css

I'll post all my questions here but if you recommend I can break them in sep posts.
Family of 4: 2 teens, boy,15, girl 17-1st trip
We are driving from Rome (3 nights) to Florence(2 nights) stopping 1 night in Orvietto. Is there anywhere else we should stop? What is best for teens in Orvietto?
In Florence: where in St Lorenzo and is that the best place for teens do do a little shopping. I understand the $ is weak and prices are high but they will want to buy something. What would you recommend as good purchases? Where's fun to hang out in the evenings?
In Venice(2 nights): Do I need a reservation at St Marks Bascilica or just museum card? Has anyone done a Jewish Ghetto tour here? Same shopping& fun eve question as Florence!
We have an early morning flight out of Milan so will drive from Venice to Milan airport hotel day before. Any good stops along the way? Thanks so so much!
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tuscanlifeedit

the San Lorenzo street market in Florence is a good place for the teens to shop. If you are in that area, you can't miss.

We don't do night life, so I can't help you, but the steps in front of San Lorenzo itself are teenage central, and I bet anyone there could tip your kids to where to hang out at night. Piazza Santa Croce is always full of kids at night, but I can never figure out why. Just a hangout spot, I guess.

About stopping anywhere else between Rome and Florence: it seems you are moving pretty quickly, so I wouldn't add another stop. Just get to Florence and make the most of the short time you have there.

We went to St Marks with neither a reservation or a museum card. However, we did go fairly early in the morning. The line to get in was quite short, but it was March. Maybe someone else can tell you how best to do this.

The Strada Nuova in Venice looks like a good place for younger people to shop and hang out. I am not young and don't do anything at night but walk after dinner, so I don't think I can help much more.

Have a great trip.

MFNYC

In Orvieto, take the Orvieto underground tour. All of you will enjoy it. In Florence, if your teens need a break from art museums, check out the history of science museum. It's an interesting little museum, with Galileo's instruments, among other scientist's of the era.

MFNYC

We didn't go on the ghetto tour in Venice but we did visit the area. You can only get into the large synagogue if you're on a tour. We kind of snuck a look when a tour was exiting. If you have time, I think it would be an interesting tour. ALso in venice, visit Doges palace. If you don't do a tour, rent the audio guide.

missypie

The street market in Florence was good for cool trendy belts and purses; we also found some eye shadow that we didn't see anywhere else.

Are you going to Florence before Venice? If so, try to convince your daughter so save some money for jewelry shopping in Venice. The girls liked some of the earrings in the Florence stalls, but I could tell that it was just stuff made in China that I can get for super-cheap at home; I had to put my foot down and MAKE them wait for Venice, and they were glad once they got there.

julia_t

Let your teens roam free in Venice.

They cannot get run over, they can't get seriously lost - everywhere are signs to the main points of the city, Rialto, Accademia, San Marco, etc. But they can get slightly, deliciously lost, and that is so much part of the fun of Venice! And on the way they may discover their own special and 'secret' places. And because Venice is such a relatively safe place your teens will gain so much confidence in themselves by spending time alone in a foreign city, finding their way back to the hotel or apartment, and you will have a wonderful evening listening to their tales of independent discovery...

I did let mine roam free, the 15yo alone, the younger ones in a pair, and they loved it, but they did have a cell phone with them, just in case...

kmh7

css, We were in the same place last summer and my kids were exactly the same age. I agree with the previous post, freedom in Venice in the daytime was a great experience. The kids loved the Doges palace lots of cool medevial weaponery. We did the science museum in Florence big hit. It terms of purchases for my kids it was masks in Venice. (They are hanging on their bedroom walls.) And believe it or not my daughter bought bathing suits in Florence. They were cute and very fun to come home and say, " Oh this I got it in Italy last summer!!" It was an experience of a lifetime sharing Italy with teens. Have a great time I wish we could rewind the whole thing. P.S. If your son is into cars a great stop between Venice and Florence is Ferrara.