The ReidsItaly.com travel shop

Resources for planning and booking travel services for an Italy vacation

Although ReidsItaly.com is a travel information site, not a travel agency, I understand that most people combing the Web for this kind of detailed travel information to help them plan a trip to Italy are at some point probably going to want to actually, you know, take the trip.

They want to book airfares, search for hotels, buy a couple of good guidebooks, maybe arrange a rental car, look into a railpass, or book a cruise, perhaps book a walking tour of Venice or a day trip from Rome to Pompeii. And, of course, everybody has to pack at some point, so luggage and travel gear like quick-dry pants and electrical plug converters are a given.

That's why I have carefully selected these partner sites so you can get all your travel shopping done at once.

I want to make one thing very clear. I am first and foremost a journalist and fellow traveler. I am recommending these services because they are genuinely superior—they represent the best consolidators, discounters, and specialists in the business—not because I get paid to do so.

Yes, I do get a small commission if you end up buying your train tickets or guidebooks after clicking over from my site (that, along with the Google ads, is how ReidsItaly.com earns its keep).

However, (a) this doesn't cost you one penny extra, since any commission comes out of their profits, not the amount they charge you, and (b) I have only partnered with sites that best serve the travelers needs in the first place—ones that, in fact, I actually use myself.

For example, though I dutifully check rates at many sources before renting a car for my frequent research trips to Italy, I almost always end up renting via Auto Europe for the simple reason that their prices are the best and I've never run into any hassle or problems with them.

Ditto for Venere.com, an Italy-based hotel booking site that not only actually beats the rack rates at most hotels, but also represents far more of the kind of smaller, inexpensive, mom-and-pop hotels that I prefer than any of the other major booking engines.

You'll find many of these resources linked from their appropriate pages throughout the site, but to gather most of the major ones in one place:

• Research plane ticket prices at Momondo.com
• Book a tour with Intrepid Travel or G Adventures
• Reserve a hotel room with Venere.com or Booking.com
• Rent a villa from Belvilla.com
• Rent a car or arrange a lease with AutoEurope.com
• Pick the right railpass or book train tickets at RailEurope.com
• Get a discounted Mediterranean cruise at CruiseDirect.com
• Book a city tour or sidetrip with Viator.com
• Find bags, clothes, and other travel gear at Magellans.com and REI.com
• Get the right guidebooks for your trip at BarnesandNoble.com

Thanks for your support.

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