General Info about Italy

Highlights about Italy
Climation
Telephones/Useful numbers
Currency/Opening hours
How to reach Italy
Customs arrangements
Embassies/Consulates
Health & Emergencies

Highlights about Italy

Area: 301,230 sq km

Capital: Rome

Present Population: 57.99 million.
With a density of 190 inhab/sq.km. Italy is one of the most heavily populated countries in Europe. Territorial distribution of the population is somewhat heterogeneous: almost 30% of the population of Italy is concentrated in c.50 centres with over 100,000 inhabitants, and the overall urban population amounts to roughly two thirds of that total. The extent of urbanization is now close to that of the economically advanced European countries, though there is still an imbalance in the distribution of urban centres throughout the regions.

Language: Italian
The country's historical vicissitudes have left their mark on Italian in the presence of other languages, several of these autochthonous developed contemporarily with Italian, others absorbed from neighbouring European language areas.

Time: +1 GMT
In comparison to the Greenwich meridian (London) Italy is an hour after, as all the nations of the center Europe.

Religion: Christian Catholic. Also Jewish, Christian Orthodox and Muslim minorities.

Public (Christian) holidays: some of such days have a fixed, while others have been moved to the following Sunday. Still current, however, is the celebration of a city's patron saint, which differs from one city to another.

1 January = 'Capodanno' (New Year's Day)
6 January = 'Befana' (Epiphany Easter)
Easter Day
Easter Monday
25 April = 'Liberazione' (Liberation Day, World War II)
1 May = 'Festa dei lavoratori' (Labour Day)
15 August = 'Ferragosto' (Assumption of the Virgin)
1 November = 'Ognissanti' (All Saints Day)
8 December = 'Immacolata' Concezione (Immaculate Conception)
25 December = 'Natale' (Christmas)
26 December = 'Santo Stefano' (St Stephen)

Electricity: 220 V, 50 Hz. Adapters are still needed for the plugs (most Italian sockets have 2-3 holes) and, in case of North American citizens, a transformer.

Climation

Climate: long and narrow, Italy has a notable variation in climate. The northern part of the peninsula has a purely continental climate (cold in winter, and warm with high humidity in summer), while in the south the cool winters are accompanied by extremely hot summers.

Despite its geographical position at the center of the temperate zone, Italy has rather variable climatic characteristics due to the presence of the Mediterranean, whose warm waters mitigate thermal extremes, and the Alpine arc which forms a barrier against the cold north winds. Furthermore, Italy is subject to both wet and moderate atmospheric currents from the Atlantic Ocean and dry and cold ones from eastern Europe. The differences in temperature between the winter and summer months are more marked in the northern regions than in the south and along the coasts.

Winter/Summer: in the Alpine valleys the thermometer can drop to -20ºC and snow can remain on the ground for many weeks. In the southern regions, instead, the mean temperatures for January remain around 10°C.

During March, a short-sleeved shirt can be worn in Sicily, while in the same month the whole Alpine area is full of skiers enjoying continuous snow (even if it is sometimes artificial).
Mean summer temperatures throughout all Italy rise to 24ºC-25ºC for July, only being lower in the highest zones. Rainfall distribution also varies considerably, due to the influence of both mountains and prevailing winds.

Telephones/Useful numbers

Telephones: the liberalisation of the sector has removed the old monopoly of Italian Telecom so far as fixed telephones are concerned, even though the call boxes and public telephones (in streets, cafes, restaurants and pizzerias) are still for the most part owned by it. Inside the boxes there are instructions for using the telephone as well as useful public numbers. Telephone cards can be purchasable from newspaper kiosks and tobacconists. Internationl phone cards can also be purchased and used.

Dialling codes: telephoning Italy from abroad, the international dialling code for Italy (+39) is dialled, then the district code including the initial 0 (for instance 06 for Rome), and finally the number of the subscriber. District code has to be used even from inside the district (for istance 06+number if you call from Rome to Rome).

Mobile (cellular) phones: the GSM system covers the whole nation, the costs depend on the roaming agreement between your home country's provider and the corresponding Italian companies.

