rktrip15

We are a family of four (two boys aged 13 and 16). First family trip to Europe and we are spending the first 6 days in Italy and then 5 days in London. As far as Italy goes - should we spend all 6 days in Rome and see Rome and take excursions from there OR should we spend three days in Rome and three in Florence/Tuscany. What would you do? Thanks in advance for all advice!

raincitygirl

I would spend all six days in Rome, there is a lot to see and do there. However, it depends on your interests and travel style really. Don't forget you may be jet-lagged so the first day may not be too productive.

What sorts of things are your boys interested in?

rktrip15

Well my boys are typical teenage boys but they usually enjoy seeing new and interesting things - I think they would be up for the major sites (think Colosseum, Sistine Chapel, etc.). We like to have down time each day to unwind, enjoy some wine, etc. We are good walkers, so willing to walk alot. Thinking of doing a cooking class with the whole family - I think they would really enjoy it. We are planning to use a travel service to book some excursions. Like I said it's our first family trip to Europe so we are still in the planning process and still trying to plan all the things we would like to do. I would love to combine seeing the history and sights of Rome with the romance and relaxation of the Tuscan area, but maybe we can achieve all of that with Rome as our home base.

Mimar

With your boys in mind, if you want one other Italian town in addition to Rome, Venice is a better choice than Florence. Florence is best for fans of Renaissance art and architecture, lotta museum going. But Venice is unique in the world. It has no roads, no cars, no trucks. Instead there are canals and water buses and water taxis and garbage scows, etc. Your boys would really like it. As for Tuscany, cute hill towns may not do it for your boys. A Tuscan agriturismo (working farm that hosts guests) with a pool might work. But you'd need a car and really more time.

Kaysib

Rome is amazing and I loved it, there is so much to see and never enough time! But Tuscany is a whole different beauty that is unreal and the little hill towns are so neat! We found little tiny wineries and towns that were not in the books. It was fun to be the only tourist in town and see a different side to Italy.
I agree with the comment before, it depends on your jet-lagged and if the 6 days includes the day you arrive. I would say spend a few days in Tuscany and 3-4 days in Rome. I would rent a car from Rome and drive up towards Tuscany stopping along the way. It is quite an adventure and will build some great family memories!

Kaysib

One more thing, we loved our hotel in Rome, it was a great area. Maisonongiulia.it
I actually booked it again for this summer! Great breakfast and nice rooms, I would highly suggestion staying here.

rncheryl

You could take a day trip to Pompeii from Rome. Kids would love it.

My vote is stay in Rome.

raincitygirl

We took our son to Italy when he was 14, it was in late June, into July so was very hot. We had six nights in Rome.
He was a typical teen but very interested in history so really enjoyed a tour of ancient Rome (it was with Context tours and included the Colisseum, Forum etc) and a tour of the Vatican museum, Sistine chapel and St. Peter's. This was also with Context, their docents are really great. Particularly the one we had for the tour of ancient Rome, she really made it come alive for our son. ( you can book with them online, no travel service needed)

We also did a lot of walking and because it was so hot we came back to our room every afternoon for a rest. We felt like we saw a lot but still had time to enjoy gelato breaks, leisurely lunches etc.
What time of year are you going?

We also stayed in an agriturismo in Tuscany for a week which had a pool which our son loved, and he loved San Gimignano because of climbing the towers. Some of the other things about Tuscany are more appealing to adults I think, although we did go to a beach club one day and he really liked that.

Given the time you have, I would still say to spend it all in Rome, the cooking class sounds fun if they like to cook and you could do a day trip to the seaside or into the countryside near Rome.

Does your family enjoy bike riding? If so, I can recommend doing a bike tour of the Appian Way; my husband and I just did this in October and it was fantastic. It was a long day (6 hours) and included a tour of the catacombs and a stop at a sheep farm to sample pecorino cheese, along the way we saw Roman aqueducts and our guide pointed out all kinds of interesting things. We were out in the country and yet only a few kilometres from Rome.

Whatever you choose I am sure you and your family will have a great time.

RonZ

Why not spend all your time in Italy and save London for a future trip?

Doing London and Rome with the time you have, I don't think it is practical to add anywhere else, which adds a travel day and the related hassles.

Of course you could eliminate Rome and just do Florence and Tuscany, the latter with a little driving trip, or just with day trips out of Florence.

RonZ

By the way, Florence is a 1.5 hour train ride from Rome, and just within the limit of what is reasonable for a day trip, seeing how you double that and add 4 trips back and forth from stations.

kja

IMO, you and your family need to think through YOUR priorities. I recommend that you get some good guidebooks (or spend some time with a few in your local library), identify the things you most want to see in each location, note their opening/closing times, and mark them on a calendar. Then pencil in your transportation, add some time on either side (for getting to/from the train/bus station or whatever, checking in/out, packing/unpacking, getting oriented, etc.). Then see how things fit together.

