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Update: We recorded this on Tuesday and since then, the protests have spread as more gas stations run out of gas and grocery stores run out of food.
Today we're talking about the trucking protests that started in Puglia and have spread through most of the south. While these protests might affect your trip—such as the lack of fuel to certain ports in the south making Capri and Ischia harder to reach. As of posting this episode, trains are running as normal. Like we always say, we're not a news podcast, but we'll keep you posted.
It's likely that the protests won't last too much longer. So if you're planning on coming in November, your trip should be completely normal!
If you have any questions about your trip or if you have tips for fellow listeners, you can join our chat on Patreon for free or contact us on onlyabag.com.
Want to support the podcast? You can join our Patreon! Check out all of our tiers—free and paid—here: patreon.com/cw/theitalytravelpodcast
You can also donate to us on ko-fi!
For articles written by us about Italy, check out our website onlyabag.com
If you'd like to support us by using affiliate links, but don't have the time to hunt them down, we have put them all in one place! Head over to www.onlyabag.com/affiliate-links and you can see all of the companies we have partnerships with and you can use them to support Only A Bag (which we deeply appreciate).
Thanks for listening!
xDarcy and Nathaniel
Today we're talking about the recent protests and violence in Milan. It caught a lot of people by surprise and its exact origins are still unclear. This is a developing situation so things may have changed by the time you hear this.
As of right now, this seems to have had a minimal impact on tourists in Milan and across Italy, but we felt that it was important to talk about. Various cities across Italy including Torino and Bologna have seen student protests on the heels of the protests in France, but it seems that something different is going on in Milan. It has taken a number of officials, ministers, and even the mayor by surprise, so in this episode, we're going to explain why this one is so different.
If you have any questions about your trip or if you have tips for fellow listeners, you can join our chat on Patreon for free or contact us on onlyabag.com.
Want to support the podcast? You can join our Patreon! Check out all of our tiers—free and paid—here: patreon.com/cw/theitalytravelpodcast
You can also donate to us on ko-fi!
For articles written by us about Italy, check out our website onlyabag.com
If you'd like to support us by using affiliate links, but don't have the time to hunt them down, we have put them all in one place! Head over to www.onlyabag.com/affiliate-links and you can see all of the companies we have partnerships with and you can use them to support Only A Bag (which we deeply appreciate).
Thanks for listening!
xDarcy and Nathaniel
While it's not wildly off the beaten path, we've found that it still manages to get forgotten on most whirlwind trips through Italy. Of course, Pompeii and Herculaneum are a bit more impressive, but if you're looking for an evening stroll down a beautiful stretch of ruins, an incredibly well-preserved ancient city, or entertainment in a historic theater, look no further!
If you have any questions about your trip or if you have tips for fellow listeners, you can join our chat on Patreon for free or contact us on onlyabag.com.
Want to support the podcast? You can join our Patreon! Check out all of our tiers—free and paid—here: patreon.com/cw/theitalytravelpodcast
You can also donate to us on ko-fi!
For articles written by us about Italy, check out our website onlyabag.com
If you'd like to support us by using affiliate links, but don't have the time to hunt them down, we have put them all in one place! Head over to www.onlyabag.com/affiliate-links and you can see all of the companies we have partnerships with and you can use them to support Only A Bag (which we deeply appreciate).
Thanks for listening!
xDarcy and Nathaniel
(You can jump to 17:30 to skip Nathaniel's story.)
So, this is probably one of our strangest episodes, or rather, for the two of us, it feels strange because it was recorded fairly late on Tuesday night after having spent 4 of the last 5 days driving back and forth to a hospital some 2~ hours away.
As we've mentioned in previous episodes, mostly off-handedly, Italy has eradicated rabies. So if you do happen to get bit by a dog, for example, nearly every single emergency room is thinking more about muscle/nerve damage or tetanus and not rabies. Which is a good thing!
