Getting to Italy by air is the fastest, and often the cheapest, option, especially for North Americans. Flights from New York's JFK Airport to Rome's FCO can take as little as 8 hours and as of July 2009 can be had for as low as $540 round trip even during the peak summer months.
An alternative that's often even cheaper is to take a trans-Atlantic flight to London, Paris or another European hub and then use one of the low-cost air carriers such as Ryan Air, EasyJet or Atlas Blue to get to Italy. These carriers often fly into regional airports such as Rome Ciampino rather than the main hub of Rome Fiumicino, so plan carefully. Prices also change radically from day to day, so watch the websites for specials in order to lock in the best fares.
All roads lead to Rome, and these days all trains do too. If your Italian vacation starts elsewhere in Europe, you can rent a car, or even a motorcycle, and travel on your own schedule. Before you go, get an international driving permit by stopping at AAA with your valid U.S. driver's license and two passport-sized photos. Be sure to familiarize yourself with the local traffic rules for each country before you get on the road.
Eurail passes are possibly the most popular method of traveling by land in Europe as a whole. Passes can be purchased for within a single country, a two- to five-country block, a region or the entire continent. While these passes may be expensive, they can allow for unlimited travel not just to Italy but internally to each of your destination cities in the country.
A Mediterranean cruise is one of the most luxurious ways to get to Italy. If you have at least a week and a sufficient budget, book a trip to Italy with any of the major cruise lines. London, Barcelona and Venice are popular departure points that allow for several stops around the Italian peninsula. Additionally, there are 14 night cruises that concentrate specifically on Italy or the Italian Mediterranean.
The budget option for travel by sea is to book a ferry. Routes are available from Barcelona, Tunis, Malta, Morocco, several cities in the south of France, Greece, Slovenia, Croatia, Albania or many of the Mediterranean islands. Half a dozen ferry companies ply the Italian ports, and prices are competitive. Crossings can take from 1 to 24 hours depending upon departure point.