You'll see some wonderful things no matter what you decide -- enjoy!

rktrip15

Wow - GREAT advice for everyone. Thank you so much. BTW we will be in Europe at the end of June, after school gets out. Considering the time of year I love the agriturismo idea and the beach trip one day. And the docent tours, so many great ideas. May have more questions as I continue my research.

sandralist

Sounds like you will be going during the boys' summer vacation, which means a day at the beach might be a nice treat. You can combine swimming with an amazing ancient history lesson at Sperlonga, which is a day trip from Rome:

http://www.elizabethminchilliinrome....way-from-rome/

But otherwise I join the chorus to spend all the time in Rome and take it easy the first day, and do the following days at a relaxed pace. If you are very energetic and restless, you can also take a day trip by train to the beautiful medieval tufa hilltown of Orvieto one afternoon, after lunch, in addition to the daytrip to Sperlonga. Orvieto is an hour's train ride from Rome, in wine country, and it would give you and your kids a glimpse of the variety of Italy to see an Etruscan hill town, plus a scenic beach, plus all the glories of ancient and Renaissance Rome.

http://www.italy-travel-vacation.com...en_orvieto.htm

Head out to Orvieto after lunch, around 3pm, and meander around for a few hours, with a gelato. You can be back to Rome in time for an easy pizza dinner. Best to go to Sperlonga in the morning and enjoy a nice seafood lunch outdoors there.

sandralist

Just to be clear: I am not suggesting visiting Sperlonga and Orvieto on the same day. Two separate trips, and only if you feel like it and the weather cooperates. Rome has plenty of curiosities to keep you occupied for six full days of exploring.

mamcalice

WIth only 6 days, I would spend all of your time in Rome and consider one or two day trips. Florence is an easy day trip as is Orvieto and both will give you a different vibe than Rome. Pompeii is a lengthier day trip but well worth the time. Don't make it too complicated by adding the beach and/or Tuscany. You simply don't have time.

sandralist

First of all, Florence is in Tuscany. It is the capital of Tuscany.

Can't see where somebody wouldn't have time to take their kids to an historic beach with Roman ruins but instead has time for a much more complicated day trip to Florence which is overwhelmingly stuffed with sights plus up to its eyeballs in mobs of tourists. Also, there is so much Renaissance art and architecture in Rome, spending a lot of money on a fast train to go see yet more of it in Florence -- doesn't seem like much variety to me, especially when you factor in the sameness of a crush of tourists around the famous sights of Rome and a crush of tourists around the famous sights of Florence could get pretty irritating.

I wouldn't take my kids on a summer day trip to Pompei. It can be like a frying pan there. If ruins are top of the pops with the kids, try Ostia Antica, near the seaside (and they might be very interested in the historic ruins in Sperlonga).

I think it is okay to say "I personally love Florence and I wouldn't miss taking my kids to see it and I never like the beach compared to cultural sightseeing" (you write the same post all the time) -- but to tell somebody who would be spending six days in Rome "you simply don't have time" for an historic beach with Roman ruins is simply false. It's not objectively true. It's just your hobbyhorse.

sandralist

(Or to put it another way, I think battling your way into all the Culturally Approved Tourist Sights of Italy in the hot summertime is not necessarily a great cultural experience of Italy. Your six days are infinitely flexible, and Italy offers a lot of approaches to appreciating its history and art, and it can be a revelation in Italy to quit waiting in lines and not the set the alarm for the early train for the 12-hour day trip to a massive tourist destination and instead take it as it comes. It always comes rich with beauty and history, and delicious food, even at the beach or in a small town, and it is definitely "worth your time" to try to look at time itself the way the Italians do while you are in Italy. It's bendable, and your servant, not your rigid slavedriver. That's something to take home from Italy for keeps.)

casperjj

We are in a similar situation. One less day but I'm thinking of adding a day. Travelling in July. Three kids under 13. My initial plans were northern Italy. Then it changed to Rome with a daytrip to Pompeii and Amalfi Coast. Then it changed again to Rome with a daytrip to just Pompeii. Then I did more research on Rome itself and decided that we really should add a day. Thankfully, our departing flight isn't booked yet so that flexibility is still there. What I'm saying is, research what you'd like to see in Rome. What takes priority for your kids and you? Then determine the number of days you'll need. I thought four days in Rome with a daytrip to Pompeii (must see for my daughter) was sufficient. Then I discovered some really great places that my kids would love (palazzo valentine, church of san clemente, and others) I just don't know how to fit it in. We'd also love to do a bike ride on the apian way as mentioned above. There really is so much to do its hard to whittle down. But figure out what you want to see and then decide whether you need those 6 days just in Rome or not.

janjanjan47

I think your boys would be fascinated by the Scavi tour under St. Peter's. You need reservations, but this was one of our top Rome experiences. We loved Pompeii, but it was boiling hot in mid-April, so I'd second the advice to avoid mid-June. I also concur that 6 days is better spent in Rome with a possible day trip.

casperjj

raincitygirl - what company did you use for the bike tour? I sounds wonderful although I think I'd try to do a shorter one with the kids as 6hrs would be a bit too long for them.