Italian GP

[indyfan31]

My birthday present from last November was late, fortunately I'm getting it this September: My wife is taking me to the Italian GP at Monza. :cool:

After the race we're planning on hitting Milan, Florence, and Rome (and a few points in between).

So, any suggestions? anywhere from what to do, what not to miss, even where to sit. should I rent a car? (j/k), how about a scooter? stuff like that.

fire away.

[Robstar]

I took my wife to Monza on our honeymoon in 2007 :cool:
It's about a 15-20 min train ride from Milan's main train station & then shuttle buses to the track - It runs really smoothly with hardly any waiting. We sat at the entrance to the Parabolica but only cause they were the cheapest grandstand seats at 180 Euros each or something like that - I would have loved to sit elsewhere but a month in Europe wasn't cheap ;) & it was awesome anywho...
We got trains around Italy & it was great.
I must say Milan is a bit of a *****ole but Rome was amazing... Naples was full on but so much fun (head over to Capri if you go to Napoli...)
The only beer at the track was Budweiser or Heineken but I coped :D
I'll post back later if I think of more - Plus it's 5:30pm on a Friday - Time to hit the pub!

[Gnam]

Things to do and see in Milan: Alfa Romeo Museum (http://www.alfaromeo.com/com/CMSEN/ALFA_WORLD/HISTORY/Pages/history_museum.aspx?outputXml=true&CustomResponse=WebCrawler)
Sounds like a nice time: http://www.motortrend.com/features/editorial/112_0802_the_asphalt_jungle/index.html


How come the italians spell Florence, Firenze? Not even close. :shakehead

Also, Lago Trasimeno in central Italy is where Hannibal delivered one of his first beatdowns to the Romans.

[indyfan31]

Cool. Part of the plan is to also spend a couple of days in Rome, and spend about a week based in Florence to have a place to travel out of. Is there a Ferrari Museum in Maranello too?

[Gnam]

Heck yeah there is:

Ferrari Museum – Galleria Ferrari – Maranello, Italy
http://www.ferrari.com/English/about_ferrari/Ferrari-Museum/Pages/Home-Museo.aspx

The internet says it's a little small, but you can get as close as you want without touching.

photos:
http://s1.hubimg.com/u/1159476_f520.jpg
http://s3.hubimg.com/u/1159478_f520.jpg

[indyfan31]

How come the italians spell Florence, Firenze? Not even close. :shakehead



I know, it's like they have a different word for EVERYTHING. :D

[cameraman]

How come the italians spell Florence, Firenze? Not even close. :shake head


Listen to an Italian say the name sometime...

[indyfan31]

Has anyone used Formula One Tours before?

[Dvdb]

Niece is a Notre Dame architecture student spending her junior year in Rome. According to her pics, there is not a bad place in Italy, but hold on to your wallet, and not all 'cab' drivers are actually cab drivers.

Lucky dog..................

PS. The hole in the wall italian restaraunts are the best and more authentic.

[racermike]

I want a Lanyard .. will have to paypal some $$ to you before you leave.

[indyfan31]

Has anyone used Formula One Tours before?
. . . or GP Tours for that matter?

[Elmo T]

. . . or GP Tours for that matter?

2001 USGP - I had my own tickets but booked everything else through GP Tours. It was a post-baby #1 splurge for us - we didn't want to deal with any of the details.

Very accommodating, friendly staff, knowledgeable. If I was doing a race outside the US, I book with them in a heartbeat.

[Fio1]

Rent a car (bring your Sat nave, get Italy map option ($50). Land in Milan. While there do, Monza, Como & Lugano. Then go south to Firenze and stop at Bologna, Maranello & Arezzo on the way. After Firenze go to Siena then Rome. Fly back from Rome.

[indyfan31]

Rent a car (bring your Sat nave, get Italy map option ($50). Land in Milan. While there do, Monza, Como & Lugano. Then go south to Firenze and stop at Bologna, Maranello & Arezzo on the way. After Firenze go to Siena then Rome. Fly back from Rome.

