I went to Italy (and Ticino, the Italian-speaking area of Switzerland) two years ago. To prepare, I enrolled in two different evening courses (basic and intermediate Italian), which were offered once a week by the school board. The teacher was excellent, and that made a big difference. The focus of both courses was on written and spoken Italian.

When I arrived in Ticino on my bike tour, my Italian was not good enough to have a conversation, but I could order meals, ask for directions, and exchange pleasantries. I could read signs, billboards, and newspapers and more-or-less understand what I was reading. I also sort of understood what people were saying to me.

I already spoke passable French when I started learning Italian. That helped tremendously.

I doubt that I would have come as far as I did as quickly as I did by listening to audiotapes.

By the way, a few months after returning home, I realized that I had pretty much forgotten how to speak Italian! (But I can still read a little.)