As the resident Italophile around here, I always perk up when I see travel deals to Italy. It’s annoyingly expensive to fly to Italy from the U.S. – generally more expensive than any other Western European city, for no good reason I can fathom – so these vacation packages to Italy are really an excellent opportunity to visit my favorite country without losing your shirt.

• The first package lets you see the three most-visited cities in Italy – Rome, Florence & Venice. You’ll get round-trip airfare from New York, Boston, or Newark to Venice (other departure cities available for an additional fee), 3 nights’ hotel accommodation in each city, breakfast each day, and train travel from city to city. And you get it all for $999. The deal is good for travel through March 2, and you’ve got to book by February 13; there are travel dates available later in 2009, but those trips will cost a bit more. Read more about this deal here.
• The second trip is for a week-long stay, but you’ll get to choose the destinations. You’ll get round-trip airfare from New York to Rome (other departure & arrival cities available for an additional fee), six nights in the B&B of your choice in any one of five Italian regions (Lazio, Tuscany, Umbria, Campania, & Sicily), and an economy car rental for the week. And all of this comes in at only $799. This vacation package is ideal for anyone who’d like a little more autonomy to explore the country, but likes the idea of someone else taking care of the logistics. And if you’d like to split your time between two regions, with three nights in one B&B and three nights in another, you can do that, too. The deal is good on select travel dates through March of this year (there are later travel dates available for an additional fee) and you’ll need to book by February 6. Read more about this deal here.