Italy Travel Guide

This section is devoted to the where, when, and how of your trip -- the advance planning required to get it together and take it on the road. Because you might not know exactly where in Italy you want to go or what surrounds the major city you want to see, we'll start off with a quick rundown of the various regions.

Destination: Italy -- Red Alert Checklist

• Citizens of E.U. countries can cross into Italy for as long as they wish. Citizens of other countries must have a passport.

• If you purchased traveler's checks, have you recorded the check numbers and stored the documentation separately from the checks?

• Did you pack your camera, pack an extra set of camera batteries, and purchase enough film? If you packed film in your checked baggage, did you invest in protective pouches to shield film from airport X-rays?

• Do you have a safe, accessible place to store money?

• Did you bring your ID cards, such as AAA and AARP cards, student IDs, and so forth, that could entitle you to discounts?

• Did you bring emergency drug prescriptions and extra glasses and/or contact lenses?

• Do you have your PIN and credit card numbers?

• If you have an e-ticket, do you have documentation?

• Did you leave a copy of your itinerary with someone at home?

• Did you check to see if any travel advisories have been issued by the U.S. State Department (http://travel.state.gov) regarding your destination?

• Do you have the address and phone number of your country's embassy with you?

Before You Leave Home: Tickets & Seats in Advance -- Great to know about before you leave home is Culturalitaly.com (tel. 800/380-0014), a Los Angeles-based Web company specializing in Italy's high-end events, museum reservations, and tours. You get the best seats and reservations to everything from operatic performances at the ancient Baths of Caracalla in Rome to tickets for Venice carnival events, even the fabled Palio in Siena. With this service, you don't have to wait in line for the Uffizi in Florence or The Last Supper in Milan. Most reservations carry a $10 fee, plus the cost of the event.