Travelling to Italy Mid-End of May

[Vollmer8134]

I wanted to start a thread to see if people could help answer some of the questions I have while planning out this trip.

One question I have now is how difficult is it to find a cheap place to stay once you actually get there and are ready to check in? I am wondering for both Hostels and Hotels.

I plan on visiting Rome, Naples, Capri, Siena, Florence, Pisa, Cinque Terre, Lake Como, and Venice.

[NeverAtHome]

You can always find a place to stay when you arrive, but you have to be flexible with your demands and the price if you are going to book last minute. Keep in mind that May is peak season for almost every city you are visiting. Most places fill up in advance. Plus you will spend some time in each city finding a place to stay and checking out rooms. If you are "winging it" and don't want to have a set amount of time in each city, this is the way to go. I would definitely reserve something for the date of your arrival and departure. If you are traveling with a laptop/iPad you could always reserve something the night before you leave a town with booking sites such as Venere or Laterooms.

[soliteyah]

Good advice from NeverAtHome. I agree that you can find a place to sleep when you first arrive -- the local tourist board/visitor center can help you -- but that you probably will waste valuable time that you could spend doing and seeing things. If you're going to linger in each place for a while and want to be flexible, that's the way to go. But instead you might try making bookings that can be canceled if necessary -- that way you have somewhere if you need it, but you still have some flexibility if you want to stick around or leave a particular place early.

Good luck!

[Host Ciao]

Hi,
I don't have advice for finding places to stay after you arrive since I long ago decided I was too old for that. I do use Venere as suggested in the first answer.
However, if you have not decided on any specific amount of time in any one place, you might want to consider day trips. For example it is easy to visit Capri on a day trip from Naples either on your own or with a tour company that offers what you want to see. If you go on your own read up on how to get around the island to see what you want.
Likewise Pisa is an easy day trip from Florence. You can go on your own on the train though you will need to get from the station to the "Field of Miracles" where the tower and duomo, etc are. You can take a taxi since it can be a bit of a walk and cut into your time. There are also many half day trips from Florence to Pisa.
Siena can also be visted on your own in a day from Florence via train, but the train does stop a ways from the center. There are also day trips that take in Siena from Florence. I have taken a day trip that visited Siena, San Gimignano, and Pisa and included a great lunch along with a wine tasting. This company also has a day trip to Cinque Terre including hiking. This company is Walkabout Florence.
I hope some of this helps.
Sincerely,
Host Ciao

[Marco Polo]

However, if you have not decided on any specific amount of time in any one place, you might want to consider day trips.

I'd like to add that Venice could be visited on a day trip from nearby Padova, which has also its own charme plus hotels and restaurants that are way much cheaper.