e3655

Going to Italy for the first time with my husband; we have 12 days total and know we want to start with 4 days in Rome and end with 3–4 days in Sicily (and of course, a full day to get back to Rome to catch our flight. We've already booked it, so too late for the open-jaw flights). In between, we're trying to decide between two options.

1. From Rome, explore Florence for a couple of days, take a train to Naples. Visit Pompeii, then hop on a Naples ferry to Palermo.

2. Go straight from Rome to Naples. Visit Pompeii, then continue on to Positano and Sorrento. Take a ferry from Salerno to Palermo.

Given that we probably have 2 or 3 days to check out either of these locations, what would be recommended for a first-timer? Seems like Florence is a must-see, but I've heard the same about the Amalfi Coast and it's already in the general direction that we're headed...we can't decide.

Also, in Sicily we're going to stay in Palermo, then visit Mt. Etna, leaving an extra day to explore another city. Any favorites on the east side of the island? Taormina sounds a little too touristy for our taste...

ekscrunchy

In Sicily you should see Siracusa.

caroline_edinburgh

What time of year ?

Greekgazoo

I personally think it depends on what you are looking for in those 2/3 days. Florence is an absolute must, especially if you are into site seeing. This is my favorite city in Europe. Plenty to see, Duomo, Statue of David, Ponte Vecchio, Uffizi Museum, View from Piazzale Michelangelo, Piazza della Signoria, many churches...i could keep going. (so this is a great area for sightseeing)

I thought the Amalfi Coast was great too, but this is more for relaxation i thought. Not that there are not alot of sites to see, but i would think your time better served to enjoy the beaches and ocean here.

Pompeii is a MUST !!!!!

baldrick

I'm a bit startled by the way I see your trip organisation, or the lack of it...

First, you are maybe too late for an open jaw ticket, but it might be more time efficient to add a direct domestic ticket from Rome to Palermo and start your trip in Sicily. I would then work my way up to Rome.

Then, how will you travel? By train, by car?
Sicily is maybe not that big, but you don't travel very fast on the island due to the topography.

Palermo is worth 2 days, Mount Etna is an entire daytrip with a long distance to cover between Palermo and Mt Etna. As another town, I would suggest Siracusa. But doing all this in Sicily in 4 days needs a hectic pace... Especially if your base is Palermo during these 4 days. It would be easier because of the distances to change hotel every day...

Then, on day 5, it will take the greater part of a day to get to the Naples area.

Where do you plan to stay? Naples? Amalfi coast? A daytrip to Pompeii by Circumvesuviana. A daytrip to Positano and Sorrento, by bus. You leave for Rome on day 8.

You are in Rome at day 9,10,11 and 12... which is not a lot, and IMHO a bit short for a daytrip to Florence...

I have the impression all this trip will be done at a hectic pace... certainly if it is done with public transport (even if I am very much in favor of public transport). With a rented car from Palermo till your arrival in Rome, you might win some time, but I still have visions of seeing you running through the italian countryside to check out thes locations....

e3655

Thanks for all of the posts so far! I know our trip is packed—it's meant to be a "broad strokes" excursion for the first two weeks of October via Eurail pass/trains/ferries. We're certainly not expecting to race through every attraction but rather have an idea of what we want to see most and if we don't get to it, bookmark if for another time (I'm sure we'll be back). We're not must-see-every-museum people and enjoy a liesurely cafe stop, but are too a.d.d. to just sit on a beach for two days which is why we were undecided. My guess is we'll lean toward Florence and maybe spend a night in Siracusa toward the end if we get ambitious.

kja

I can appreciate your desire to see all these places - they are wonderful - but I agree with others that these options are extremely ambitious, even at an "a.d.d." pace. In fact, with an "a.d.d." pace, you might find these options particularly frustrating, because you will be spending SO much time sitting on trains or ferries or whatever (and waiting for them, etc.) There is SO much to see in these places that even at a rapid pace meant to give you "broad strokes" you might not get a sense of what you like or want to see again - you could end up seeing too little of any place to know whether you want to see it again! Hope that helps!

suec1

IMO Florence is a MUST SEE only if you are going for ART. The city to me is not so charming and often flooded with tourists. If I were doing your trip I would do Rome then go to the Amalfi Coast which would include Pompeii and maybe a night or two on Capri. Of course there is no lack of tourists on the Amalfi Coast but that area is more for enjoying natural beauty plus Pompeii whereas Florence is for museums and churches - plenty of churches in Rome. Really depends on what activities you would most enjoy.

dutyfree

Personally, with your time constraints I would forget Palermo and only do the eastern side of Sicily-meaning Mt. Etna with staying in Siracusa (Ortigia Island). This trip is going to be nothing but trains,planes and buses and you will hate everyone and everything by the 4/5th day.
Italy is one of those countries that cannot be rushed and is better to be seen in "zones/areas" in my opinions. If you want to fly into Rome and then head south-then do it. But for you to come back up to Rome and then go up to Florence or over all the way to Palermo for just a few days-get me a glass of red wine now...........Good luck!

cheryllj

I vote for option #2. If you are already dead-set on visiting Rome and Sicily, then it only makes sense to visit Naples, Pompeii and the Amalfi Coast on the way between Rome and Sicily.