Useful telephone numbers: toll-free from every telephone

Carabinieri, tel. 112
Customs, tel. 117
Emergency public assistance, tel. 113
First aid, tel. 118
Breakdown assistance (ACI), tel. 116
Fire brigade, tel. 115

Currency/Opening hours

Currency: Since 1st of January 2002 the official Italian currency is the Euro.
Foreign currency may be changed at bank counters displaying the sign 'Cambio/Change/Wechsel', in the larger railway stations and at the airports; here too travellers' cheques can be converted into lire. As for the use of credit cards, although on the increase, they are much less common than in the other European and North American nations.

Opening hours: different countries, different customs. This proverb is particularly relevant to Italy in regard to opening hours of shops, banks and other institutions. Although at a regional level the weekly closing day of shops is firmly established, there are thousands of exceptions, associated with different periods of the year (at Christmas, for instance, the weekly closing day is commonly disregarded, and in summer, shops in tourist places are allowed to remain open till late at night). In fact, a progressive liberalisation is taking place in this field.

Banks: business operations can normally be carried out from 8.30 AM to 1/1.30 PM and from 2.30/3 PM to 4/5 PM from Monday to Friday.

Museums: non-stop opening hours are now much commoner, and the most important collections may remain open until as late as 11 PM in summer. The temples of Sicily, the excavations of Pompeii and Herculaneum, the Imperial Forums in Rome and the most important archaeological areas are generally open from 9 AM until sunset, without a closing day in summer.

Shops: more and more often, shops are open without a lunch break (generally from 9.30/10 AM to the 7.30/8 PM from Monday to Saturday inclusive), especially in the centres of the great cities and the main destinations of summer tourism, where the shop windows are often lit up until midnight. In the smaller centres and in the country a midday break is still common from 12.30 AM to 4 PM, especially in summer.

Mail: post offices are usually open from 8.30 AM to 5 PM Monday to Friday and on Saturday from 8.30 AM to 12 midday. Postage stamps for sending letters and postcards may also be bought from tobacconists.

Restaurants: meals normally served from 12 AM to 3 PM in the north, or from 12.30 PM to 3/3.30 PM in the south, then reopening from 7 PM (north) or 8 PM (south) until nearly midnight. Touristic seaside resorts are a law unto themselves, and pizzerias are often open as late as 2 PM. Watch out for the weekly closing day which each establishment can choose whenever it likes.

Tips: are customary in Italy, but not essential. The tradition of the tip remains impervious to change, even though cafe or restaurant prices now more and more often include both cover charge and service. On paying the bill, if it is paid in cash it is a matter of leaving a few notes from the change, or saying to the waiter 'va bene così' ('it's all right'), when the difference between the amount paid and the actual bill automatically becomes the tip. When using a credit card, there are two possibilities: if the total on the credit card slip is the same as the bill, again leave some notes as a tip; but if the amount or the total are blank, simply round up the total to include the tip when signing the credit card slip.

How to reach Italy

by car The tailbacks from the frontier passes and the autostrada tollbooths confirm every year, during the Christmas and Easter celebrations and the summer holiday season, that for Europeans the automobile is the perfect way to travel to Italy. Even European citizens living in the Scandinavian countries are not at all intimidated by so long a journey. The Italian "Autostrada" and main road systems are perfectly connected to the European network. Green signs indicate autostradas (in many cases subject to charges), while all other roads have blue signs.

Autostrada tolls: payment at the tollbooths can be made by various methods, by choosing the appropriately designated channels. The most convenient solution is the Viacard (which can be purchased at the tollbooths, at Punto Blu points along the autostradas, in the Autogrills and in tobacconists; it can be used both in the self-service exits marked with the Viacard sign and in the exits where payment is normally in cash).
Alternatively, there are credit cards (Visa, Eurocard/Mastercard, American Express, Diners and Carta Aura are accepted) and the Bancomat (if the card has the Fastpay logo), both to be used only in the self-service Viacard exits.

