10 Day First Time Trip to Italy
 

My sister (68), daughter (30) and I (60) are planning a trip from Phila. to Italy arriving in Italy Sept. 2nd and returning on Sept. 10th. My daughter and sister do not care about visiting Venice but I would like to. So my daughter suggests we stay 1 night in Venice.
Then take a train to Florence and stay there 2 nights, then a train to Rome and stay 2 nights then take a train to Sorrento and stay 3 nights. They want to see the Amafi Coast-
She said we would take 1 day for Capri and 1 day for Politano and chill for a half day.
My daughter and sister are not that interested in seeing Tower of Pisa, museums, etc.
My questions are as follows: (1) Is 1 day enough time to spend in Venice? most of what I read said that 2 days was enough time. Not sure what we would miss.
(2) Is 2 nights enough for Florence and what sights should we see there?
(3) I know that we could not see everything in Rome in 2 nights but what should we see
(would like to see the Vatican)
(4) Is 3 nights good for Sorrento? And the things they want to see.
Also, please give some suggestions on places to stay (i.e. nice hotels, b& b's- not break the bank but nice) Also, would like to know some places to eat- local places also that do not break the bank?
I know that ideally 12-14 days would be good but that is all the time we have.
Or should we fly into Rome and reverse the trip? Instead of flying into Venice?

Rome may need an extra day - Vatican can take most of a day, and there is the Colosseum and the adjoining Roman Forum - at least half a day and wandering around the cobbles of ancient central Rome - Spanish Steps, Piazza Navona with the famous Bernini Fountain - the Trevi Fountain, the awesome Pantheon just to scratch the service.

Pompeii is very close to Sorrento and even if not into old ruins this is a very unique memorable place.

I think you are trying to do too much. I would skip Venice as it is quite a ways from the other areas you want to visit. Add a night in Rome and maybe a night in Sorretno if you want to see Pompei (which is incredible). You may want to consider dropping Florence as well. Fly in and out of Rome or into Rome/out of Naples.

You want to see Venice and they want to see Amalfi. Unfortunately, those are not compatible for such a short trip.

What do you all want to see? Anything particular in Florence or Rome? They don't like museums. What about you? You would like to see the Vatican. Does that include Sistine chapel? If you went to Sorrento, do you want to see Pompeii instead of Capri - (certainly would be my choice) - or go to a museum in Naples? It is impossible to say how many nights are enough without knowing what you want to see in Florence or any other place.

Whatever time you arrive in Venice, you will be tired, so count that as a half day and stay 2 nts there.

You have only 7&1/2 days on the ground. It will take a half day of travel from Venice to Florence, a couple of hours, hotel to hotel Florence to Rome, another half day Rome to Sorrento and a half day back to Rome for your flight out. That leaves less than six days for actual sight seeing.

You could skip Florence
Arrive Venice - 2 nts (1&1/2 days)
Fly early to Naples - train or bus Naples to Sorrento - 3 nts (2&1/2 days)
Train to Rome - 3 nts (2&1/2 days)

Three nights works for Sorrento if all they want is to see Positano and Capri, but not those plus Pompeii.

Best would be for them to skip Amalfi this trip and see more of the Venice, Florence, Rome bit. You could also just do Rome (day trip to Florence from Rome) and Amalfi, but doesn't seem quite fair to you. How about you fly into Venice, they fly into Naples or Rome (for Amalfi) and you all meet up in Rome for the last three days? Guessing that is not the idea for the trip.

If you are going to Venice, then flying into Venice and out of Rome is usually is best.

To be honest- none of us actually want to see museums.
Someone suggested going to Naples and viewing a museum.
My daughter and I previously went to Spain and were in Madrid.
I stood in line to see many exhibits at museums and now choose not to go to a museum.
Also, to answer the question about what we would like to see in Florence- not sure exactly what attractions we should see?
Again, not interested in museums.

Also, we can skip Venice and fly into Rome but should we fly out of Rome? Also, no one gave any suggestions about hotels, b and b's or places to dine?
I get from all 3 responses we are trying to cover too much so we can omit Venice.
Got that- now where to fly into and out of?
Also, places to see in Florence?
Also, places to dine and/or stay? Thank you.

I think that one night in venice is not really worth doing - you'd only have less than a day to see anything. You can safely ignore the people who say that two days is enough.

A B&B in venice is http://www.venere.com/bandb/venice/bandb-al-campaniel/

But some ideas about Venice are here:
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...rip-report.cfm

and here:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...st-verbose.cfm

Youll gather that I'm a bit keen on Venice, and it's a great place to get over your jet lag. Quiet, no traffic.

