I'm going in May but actually staying in other cities as well (Florence & Sorrento). Do you want to book tours? You need to book something for Vatican City. They have a night tour which I plan to book as well as Angels & Demons tour. You want two full days in Rome. You can take a train to Naples and from there go to Pompeii and maybe Capri but you would need another day to go to Amalfi Coast. You can take a day trip to Orvieto. You might want to stay three nights in Florence, maybe days 4-7 and you can see the city in a day or so. Make reservations to see Ufizzi and there are tours that combine Duomo and Accademia-sp? (David). Some even skip the lines. Definitely go to Tuscany. You can stop between Rome and Florence to Sienna or see it from Florence. There are lots of options for day trips from Florence from taking transportation only to hill towns, wine tours, horseback riding, etc. I've seen a full day tour which goes to Sienna, other hill towns, includes lunch and Pisa.

You have 7 full days not impacted by travel, and you must return to Rome for your outbound flight. That doesn't give you much to work with.

What do you want to see in Rome and how much time will you need to see those sights? You need to figure this out before you know how much time you could spend traveling to/from another place.

Did you list the other destinations in the order of priority (i.e., are Amalfi Coast and Pompeii #1)? If so, you've basically answered where you would spend the not-Rome time. But when is this trip?

Have you booked flights yet? If not, I would fly into Naples and home from Pisa. It would still be a very rushed trip so I would try to add a few days if at all possible. If not, drop a couple of places off your list.

You should probably prioritize because doing everything you mentioned is a stretch. Amalfi and Pompeii are 2.5-3 hours south, Florence and Pisa are 2.5-3.5 hours north. If you spend any time in rome as well you'd be exhausted trying to visit all of this, and would be hard pressed to enjoy any of those places.

Maybe choose one of these two directions - either north or south, and do the things in that direction. my personal preference is due north, to visit some small villages in tuscany (2 days) on the way to Siena and/or Florence (2-3 days), and Pisa (no need for more than 1 day) then back to Rome.

That all also depends on how much you want to spend in Rome - 3 days could be enough but that already leaves you with only 4-5 days for the rest.

Depending on what time of year you're going you could decide whether one of the directions is preferable to you based on weather, any events or festivals around that time, etc.

Try using some map (e.g., google maps) to estimate driving times between different places, and take into account some extra time for managing the sometimes confusing Italian roads (a.k.a getting lost)

I like to do and see a lot as you can tell by my earlier response. I guess it depends on what you like to do. If you only have the 7 full days, I think you can see Rome, Florence, and Amalfi. I'd suggest staying in Rome and taking a day trip on day 2 or 3 to Pompeii or Amalfi. I'd go to Florence on day 5 include one day trip and come back to Rome on day 8 and stop at Sienna (you can store your luggage in a locker). I'm still working on my trip, but I'm staying 3 nights in Sorrento, 3 nights in Rome, 3 nights in Florence, 2 nights in Cinque Terre, and 2 nights in Venice.

"... and stop at Siena (you can store your luggage in a locker)." Where are these lockers?

I was told there are lockers in the train station.

According to the Trenitalia website, there are no lockers at the Siena station. If someone knows otherwise from personal experience, please speak up.

http://www.fsitaliane.it/cms/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=51e6036c3c4ea110VgnVCM1000003f16f90aRCRD&let=s

I don't know of any lockers in train stations in Italy. A few large stations (main stations in Milan, Florence, Rome, etc.) have left luggage facilities where you check your luggage and store it. Sometimes there can be long lines to check and retrieve. Smaller stations do not have left luggage facilities.

Have you already booked flights in and out of Rome?
If so, I'd take the train directly north to Florence. Spend the next day in Florence to recover from jetlag, then do a day trip to Siena (bus trips run about 50-100 Euros), perhaps another day in Florence (make sure you book entry for the Uffizi Gallery and museums early or get passes).
Day 4 or 5 take the train back to Rome.
You'll have 4-5 days in Rome. You could do a day trip to Pompeii or Ostia Anitca. I've been to both and in my opinion Ostia Antica was less crowded, much closer, and more to see.
Rick Steves has several free downloads for walking tours in Rome, Florence and a great one for Ostia Antica.
Get yourself a good map of the cities you plan to visit (Barnes and Noble has some) or rent a video from your library of Italy.