I was with you until the "fly back from Rome" part, it costs about 50% more to fly back from a different airport. :eek:

Hadn't thought about Como, Lugano and Siena, we can probably add those to the list. Thanks for the suggestions. :thumbup:

[TravelGal]

Busy time of year so I just had a chance to read this entire thread. First of all, whooooooohoooooooo! Super!

Now that I've calmed down. I've done a few racing trips and can agree with Elmo T. GPTours are very good, helpful, knowledgeable, pleasant (and a friend to every other Girl Scout. oh. got carried away there).

Not sure which airline you're looking at but I just priced some made up Sept dates on AA and it was 2 (TWO) dollars more to fly back from Rome rather than Milan.

[NismoZ]

Well, that ruins it for ME, then. Guess I'll just have to go up to RA instead.:( (starting to save up for a tank of gas...right now!)

[indyfan31]

Busy time of year so I just had a chance to read this entire thread. First of all, whooooooohoooooooo! Super!

Now that I've calmed down. I've done a few racing trips and can agree with Elmo T. GPTours are very good, helpful, knowledgeable, pleasant (and a friend to every other Girl Scout. oh. got carried away there).

Not sure which airline you're looking at but I just priced some made up Sept dates on AA and it was 2 (TWO) dollars more to fly back from Rome rather than Milan.
thanks Travelgal. I think I checked Orbitz just to get a rough idea and was shocked, I didn't bother to look at what airlines were selected. I'll have to check the airlines sites themselves.

(a few minutes later....)
Upon further review. I must be pushing the wrong buttons 'cause:
Round trip between LAX and Milan for 2 people: $2500
ONE WAY from LAX to Milan for 2 people: $4700

[TravelGal]

No, that sounds right. One way is often more than round trip. That's because one way is full coach; round trip is an excursion fare. You don't add two one ways if you want to go into one city and return from another (open jaw, that's called). You just price what you want.

I'm told the online sites like Expedia are not particularly good at that, however. Also AA has pulled out of several of them.

Edit: Also, unless you clear your cookies between checking fares online, you'll often notice the fare going up. It is to create a false urgency to purchase. Or so I'm told.

[indyfan31]

I'm looking at ordering tickets at the first chicane: "Prima Variante"
Apparently there's a grandstand 8A and 8B, anyone know if there's actually a real difference between the two as far as sightlines?

[indyfan31]

Ok, Google "streetview" is a wonderful thing, but are there any buildings in Milan that aren't covered in grafitti? :saywhat:

[indyfan31]

We leave tomorrow. I went with FormulaTours, they had the best overall package deal: bus ride, tickets, and hotel. I already scheduled a tour at the Ferrari museum and a tour of the factory and the test track. I get the feeling that "factory tour" doesn't involve actually going IN to the buildings. Anyway an actual tour of the assembly buildings is available at the Lamborghini factory a few miles away for a few more Euros.

[Gnam]

Try the pasta. I hear it's good. ;)

[devilmaster]

Enjoy 31... :thumbup:

[RTKar]

Q2 - some nice sideways drift by Vettel, great car control. What a wonderful circuit....even without the banking. :p

[Napoleon]

Try the pasta. I hear it's good. ;)

My brother spent some time in Italy working for a company he use to work for, so he lived like a local more or less. I remember him telling me the worst meal he had there was better then the best he had here.

[chop456]

My brother spent some time in Italy working for a company he use to work for, so he lived like a local more or less. I remember him telling me the worst meal he had there was better then the best he had here.

That sounds like a way better setup than if he would have worked for a company he never worked for. :D

[cameraman]

In every session the drivers have been able to use the DRS system wherever and when ever they want. Once the race starts it will be limited to the specific zones. That is going to change things around greatly.


or not...

[trish]

This gift might cover every major holiday for the rest of the year.

[cameraman]

Luizzi given a 5 grid spot penalty at Singapore for his idiocy at the start today. So does he have to line up behind the medical car?

[stroker]

Luizzi given a 5 grid spot penalty at Singapore for his idiocy at the start today. So does he have to line up behind the medical car?

They would have been better served making him start from the pit lane.

[Insomniac]

Once Vettel and Red Bull lock up the championship, could he start P24? :) It literally is a Sunday drive for him out there.

