I usually drive to Italy with my old style UK paper drivers licence with no photo. Back in early 2020 this was also good to show for car hire. Have the rules changed since Brexit? is an old style UK paper licence still valid for car hire? The
Just in case it might help anyone not already aware. My comune is discounting the costs of IMU by 37.5% for second home owners resident abroad who are in receipt of a recognized pension as proof of retired status.
Any recommendations on an Italian bank? I have used MPS for years and they are fine and I can manage stuff online but they seem expensive, I assume to pay for an extensive branch network.
There are loads but a favourite is travel writer Eric Newby. He wrote at least two based in Italy. A book of escaping as a prisoner of war in Italy and another book of his time having a house in northern Tuscany during the 60s and 70s. Good for anyone who has a place in the Barga, Aulla, Bagni area. Captures a time when north Tuscany was still undiscovered.
Unfortunately Alan has beaten me to it and said everything I would have said except I don't have dogs. I travel to western Tuscany and the trip out is always a highlight. The trip back to blighty is nice but always feels harder! It must be uphill. We do it in 2 nights but we are thinking of doing it in 3 nights for the return trip to do a bit more French sightseeing.
We use basically the same routes as Alan via northern France and Reims or a northern variation via France, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, etc which is only 15 miles longer, faster but a bit dull. Yes fuel in Luxembourg. We cross over to Germany near Colmar as we love the town and it means we can enjoy more miles on the stretches of the no speed limit German motorway. Yes, always buy the vignette before entering Switzerland and yes avoid Basle.
We don't stop in Switzerland to avoid having to get Swiss francs. Toilets are free in Switzerland at motorways rest halts with room for dogs and they tend to be quieter but you pay for toilets at motorway service stations.
Our summer route is usually via Besancon, Gran San Bernard pass and along lake Geneva as so scenic, quieter but slower.
If you plan doing the trip regularly then consider getting a motorway tag either one from France or Italy. One tag covers several countries other than Switzerland. Otherwise you can use a debit or credit card to pay the tolls to avoid messing with cash.
Thank you. My MPS account is online but still feels expensive. People in the UK complain about not having bank branches, MPS has branches even in small towns which i guess is why they are expensive. I need to look at Fineco, Intesa, etc. Usual problem that more likely to change your wife than your bank account.
Driving in Italy is fine. Big cities like Rome have more assertive drivers just like London and Paris and you need to not dither as if in a hire car they will assume you're a local. Traffic is bad with scooters all over the place. Country roads are fine. Motorways, don't linger in the fast lane. Overtake and pull in otherwise you get aggressive tailgating. Dont forget to tske the ticket when joining a toll road as you'll need it upon exit, and a few toll roads around Milan and Rome you pay in advance as they are part of the outer ring road. You can use a credit or debit card for tolls but it might be cheaper to buy a token so can use the automatic gates. Parking, some places you need to use and display the clock card in your hire card and use Google Maps to warn you of ZTLs otherwise the charge will eventually be passed on to you. This might all be a bit unfamiliar but you'll soon get the hang of it and you'll see some lovely places off the tourist track.
Thank you both. Food for thought. I was on the verge of an enclosed wood burner until the next day they cancelled sconto in fattura. It will have to be something standalone that takes up less space than my corner open fire.
Alan, you're right, I'm very near Livorno so not rich enough for Chiantishire! What burner did you get? I was just going to get an electric radiator in the place of my fireplace which is too big for my small apartment. Then i was going to use my central heating a bit more though I use large 35 kg bottled gas units which last and prices seem still okay. You're right of course on pellet prices.
I can't help. You could contact the Comune and ask them for the last known address of your relative, you'll need to obviously give detail such as name and date of birth. If you give them enough ti.e they might help. If they give you a last known address then you could see if the address is still there via Google and then when you visit. The other place for older records is the church for christenings and marriages. Good luck.
I must check up on my Comune as I have an open fireplace that I'm thinking of removing it as too messy and trouble. I suppose people can cut wood for use in a log burner though we all know that pellet burners are quite popular in Italy.
I lifted the below. I'm not sure why you would be cut off while being in credit. Anyhow, when the service ends people will either need to find a new supplier using something like SWITCHO or else an interim solution called PLACET will offer alternative suppliers and perhaps one will be selected if you don't choose yourself.
As for the credit, all i could find was an italian freecall number that doesn't work with a UK sim and they seem to have an email address for queries in Area Clienti. I used to use them but also switched to ENEL a while back.
