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Italy

General Information

Capital City:
Rome
Population:
58 million
Area:
116,305 square miles
Language:
Italian
Electricity:
220V AC 50Hz
Direct Dial:
39
Driving:
Driving is on the right. Pink UK licence required or International Driving Permit. Minimum driving age is 18
Currency:
Euro (EUR 1 = 100 Cents)

Business Hours

Bank:
0830-1330 & 1445-1545 Mon-Fri
Office:
0900-1800
Shops:
0900-1300 & 1400-2000 (shops may close Mon am, some shopping centres open 24 hours)
Public Holidays:
<b>2012</b> 01 Jan : New Year's Day 06 Jan : Epiphany 09 Apr : Easter Monday 25 Apr : Liberation Day 01 May : Labour Day 02 Jun : Anniversary of the Republic 15 Aug : Assumption 01 Nov : All Saints' Day 08 Dec : Immaculate Conception 25 Dec : Christmas Day 26 Dec : St Stephen's Day In addition, local days may be held in honor of patron saints, usually however shops and offices remain open Dates include:- Turin/Genoa/Florence: 24 Jun (St John the Baptist), Milan: 7 Dec (St Ambrose), Siena: 2 Jul and 16 Aug, Palio horserace, Venice: 25 Apr (St Mark), Bologna: 4 Oct (St Petronius), Naples: 19 Sep (St Gennaro), Bari: 6 Dec (St Nichola), Palermo: 15 Jul (St Rosalia), Rome: 29 Jun (St Peter), Trieste: 3 Nov (St Giusto).

Business and social hints

General:
Business is conducted in Italian, many executives speak French and English. Smoking is prohibited in most public buildings and on transport. Request permission before smoking in offices, cars and restaurants. On social occasions, eg invitation to restaurants, be reasonably punctual and dress as for business meetings unless otherwise indicated. The minimum drinking age is 16 years
Tipping:
A service charge is normally added to the bill, tips are not necessary but it is customary to leave small change, min EUR 0.50 or around 10%. Taxis round-up their fare, therefore tips are not necessary
Clothing:
Lightweights in summer, except in mountains. In winter, light or mediumweights in the south with warmer clothing required elsewhere. Alpine wear is advised for winter mountain resorts
Emergency Services:
Police: 113. Fire: 115. Ambulance: 118
Hotel Classification:
Hotels and pensions in Italy are officially classified: hotels from 1-star up to 5-star, pensions 1-star to 3-star. But it should be noted that each province sets its own levels for grading and consequently standards for each category may vary considerably from one area to another. Some provinces award an additional top grading of "5-star de luxe" shown here as *****L. Apartments in some provinces are classified from 1st class down to 4th class. Where a property is unclassified for whatever reason no category is shown.

Climate

Italy can be divided into three climatic regions: Alpine, Po Valley & northern plain and peninsular region & islands. The Italian side of the Alps has rather more rainfall than the Swiss and Austrian side and the lower slopes are warmer in both summer and winter. The wettest time is between seasons and thunderstorms are most frequent in spring and autumn. The Po Valley and northern plain has well distributed rainfall throughout the year. Summers are hot and winters surprisingly cold with frequent fog, frost and snow. Peninsular Italy and the islands climate differs between the coastlands and the interior. During winter the higher areas are cold, wet and often snowy, the coastal areas mild. Summers are usually hot and dry and changeable weather is common during autumn, winter and spring

Milan

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Maximum Temperature °C 5 8 13 18 23 27 29 28 24 17 10 6
Minimum Temperature °C 0 2 6 10 14 17 20 19 16 11 6 2
Average Humidity (mornings) % 90 87 88 86 86 84 85 89 91 94 92 94
Average Humidity (afternoons) % 82 73 65 57 59 56 61 58 63 73 80 89
Average Rainfall 44 60 77 94 76 118 64 91 69 125 122 77

Rome

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Maximum Temperature °C 11 13 15 19 23 28 30 30 26 22 16 13
Minimum Temperature °C 5 5 7 10 13 17 20 20 17 13 9 6
Average Humidity (mornings) % 85 86 83 83 77 74 70 73 83 86 87 85
Average Humidity (afternoons) % 68 64 56 54 54 48 42 43 50 59 66 70
Average Rainfall 71 62 57 51 46 37 15 21 63 99 129 93

Customs

Import Allowances:
For persons of 17 years of age or older: 1) Travellers entering from non-EU countries (including Canary Islands, Channel Islands & Gibraltar): a) 200 cigarettes or 100 cigarillos or 50 cigars or 250gr of tobacco b) 1 lit of spirits of more than 22% proof or 2 lit of up to 22% proof or non-denatured ethyl alcohol with more that 80% volume. c) 4 lit of wines d) 16 lit wine e) Other goods to the value of EUR 430 (EUR 150 for travellers under 15 years) 2) Travellers entering from EU countries (goods obtained duty & tax paid - guidance levels): a) 800 cigarettes, 400 cigarillos, 200 cigars & 1 kg of tobacco b) 10 lit of spirits, 20 lit of alcoholic beverages less than 22%, 90 lit of wine (of which, a max of 60 lit of sparkling wine) & 110 lit of beer
Contraband:
Narcotic drugs and medicinal products, arms and weapons, explosives, protected species of animals and plants, parts and derivatives of such goods

