• A single room is for one person only. A double room for single use is a room that is big enough for two people, but since only one person is using it there is a lower price.
• A double room of any kind is for two people. Double bedrooms often have two twin beds, which can be made up as two beds or, using king-sized bedclothes, as a surprisingly comfortable king. If a room has one double bed, it is queen-sized, except in a few deluxe lodgings. Rooms never have two double beds as is common in the USA. Junior suites, suites, and apartments vary. A triple room may have three single beds or a double and a sleep sofa. For a quadruple room: ask us.
• Generally speaking, for hotel rooms we use the term "suite" to refer to a set of two rooms, one a bedroom and one a sitting room with sofa bed, plus a bathroom. "Junior suite," "deluxe double," or "superior double" rooms are normally one room with a sleeping area and a sitting area.
• Towels in Italy range from miniscule and paper-thin to fairly large terry cloth. If you have a thing about large thick towels, we suggest you stay in four-star hotels.
• Almost all lodgings have television; just remember that only satellite TV receives anything but local programming in Italian. Satellite TV receives foreign-language channels such as CNN and BBC, but be aware that these channels broadcast mainly news, never children's programming. If your lodgings have a VCR, check the standard: PAL is used in Italy so only a universal VCR will play your NTSC tapes from home.
• Buffet breakfasts also range widely. Even the skimpiest ones serve juice, some kind of mixed fruit (which may be canned), breads, pastries, the classic cereals, coffee, and tea. More substantial buffets also include local cheeses and cold cuts, homemade cakes and pastries, scrambled eggs, and (at 4- or 5-star hotels) bacon.
• If your lodgings have a swimming pool, it will most likely be open from mid-May to mid-October. In the fall, the general rule of thumb is: "If the guests are still swimming, the pool is still open." The exact day the pool opens in the spring is regulated by one thing only: the weather!
• If you plan to use your telephone calling card a lot, look for lodgings offering "direct-dial phone." Otherwise, you'll have to call through a switchboard and your card is not set up for that.
• We refer to floors in the Italian way. That means the bottom floor is called "ground floor," the next one up is the "first floor" (2nd American), and so on.
• If a building has an elevator, it is always mentioned in our description. In your own interest, please tell us if anyone in your party has trouble walking or climbing stairs.
• In apartments and villas, the + sign indicates a sleep sofa. For instance, 2 + 2 means the apartment has a bedroom for two plus a double sleep sofa in the living room.
• As of January 10, 2005, all public places in Italy are supposed to be non-smoking. This may or may not be what you actually encounter, but almost all hotels now offer non-smoking rooms. The exception to this rule is hotels with a very limited number of rooms, and apartments or villas. However, we choose our lodgings carefully, and a basic requirement is cleanliness, hence it is rare to find a room soaked with the stench of smoke.
• If you rent an apartment or a villa, you will be given one or two sets of keys. If you need more than that, please let us know in advance and we will ask the owner to make them. The fee for this is paid directly to the owner. If the keys are special ones, it may not be possible to make extra sets, and we apologize for that in advance.
• "Independent heating" means that there is a thermostat you can regulate for your own room or apartment. Italy, like many other European countries, has nationally-regulated heating, which means that all lodgings, from 5-star deluxe hotels to modest farmhouses, are subject to strict federal energy restrictions and can switch their air systems from hot to cold only when the government tells them to. So if you suffer in cold weather, we advise you to bring sweaters in spring and fall, in case there is a short cold spell and the owners cannot turn the heating on for you. Likewise, air conditioning is never available in May or October, so since there can be hot spells in those months, please be prepared for this. Almost all apartment owners require that heating and air conditioning be paid separately, upon check-out (we always state this on each property's web page). A meter is used to calculate how much heating or air conditioning you have actually used.
• If you are used to falling asleep by reading in bed, we urge you to pack one of those clip-on reading lights. Bedside lighting is notoriously bad in Italy, even at five-star hotels and especially in historic or countryside lodgings.
• It is customary to leave a tip in the hotel room for the maids: 2-5 Euro/day shows you appreciate their hard work. Farm owners do not expect tips, but many countryside properties rely on a cleaning staff that does appreciate tips.
• If you are a light sleeper, be aware that Italian towns and cities are noisy. Even the whispers of two people on the street can echo against the ancient stone walls and ricochet through your window. Countryside lodgings are preferable for you, and for your city stays, bring earplugs!

Description of Lodgings

Here is an explanation of the kinds of lodgings In Italy Online offers. If you are planning to stay in a city:

Three-star hotels offer a good economical solution. These are can be historical or modern dwellings. Especially in the cities, rooms tend to be smaller than the average American hotel room. Generally there is air conditioning but it may be milder than we are accustomed to. Towels are changed daily but bed linens may be changed only every 2-3 days. These hotels usually supply only basic amenities in the bathrooms. Read each hotel's description for the availability of elevators, hair dryers, parking, satellite TV, direct-dial phones and other amenities you seek.

Four-star hotels always have an elevator and a restaurant. They generally have amenities such as courtesy sets in the bathrooms and daily bed linen change. They offer more optional services such as laundry, room service, fax, and email access. Rooms are usually, but not always, larger.

City Apartments are ideal for families, travelers with dietary restrictions or those who wish to have a more authentic experience. There is always a minimum required stay of at least three days, sometimes four, five, or seven. The advantages are more space, less expense, ability to cook some of your meals and perhaps enjoy a terrace or garden. The main disadvantage for some travelers is the total lack of hotel services. If you like to use lots of towels, we suggest you bring a few along from home. You will find one roll of toilet paper, little (or even no) hand soap and dish soap. We try to make sure all our apartments provide these basic amenities but we cannot guarantee they'll always be there. You may or may not find staples (sugar, salt, oil, coffee, tea) in the kitchen. You will find enough dishes and cookware to prepare and enjoy basic meals.

If you also wish to stay in the country or in a small town:

Historic Residences are all former homes of some sort now being managed as hotels. These are long on charm, and their owners are very proud of their unique character. However, because Italy's laws regulating renovations are some of the strictest in the world, these hotels almost never have uniform rooms. Some are huge, some are smaller, and we can't always guarantee which you'll get. Some have frescoes, wood-beamed cathedral ceilings, or ancient terra cotta floors. They may have what we consider to be small windows. This (and the very common absence of screens) is because it is virtually illegal to change a window in any way, especially in Tuscany. Please read the descriptions of each Historic Residence carefully, because each one is entirely unique. Some are restored farmhouses or homes in which a wing has been dedicated to guest lodgings. Others are bona fide four-star hotels. The amenities they offer vary widely. Some have restaurants, while others invite you to dine on home-cooked meals with your hosts at their table.

Apartments in farmhouses offer a great way to actually have a holiday while you're in Italy. Often you must stay a week, long enough to settle in, make local acquaintances and feel like a real resident. The same conditions apply here as for city apartments with one major difference: There is always an owner or manager on the property. Generally they try to leave you alone, but they are there at least part of each day to help you with any problems, offer suggestions for restaurants, services, and so on. At many of the properties there is a weekly gathering where guests can meet each other and sample the farm's produce.

Villas are the same type of structure, but they offer you a chance to be more or less on your own. Again, almost all villas are on a property inhabited by the owners or at least a caretaker, and you want it that way in case anything goes wrong and needs fixing. But your interaction with other vacationers will be at a minimum if you stay in a villa.

The booking procedure is basically the same for all our lodgings:

1. Once you choose the lodgings you like, click the "Send Your Request" button at the top and/or bottom of its page(s)
2. Fill out and submit the completed booking request form. Be sure your email address is typed correctly or we won't be able to reply. We ask for the date you are leaving home so we'll be sure to get the documents to you on time. We never divulge your information to third-party sources or use it to track anything about you and your preferences
3. We request availability for the lodgings you chose
4. Normally we answer you the same day or the next business day. If the lodgings are available we will email you the instructions for submitting our online booking form, which uses Plug N Pay's encrypted secure transmission
5. Once we receive your booking form and the charge has been authorized (but not processed), we will confirm to the property
6. As soon as we are sure we can confirm the reservation (but not before), we will charge your credit card for the booking deposit or amount that you authorized (click "Terms and Conditions" on the bottom of each property's page to see its deposit and cancellation requirements). If we are unable to confirm the booking, your credit card will not be charged and the confidential information you provided will remain encrypted and unavailable to us or anyone else
7. We will email or fax you the confirmation to show upon check-in, plus the exact address and phone number of the property, instructions showing you how to get there, and a list of restaurants, places to visit and recreational facilities in the area. Click here to view a sample
8. If your lodgings require full prepayment, we will email or fax you a voucher upon receipt of the total or final payment

