TRAVELING ABROAD DURING A PANDEMIC
I never thought in a MILLION years that I would travel abroad during the COVID pandemic. It wasn’t something that was on my mind, but it happened. My sister-in-law had a dream of getting married in Italy and who would say no to that?! In my eyes the biggest hurdle during this whole process was COVID and the worry of what would go wrong, along with the thousands of what ifs.
The Planning
So, you know how there is a lot to plan for traveling in general? Let alone traveling abroad? Okay, cool. So during the pandemic it’s 10x that normal amount. It wasn’t that terrible, but it took way more thought than you normal would imagine.
We luckily got tickets fairly easy to get over into Europe, but that was the first of many problems (don’t worry I’ll spill the dets in a bit). We chose DELTA airlines to fly with because of their Delta American Express. Both my husband and I have their card and LOVE it. The rewards are awesome and we finally were able to use it for our trip. Unfortunately, DELTA, like many other airlines, experienced numerous issues with their flights being cancelled or other unforeseen inconveniences that we had to go through. For example, they triple booked our flights, cancelled our flights, gave my husband and I different confirmation codes/tickets, and then ended up cancelling our flight 3 days before we were suppose to leave! Blah. I really hate complaining about this stuff, but you should be aware that this is happening everywhere and a LOT of people had issues getting over to Italy, not just us. So with all that lovely information here are my suggestions:
Pack your bag a WEEK early. Yea I know, you think I’m nuts. At least, my husband sure thought I was! When we found out on Friday, that our Sunday flight was cancelled and we could rebook on a flight for Saturday instead, I wasn’t honestly too worried because my whole entire suitcase was packed (minus a couple things that I needed the day of travel). Yet, my husband was a different story. He didn’t pack anything on that Friday yet and was panicking during work to attempt to get laundry finished in time for our flight on Saturday! So, seriously… please pack early.
Get at home COVID tests for travel. Oh my god. These things were an absolute LIFE SAVER. My sister-in-law suggested them and they were well worth the money. If you go to emed.com, they have some different options, but I purchased a 6 pack of the BinaxNow Antigen COVID Test. They were literally the best purchase I made the whole trip. Not only were we able to take them whenever we wanted before we left, we were able to take them in our hotel room in Italy with no problem. The whole process literally took 20 minutes. We didn’t have to find a testing facility in Italy that we were unfamiliar with and got the results ASAP. The results were uploaded to your phone and sent via email. Literally, so easy and helped ease my mind when traveling during the pandemic. I also brought with 2 extra’s just in case one didn’t work or they were invalid. I HIGHLY recommend this option if you are traveling abroad!
Plan for the unknown. This is obviously very difficult to do, since you know, you don’t know the circumstances! But be prepared that you may be stuck in your location due to a positive COVID test. Ask the hotel about accommodations and look into travel insurance!
Travel Must Haves. Don’t forget to check out my other blog post, “Top 12 Travel Must Haves” to get prepared properly for your trip!!
When in Italy
I’m not gonna lie, I was super nervous to travel. There were SO many what if’s, but it was WELL worth it! My husband and I traveled to Florence, Italy and later on to Siena, Italy. Let me tell you… while it was still busy because #cities, it really wasn’t overwhelming at all. We visited the Pitti Palace, Santa Croce, Duomo, Uffizi, and the Academia. All of these places were DEAD. Seriously. Like we got SO many amazing opportunities that we would have never experienced! It was truly unbelievable and I feel so lucky to have been able to do this. If you choose to travel to Florence, here is some advice I have for you:
Bring your vaccination card with you EVERYWHERE. In order to eat indoors or go into any of the museums you need to show the attendants you vaccination card or the “green pass.” They will not let you in unless you have had a negative COVID test. We had no issues with this anywhere in Florence and got into wherever we wanted to go. If you are looking for a passport/credit card/vaccination card holder check out this one from Amazon. It was awesome to have because I always had my documents on me at all times.
Get tour tickets or timed tickets for the ultimate experience. If you happen to go into Florence and it is busy in the museums or major attractions I highly, highly recommend getting a tour guide or a timed ticket for entry. You could easily get tickets when you are there, but it was SO much easier to get them in advanced. Plus, the tour guides gave some AMAZING history about the city and the Medici family (what can I say, I’m a history nut). If we would’ve gone by ourselves, I would have never known all the facts that were given during our tours. It is well worth the $$.
ENJOY YOURSELF! Let me tell you… I hadn’t been on a trip with just myself and my husband in so many years. It was the best to just do whatever WE wanted to do without the kids dictating our every move. While I would’ve loved to take the kids with us, it was a much needed break that helped us feel more connected than ever. We ate amazing food, walked in every place in the city, and sat down to enjoy a bottle of Vino, because why not? Some of my favorite moments were simply getting lost within the winding streets and soaking up every small moment.
