Post Office and Communications

Opening times of Post Offices can vary depending on their location and size, but generally speaking the main post offices in cities and large towns are open from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. Monday to Friday and Saturday mornings. You don't need to go the Post Office to buy stamps, they can be purchased at official Tabacchi (Cigarette shops).

Post going out of Italy is fairly reliable, but if you are sending mail to Italy delivery is very slow. If you are sending something that needs to arrive quickly send it through a private courier service or postage with a guaranteed arrival date.

Public Telephones, Orange phones, can be found throughout all the major cities. Most of these phones only accept cards that can be pre-purchased at an official Tabacchi. Remember to cut-off the corner of the card before using. The code for dialing internationally to Italy is 0039, and when you dial a number within a city remember to continue to use that city code when dialing a local number. Useful international phone codes are: 1 for the US, 44 for the UK and 61 for Australia.

Although only five in every ten homes in Italy has an internet connection, travellers in Italy will find plenty of internet cafes through which they can stay in contact with friends and families. Try to shop around for the best deal as the fees are quite high.

An increasing number of hotels and hostels offer free internet connection to their guests. If you're planning to use the internet a lot while travelling it would be best to check your hotel's policy in regards to this service as there are still sme hotels that charge up 5 Euro / hour for access for the internet

If Italians didn't pick up on the use of internet, they certainly went crazy for cellular phones. Italy has the highest per capita of cellular phone use in the world and the service is incredibly good throughout the whole Italian peninsula. And with the low-cost call rates offered on cellular phones this might be the most convenient way to stay in touch with friends and family while you travel in Italy.