[Hard Driver]

Once Vettel and Red Bull lock up the championship, could he start P24? :) It literally is a Sunday drive for him out there.

Got to give Vettel a ton of respect. It does not seem so easy for Webber in the same car.

[NismoZ]

Well, SURE...YOU try driving that fast without a front wing!:D

[JohnHKart]

I was reminded watching that race of Schumacher's quote about racing Hamilton after he retired in a 2007 F1 Racing Magazine interview: "There would have been some interesting manuevers!" It's great to see that quote coming true.

[indyfan31]

Sorry it took so long to get back here. I been busy ... vacationing. http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6083/6147959169_24a45a31e1_z.jpg

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6156/6148514594_e3213e6812_z.jpg

[indyfan31]

I got a couple of pictures here and there, but you probably don't wanna see them all.
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6170/6147991975_d80704537a_z.jpg

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6073/6147995821_4a901edea7_z.jpg

All in all cool day (even though it was almost 90), and a great b-day present.

[Gnam]

Great seats. I bet you could hit the track with an ice chest, or at least a water bottle. :thumbup:

Were you allowed to walk on the track after the race?

[gerhard911]

Great seats. I bet you could hit the track with an ice chest, or at least a water bottle. :thumbup:

What, no KFC chicken buckets in Monza ? :saywhat:

[nissan gtp]

fantastic :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

[indyfan31]

Great seats. I bet you could hit the track with an ice chest, or at least a water bottle. :thumbup:

Were you allowed to walk on the track after the race?
I could have, but the empties don't go very far and they don't sell pasta in buckets. :cool:
I couldn't get to the main straight (it was like swimming against a salmon run) but I did find this interesting bit of asphalt.

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6066/6148048117_84316b0dbc_z.jpg

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6206/6148002047_eb8f577d47_z.jpg

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6154/6148040159_5357568f55_z.jpg

[Kiwifan]

Awesome! Used to have my birthday on the Goldy watching the Champ Cars so know how special it must have been for you. Hope you had fun. :)

[SteveH]

very cool :thumbup:

[NismoZ]

So, did you see a plaque or anything where Jean Pierre Sarte went over the banking into the trees? Did Pete Aaron win that race or was it that smug little Italian kid who told his main squeeze to go diving for relics with her new American boyfriend? I think between licks on his ice cream bar he finally decided that she should just go to hell. Pretty sure his track performance picked up right after that. That was a wild season!

[indyfan31]

So, did you see a plaque or anything where Jean Pierre Sarte went over the banking into the trees? Did Pete Aaron win that race or was it that smug little Italian kid who told his main squeeze to go diving for relics with her new American boyfriend? I think between licks on his ice cream bar he finally decided that she should just go to hell. Pretty sure his track performance picked up right after that. That was a wild season!

Nope, didn't have a lot of time to wander too far, only walked about a quarter mile of it. It may be hard to believe, but it's steeper than it looks! By the time I got to the top I was crawling. Coming back down was scary as hell, reminded me of starting down a ski run then immediately realizing it was a mistake to pick this run. :eek:

[chop456]

Sweet. :cool:

I heard them people talk funny and don't put ham on pizza. :thumdown:

[indyfan31]

Sweet. :cool:

I heard them people talk funny and don't put ham on pizza. :thumdown:

No ham, no skinkin' pineapple either. They do however have "sweet salami", it is indescribably tasty. :)

[indyfan31]

About half way into the race I noticed these folks sitting on the guardrail of the old track.

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6189/6147978235_76edbbfcbc_z.jpg

[Michaelhatesfans]

About half way into the race I noticed these folks sitting on the guardrail of the old track.

Thanks for sharing! Sounds great! The people sitting on that guardrail reminds me of a photo I have from Spa where people are crammed on to the top of a concession stand watching the race. Different way of doing things in Europe.:laugh:

Good job just pulling the trigger and going. Sometimes it's too easy to talk yourself out of trips like that. All too often, "not this year" just turns into regret. Hope you had an awesome time!

[racer2c]

Jealous! :thumbup: