Traveling and safety in Rome and Florence

You're going to Italy, not a third world country.

Just don't be stupid. Hide your valuables. Have fun.

Moslems everywhere. Keep your guard up and always be aware of your exits. Additionally secure your hotel room no matter where you stay following these methods...

LINK

LASTLY, make sure to set up several traps in your room. An app I like to use is called photo trap LINK.

Those are some of the most basic precautions you will need to take.

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Moslems everywhere.

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I didn't see one Muslim while I was in Rome or Florence.

OP, Rome and Florence are safer than or as safe as wherever you are in Northern Alabama. Enjoy yourself.

It's been a while but when I lived in Sicily personal crime was non-existant, you could let your kids play in the street all night, BUT they are some thieving bastards! I had two houses robbed and they were so thorough they went through the damn sugar bowl.

Vespa bandits, two on it and they drive by and if you have anything laying in the seat they drive up, drop one off, come back and stop in front of you, the other tries the door handle or breaks the window, and off they go.

I was in Florence last week and I felt safe as could be, even wandering through little alleyways at midnight walking home. As far as the big tourists areas they had armed police/army guys walking around patrolling. I've felt more unsafe in New Orleans (all OT jokes aside) than I did in Florence. We stayed at an airbnb in Santa Croce and it was perfect. Lots of Antifa graffiti though (overcorrecting from the 1940's I guess).

Haven't been to Rome in 10 years, but I'm sure it's a a little more pickpockety but no one is going to rob you at gun point.

I have been to Rome several times in recent years and am going back to Venice in the spring. In Rome, we stay in the Campo di Fiore / Piazza Navona / Pantheon area. We would walk the streets until after midnight every night and never felt unsafe. There is plenty of nightlife and the pedestrians seemed pretty classy. We felt much safer than we would have walking in my home town of NOLA late at night. I know that is not setting the bar very high, but we were commenting on how safe we felt. Same in Venice. The musicians will be playing on St. Mark's Square and the beaten path will seem very safe at night. I like to explore the back streets in the neighborhoods, but in the daytime. Of course, safeguard your belongings wherever you go. If you are looking for hotel recs in Rome, the last time we were there we stayed at the Hotel Teatro di Pompeo near Campo di Fiore and enjoyed it. The time before we stayed at the Nazionale which is on the same square the Italian Parliament building is on. In Venice we are staying at the Cavaliere near the Rialto Bridge.

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try not to stick out.

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Well that means he can't wear his shorts and ball cap!

Agree that the area around Termini can be sketchy, esp at night. But during the day, it's a hive of activity, and also home to the huge Mercato Esquilino, a very busy and very Roman food market, practically the only place in Rome to find things like lemongrass and cilantro (plus plenty of Italian produce, too).

The historic city center of Rome grows more tourist-theme-park-y with every passing year, and it has fewer residents and "real" Roman culture. Still, if you're going there to see the sights, the Centro Storico is the place to be. I'm partial to the old Jewish Ghetto neighborhood, where the Hotel Monte Cenci is located. Close to the center, but not so close as to be constantly clogged by organized tour groups. Decent bakeries and food shops nearby, just off of the tram line running up via Arenula from Trastevere station (so an easy enough connection from the airport on public transit).

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DoUrden, where in Sicily and what years

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93-95, I lived in a villagio off of Siracusa highway

Keep a hand on your purse/wallet at all times on the bus lines. My wife got pickpocketed by a little 7 year old girl while we were crammed in a bus. I caught the girl luckily.