PLACET Offers
PLACET offers are offers with fixed or variable price for the power supply, price structure and contractual conditions defined by the Regulatory Authority for Energy, Networks and the Environment. Click on “Offer Detail” to discover more about PLACET offers.
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There are loads but a favourite is travel writer Eric Newby. He wrote at least two based in Italy. A book of escaping as a prisoner of war in Italy and another book of his time having a house in northern Tuscany during the 60s and 70s. Good for anyone who has a place in the Barga, Aulla, Bagni area. Captures a time when north Tuscany was still undiscovered.
Another good endorsement. I will have to look at them. Thanks.
Unfortunately Alan has beaten me to it and said everything I would have said except I don't have dogs. I travel to western Tuscany and the trip out is always a highlight. The trip back to blighty is nice but always feels harder! It must be uphill. We do it in 2 nights but we are thinking of doing it in 3 nights for the return trip to do a bit more French sightseeing.
We use basically the same routes as Alan via northern France and Reims or a northern variation via France, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, etc which is only 15 miles longer, faster but a bit dull. Yes fuel in Luxembourg. We cross over to Germany near Colmar as we love the town and it means we can enjoy more miles on the stretches of the no speed limit German motorway. Yes, always buy the vignette before entering Switzerland and yes avoid Basle.
We don't stop in Switzerland to avoid having to get Swiss francs. Toilets are free in Switzerland at motorways rest halts with room for dogs and they tend to be quieter but you pay for toilets at motorway service stations.
Our summer route is usually via Besancon, Gran San Bernard pass and along lake Geneva as so scenic, quieter but slower.
If you plan doing the trip regularly then consider getting a motorway tag either one from France or Italy. One tag covers several countries other than Switzerland. Otherwise you can use a debit or credit card to pay the tolls to avoid messing with cash.
Thank you. My MPS account is online but still feels expensive. People in the UK complain about not having bank branches, MPS has branches even in small towns which i guess is why they are expensive. I need to look at Fineco, Intesa, etc. Usual problem that more likely to change your wife than your bank account.
Driving in Italy is fine. Big cities like Rome have more assertive drivers just like London and Paris and you need to not dither as if in a hire car they will assume you're a local. Traffic is bad with scooters all over the place. Country roads are fine. Motorways, don't linger in the fast lane. Overtake and pull in otherwise you get aggressive tailgating. Dont forget to tske the ticket when joining a toll road as you'll need it upon exit, and a few toll roads around Milan and Rome you pay in advance as they are part of the outer ring road. You can use a credit or debit card for tolls but it might be cheaper to buy a token so can use the automatic gates. Parking, some places you need to use and display the clock card in your hire card and use Google Maps to warn you of ZTLs otherwise the charge will eventually be passed on to you. This might all be a bit unfamiliar but you'll soon get the hang of it and you'll see some lovely places off the tourist track.
Thank you both. Food for thought. I was on the verge of an enclosed wood burner until the next day they cancelled sconto in fattura. It will have to be something standalone that takes up less space than my corner open fire.
Alan, you're right, I'm very near Livorno so not rich enough for Chiantishire! What burner did you get? I was just going to get an electric radiator in the place of my fireplace which is too big for my small apartment. Then i was going to use my central heating a bit more though I use large 35 kg bottled gas units which last and prices seem still okay. You're right of course on pellet prices.
Thanks for your information.
I can't help. You could contact the Comune and ask them for the last known address of your relative, you'll need to obviously give detail such as name and date of birth. If you give them enough ti.e they might help. If they give you a last known address then you could see if the address is still there via Google and then when you visit. The other place for older records is the church for christenings and marriages. Good luck.
I must check up on my Comune as I have an open fireplace that I'm thinking of removing it as too messy and trouble. I suppose people can cut wood for use in a log burner though we all know that pellet burners are quite popular in Italy.
I lifted the below. I'm not sure why you would be cut off while being in credit. Anyhow, when the service ends people will either need to find a new supplier using something like SWITCHO or else an interim solution called PLACET will offer alternative suppliers and perhaps one will be selected if you don't choose yourself.
As for the credit, all i could find was an italian freecall number that doesn't work with a UK sim and they seem to have an email address for queries in Area Clienti. I used to use them but also switched to ENEL a while back.
PLACET Offers
PLACET offers are offers with fixed or variable price for the power supply, price structure and contractual conditions defined by the Regulatory Authority for Energy, Networks and the Environment. Click on “Offer Detail” to discover more about PLACET offers.