As magical as the city of Venice is, La Serenissima doesn’t have the best reputation for eating out. Sure, there are some legendary restaurants such as Harry’s Bar and the Cipriani, but in the whole finding good, good-value food happens more by accident that design. Luckily Venice does have one the country’s great fresh produce markets; the Rialto. Spilling out from the streets underneath the famous bridge of the same name, shopping at the Rialto market is one of the most ‘local’ experiences you can have in Venice. The Rialto market is closely entwined in the city’s history and has occupied its position near the banks of the Grand Canal for almost a millennium. As Venetian merchants established their trading networks across the Adriatic and beyond, the Rialto area became an important commercial hub. And although the Rialto market has reduced greatly in size since Venice’s Golden Age, it still puts on one of the city’s greatest shows. By dawn, large barges arrive carrying fruit, vegetables and fish, which leads to a cacophony of screaming as vendors bargain for the best prices. Huge carts of produce are then hauled to either the Erberia (fruit and vegetable market) or the Pescheria ...

I was 15 when I travelled to Venice by a hydrofoil from Umago in Istria, where I was on a seaside holiday from my native Serbia. It was a day trip, and the ticket was pre-paid, but it was still a fantastic feeling of freedom. Previously, I’d only been to a few countries with my parents, but I had not been allowed to travel abroad alone before. So I felt privileged to make this first foreign trip ‘on my own’ in the old way (almost like Argonauts!) aboard a ship (even though mine was much faster than theirs!) and to reach one of the world's most unique cities, once the ‘Queen of the Seas’, by water, and not overland. Venice is a miracle. Few other cities remotely resemble it, but none outshine its uniqueness in the beauty of its palaces, the richness of its paintings and sculptures, and the most ornate, bizarre cathedral in four different styles. Equally unique, and bizarre, is the manner of navigating (literally) its locales. Stockholm, Amsterdam, and Bangkok also have an aquatic abundance, but they also have either many more bridges or are not completely built at roughly the same time around the banks of canals. ...

Florence is serviced by two airports; its own and Pisa International Airport. Although the latter is located a good 80 kilometres from the centre of Florence, it is becoming an increasingly popular choice for travellers to the city as it is used by many budget airlines including Vueling, Easyjet, Wizz and Ryanair. On the other hand, Florence airport is serviced by the bigger airlines such as KLM, BA and, of course, Alitalia. Both airports are connected to central Florence (S. M. Novella train station) by bus. From Pisa Airport, the Terravision (www.terravision.eu) transfer bus leaves from the Elenco Corse outside the arrivals hall. The full journey takes 70 minutes and costs 10€ one-way (16€, return) for adults. Buses run from 8.40am to 12.20am but the bad news is that there are long gaps between services. Whilst these have been designed to coincide with flight arrivals, flight delays may cause you to miss your connection, so brace yourself for a wait before you finally arrive at your holiday apartment. Arriving at your accommodation from Florence Airport is a lot quicker. The Volain bus (operated by the local company ATAF, www.ataf.net) departs every half hour and the journey takes 15 minutes. ...

The Pentecost (which in 2010 falls on May 23rd) is a celebration in remembrance of the Holy Spirit’s descent upon the Virgin Mary and the Apostles of Jesus and this tends to be one of the most spectacular and culturally fascinating times to be in Rome. And the most lovely of all Pentecostal rituals takes place at one of the eternal city’s most awe-inspiring buildings: the Pantheon. After a celebration of the Mass on Pentecost Sunday, a shower of rose petals falls through the oculus, or the opening at the top of the dome of the Pantheon. This beautiful spectacle is made possible by a group of firemen who scale the exterior wall of the Pantheon armed with sacks of rose petals—a sight almost as wonderful as what is to take place inside. The petals are meant to represent the Holy Spirit’s descent to earth, and watching them flutter through the haze-like light that filters through the oculus is an incredibly uplifting experience. Visitors are welcome to this event but would be wise to turn up early and seating is generally only available to those attending the mass first (even then many of these are pre-booked). At the end of mass, ...

I would return to Venice because it's like nowhere else in the world, and it may soon be gone. While the rest of the world has changed and modernized, Venice has remained the same. Sure, now people have computers and cell phones, but the true Venetian lifestyle lives on. Old Italian women hang their clothes on lines over narrow alleys and canals. Kids cautiously play soccer next to these canals, making sure not to kick the ball into the water. While wandering down alleys in perfect silence (there are no vehicles), you can almost imagine that it's long ago, when Venice was not a part of Italy, but a powerful city state. It's like something out of a fairytale when you see a gondolier drifting down a canal or hear a busker playing an accordion at dusk. My trip “It looks like a map!” I remark of what I can see of Germany in the early morning light. We're starting to descend, almost at the Frankfurt Airport. I'm so excited, I can barely sit still. I'm thirteen, and it's my first time in Europe. I get on our connecting flight to Venice, and as we fly over Switzerland I catch a glimpse ...

It's Halloween and we're out and about in Rome, dodging scooters and miniscule cars as we try to find somewhere to celebrate one of the stranger holidays of the year. There's a distinct lack of the costumed tom-foolery or gaudy orange decorations that would currently be adorning the pubs at home, making a valiant effort at spreading the party spirit in the cold, dark season preceding Christmas. I guess that's because costumed tomfoolery and gaudy decorations would be far too unfashionable for the people around me, the most fashionable human beings on the planet. I'm guided by the most-fashionable Aldo, a label-wearing Roman whom I'd known for an hour, and Ksenia, a very pretty Ukrainian girl who'd invited me out for an impossible to refuse Halloween beverage after we met at my hostel. The night had started with a drive in search of aperitivo, which ended at Campo Del Fiori, a great little square nearly halfway between the Coliseum and the Vatican. Aldo skillfully piloted his diminutive vehicle through the bustling back streets off Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, trying to squeeze into spaces, which I would have struggled to park my bike in. Eventually he found one to his satisfaction ...

If the award for Best Market in Europe was dished out by name alone, Rome’s Campo de’ Fiori (or ‘field of flowers’) would win hands down. (Well, it’s certainly better than Barcelona’s Boqueria, which translates as ‘slaughterhouse’). Campo de’ Fiori is primarily one of Rome’s most beloved squares, even though it lacks the formal architectural arrangements of the city’s other great piazzi such as the Piazza Navona or del Popolo. However this one-time meadow has always been a hub of the city’s commercial activity and the nomenclature of the surrounding streets reflect this. In the Middle Ages, you could have picked up a bespoke cape in Via dei Giubbonari (Tailor’s street) and a bow and arrow in Via dei Balestrari (Crossbow makers street) before heading off to one of the many inns in the square for a night of bawdy revelry. This still happens once the sun sets on the Campo de’ Fiori, when hoards of young people, mainly tourists, pack out the outdoor cafes that line the piazza. But every morning (except Sunday) the Campo de’ Fiori comes alive with a genuine local experience; Rome’s biggest (and possibly Europe’s prettiest) open air market. This being Italy the stalls of ...

Because the last time I was there I was heavily pregnant, and every single person smiled at me, and wished me tanti aguri (best wishes). Everywhere else in the world I felt large, to say the least, and a strain on everyone but in Rome I was a welcome addition to society. In restaurants I was sent delicious dishes by chefs (that I didn’t order) and whenever I think of my midnight munchies- the pizza! Lordie lord the pizza! I became a regular at the Pizzeria da Baffetto (via del Governo Vechio 11), a roman institution and the queues that snake outside are testament to this. The large pizzas would feed a small village - all this for as little at 7 Euros for a meal. Oh and then there was the ice-cream! I should probably admit at this point that the chestnut ice-cream (a favourite of the late John Paul II I was told) is a memory that I will carry with me into my old age. Most Romans consider Giolitti (via Uffici del Vicario 40) to make the best gelato in Rome but I found it delicious wherever I bought it. What more can I say other than about ...

Here at Holiday Velvet we often get asked about where you can leave your luggage whilst you are waiting to 'check in' to your apartment or after you have 'checked-out'. Whilst you can always ask the owner directly if they are able to look after your bags for a few hours, left luggage facilities still exist at many major train stations and other transport hubs. These days, most of these facilities run on an automated locker system (gone are the days when you checked in your bag in as you would a coat in a nightclub). Remember that they may fill up at peak periods. Rome When arriving at Termini Station on the Leonardo Express train from Fiumicino airport, you can leave your baggage in the ‘piazza’ on the lower-ground floor (follow the ‘Deposito bagagli’ signs). It’s open 6am-midnight, 7 days a week. Venice ‘Deposito bagagli’ is available at Santa Lucia Train Station (open 6am-midnight daily). Cooperative Trasbagagli is a private company that will not only store you luggage for you, but take it by boat to your place of accommodation, saving you schlepping bags over the bridges and canals. They have two offices in Venice; one at the Piazzale ...