It has been a dream of mine since I was in middle school to take a trip to Italy. I could never put my finger on why I loved it so much, but between the food, the history and the views, I knew it had to be wonderful.My husband knew about this dream, so when I graduated college and started working full time, he told me that we would always find a reason not to go or put it off, so lets do it now. And we did! We started planning in December for a travel date in May. Even though I was thrilled, the planning was a little stressful. Neither of us had been to Europe before and we had no idea what we were doing. We spent hours reading and putting together an itinerary (I have a type A personality), which were great memories and times I got to spend learning with Ian.So I decided to share the little bit of knowledge we gained on traveling to Italy for anyone who was clueless, like us, or just wanted to know the process we went through.Planning the trip:Ian and I both started out by reading Trip Adviser and Italian Travel Guides. Fodor's was our favorite. You can buy it on Amazon here. From there, we started narrowing down the cities we wanted to visit and then the things we wanted to do while we were in those cities. That made it easier for us to manage our time and days while we were there.After deciding how many days we wanted to be in each city, we started looking at hotels on Kayak (we booked almost all our hotel travel through here because it's simple, easy to use and always has the best prices.) We made sure if there wasn't a metro in the city, we would be in a central location so walking to our destinations wouldn't be too strenuous. It is also extremely beneficial to take the train across Europe because you know exactly what time you'll be at a location, and most of the time, you'll save a good amount of money. That is the most common transportation for locals. We booked ahead of time through RailEurope. You can book passes by country, amount of days traveling or just single passes and they were very easy to work with. This is how we got from Germany to Italy and also how we got from Venice to Florence to Rome when we were in Italy.After booking our trains, hotels, and flights, we decided to make an itinerary based on the things we wanted to see. A lot of things are best to see early in the morning or late at night, so if you don't do your research you could be caught in a terrible crowd of people or not able to see things at all (some attractions are closed on certain days.) We also noted restaurants in certain cities we wanted to try and what foods were the best in each location. Venice has great seafood, Florence delicious Steak and the best gelato, Rome amazing Pasta and if you ask Ian, the pizza was unbelievable everywhere.Having a plan helped us feel more reassured and also helped us experience everything we wanted to see.Packing for the trip:You have probably heard this before, but PACK LIGHT! Everything you bring, you will be carrying yourself. So when you consider bringing four of your fabulous wedged heels, think again. Plus, the streets in Italy are almost all cobblestone, so wear comfortable shoes. I would suggest packing one outfit for each day and wearing it all day.The best outfits are the ones that you are comfortable walking around in. Layering helps. I would wear a sweater over a lighter shirt and put my sweater in my bag whenever it warmed up outside. My Ked's and Rainbows were my best friends. I started the trip wanting to look fashion forward and cute, but by the end, all I cared about was not getting blisters or sore feet.A huge mistake we made, was bringing rolling luggage. Though we were advised against it, we didn't listen. If you are able, I would strongly suggest taking large backpacks with you. Getting on and off the trains can be very difficult with large luggage and rolling luggage does not do well on the cobblestone streets. If you take the trains like we did, there's not much storage space for luggage, so soft backpacks are easy to store above you or in the spaces at the end of your train car. Having a backpack also helps you keep your belongings on you instead of just next to you or behind you in the case of rolling luggage.On the trip:Everyone will experience Europe differently based on your background, expectations, and the time of your visit. Regardless, make sure to be completely open to something new and outside of your comfort zone. Embrace the country for what it is. Take your time eating, because almost everybody in Europe does. Some people take 2-3 for each meal, just enjoying the company of the people around them. Soak up the moments around you and take lots of pictures of everywhere you go (with you in them!) It is much cooler to look back at the coliseum and see pictures of Ian and I in it instead of a picture that anyone could have taken.Try new things. Part of what makes traveling so addicting is that it enables you to experience new things. Try the food that the locals recommend and eat in the restaurants that don't look so touristy. It is the uniqueness of the city that makes it so enthralling. Ask the staff at your hotels or bed-and-breakfast where you should eat and what you should see.Get a good map! Having a good map that is easy to read will be killer in finding your way around the city. Usually your hotel will provide you with one, but we also brought one from TripAdvisor that we bought online. I felt so spoiled when I got home and was able to use the GPS on my phone to find a restaurant instead of trying to read a map or have someone who didn't understand English tell me where to go. But as long as your polite and respectful, the people of Italy were so welcoming and would answer any questions we had. Most of the streets in Italy don't have names, so the map helped us navigate easier.Slow down and enjoy yourself. One of my favorite things about Italy was the pace of which people lived life. They enjoyed themselves and conversed openly with everyone. They weren't rushing from place to place like you see in New York or Atlanta. It was wonderful. It took Ian and I a few days to slow down through our meals and not hurry on to the next attraction. Would would just sit and enjoy each others company and the environment around us. By the end of the trip, our meals were nearly two hours long. Also, remember to ask for still water. Since water is not something they provide free of charge at restaurants, it's important to make sure that you are paying for regular water and not sparkling, unless you prefer sparkling over still.This is only a sample of what we learned while we were there, so if you are thinking of traveling and have any questions for us, please comment below or email us! We met with a lot of our friends who have traveled, because their knowledge and experiences proved to be the most beneficial in understanding some ins-and-outs to stuff the travel books never told us. We hope this can do the same for you! I hope that you all work to make your dreams a reality. It really is wonderful to experience a place different than where you are from, and I hope that I get the opportunity to visit many more places.