I just got back from two weeks in Italy and thought I’d post a recap of what I packed and what worked. We had two days in Rome on our own, then we were with a tour of Pompeii and other areas in Campania for a week. The tour was led by a fabulous archaeologist, and we stayed in the same hotel all week, which was nice. My parents, MIL and uncle were also on the tour, which is why we chose to it. Finally, my husband and I headed to the beautiful island of Ischia for a few days relaxing at a resort.
Our vacation required lots of walking, and not just on the typical European cobblestone streets, but also around archaeological sites with rough terrain. One day we climbed to the top of Mt Vesuvius; the equivalent of 50 flights from the parking lot according to our fitness app! I wanted to pack light as we’d be traveling by train and ferry.
My takeaways:
Linen pants and tops are a godsend. I wore the black linen drawstring pants on the plain - comfy for a long haul. I washed both pairs of linen pants and the linen sweaters and tees. My green cropped linen pants are almost done for; I’ll definitely look for more next year.
The knit dress was perfect for something comfy and nice to change into for dinner. It packed like a champ and the night I wore it with the pink and black scarf and black flats my dad told me twice that it was a nice outfit . This dress is from Target so won’t last long. I’ll keep an eye out for a slightly better quality version.
I also brought the black striped blouse for dinner and wore it once with the black jeans. I just wasn’t feeling it for some reason.
I bought this purse with an eye for travel: it packs flatish so I can put it in my bag or a larger carryon. It has both a phone and a map pocket and zips shut. Worked like a champ, though it did pick up some “character” along the way.
Because we were in one place for a week, I did a lot of hand wash and only had a few things laundered. Our hotel balcony even had a drying rack since it’s quite common in Italy to hang out your wash. By wearing my linen pants more (and because it was pleasantly warm) l could baby my jeans and not send them to the laundry. I always line dry my jeans (most of my clothes actually) and was afraid of what the laundry would do to my favorite pairs!
The two things I really turned out not to need were the black linen cropped sweater and the blue and white scarf. I thought I’d want the sweater for dinners or as a lightweight layer over sleeveless tops. I wore it over my dress one night to dinner, and it got warm enough in the dining room I took it off. I wore th scarf with the blue top on cool morning but by midday it was in my bag.
Overall it was a very good capsule. Super casual for long warm days outside with some options on the smart casual side. The only time I felt underdressed was when we checked into our lovely hotel in Ischia wearing jeans, sneakers and the plaid popover. I changed into the asymmetrical ruched black tee and black flats with my jeans, added a pendant necklace and felt better! I don’t have my jewelry in finds. I did bring a little bag of tricks so i could change things up with earrings, necklaces or bracelets.
Long post! I always enjoy seeing fabbers’ travel capsules, so figured I would share, too.
PS it looks like the whole capsule doesn’t show below the post, so click the link at the top to see the whole thing, if you’re so inclined. AND I inadvertently added the voting button and can’t undo it! Please don't vote
