's quite a we'll populated area, so you never do hours without a town. There was invariably a deli, cafe of supermarket open somewhere. It's a glorious journey, enjoy.

[Tiggertoo]

Cycling in the heat and water availability is always a main issue for me and whenever I can I plot ahead for outlets. I used to always carry a Camelback or similar design, but lately found them to be too constricting. One thing about them though is that one can tend to drink more often than with just bottles - which is a good thing.

[Sweep]

I'd get something like OSMand drawing on OSM/OCM and install on a tab or phone (I prefer a tab for the bigger picture) - in my opinion Italian maps tend to be pretty poor for cycling/walking needs.

[Sweep]

Carry a large empty plastic bottle for filling with wine from folks that sell it out of pumps. (no need to go in shops and then cart around big glass bottles). Cheaper from the pumps and often very good. Generally avoid any wine in shops that comes in cardboard cartons like milk cartons, handy as the packaging might seem.

caution - Italians can be very prissy about anything that looks remotely like drunkeness.

[Sweep]

On the water question, public water far easier to find in Italy than in the UK, even in the parched south.

I've even seen folks drive out of town with a car-boot full of jerry cans to collect water from their favoured magical source.

This app should prove useful.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/deta ... n_GB&gl=US

[MrsHJ]

I forgot to say-Italy doesn’t have the density of camping of some other areas so I presume you are staying at some b and bs/small hotels? So except in tourist areas Italian breakfast is not a thing and ranks at the bottom of my touring location breakfasts (Ireland is at the top). When touring I tend not to be in a tourist area every night which is good as you get to see more interesting areas but means that tourist facilities are sometimes lacking.

There were some occasional good ones or ones where lots of German tourists were around where there was a decent brekker. I’m not too concerned as I find the balance of a decent breakfast and a sensible time start can be a tricky one so I don’t mind stopping at a bakery and topping up later but if you need protein at breakfast you might want to think about a back up plan.

[mattheus]

...
b and bs/small hotels? So except in tourist areas Italian breakfast is not a thing and ranks at the bottom of my touring location breakfasts (Ireland is at the top).

Agreed - on both points!
Our italian rural B&B was very charming, but "breakfast" was an array of sweet sweet cakes laid out in their rather cramped family dining room!
(handy for snacks on the road later)

[Venice - on a trip without bikes - was totally different. Just like any modern european city-centre hotel, kind-of. Except less cars around ]

[humankeith]

I appreciate the replies, thank you so much. I've ordered some large water bottles to keep me topped up (I drink loads in the heat) and will make sure I have a decent amount of provisions to cover any quiet periods. I'm staying in small hotels and planning on leaving quite early each day to avoid the heat as much as possible and make each day quite relaxed. In terms of heat, I'm going in mid September, and following the Via Francigena which although hilly should be a bit cooler than now.

[aflook]

I agree with all the posters' points above!
You will have a great time. I cycled from Geneva to Etna a few years ago and if I did it again I would plan less mileage to allow for terrain and heat. I would also have fitted 35mm tyres not 32s and something more rugged than the Marathon Supremes (great though they are) - roads which start off asphalt often turn into something more like a farm track!
+1 for how considerate drivers are (usually) towards cyclists. Lost in Naples, drivers gave me plenty of room and let me pull out when I needed to. I found it useful to have a mirror. Decathlon do a reasdonable one.
Learning a little Italian is a great idea - I used "Teach Yourself Italian" c1983 (Abe books for a couple of quid).
I hope you won't need medical help but if you do the place to go is the "guardia medica" - a drop in service open overnight 8pm - 8am. I had to source a supply of insulin, see my thread
viewtopic.php?t=113485
Campsites all seemed to have some kind of disco or be within earshot of one - earplugs might be good!
I am VERY envious.
Buon viaggio!

[humankeith]

I agree with all the posters' points above!
You will have a great time. I cycled from Geneva to Etna a few years ago and if I did it again I would plan less mileage to allow for terrain and heat. I would also have fitted 35mm tyres not 32s and something more rugged than the Marathon Supremes (great though they are) - roads which start off asphalt often turn into something more like a farm track!
+1 for how considerate drivers are (usually) towards cyclists. Lost in Naples, drivers gave me plenty of room and let me pull out when I needed to. I found it useful to have a mirror. Decathlon do a reasdonable one.
Learning a little Italian is a great idea - I used "Teach Yourself Italian" c1983 (Abe books for a couple of quid).
I hope you won't need medical help but if you do the place to go is the "guardia medica" - a drop in service open overnight 8pm - 8am. I had to source a supply of insulin, see my thread
viewtopic.php?t=113485
Campsites all seemed to have some kind of disco or be within earshot of one - earplugs might be good!
I am VERY envious.
Buon viaggio!

Thanks so much! Can't wait.

I've just fitted some standard Marathons as the route takes in a real eclectic mix of roads from asphalt to quite rocky. I'll post some pics after!