Autostrade S.p.A: www.autostrade.it

Speed limits:

50 km/h (31 mph) in towns and cities
90 km/h (56 mph) out of town
110 km/h (68 mph) on superhighways
130 km/h (80 mph) on autostradas

The by-pass roads of some large cities, such as Milan, have speed limits below 90 km/h (56 mph).
As in many other countries, speed cameras are in operation, devices able to photograph a vehicle travelling at excessive speed. The owner of the vehicle is traced through the number plate and the fine is sent to the owner's address.

Fuel: The most common fuels you can find in gas stations are:

BENZINA SENZA PIOMBO or VERDE (unleaded, 95 octanes)
DIESEL

The color (green, black) refers to the distributor pipe colour). "Super" (leaded) no longer exists.

In cities and in country roads gas stations are usually closed 12:30 AM - 3 PM and after 8 PM. Wide available "24hrs self service" station accepting banknotes and some also major credit cards.

by airoplane Rome Fiumicino and Milan Malpensa are Italy's two main hub airports, with direct connections to the European capitals and main cities of North America. On the other hand, if a charter flight is chosen, it is possible to fly direct to the city to be visited, since there are international airports distributed throughout the Italian peninsula and its islands.

Airlines:

by train Paris, Lyons, Brussels, Basel, Zurich, Monaco, Hanover, Berlin, Vienna. These are some of the European cities connected by direct trains to Italy. The decision to travel in this way is particularly attractive for destinations in the northern part of the country, where the stations in Turin, Milan, Verona, Venice and Trieste are arrival points of the very comfortable Eurocity trains.

Ferrovie dello Stato (FS) www.trenitalia.com

Customs Arrangements

Customs arrangements: up to 10000 Euro or the same value in foreign currency may be freely imported or exported. Importing larger sums requires the completion of a special currency form. In Italy, as in the other countries of the European Union, there are no quantity limits on the import of cigarettes and alcohol, so long as they are intended for personal use and not for resale. The indicated quantities for 'personal use' are, for citizens of the European Union: 800 cigarettes, 400 cheroots, 200 cigars, 1 kg of tobacco, 10 litres of spirits (min. 22°), 20 litres of aperitifs, 90 litres of wine, of which 60 may be sparkling, 110 litres of beer; for those who are not citizens of the European Union: 200 cigarettes, 200 cheroots, 50 cigars, 250 grams of tobacco, 1 litre of spirits, 2 litres of sparkling wine, 2 litres of wine.
For export, the regulations of the visitor's country of origin apply.

Documents and formalities: the adherence of Italy to the Schengen accord (of which Belgium, Luxemburg, Germany, France, Holland, Spain and Portugal are also part) has speeded up the crossing of the frontier for all citizens of the European Union from countries that are part of such alliance: for them an identity card is enough. Tourists from the European Union countries that do not adhere to the Schengen accord must have an identity document valid for other countries.
North Americans need a passport, but a visa from the Italian consulate is no longer required. At the end of their stay within the European Union, tourists from outside the EU can ask for a form for exemption from VAT on their purchases. First aid and hospital services are free to all the members of the European Union on presentation of the form E 111, available from the respective national health services.
Visitors from outside the European Union are advised to take out special medical insurance for the duration of their trip.

Embassies/Consulates

Italian Embassies and Consulates abroad:

Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Embassies and Consulates

Health and Emergencies

Health & Emergencies: free first aid and hospital services are available to all citizens of the European Union who have a special form (E 111) issued by the health authority of the relevant country. Visitors from other countries are advised to take out special insurance for the duration of the trip, to avoid the whole cost of medical treatment. Health insurance is compulsory in all the Local Committee, and must be sent to Italy along with the Card of Confirmation. Students can make SISM health Insurance at the cost of 14 Euro. Medicines can be obtained only from the pharmacies.

Pharmacies are usually open from 8.45 AM to 12.30 AM and from the 3.15 PM to 7.15 PM. At night and on public holidays only some pharmacies are open ('Farmacia di turno'). The list of open pharmacies is displayed on the doors of all pharmacies.

All info stated here may change without advise. SISM has no responsability for any kind of damage caused by using this page. Use Lonely Planet or Google if you need more accurate and updated info.