If you find yourself venturing out to Florence, here are some amazing spots to go:
Pitti Palace & Boboli Gardens
Santa Croce
Duomo
The Uffizi
The Academia
Ponte Vecchio
Piazzale Michelangelo (hill with panoramic views of the city)
All of these places are a quick walk to one another, the entire city is walkable and easy to maneuver around. We ended up picking a spot south of the Arlo River, which was perfect! It was quiet and way less touristy than if you were on the north side. We stayed at a beautiful Spa, Ponte Vecchio Suites and Spa and loved every minute of it. We were roughly a 2 minute walk away from Ponte Vecchio and the Pitti Palace, about a 10 minute walk away from the Duomo, Santa Croce, and the Uffizi. Just remember, they do require you to show your vaccination card at all locations in order to access the museums and attractions.
If you are anything like me, I am obsessed with finding food that the locals adore and in Florence there is an endless amount! These were our top restaurants in Florence:
Gustapizza. Ugh I would do anything to have this pizza back in my life. It’s all made to order and while their menu is small, the pizza’s DO NOT disappoint. We visited this place more than once :) *Get a pizza to go and sit in the square right around the corner for people watching!
La Trattoria La Casalinga. Right next to Gustapizza is an amazing local, authentic restaurant that does NOT disappoint. They have amazing pasta’s, cheese & meat boards, and the famous Florentine Steak. If you want to eat like a local go here!
Osteria Santo Spirito. Another small restaurant that the locals are obsessed with. We ended up eating outside overlooking the square. They have a beautiful set up and even better food. I ended up with their Risotto with Zucchini and it was out of this world! My husband ended up with their clams with fresh made spaghetti, which was the best we’ve ever experienced! They are super big portions, so I would suggest splitting it up. Some other favorites of our group was the salad (HUGE and super fresh), Truffle Gnocchi, and Tortellini with Walnut Sauce.
Trattoria de’ Pitti. Food with a view. What a little gem of a restaurant! This was our first stop when we got to Florence and was not our last. We ended up sitting outside overlooking the Pitti Palace. They had a wide variety of choices of fresh pastas. Our favorites included the Gnocchi with red sauce, Carbonara, Pappardelle with Duck Ragu, and the homemade lasagna. Everything was delicious and the atmosphere was even better.
Ditta Artigianale Caffe. Guys. This. coffee. is. amazing. If you go to Florence you HAVE to stop by this coffee shop. It isn’t your typical coffee shop in Florence, and that’s the best part. It’s super modern, has a fun flare to it, and the coffee/pastries/food is to DIE FOR! We legit went to this place every single morning. You think I’m joking… no really. Every. Morning. My go to was the cappuccino and croissants. You can get to go coffees here, but don’t be that typical tourist. Sit down and enjoy! This restaurant has an amazing little courtyard in the back to sit and enjoy during the quiet morning hours. *Fun fact- this coffee shop was featured on Giada’s blog (the famous chef), which I didn’t realize until after our trip!
Enoteca Pitti Gola e Cantina. Ahhh, wine with a view! This was another frequent stop during our time in Florence, right in front of the Pitti Palace. A tiny wine bar that had everything you could possibly imagine. My husband and I both did a wine flight, ranging from 3-4 nicely poured glasses of wine. The waitress was great and gave us some fantastic stories about the wine, along with some advice while we were in Florence. If you choose to do a wine flight, they bring out some delicious snacks, but don’t worry you can also order off a menu as well. If you want to sit outside in view of the Pitti, I recommend making reservations! It was the place to be.
Signorvino. We stopped at Signorvino for a light lunch before yet another museum tour. Not only do they have great options like fresh salads, carbonara, fresh pastas, and more, but they are also a wine store. You can enjoy a bottle of wine and they will provide a snack tray for you as well. Now, if we are talking about a view, this is the place. Try to get reservations to sit out on the deck. You will be directly over the Arlo River and gazing into the center of the Ponte Vecchio. It was simply breathtaking!
Bar Pizzeria Galleria. Our hotel was located a couple streets off of the one that leads you to the Pitti and Ponte Vecchio. I love exploring and I found this quiet street that connected everything. There happened to be several shops and restaurants on this street, so we stopped at one to test it out. We stopped for lunch and had some freshly made pizza’s (napoleon style), a fresh salad to go with it, and obviously a bottle of wine. I loved the atmosphere and the food was great!
Gelateria Santa Trinita. UGH. I should’ve stopped at this place every day. The gelato is to die for here. They have so many flavors to choose from that it’s hard to pick, so believe me, go back more than once :) Some of our favorites were the lemon and raspberry (gotta try it together!!), along with the chocolate and cookies (again, do it together). They were creamy and heavenly. Take your gelato outside, turn left and go on the river, do it at night, and you will get a breathtaking view of the Ponte Vecchio.
Honestly, you probably could go just about anywhere in Florence and enjoy the food. Ever since we’ve been back home, I’ve been dreaming of the pastas, salads, wine, gelato, and all the other goodies we got to enjoy.
God I want to go back so bad. Really, I thought that traveling during the pandemic would’ve been horrible, but in reality it wasn’t bad at all and we had some opportunities that would have NEVER happened if we hadn’t gone. While, there are some additional steps you have to take to get to your destination, once you are there it is well worth it.
If you’re on the fence to travel during the pandemic, I say go for it!