Budget Travel: Camping in Italy

Let's talk numbers. The purpose of disclosing how much we spent on three weeks worth of accommodations in Italy is to prove that budget travel in that country is truly possible. The key? Camping! Here's a list of all the campsites we called home during our three-week road trip through Italy.

First, I should warn anyone thinking of camping in Italy during winter that sleeping in a tent is not for the faint of heart. While many campsites throughout Italy are open year-round (and southern Italy boasts winter weather warm enough to sleep comfortably in a tent), most people camping during the winter months sleep in a camper rather than a tent. If you do choose to sleep in a tent, be prepared for odd looks from your fellow campers who step up into their mobile homes while you crawl into your tent.

A note on rates: Most of the rates below reflect the prices for 2009. Per night, campsites charge per person, per car, and per tent. The rates you see in my list include: 2 persons, one car, and one small tent.

We ended up deciding against camping in Florence at Camping Michelangelo because we didn't want to freeze our tushies. Yet for some reason we thought camping in Rome would be a bit better. Apparently, we missed the memo about the city experiencing its coldest winter in nine or ten years = waking up with a layer of frost on our tent. (Though I'd go back to that campsite during summer in a heartbeat.)

• €28/night for 3 nights at Camping Roma - Pros: Supermarket directly across the street from the campsite (accessible by a foot bridge), bus stop directly outside of camp gates, wireless Internet included, and heated bathrooms with nice showers. Cons: Non-existent bus schedule.
• €11.50/night for 2 nights at Camping Thurium in Corigliano Calabro, Calabria - Pros: CHEAP, private beach, big shopping mall down the road on main highway, and deserted in the winter. Cons: Because it's deserted in the winter, not all toilet facilities are open for use.
• €21.5/night for 4 nights at Camping Jonio in Catania, Sicily - Pros: Friendly staff and coastal location. Cons: It's a bit of a walk to closest bus stop that goes to the city.
• €17.5/night for 2 nights at Camping Valle dei Templi in Agrigento, Sicily - Pros: Produce market across the street, (longish) walking distance to seaside, bus stop outside of camp gates (bus goes into city and toward archeological site). Cons: Shower stalls have no place to hang towels or robe or clothing.
• €16/night for 2 nights at Camping Rais Gerbi in Finale di Pollina, Sicily - Pros: Plentiful and clean toilet and shower facilities, located along coast, and proprietor speaks English very well. Cons: Not a whole lot going on in the vicinity. (By the way, €16 is a discounted rate. There is a network of campsites throughout Sicily that offer discounts during the off-season months. Jonio and Rais Gerbi are part of this network, and Jonio is the camp that gave us the discount card.)
• €47.70/night for 2 nights back at Camping Roma, only this time we got smart and stayed in a private bungalow.

Tip: Bring your own TP!!

Non-camping accommodations:

• 2 nights at B&B in Florence outside of historical city center (not very noteworthy, so shall remain nameless): $50/night
• 1 night at small hostel, which also has campgrounds, called Ostello - Campeggio Beata Solitudo in Agerola, Campania (near hiking trails above the Amalfi coast, well-stocked common room and kitchen): €11.50/night/person
• 1 night at B&B in Calabria (also not noteworthy, so shall remain nameless): €50/night
• 2 nights at Palazzo dei Ciompi Suites in Florence: $80/night

Total cost of 3 weeks of accommodations (converted from Euros to U.S. Dollars): $788.00!!!