Hi. We are building a kitchen in an annexe of our house in Italy. We need a plumber to connect the sink to the drainage system and sign the documents for the Commune. Unfortrunately all of the plumbers we have contacted are unwilling to sign.
Hi. Just moved to Italy and signed up for a loyalty card at the local Ali (carta fedelta). I’ve successfully registered on the web site and have my card. Can anyone explain how the system works please?
We are doing some building work on a house near Ostellato, Ferrara and need to find a local builders merchant who can deliver bricks, sand and timber. Does anyone know of such a place? Also what is the Italian translation for builders merchant?
I understand that snow chains or snow tyres are a requirement in some parts of Northern Italy. We will be driving a van from the UK down to Ferrara on 13th November and returning around 16th December. Does anyone know if we will need snow chains?
We have just bought a house in Emilia Romagna which has Apple TV. Can anyone advise how we can view UK TV channels such as BBC or ITV. We have Amazon Prime and Virgin subscriptions back in the U.K. Many thanks.
Hi. I said I’d let you know how we got on last week when driving from the U.K. to Emilia Romagna.
The journey itself was very straightforward although we had to avoid the French 9 pm curfew and we found out the night before we departed that we wouldn't be allowed to transit through Switzerland (went via the Mt Blanc tunnel which was particularly gruelling as we’d bought our vignettes in advance).
At Eurotunnel we were asked if we’d had a negative PCR tests but didn’t have to show the results. At no point on the journey did we need to produce the wealth of paperwork we’d had to complete and the France/Italy border was unmanned.
The only other potential problem was that the PCR test to enter italy which should be taken within 48 hours of arrival in italy. As most tests take 24 hours to get the results (which are also required to enter France) it was impossible for us to meet this timing. So we had our test at 3pm on Tuesday and entered italy around 7pm on Thursday. As I said, no one checked.
Restrictions have now changed for entering France from the U.K. and I haven’t been able to find out for sure whether transit to italy is permitted. Going back we’ll be fine as we’ll be entering France from an EU but thereafter we may need to resort to flying out.
I found this website very useful in checking what documents were required for each country. https://apply.joinsherpa.com/travel-restrictions
Btw as regards Brexit, we had a car full of ‘stuff’, old and new, as well as food and encountered no problems.
We are planning on driving down at the end of May to our home in Northern Italy (laden down with proof of residency, vaccinations etc). Rules seem to be changing all the time but we expect to have to have a test when we get to Italy (possibly at the testing centre at Bologna airport which is en route to our house) and maybe a test before we leave the UK. Italy is looking at how to make it easier for foreigners especially if they've had both vaccines. Hopefully by the time we return to the uk in July things will be more relaxed and we won't not need the 2 tests and isolation currently required. I will let you know how we get on.
Where do I begin! We live in an often neglected (tourism wise) part of Emilia Romagna- Ferrara. The city itself is a real hidden gem with its understated blend of Medieval and Renaissance architecture- a perfect place to enjoy an apertivo watching the world go by in one of the many squares. With an imposing castle and many palaces and galleries to visit, Ferrara is a university city so cycling is the favoured mode of transport. I highly recommend cycling around the city walls or along the River Po. The international annual Buskers Festival of street music taking plac in August is awesome. Nearby is Comacchio - known as little Venice- a favourite with our visitors, especially when dining on one of the canal boats. The endless sandy beaches nearby have an infinite variety of bars each with their own identity and food specialities. Our favourites are Pyramide and Bagno 36. Comacchio lagoon is an ornithologist heaven, renowned for the famous flamingos. Throughout the year there are local festivals- one of our favourites being the Asparagus Festival at Mesola. Porto Garibaldi is the local fishing port and home to a number of excellent seafood restaurants.
You could try asking someone in italy to buy you an Italian SIM card and post it to you. You could then use that in your U.K. phone. We have a phone with a dual SIM card- one U.K. and one Italian- to avoid the necessity of having two phones.