Save Florence for another trip. Yes, it's great and all but you really don't have enough time to get all the way up to Florence and back if you know you want to go to Sicily. You will be spending all your time in transit. Focus on southern Italy on this trip and do Florence and northern Italy next time.

caroline_edinburgh

Not sure what "a.d.d." means but I gather you do want to see a reasonable amount ?

It makes no sense to go from Rome north to Florence then south. Florence is also not my favourite place. Why not save Florence for another trip, combined with Venice ?

Given what you seem keen on and the pace you favour, I'd suggest Rome-(train)-Pompeii-(train/bus/driver)-Amalfi Coast (Amalfi or Positano, no need to add Sorrento)-(train/boat)-Palermo-Siracusa or Taormina (fly back from Catania to Rome).

If you want to visit Palermo & the east coast of Sicily I'd agree with the poster who suggested two bases - too far to do it all as day trips from one or the other. IMO Palermo is worth a week but 2 days will do as a starter. I've stayed in Taormina 4 times and Siracusa twice so obviously like them both. Taormina is touristy but in a nice way - it's touristy because it's very beautiful, the (almost) traffic free main drag is a relaxing change in Italy and the touristy-ness mainly comprises lots of nice places to eat & drink. Siracusa is very nice too but not so jaw-droppingly beautiful, and you could just about cover all the main sights (archaeological park, catacombs, walk round Ortygia) in a day. Taormina would be a relaxing end to the trip.

I guess I am not a.d.d., whatever it is - with 12 days I personally would just do Rome+Amalfi or Palermo+Taormina.

ekscrunchy

Caroline: ADD is "attention deficit disorder."

caroline_edinburgh

Oh right, thanks eks.

loislane17

Well, 12 days is fine for a "broad brush" visit, although I hope you realize you'll go to hell if you don't go to Venice. ;-)
But seriously--it's all about what YOU two would like to see and when you're going. Anytime from now through mid-October, the weather will probably be great and the crowds won't have decreased much until October. Florence is divine, if you are looking for a medieval city with astonishing art, gorgeous buildings, awesome restaurants and some damn fine gelato. But who's looking for that?
It is, however, loud (especially after Rome--think wide Roman streets versus tiny medieval alleys and then add the same amt. of traffic) and pretty crowded. You can, however, stroll across an Arno bridge and after doing the Pitti Palace and Gardens (QUIET-ahhh!) stroll around Oltrarno. It's quieter and a lovely spot. CHeck it out here: http://www.firenze-oltrarno.net/

The Amalfi Coast is about smaller items of lovely bits of art, absolutely killer views and more good restaurants. It's also about getting your legs and lungs in shape if you stay in Positano or one of the smaller towns right on the edge (Positano is where "Frances/Diane Lane" goes in the movie version of Under the Tuscan Sun with her handsome Italian young guy). If you stay in Sorrento, there's a lovely small 18th century museum and more oppty's to buy limoncello than you would ever want. Both of these towns subsist on tourism, so they have lots of tourists. lots. There's also Ravello above Amalfi with more killer views.

If you choose to spend more time in Sicilia, then Siracusa is definitely a place to visit. If you can get in to Hotel Gran Bretagna, you can stay in a room with ancient frescoes-lovely.

Messina is a quirky waterfront town but has some good restaurants and the most hilarious mechanical clock in the world. It's an entire side of a large campanile (bell tower). YOu can see a picture here http://www.pbase.com/tim32225/image/52334609

At any rate, no matter what, you'll have an awesome time! Buon viaggio!

dmdevl

Hubby and I are going in November for our first time and wrestled with some of your same questions. For many of the reasons discussed here, we decided to limit ourselves to Rome and south of Rome. We will come back to visit Florence, Venice and Tuscany in the spring sometime.

We are flying in to Rome and will immediately train to Naples where we will pick up a car to drive to Sorrento. It seems this will give us good access to Pompeii and the towns further along the coast without having a super long drive on the first day. I think if it were spring or summer and beach weather, I would have opted for Positano and an extra day in the area.

After 3 days we are driving to Sicily. We will use a B & B near Noto as our base and just explore for the next 4 days. We drop our car off in Catania and fly Air One to Rome where we will spend 4 nights before heading home.

We like driving and seeing the country but don't want to waste time backtracking. The CAT-ROM flight is very reasonable and gets us back to Rome in an hour.

I'm sure that whatever you decide you will second guess yourself - but you will also have a great time!!!