You need to do a bit of research on what you're interested in - shopping? historical sites? eating? churches?

HollywoodSC - I like your plan, but is it better to take the train to Florence OR drive there from 4-5 days in Rome, then drive to Sienna and Florence, then back to Rome for last day or so?

I'd go straight to Florence via train. The 'fast' train is direct, no stops and takes less than 2 hours. (kybourbon is the train guru here for timetable detail)
Spend some time in Florence, visit another small hill town or take a wine tour and then take the train back to Rome, Termini station, for the remaining time in Rome. That way you're closer to the airport for your departure and wont need to spend a single night in a hotel before your flight. Just wasted time checking in/out. I did that on my last trip and wasted the better part of a day getting back to Rome, returning the rental car, getting to the hotel, checking in etc. Next morning I still had to check out and get to the airport. The least amount of moves you have to make the more time you'll have to see and enjoy.

>>then do a day trip to Siena (bus trips run about 50-100 Euros)<<

The bus to Siena from Florence is about 7€ one way. It drops you right at the edge of the historical center so you can easily do a day trip on your own from Florence.

Option 1
Take the Leonardo Express train from the airport into Rome (14€). Catch the next fast train to Florence (43€). Stay in Florence 3-4 nights with day trips (Siena, Pisa, Chianti?). Train to Rome for rest of trip.

Option 2
Take Leonardo Express to Rome. Take next train to Orvieto (7-13€). Spend night in Orvieto (arrange late check out with hotel and tour Orvieto in the morning). Train to Florence for next 3 nights. Train to Rome for rest of trip.

You could also do option #1 and just stay 3 nights in Florence, then train to Orvieto for a night on the way to Rome if you want to stay in a smaller hill town.

Siena, Florence and Rome all have ZTL's (areas you aren't allowed to drive which are pretty much the areas you want to be).

I think you'll be exhausted trying to fit all that in. Our last trip to Italy was 1 week in Rome, and there is of course so much to see, that you could really have a relaxing and fulfilling experience by taking in all the sights and neighborhoods or Rome. Having said that, Florence is only a couple of hours away, so you could spend time there. (I once spent a month there) So, I agree prioritizing your "must-sees" will help you organize and plan. The worst thing is spending all your time getting back and forth to train stations, and waiting for transportation. Having said all that, we did take the train from Rome to Bracciano to see the castle ( about 1/2 hour away), and Ostia Antica is about 1/2 hour away also from Rome. A wonderful ancient town with lovely ruins, and mosaic floors still intact. Enjoy.

The bus trip I mentioned (50-100 Euros, I think I paid $75US) was one of those tour-bus day trips - Pick up in Florence, narrated drive to Siena, city tour guide, time for lunch, meet back up for bus ride to San Gimignano, 2 hours free time to explore, then bus ride back to Florence.
I don't usually do that sort of thing but it fit my schedule and enabled me to fit in more than I would have done.

Absolutely, you can take the local bus from Florence to Siena for much cheaper.

Either way, definitely use trains and buses. They are fast, efficient and reasonably priced.
A car is useless in the city centers and the cost of gas and parking is crazy (I paid the equivalent of $8.50/gallon near Rome last October.)

Why not fly into Rome and then fly home from Florence? There really isn't a cost difference to fly in one place and fly out another. And it saves you from having to drive all the way back to Rome to fly home. You could spend 3 days in Rome (with a side trip to Pompeii or other place you'd like to visit nearby). But there is so much to see in Rome, you ought to stay there and not be so rushed. Then take a train to Orvieto and rent a car from there and drive to Tuscany. Pick a central place to stay in Tuscany such as an agriturismo and visit Sienna, Volterra, San Gimignano, Greve...where ever you want. Then for the last leg of your trip stay in Florence.