We made the mistake of taking over a U.K. electric job for our kitchen in italy. It uses too much wattage and causes the power to trip so we now need to replace it. It’s quite easy to upgrade the power supply. We were 4.5kw and recently upgraded to 6kw. You just need to visit the local office of your supplier and they switch it electronically without the need to change cables or equipment.
Comments posted
Hi. I said I’d let you know how we got on last week when driving from the U.K. to Emilia Romagna.
The journey itself was very straightforward although we had to avoid the French 9 pm curfew and we found out the night before we departed that we wouldn't be allowed to transit through Switzerland (went via the Mt Blanc tunnel which was particularly gruelling as we’d bought our vignettes in advance).
At Eurotunnel we were asked if we’d had a negative PCR tests but didn’t have to show the results. At no point on the journey did we need to produce the wealth of paperwork we’d had to complete and the France/Italy border was unmanned.
The only other potential problem was that the PCR test to enter italy which should be taken within 48 hours of arrival in italy. As most tests take 24 hours to get the results (which are also required to enter France) it was impossible for us to meet this timing. So we had our test at 3pm on Tuesday and entered italy around 7pm on Thursday. As I said, no one checked.
Restrictions have now changed for entering France from the U.K. and I haven’t been able to find out for sure whether transit to italy is permitted. Going back we’ll be fine as we’ll be entering France from an EU but thereafter we may need to resort to flying out.
I found this website very useful in checking what documents were required for each country. https://apply.joinsherpa.com/travel-restrictions
Btw as regards Brexit, we had a car full of ‘stuff’, old and new, as well as food and encountered no problems.
We bought our vignette online to save the hassle at the border. It arrived within 48 hours.
Thank you. Will do.
https://www.sem.admin.ch/sem/en/home/sem/aktuell/faq-einreiseverweigerung.html#2005127624
As we have residency we should be allowed to transit through Switzerland. ?Will let you know if it all goes wrong!
We are planning on driving down at the end of May to our home in Northern Italy (laden down with proof of residency, vaccinations etc). Rules seem to be changing all the time but we expect to have to have a test when we get to Italy (possibly at the testing centre at Bologna airport which is en route to our house) and maybe a test before we leave the UK. Italy is looking at how to make it easier for foreigners especially if they've had both vaccines. Hopefully by the time we return to the uk in July things will be more relaxed and we won't not need the 2 tests and isolation currently required. I will let you know how we get on.
Where do I begin! We live in an often neglected (tourism wise) part of Emilia Romagna- Ferrara. The city itself is a real hidden gem with its understated blend of Medieval and Renaissance architecture- a perfect place to enjoy an apertivo watching the world go by in one of the many squares. With an imposing castle and many palaces and galleries to visit, Ferrara is a university city so cycling is the favoured mode of transport. I highly recommend cycling around the city walls or along the River Po. The international annual Buskers Festival of street music taking plac in August is awesome. Nearby is Comacchio - known as little Venice- a favourite with our visitors, especially when dining on one of the canal boats. The endless sandy beaches nearby have an infinite variety of bars each with their own identity and food specialities. Our favourites are Pyramide and Bagno 36. Comacchio lagoon is an ornithologist heaven, renowned for the famous flamingos. Throughout the year there are local festivals- one of our favourites being the Asparagus Festival at Mesola. Porto Garibaldi is the local fishing port and home to a number of excellent seafood restaurants.
You could try asking someone in italy to buy you an Italian SIM card and post it to you. You could then use that in your U.K. phone. We have a phone with a dual SIM card- one U.K. and one Italian- to avoid the necessity of having two phones.
We made the mistake of taking over a U.K. electric job for our kitchen in italy. It uses too much wattage and causes the power to trip so we now need to replace it. It’s quite easy to upgrade the power supply. We were 4.5kw and recently upgraded to 6kw. You just need to visit the local office of your supplier and they switch it electronically without the need to change cables or equipment.
I was able to get home insurance including earthquake cover recently through Schofields.
https://www.schofields.ltd.uk