Winter in the south of Italy?

Mitsi Fendt
Mitsi Fendt Forum Participant Posts: 484
100 Comments

We are considering spending part of the winter somewhere warmer at some point in the future. Seen many discussions about the south of Spain which we are interested in but never seen any about the south of Italy. Does anyone have any ideas or experiences about Italy?

Comments

  • eurortraveller
    eurortraveller Club Member Posts: 6,830 ✭✭✭
    2,500 Likes 1000 Comments
    edited September 2018 #2

    An exploratory January visit via RyanAir to Sicily to check out the weather and the campsites in winter might be worth doing - with a week's car hire to get around, plus Airbnb rooms. 

    But does "somewhere warmer" have  to be with a caravan? All our own winter travels have been by plane to places nearer the equator than Italy, and some to Southern Hemisphere summers. 

    Good luck. 

  • KjellNN
    KjellNN Club Member Posts: 8,670 ✭✭✭
    2,500 Likes 1000 Comments Name Dropper
    edited September 2018 #3

    I spent almost  2 years working in the south of Italy in the 80s, just outside Taranto, we had a very cold winter, the first time many of the locals had seen snow.  It was actually colder down there than in Oslo!

    So warm weather cannot be guaranteed even that far south.

    I would expect that there would be very few campsites open in winter.  

  • Lutz
    Lutz Forum Participant Posts: 1,564 ✭✭✭✭
    edited September 2018 #4

    A reconnaissance trip is well worthwhile. We did the same in the south of Spain this year as we've never overwintered before. We weren't too impressed by any of the campsites that we saw so we've now decided to stay there before Christmas rather than afterwards because you don't have to book ahead then. If we don't like the place we can then just move on.

    By the way, we looked into overwintering in southern Italy, too, but came to the conclusion that it's still a bit warmer in southern Spain, at least on the Mediterranean side.

  • eurortraveller
    eurortraveller Club Member Posts: 6,830 ✭✭✭
    2,500 Likes 1000 Comments
    edited September 2018 #5

    The Alan Rogers organisation - owned in fact by this very Club - lists 15 campsites in Sicily which are open all year - which implies that some hardy souls do go there, but it seems an awful long way away. 

  • Oneputt
    Oneputt Club Member Posts: 9,145 ✭✭✭
    2,500 Likes 1000 Comments
    edited September 2018 #6

    Brother usually overwinters in Sicily from November to February.  He drives to Genoa then gets the ferry to Sicily (about 20 hours)  He tells me the weather can be windy and some rain but never as cold as the UK.  He meets some pals there for the clear night sky's for their star gazing

  • Mitsi Fendt
    Mitsi Fendt Forum Participant Posts: 484
    100 Comments
    edited September 2018 #7

    Thank you to all of you that responded.

  • hitchglitch
    hitchglitch Forum Participant Posts: 3,007
    1000 Comments
    edited September 2018 #8

    We don’t go too far South in Italy (except in hotels) but reading other posts the quality of most of the sites leaves much to be desired. In general, Italian sites have very small pitches and only functional sanitary facilities. Seems that Spain is much more set up for winter stays judging by the number of Brits we met on their way down through France (as we were on our way back!).

  • young thomas
    young thomas Forum Participant Posts: 11,356
    1000 Comments
    edited September 2018 #9

    Spain, Sicily and Greece seem to be the three geographical regions warm enough to support us Brits for an over winter stay...

    pour pals 'did sicily' as their first ever overseas trip over Christmas and new year....not as warm as souther Spain, I'd say, but very pleasant.