Ok, let's deal with the last point first - you don't need to know any italian to go to Italy. BUT you have enough time to learn a bit and if you do, you'll be glad you did.

secondly - what draws you to those places? why Venice - or not? it's supremely photogenic so it would certainly fit with your interests, but then so would all your other proposed destinations.

i think that your "outlier" is possibly Florence - Venice, Rome and the amalfi would make a great trip.

have your heard about "open jaw" flights? you can fly into one city, out of another. [on airline websites, you need the "multi-city" button].

if you decide on the Amalfi, you should try to fly into Naples. after 5 nights there, you could get the train to Rome, spend 5 nights there, then get the train to Venice, spend 4 nights there, and fly home.

otherwise fly into Rome, then go to the amalfi, and fly to venice from Naples.

have a great trip!

Venice can't be beat for photography.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mksfca/sets/72157624512998387/show/

I would skip Florence if need be.

Thinking 2 nights Venice, 2 Florence, 2 Siena
And on to Rome?

I think Venice, Florence, Rome is perfect. Three nights in Venice should be enough. We can't get enough of Florence, it's art and history are amazing. We love Rome but wouldn't miss Florence for Rome.

Here are some trip reports you might find useful -

http://www.rimerson.com/

Rob

Not a fan of two nighters. It only gives you one day in a location.

I agree with ky - in two nights, you really don't get the chance to see very much and you lose a lot of time checking out, travelling, checking in, etc.

and what happened to the Amalfi?

much as i like Rome [ I'm off for my third week there on Sunday] if you want to do the classic venice/florence/rome, in 2 weeks you have plenty of time not to undersell venice and florence.

this would work: Venice 4 nights [an extra day to recover from jetlag] 4 nights Florence [gives you two days for Florence itself plus one day for a day trip to Siena] and 6 nights in Rome.

you could borrow a night and spend a night in Siena en route to Rome but this doesn't work very well by train as to get from Siena to Rome, you have to go back to Florence. buses might be better.

Your post could use a bit of clarification. The title is "10 days in Italy". The post mentions 2 weeks. With 10 days you could spend 3 nights in Venice, 3 in Florence and 4 in Rome. I would skip the AC if you have only 10 days. If you have 2 weeks, I would suggest either Venice, Rome and the AC or Florence, Rome and the AC. For a first trip, we always recommend Venice, Florence and Rome.

To clarify, we were given two weeks free of kids! Lol travel time to Italy leaves us 10 full toting days!
At this point we are thinking Venice 2 nights, train to Florence 2nights then rent a car and drive through Tuscany to Siena. Drop car in Siena and train back for the final days in Rome.

Sounds quite busy to me, but I've been told its great to get a feel the first visit.
The other thought I had was staying in Rome, day trips to Florence and a few nights stay in Positano.

Have you already bought your air tickets? How were you told that this itinerary is "great to get a feel the first visit" -- ?

Not only does your trip sound quite busy, what you will mostly get a feel for is that very small part of Italy that is mainly devoted to tourist culture, especially since you are moving so quickly, the mega-tourist sights in each destination is just about all you will have time to see. Seventy percent or more your time will be spent in cities, not nature, and in cities very often criticized for having lost their feel for good food.

Many people who have only been in Italy only once or twice and who travel mainly to see big tourist attractions come back and tell other people that organizing a trip to quickly race and around and glimpse a dozen major tourist attractions is a good "first timer" trip to Italy.

But for someone who likes culture (presumably Italian, yes, not busloads of foreigners?), coffee, photography, good food and nature, a gallop through the tourist turnstiles may not be a very satisfying trip. Sadly, a lot of people are advised to essentially waste their first trip to Italy doing things that are supposedly "must-sees" on the premise that "you'll come back and the second time you can enjoy doing what would really be fun for you in Italy."

As a photographer and coffee lover, you certainly won't want to miss Venice, but after that -- since you love nature, culture and good food, and since you are willing to rent a car -- why not to go to the Italian countryside? it's not hard, and it is packed to the gills with beautiful churches and art, and great food. If you feel you really MUST see a Roman arena, there is one in Verona (see it on a day trip from Venice) or you can see the one in Rome as you pass through Rome on your way to the airport.

But for a first time in Italy, how about seeing the Italy most people truly love -- which is the small towns of the farm country? Tuscany or Umbria? They are great in October with new olive oil and wine.

then rent a car and drive through Tuscany to Siena. Drop car in Siena and train back for the final days in Rome.

How much time with the car? Might as well drive to Orvieto, although parking in Siena will be a problem. But if the rental is only for one day, just take the bus to Siena.

We booked our flight! I am so excited. We will fly in and out of Rome. At this point I've decided to eliminate Venice from the trip. We will focus on Rome, Tuscany and the Almalfi Coast, hoping to see Positano and Capri.

ok, given that you've only got 10 actual days in Italy [it would be useful if you could give your actual arrival and departure days] and are arriving and leaving from Rome, I suggest limiting yourselves to the Amalfi and Rome.

and because it's October, AND you'll want to be in Rome at the end of the trip, assumuing you arrive early in the morning, use your first day to travel south to the amalfi, spend 5 nights there, then get the train back to Rome and finish your trip there.

IMO if you only have 10 days, you don't have time for the Amalfi, Tuscany AND Rome.

We are flying in and out of Rome, We get in at 11:55am on a Sunday and depart at 6:30am on on a Friday!

ok, msheiny, that's helpful! this is what you've got:

Day 1 sunday- arrive Rome 11.55 am. train to Naples - Sorrento. arrive late pm.

day 2 - monday - sorrento

Day 3 - tuesday - ferry to Capri

day 4 - Wednesday - tour of amalfi coast.

day 5 - Thursday - ?positano?

Day 6 - Friday - travel back to Rome

Day 7 - Saturday - Rome

Day 8 - Sunday - Rome

day 9 - Monday - Trip to Orvieto

Day 10 - Tuesday - Rome

Day 11 - Wednesday - day trip to Ostia antica

Day 12 - Thursday - Rome

Day 13 - fly home.

see - you've actually got 11 1/2 days. this is why it's so useful actually to set out the itinerary by days so that you are clear about how much time you've actually got. unusually, you have MORE time that your thought you had - normally it's the other way round!

so IMO you could fit in a few days in Tuscany if you wanted to.

To elaborate on Day 1, after arrival at Fiumicino, you go through immigration and customs, find the train station, take a train into Rome's Stazione Termini, switch to a train to Naples, walk downstairs in the Naples train station to the Circumvesuviana commuter train and catch the line to Sorrento. You can buy your ticket to Naples in the airport train station.

Quite a trek if you're arriving after a long, overnight flight.

annhig forgot Pompeii, which is easily seen from Sorrento by that same Circumvesuviana train.

Ok...don't want to muck up plans here.....have been to the amalfi coast many times, may I suggest you stay in Positano and day trip from there. To get to Capri is very exspensive and after all the many years of traveling there It has been confirmed that Positano is the most beautiful....miss Capri but drive to the hill town of ravello instead. Btw...Naples is worth a miss too....very dirty and just not a very warm and friendly vibe, actually feels dangerous..... Something you may want to check out is the hotel San leonino in Castilina in chianti....have gone there for years, great value and you can drive there from Venice (u still going?) overnight and have on e of their wonderful meals and enjoy the Tuscan experience, next day to Rome or where ever, check out the website in any case. Have a great trip!

No, we have decided to skip Venice this time and concentrate on Rome and keep south.