Our Terms and Cancellation Policies

Please be sure to read the Terms and Conditions for the property that interests you. You will find a link to them at the bottom of each page. All prices on our website include all taxes and services. B&B prices include breakfast; Half Board prices include breakfast and dinner. Farmhouses, villas and most city apartments require full prepayment, whereas many of the hotels require only a partial deposit, and you pay the remaining balance to them upon check-out. These charges are always clearly stated on our site and in the booking documents we send you.

If the charges on our web site are stated in Euros, we will charge you the equivalent amount in US dollars on the day that your booking is confirmed. Every accommodation's web page displays the day's exchange rate in a box near the price list.

If you are reserving fully prepaid lodgings, unless stated otherwise, a deposit that is usually equal to 15%-25% is required in order to hold your reservation (and especially if you're booking for summer months, you should book well in advance!). The remaining balance is due no later than 56 days before your arrival at the property. At that time you will receive a voucher from In Italy Online. If you cancel your booking more than 56 days in advance you will lose your deposit; after that you forfeit your entire payment.

Unlike many Internet sites, we clearly state all obligatory extra charges on the property's web page. These charges are paid either to us at the time of booking or to the property owner when you check out, along with any optional extra charges you may have accrued (such as for daily cleaning service, heating or extra meals). All the apartment and villa owners ask for a security and/or telephone deposit (clearly stated on the web page), to be paid upon your arrival and returned at the time of your departure. Usually the security deposit can be paid in travelers checks which are then returned when you check out. If there are any charges for breakage, other serious damage, heating, telephone or other optional services, you will then be required to pay those charges in cash in Euro before receiving the travelers checks back.

Payments for all bookings are to Words in Pictures, Inc. You may pay by US bank check, international money order or major credit card (Visa or Mastercard only). No booking is complete until we have received and processed your payment.

Travel Insurance

Because all of our prepaid lodgings carry serious cancellation penalties, we strongly urge you to purchase trip cancellation insurance. This will cover all non-refundable expenses such as airfare, tickets, our farms or hotels and so on. Here's how it works: you purchase the exact amount you want to be covered for (there's a handy chart on our site to help you calculate the cost). This insurance pays you back all the money you lose for any justifiable reason that forces you to cancel your trip. This includes everything from the very serious such as (God forbid!) illnesses to you or anyone in your extended family that you must stay behind to help, down to the trivial such as an accident occurring on the highway ahead of you preventing you from reaching the airport to take your plane. You can purchase through us from Travel Insured International or through your usual insurance broker or your travel agent. We cannot stress this point highly enough, because although we like to think of ourselves as compassionate, we are mostly dealing with small, single owners who cannot afford to issue a refund for lodgings they will have to leave empty. We are in the business of crafting great vacations - the insurance companies are in the business of issuing refunds.

Car Rental: Should You or Shouldn't You?

If you intend to tour the countryside or visit small towns, be prepared to rent a car. Trains and buses go everywhere, but they are most useful for city-to-city transportation or riding along the coast. Absolutely no hill town has a train station: trains all stop in the ugly modern towns at the base of the hill, usually a 20-30 minute bus ride from where you want to be (multiply that times two for the round-trip total amount of time you'll waste!) All villas and farmhouses are in the country and though some of them may be within walking distance of a town, you will not want that to be your main means of getting around. Small towns normally have a "fleet" of taxis numbering one or two!

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Easy Ways to Browse Our Lodgings

Thank you for taking the time to read this helpful information. We suggest you print it out in case you have questions later on. Now, click here to browse all our lodgings by region or by category (Authentic Italy, Best Value Holiday, Culinary Luminaries, Lakeside & Seaside Locations, and so on)