THIS Christmas, the best country to spend with your loved ones is definitely in Italy if you’re a Catholic. If you’re a Roman Catholic, visit the headquarters of the Church which is the Vatican City, the smallest country in the world and the only country in the world housed within a country. Vatican City is of course located in Rome. But it is not really located in Italy per se because one will have his own passport marked and a Vatican City-issued visa.

The only place on earth that you need not have a visa in going to Vatican City is Europe because Europe is where the Vatican City physically or geographically belongs. Spending Christmas Eve at the Vatican City can be awe-inspiring as Catholics are mesmerized to hear Pope Benedict XVI deliver his homily. It will be also a once in a lifetime event to hear the pope himself read the gospel. That’s how emotionally powerful and inspiring Vatican City can be this Christmas. Forget about the entire hullabaloo associated with commercial Christmas. The essence of the celebration is after all spiritual. So this Christmas spend some quality time with the Lord starting at Advent.

Here in Italy, Catholics spend their Christmas the way they do all over the world. They start the celebration in Advent or the four weeks before Christmas. Then for nine dawns before Christmas Eve, people in Italy wake up and go to mass. They are then greeted after church with Italian hearty breakfasts waiting outside. Visitors here in Italy will be pleased to see this awesome phenomenon. After breakfast, visitors can happily jog their way back to their hotel rooms to wear off the calories they have consumed. After all, they’re on holiday break here and not in an office one.

But before embarking on an Italian trip this Christmas, you need to prepare everything back home. If you have a dog, you need to hand it to a neighbor so someone can feed for it. That’s especially true if you’re bringing over your family for the trip. It may be expensive for a family to gather in Italy for a Christmas celebration especially the New Year’s Eve mass at St. Peter’s Square but that is just a once in a lifetime event. However, most trips are sponsored by your employers. That is especially true if you work in a Fortune 500 firm. They give gracious gifts to their employees so be diligent in your work.

Another phenomenon that you must watch out for during Christmas here in Italy is the presence of children caroling from house to house. These children are especially fond of visiting vacation homes as it is instilled in their minds that foreigners are more generous than their Italian friends whom they have already visited in Christmases past. The tip for foreigners being caroled by these little children is is generous to them as much as you can afford. Remember that it is Christmastime and this season is certainly for children.

THE most compelling country to spend Christmas is in Italy. Italy is after all host to the Vatican, the smallest state in the world and the headquarters of Catholicism, which is the premier, Christian faith. So if you’re Catholic and you’ve just been given a two-week off from work, spend it in Italy. It is all the better if you are allowed by your employers to choose which country you want to spend Christmas with your family. Or if you’re single and a bachelorette, then have a gay time shopping in Milan as long as you have the guts and the money.

But for those who cannot afford the luxury lifestyle, there are still lots of vacation deals available in Italy this winter. You may want to stay along the Mediterranean coasts because it’s very warm in there even in winter. The temperature will not go low beyond -3 degrees Celsius unlike those in the Alps. Also in the Mediterranean area, you can enjoy very nutritious dishes indeed cook in only the best Italian way possible. There’s pasta and spaghetti deliciously relished with olive oil, the healthiest cooking oil in the world because of its low fat content. There is also the much seafood available in this area caught from the Mediterranean day after day after day. All you need to do is wait for the queue along the fishing villages’ coast and get in line once the fishermen start to come back from their catch of the day. You can then purchase at the cheapest price redfish, grouper, mussels, lobsters, shrimps and crabs and cook them at the vacation home that you’ve stayed all by yourself. Remember to cook them while they’re fresh enough. Or maybe you can grill them and organize a Christmas Eve middle-of-the-night dinner all with Mediterranean seafood as the menu. You can invite newly-found Italian friends if you want to then sip wine coming from Tuscany.

Vacation homes in winter are the same ones in summer as far as the Mediterranean regions in Italy are concerned. But the nice thing about these vacation homes is that they are fully-equipped with heaters and fireplaces. When you scout for vacation homes, you don’t need to scout them as they are. You just need to reserve online. Just log in to the websites of the most reputable travel agencies in the world like Expedia or Travelocity and you can immediately know which vacation home deals you want.

If you come from the United States or any place across the Atlantic, you need to get a visa first before going to Italy. But this is certainly not a problem as long as you have the proper documents in tow. And one more thing, since it is winter here, you need to stuff yourself with layers and layers of clothes once you’re here. But you need not bring them in your plane trip because there are lots of discount shops here which you can bring back to the United States afterwards.

ITALY is the place to be when celebrating Christmas. First of all, Italy is the host of the headquarters of Catholicism, the biggest Christian congregation in the world. Catholicism spans all four corners in the globe, from Iceland to Mozambique, from Tonga to New Zealand. Because of this reality, a lot of visitors come to Italy during Christmastime. Tourism is really a serious business in this country. Many Catholics from all nationalities converge at St. Peter’s Square during the mass offered by Pope Benedict XVI on Christmas Eve. This will surely give a boost to the tourism business in Rome like the hotels, the motels and even the vacation homes.

Even vacation homes at this part of the country are fully booked during the two weeks before and after Christmas. So reserve ahead online. These vacation homes are already networked with the most reputable travel agencies such as Travelocity and Expedia. To book, all you need to do is log in to the websites of these travel agencies and choose the best deals for you. Some of the better deals may come in bundled form, meaning plane tickets and hotel deals are already bundled into one. Plane tickets must be ordered as round trip tickets and not standalone ones because you may be stranded in that country.

To come here in Italy, you don’t need to have a visa if you come in from Europe. And also, if you come in by land from the borders with France, Slovenia, Switzerland and Austria, there will be no border guards who will accost you because of the 1977 Schengen agreement which virtually abolishes these outposts. You can either take a train or take your own car. Just make sure you know the nearest gas station and you have someone to accompany you so you won’t fall asleep behind the wheel.

During the season of Christmas, Italy will be abundant with snow especially in the cities and in the skiing regions. So if you want to go cross-country skiing in Italy, make sure to have the proper gear with you. And lest you forget that if you have children, teach them how to ski properly at the earliest possible period in their life. Children’s limbs are still fresh at this stage and children can easily skate properly. Who knows, your child may become a ski champion in the future. But to make sure you have the right stuff in training your child, never ever attempt to train him or her if you’re not an accomplished skier yourself. Only select the most reputable trainers. There are lots of those in the Pyrenees in Spain and in the Alps in Switzerland but other ski schools can now be found in Italy. Italy is after all a treasure not yet wholly developed. There are still lots of surprising and enchanting stuff in Italy that are waiting to be found. Other places that are worth visiting in Italy are Venice (the only pedestrian city in the world and the only city in the world sitting on a lagoon) and Tuscany, known for its wine. Off the coast of Italy you can find Palermo, the capital of Sicily – said to be home of the Mafia although this has largely been an urban legend. Folks are actually friendly here.