Ok- so we will skip Venice and go there another time (hopefully) Now what are some things to see and do in Florence. Remember that we are not interested in museums.
Also, please give me some good hotels, b and b's and places to eat with the local people? No high end restaurants. Thanks,

Are you saying you don't want to see any museums because you had to stand in a line?

With such a short trip, I would plan on staying 2 places (3 max) so you don't spend your very short time traveling and checking in and out of hotels.

OK, given the proposed modifications:

Can you fly into Rome and out of Naples? That way you could end your trip on the AC and be close to the departing airport.

Florence is compact and can be covered in a few days if you're not interested in art. If you would like to see David, suggest you book tix ahead by calling the booking office. There's no charge until you show up to pick up the tix, and you get a timed entrance so there's little waiting. The operators speak excellent English and will handle the transaction quickly. Don't book online.

In Florence, if you're in reasonably good condition, you may want to climb to the top of the Duomo for the view -- go early in the a.m. to avoid lines. Restaurant suggestion: Zio Gigi, near the Duomo -- little place where lots of locals go.
Another place for a nice view of the city and drink at sunset is the Piazzale Michelangelo. I believe the #13 bus goes there, but check that. Again if you're in reasonably good condition, you can walk back into the city. It's downhill on the way back.

Still interested in Sorrento/Positano/AC? Be aware that Positano is, as they say, "vertical." Lots of steps. There's bus service between the two towns.

Another place for a nice view of the city and drink at sunset is the Piazzale Michelangelo. I believe the #13 bus goes there, but check that>

and for an even more removed but just as scintillating view of the Birthplace of the Renaissance hop a bus up to Fiesole, high up in the hills and known for its rave views over Florence all spread out far below.

Fiesole also has some stellar Roman ruins and some popular restaurants.

Actually if you don't like museums, why are you going to Florence? What do your fellow travelers want to see there? Consider flying into Venice, spending 3 nights there, then skipping Florence, and going on to Rome. Can you fly out of Naples? Otherwise you could go from Venice to Naples and on to Sorrento, then end your trip in Rome.

Florence is best for enthusiasts of Renaissance art and architecture. Your group would probably enjoy Venice more. And you need to see it before it sinks. What do the others have against Venice, one of the most beautiful cities in the world?

I'd suggest you all get some guidebooks or maybe read up on your proposed destinations on the Internet. But you'll just find more you want to see. 8 days is not much time.

Mimar- My daughter has been to Florence before and she enjoyed it very much and did not go to museums. She had a cooking class and went to the restaurants, etc.
And thank you all for your very valuable information.
Downtown Brown and PalenQ, I am going to look into the suggestions that you made. They sound very solid and interesting. Thank you again. Diana

A few things jump out at me.

Get/Download/print a map of Italy and mark the cities you are thinking about. Notice the distance between them. General rule of thumb: you lose 1/2 a day everytime you move cities, not including the actual travel time.

Go to the library.bookstore and read some guide books, figure out what you want to see/do. Don't rely on a bunch of internet strangers. What is important to me or to PalenQ may not be important to you. And it's your holiday.

Read the Fodors guide to Italy on this website. It will give you a basic knowledge.
http://www.fodors.com/world/europe/italy/

Look at flights - some routing might be less expensive.

Use the search function on these forums, you can look at all threads tagged Italy.

Once you have decided where exactly you want to go, we can help you out with specifics.

"i.e. nice hotels, b& b's- not break the bank but nice) Also, would like to know some places to eat- local places also that do not break the bank?" How much is not break the bank? 100 euros a night? 200?

To effectively help you we need more information.

Johnnyomalley, Thank you for advising me about the guide on the website. I actually did check it out and it says if you use Alta Velocta lines (presume high speed train) can go from Rome to Florence in 90 minutes. It says from Rome to Naples in 1 hour. That was very helpful info.
As most of you have suggested we are omitting going to Venice.
We want to fly into Rome, stay 3 nights, then go to Florence for 2 nights, and then to Sorrento for 3 nights.
My only question at this time is the best way to get back to either Rome or Naples to take a flight home leaving from Sorrento. We are not renting a car as no one wants to drive the roads near Sorrento. I have called about a cab but they want to charge a lot of money. Does anyone know if there are any shuttle services from Sorrento to either Rome or Naples?
If so, can someone give me a name, etc.
In addition, when I say eating where the locals dine- I mean meals of approx. $15.-$20. My daughter said they found meals that were delicious in Florence that were inexpensive.