As mentioned in the episode, Nathaniel recently came in contact with a bat, and mostly to follow the guidelines he found on the Italian health website, he went to the hospital, and this set off a very minor game of hot potato. All along the way, Nathaniel kept thinking, "This will make such a good episode!"
(To be clear, Nathaniel is totally fine.)
If you have any questions about your trip or if you have tips for fellow listeners, you can join our chat on Patreon for free or contact us on onlyabag.com.
Want to support the podcast? You can join our Patreon! Check out all of our tiers—free and paid—here: patreon.com/cw/theitalytravelpodcast
You can also donate to us on ko-fi!
For articles written by us about Italy, check out our website onlyabag.com
If you'd like to support us by using affiliate links, but don't have the time to hunt them down, we have put them all in one place! Head over to www.onlyabag.com/affiliate-links and you can see all of the companies we have partnerships with and you can use them to support Only A Bag (which we deeply appreciate).
Thanks for listening!
xDarcy and Nathaniel
This episode is titled after the stickers you may see around Florence; black text on a yellow background reading "Yankee Go Home". In this episode we're addressing concerns about Florence locals hating American tourists. But we're also talking about the true negative impact that tourism has had on Europe and what we can do about it.
If you have any questions about your trip or if you have tips for fellow listeners, you can join our chat on Patreon for free or contact us on onlyabag.com.
Want to support the podcast? You can join our Patreon! Check out all of our tiers—free and paid—here: patreon.com/cw/theitalytravelpodcast
You can also donate to us on ko-fi!
For articles written by us about Italy, check out our website onlyabag.com
If you'd like to support us by using affiliate links, but don't have the time to hunt them down, we have put them all in one place! Head over to www.onlyabag.com/affiliate-links and you can see all of the companies we have partnerships with and you can use them to support Only A Bag (which we deeply appreciate).
Thanks for listening!
xDarcy and Nathaniel
There has been a discussion circulating on the internet about whether we should stop using the word "expat". In this episode we're talking about what these terms mean, who uses them, and our thoughts on whether getting rid of the word "expat" would make a positive change.
This discourse affects tourists too, because there is a much larger conversation happening around outside influence on Italy, where it's coming from, how much harm is being done, and who's at fault.
We'd love to hear your thoughts! You can chat with us and your fellow listeners for free on Pateon!
If you'd like to support us in other ways, check out our paid tiers on Patreon. You can also donate to us on Ko-fi.
For articles written by us about Italy, check out our website onlyabag.com
If you'd like to support us by using affiliate links, but don't have the time to hunt them down, we have put them all in one place! Head over to www.onlyabag.com/affiliate-links and you can see all of the companies we have partnerships with and you can use them to support Only A Bag (which we deeply appreciate).
Thanks for listening!
xDarcy and Nathaniel
While we try not to delve too much into the political side of Italy mainly as it will rarely affect your trip to Italy, today's episode jumps right into it!
Next year, December 22nd will be the election day for a Prime Minister and a fair amount of Senate seats, so already the news is ramping up with headlines ranging from things like Meloni's government cutting a widely-hated road tax only for next year (the election year), to gas prices being capped, to a ban on burqas and niqabs in schools.
As mentioned, very little of this will affect your trip—either this year or next—but just like any election anywhere, the more fear-inducing a headline is, the better it sells. So we wanted to explain that while some headlines might seem scary at first glance, it's likely they have more to do with political saber-rattling than anything else.
If you have any questions about your trip or if you have tips for fellow listeners, you can join our chat on Patreon for free or contact us on onlyabag.com.
Want to support the podcast? You can join our Patreon! Check out all of our tiers—free and paid—here: patreon.com/cw/theitalytravelpodcast
For articles written by us about Italy, check out our website onlyabag.com
If you'd like to support us by using affiliate links, but don't have the time to hunt them down, we have put them all in one place! Head over to www.onlyabag.com/affiliate-links and you can see all of the companies we have partnerships with and you can use them to support Only A Bag (which we deeply appreciate).