Health

Participant of the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC scheme) which allows visitors on short-term stays to other member countries to use the public health care sector for free or reduced-cost medical treatment and emergency care. EHIC replaces the E111 form. <b>Please note:</b> The EHIC scheme is not an alternative to travel insurance. It will <b>not</b> cover any private medical healthcare or the cost of things such as mountain rescue in ski resorts repatriation to the UK lost or stolen property etc. For full details on eligibility and how to apply for a card visit www.nhs.uk or click<a href="https://www.ehic.org.uk/Internet/home.do"> here</a>

Compulsary Vaccinations
None.
Recommended Immunisations
None required, however for those travelling to Italy frequently or intending to spend extended time there, Hepatitis A <i>(Not Normally For Package Tourists)</i> & Tick-Borne Encephalitis should be considered.
Risks
- <b>Rabies</b> - Spread through the saliva of an infected animal, usually through a bite or scratch. There is a low risk in terrestrial animals in this country, but bat rabies maybe present, and exposure to bat saliva or neural tissue should be considered a potential risk. Any animal or bat bite should be assessed immediately. <b>GENERAL INFO FOR ALL TRAVELLERS:</b> Details listed can occasionally change at very short notice and it's recommended that all travellers seek advice from their Practice Nurse, GP or Travel Clinic when planning a visit to Italy. It should be noted that some vaccinations and treatments may require one or more visits and should be planned well in advance of travel. Primary courses and boosters should always be up to date as recommended for life in the UK. This should include vaccines given to special groups due to complications or risk exposure such as Hepatitis B for health care workers, influenza and pneumococcal vaccines for the elderly etc.

Immigration and Passport

Passports and passport replacing documents must be valid on arrival. Exempt: a) Expired passports (no limit) issued to nationals of Italy. b) Expired passports (max. 5 years) issued to nationals of Austria, Liechtenstein and Switzerland. c) Expired passport and National ID Cards (max. 1 year) "Personalausweiss" and "Kinderausweiss" issued to nationals of Germany.

The following DO NOT require a visa: 1) Nationals of Italy. 2) For an unrestricted length of stay by: a) Nationals of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Rep., Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland (Rep. of), Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. b) Holders of British passports endorsed "British Citizen". c) Holders of Identity Cards issued by Gibraltar endorsed "Validated for EU travel purposes under the authority of the United Kingdom". d) Holders of passports bearing the inscription "Knights of Malta" e) Irrespective of nationality, holding a residence permit issued by Monaco or a Schengen Member State. 3) For stays up to 90 days by nationals of: a) Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Croatia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Hong Kong (SAR China passport), Israel, Japan, Korea (South), Macao (SAR China passport), Malaysia, Mauritius, Mexico, Monaco, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, San Marino, Seychelles, Singapore, St. Kitts-Nevis, Uruguay, USA, Vatican City and Venezuela. b) Holders of British passports endorsed "British National (Overseas)" c) Holders of British passports endorsed "British Overseas Territories Citizen" or "British Subject" containing a Certificate of Entitlement to the Right of Abode issued by the UK. d) Holders of Chinese Taipei (Taiwan) passports providing the passport includes a Personal ID number. e) Holders of biometric passports issued to nationals of Albania, Bosnia Herzegovina, Macedonia (FYROM) and Montenegro. f) Holders of biometric passports issued to nationals of Serbia providing the passport is not issued by the Coordination Directorate ("Koordinaciona uprava").

Useful Contacts

Embassy

Consulate General of Italy 38 Eaton Place London, SW1X 8AN tel: +44 20 7235 9371, +44 20 7823 6519 (visa enq.) fax: +44 20 7823 1609 e-mail: consolato.londra@esteri.it website: www.conslondra.esteri.it/Consolato_Londra/Templates/HomePage.aspx Visa Office 136 Buckingham Palace Road London, SW1W 9SA tel: +44 20 7823 6519 fax: +44 20 7823 4449 e-mail: visti.londra@esteri.it

Airports

  • Alghero (Sardinia)
  • Bari Palese
  • Bologna G. Marconi
  • Catania (Sicily)
  • Cuneo
  • Elba Island - Marina di Campo
  • Florence Amerigo Vespucci
  • Forli International Airport
  • Genoa Cristoforo Colombo
  • Milan - Bergamo Orio al Serio International
  • Milan Linate
  • Milan Malpensa
  • Naples
  • Palermo (Sicily)
  • Parma - Giuseppe Verdi
  • Pisa/Florence Galileo Galilei
  • Rome Ciampino
  • Rome Leonardo da Vinci (Fiumicino)
  • Trapani (Sicily)
  • Treviso International
  • Turin International
  • Venice Marco Polo
  • Verona - Villafranca
  • Verona Brescia

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