Diane - are you flying into and out of Rome?

in that case I would suggest going straight from Rome to Florence, then from Florence to Sorrento, and finally back to Rome.

that will put you in the right place for flying home and eliminate the need to rush back from sorrento to Rome for your flight.

trenitalia.com is your friend for looking at train timetables.

oops - i posted too soon.

trains run at least hourly from Florence SMN to Naples and the journey takes under 3 hours. book far enough in advance and fares can be really cheap, even on the "Freccia" trains.

if you are flying out of Naples, then obviously it makes sense to put Sorrento at the end of your trip.

"I actually did check it out and it says if you use Alta Velocta lines (presume high speed train) can go from Rome to Florence in 90 minutes. It says from Rome to Naples in 1 hour. That was very helpful info."

And then keep in mind that you should probably add no less than another 2-3 hours to each of those travel times when considering how much time it will take to "change" cities: checking out of hotel traveling to train station, finding way through station to departure platform, waiting on platform, actual train ride, finding way out of station, traveling to new hotel, checking in. So 90 minutes may seem quick except that you will actually spend 3.5 hours or more to actually connect between Rome and Florence.

annhig, Thank you so much for the info.
ellenem- Thank you so much for the info.
But I still have the question of how to get from Sorrento to either Naples or Rome to fly home. Since I did not book the trip yet- I am trying to find out how to get to either airport from Sorrento without costing a fortune for us?
Anyone know of any shuttle service?
Someone told me that they did not have a train from Sorrento to Rome? not sure- Do they have a train that goes from Sorrento to Naples?
And also, thank you so much in advance for all of your help and suggestions.

You will need to take the local train to Naples and then you can catch a high speed train to Termini and then the Express train to the airport.

If your flight leaves from Rome I would be in Rome the night before...

>>>Anyone know of any shuttle service? <<<

The bus shuttle from Sorrento to Naples airport is Curreri. Cost is 10€, but not likely to run early enough for a departure flight.

If you haven't booked flights yet, I would fly into Naples, Curreri shuttle bus to Sorrento, visit Sorrento, train to Naples and on to Rome, visit Rome, train to Florence, fly home from Florence (or Pisa).

I'm sorry - but you actually have only 7 days on the ground - not 10. And you are trying to see/do way to much in such a limited time.

And you have not allowed time for travel between cities. You would have a half a day in Venice, 1.5 day s Florence and Rome and 2.5 days in Sorrento.

If it were me I would stick with Rome and Sorrento and actually see something - and have a chance to sit in a cafe and relax with a glass of wine - rather than be running constantly from one place to another.

For hotel you wil have to give us a specific budget in $ or euros and let us know if this is for a triple room and if two can share a double bed.

As for meals - you can eat for practically nothing if you picnic or buy food at street markets. For a sit down meal we allow a minimum of $30 per person for lunch and $75 for dinner (more courses and wine).

Someone told me that they did not have a train from Sorrento to Rome? not sure- Do they have a train that goes from Sorrento to Naples?>

Just to be clear there is a train from Sorrento to Naples Centrale (actually to a station attached to it and connected by a long walkway) and then it is about 1.25 hours on the fastest train to Rome Termini from where the Leonardo Express takes about 30 minutes or so to the main Rome airport - yes if from Rome be in Rome the night before - way too may train strikes in Italy to depend on taking trains the same day to the plane if not in your departure city.

Thank you everyone for all of your suggestions. We tried to get info on the trains from their websites. It was too early to obtain the information for when we will be going. So we decided to rent a car. We were fearful that we would not have enough time on the trains to get to the airport on time.
Several posters have told us sometimes the local trains go on strike,etc.
But we would like to know some suggestions of things to see in Rome. We are going to the Vatican. The rest of the 3 days are "open". Any suggestions?

Several posters have told us sometimes the local trains go on strike,etc. >>

not often enough for you to decide to drive for the entirety of your trip instead of using the far more convenient train.

and why not just wait for the timetables to come out? they won't be very different to the present ones.

and with respect, you are starting at the wrong point of the trip planning.

if you are flying out of Rome, the logical step is to put the Rome part of the trip at the end. that way you have plenty of leeway for getting to the airport, and don't have to worry about getting from Sorrento to Rome in time to get the plane.

from the airport, go straight to Florence, then to Sorrento, then Rome.

In Rome, apart from the Vatican [you do know that this is a museum don't you? - and a very big one, or technically, several museums in one and you said above you don't actually want to see museums] there is St. Peter's, the colosseum, the Forum, the Pantheon, the Trevi fountain Piazza Navona, Campo dei Fiori, the Centro Storico, Castel San angelo, Trastevere, etc. etc. etc. In all honesty, you need to look at a guide book or 6.