Thanks for listening!
xDarcy and Nathaniel
Sorry this is late! I (Nathaniel) scheduled it for Thursday, not Wednesday!
We're back for another headlines episode! So much has happened this month, so today we jump into upcoming strikes, airport closures, the upcoming redesign of Sorrento's coastline (hello, new free beaches!), and Esquilino being named the world's 10th coolest neighborhood!
If you have any questions about your trip or if you have tips for fellow listeners, you can join our chat on Patreon for free or contact us on onlyabag.com.
Want to support the podcast? You can join our Patreon! Check out all of our tiers—free and paid—here: patreon.com/cw/theitalytravelpodcast
For articles written by us about Italy, check out our website onlyabag.com
If you'd like to support us by using affiliate links, but don't have the time to hunt them down, we have put them all in one place! Head over to www.onlyabag.com/affiliate-links and you can see all of the companies we have partnerships with and you can use them to support Only A Bag (which we deeply appreciate).
Thanks for listening!
xDarcy and Nathaniel
This is the time of year for harvesting lots of foods in Italy, one of the main ones being olives (primarily for making olive oil). Continuing with the theme of talking about an experience rather than a destination, in this episode we're talking about what it's like to harvest olives and how you can do it.
Harvesting olives is hard work, but if you're someone who enjoys getting their hands dirty, seeing the fruits (pun intended) of their labor, and having a big lunch after, then participating in an olive harvest might be a great experience for you!
If you're someone who prefers to do a little bit of picking, but mostly wander scenic spaces and have lunch, check out our last episode as well, on harvesting grapes!
The festival mentioned in this episode is called La Festa dell Olio and is in San Quirico d'Orcia from the 5th to the 8th of December in 2026 (it's an annual festival, but dates change yearly).
If you have any questions about your trip or if you have tips for fellow listeners, you can join our chat on Patreon for free or contact us on onlyabag.com.
Want to support the podcast? You can join our Patreon! Check out all of our tiers—free and paid—here: patreon.com/cw/theitalytravelpodcast
For articles written by us about Italy, check out our website onlyabag.com
If you'd like to support us by using affiliate links, but don't have the time to hunt them down, we have put them all in one place! Head over to www.onlyabag.com/affiliate-links and you can see all of the companies we have partnerships with and you can use them to support Only A Bag (which we deeply appreciate).
Thanks for listening!
xDarcy and Nathaniel
For something a little different than what we normally do, we wanted to talk about an experience rather than a place. Specifically, we wanted to talk about grape-picking in Italy (called a "vendemmia"). While some of the larger vintners and wine productions use paid professionals who know how to pick grapes without damaging the vines or soil, a massive number of smaller productions, agriturismi, and private vineyards can use all the help they can get.
Or, if you'd prefer to make it more of an experience, this is the time of year to find a festival for the vendemmia! From now until mid-November there are a number of festivals (mostly in small towns) celebrating the vendemmia with markets, food, and demonstrations .
For a list of the open "cantine" (places that make wine) and upcoming festivals you can check out this link:
https://movimentoturismovino.it/
Or, you can search the internet for the name of the town or region you're going to with "Vendemmia" to see if they'll host one.
If you have any questions about your trip or if you have tips for fellow listeners, you can join our chat on Patreon for free or contact us on onlyabag.com.
Want to support the podcast? You can join our Patreon! Check out all of our tiers—free and paid—here: patreon.com/cw/theitalytravelpodcast
For articles written by us about Italy, check out our website onlyabag.com
If you'd like to support us by using affiliate links, but don't have the time to hunt them down, we have put them all in one place! Head over to www.onlyabag.com/affiliate-links and you can see all of the companies we have partnerships with and you can use them to support Only A Bag (which we deeply appreciate).
Thanks for listening!
xDarcy and Nathaniel
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