None of the places you are going in your OP is conducive to cars once you;re there - especially Capri!

Florence and Rome and of course Venice have restricted private vehicles from their city centre - we always get slummoxed folks posting here that after they got back home they got some steep fine/ticket for violating the no-go zones (if you drive be sure to familiarize yourself with those signs saying no private vehicles allowed.

check out these fab IMO sites for loads of good stuff on Italian train travel - www.seat61.com; www.ricksteves.com and www.budgeteuropetravel.com. And there are some Fodorites like kybourbon who are real Italian rail experts - www.trenitalia.com is the site of the Italian Railways and on it you can score some nifty discounted tickets if you want to book weeks if not months in advance - fares as little as 9 euros flat fare between any two high-speed train stations - using trenitalia.com can be tricky for a novice but again folks like kybourbon have unfaillingly come to their help when they posted their problems - so just ask as folks here have a wealth of knowledge and experience with Italian trains.

annhig is very sensible.

Diana, we often fly USAirways out of PHL, our first trip to Italy was Rome and Sorrento. Since your family really wants to see the Amalfi Coast would you consider a trip with just those two locations since it's a relatively short trip?

We took the train from Naples to Rome for the first part of our trip and then returned to Rome for the days before our departure. We did not have a car while in Sorrento except for a one day rental to drive the coast. That driving day was a nightmare--narrow roads and a gazillion scooters that weave in and out of traffic passing on the left and the right with little regard for the fact that our car was where THEY wanted wanted to be!! ;;)

Enjoy the Amalfi but leave the driving to others. Deborah

I think deborahann has the right idea. You may enjoy the trip better with just two destinations.

Another option to consider is that if you want to go to Florence but aren't interested in art, then it's only a 90 min trip by fast train from Rome. You could treat it as a day trip and enjoy wandering around the city which is only small. Stroll across the pont de Vecchio, visit the duomo, the piazza della signorina, the outdoor markets and enjoy a nice lunch somewhere, then catch the train back to Rome.

annhig is very sensible.>>

I tell my family that.

That driving day was a nightmare--narrow roads and a gazillion scooters that weave in and out of traffic passing on the left and the right with little regard for the fact that our car was where THEY wanted wanted to be!!>

and yes it can even be scary for Nervous Nellies riding the world-famous Amalfi Coast buses - huge vehicles having to navigate a sinuously twisting narrow road. Cars can no faster than these snail-paced buses of course due to the nightmare of traffic DebbieAnn so aptly describes in an above post.

Annhig = sensible = oxymoron?

Annhig = sensible = oxymoron?>>

my family would probably agree with that, PalenQ.

I do try to give sensible advice here, though, as do you.

however, at the moment the boot is on the other foot as I'm trying to plan a trip to the Antipodes for me and Mr. Annhig, and I'm sure that I'm coming up with the most idiotic ideas.

so far everyone has been too polite to tell me so.

Anne, you should visit Melbourne.

We live there.

It's nice.

So are we.

Our favorite Florence restaurant is Buca Mario; favorite hotel the Pendini.

Antipodes for me and Mr. Annhig, and I'm sure that I'm coming up with the most idiotic ideas.>

Antipodes? where in the heck is that? Some remote Greek area?

Oh Google tells me it is OZ and kiwi land.

Peter - but you're not there now, are you?

or have i misunderstood?

DD liked it a lot but she was there in June and it rained. Sadly it doesn't seem to fit into the itinerary that we are trying to work out; we want to see a Test match AND to be home by Christmas so that rules out Melbourne. we are considering Brisbane and Adelaide.

instead of hijacking this thread, I'd be very happy to continue this discussion on my thread on the subject if you'd be kind enough to joint me there!

oops - see my apology on that thread.

I think just 2 locations (Rome and Sorrento) is very good advice. And I agree that it would be easier to visit Florence as a day trip than changing hotels, especially since you won't be visiting museums. If you can fly into Naples, visit that area, then move to Rome and stay there, flying out of Rome, that may be easier.

When I'm researching the train schedule on Trenitalia I just plug in a date a week from today. I don't think it changes much and it gives me a good idea for planning purposes. It's simply a terrible idea to rent a car for this trip - you will be in places where you will not want to drive and that will be miserable.

For hotels, I always look at Tripadvisor and booking.com. Tripadvisor also has restaurant reviews that are generally OK.

For activities in Rome, you really must use a guidebook. When I'm planning I get a map, spread it out, then go through the guidebook and put a little post-it on a spot I want to visit. That way it's easy to see the pattern of where I should spend my time.