14-day Italy Itinerary
 

Hello guys,

My husband and I are planning a 14-day trip to Italy in May and we are having some trouble planning!

We are flying in and out of Rome and we've narrowed down the cities we would like to visit: Rome, Vatican City, Ostia, Florence, Pisa, and maybe Venice. So far, our itinerary looks like this:

May 9: Arrive Rome early in the morning.
May 9-11: Rome
May 12: Vatican City
May 13: Ostia day trip
May 14: Train to Venice
May 14-16: Venice
May 17: Train to Florence
May 17-19: Florence
May 20: Pisa Day trip
May 21: Train to Rome
May 21-22: Rome
May 23: Fly out

Does this look doable? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

I would train to Venice on arrival day and work your way back to end in Rome.
9-12 Venice
13-17 Florence
18-23 Rome

That seems to be a good idea. One fewer train ride would save us some money on tickets. I just feel it will be so exhausting to train to venice after a 9-hour flight.

Then when you arrive train directly to Florence instead of Venice--it's just 90 minutes by train from Roma Termini station. Your hotel room in Rome might not be available until afternoon anyway. Our flight landed at FCO at 7:30am and we were in our Florence hotel by 11:30am.

So it might look like this:

May 9: Arrive Rome early in the morning; train to Florence; sleep Florence.
May 10: Florence
May 11: Florence
May 12: Florence (daytrip to Pisa)
May 14: Train to Venice; sleep Venice
May 15: Venice
May 16: Venice
May 17: Train to Rome; sleep Rome
May 18: Rome
May 19: Rome (Vatican City)
May 20: Rome
May 21: Rome (Ostia day trip)
May 22: Rome
May 23: Fly out

I would book an open jaw ticket into Rome and out of Venice. Then you could stay in Rome a few nights and take the train to Florence.

Stay a few nights in Florence and take the train on to Venice.Then fly home from Venice.

This saves valuable time and money. Flying open jaw does not cost any more than round trip and can actually save you money because you don't have to buy a train ticket to back track.

Just click on the Multi-city option on the airline website.
Have a great time! Laurie

Make it open jaw -- into Rome and home from Venice or even Milan. Save time and money

Thanks Laurie and fmpden! I did consider open jaw ticket but it was significantly more expensive. Round trip to Rome was around 750USD and open jaw into Rome and out of Venice was over 1000 per person. :(

Hi chaznangie,

Honestly, I would skip the Pisa day trip this time and add a day to Venice. The duomo and tower there are gorgeous, but make a better stop off point for another trip, maybe on your way to the Ligurian Coast next time!

You might also look into flying one of the cheapo regional airlines straight from Rome to Venice upon arrival. Save you a lot of time and you're already at the airport anyway!

Buon viaggio!

I like the way ellenem sorted it out. That looks really good. I'd subtract one day Rome and add it to Venice, but that's because I love Venice so much.

Dayle, how would I find information on regional airlines? I am still waiting for my Fodor's book to arrive. I feel so lost without having a guidebook in hand!

Suze, I also like the way ellenem planned it. If I can't find cheap airfare from Rome to Venice, I will stick with the itinerary ellenem suggested!

chaznangie, if you were looking up airfares online for that open jaw, did you use the site(s) correctly? On most of them, you need to pick the multiple cities option - it almost always gives you an open jaw fare that's not significantly more, if at all, than a RT.

Oh, and for regional flights: www.whichbudget.com

Hello chznangie, since you have a 9 hour flight and no doubt will have been gone from your home a lot longer than that I think, at least for me, catching a flight to Venice and than having to get from the airport to the hotel in Venice would be way too much on the day of arrival.

I, again just my opinion as to what would work best for me, would follow ellenem's itinerary. Taking the train from FCO, or a shuttle or a taxi if you would rather to the Termini station in Rome and than the 90 minute train trip to Florence would be so much more relaxing, again it would be for me. The train station is located right in the historical center of Florence so you could either walk or take a taxi to your hotel. Shower, catch your breath and go have a lovely lunch and don't forget to have a glass of wine!

StCirq, I am pretty sure I was using the site correctly. The prices varied depending on where I was flying in and out. I have no idea why flying out of Venice was so much more expensive when I did my search. Thanks for the info on regional flight!

LoveItaly, I am leaning towards ellenem's itinerary too! I think catching the train would give us a chance in scenery as well.

My problem now is, do I book the train tickets online ahead of time or just buy it at the train station? I am not sure how long it would take us to clear custom and get to the station. At the same time, what if we don't get a seat on the train?

I would wait until you are in Rome to buy the tickets to Florence. You never know if you will be delayed with your flight or perhaps arrive early. There are frequent (virtually hourly) departures from Roma Termini to Florence SMN. Unless it is a big holiday, the next train will probably have seats.

When you arrive at the airport in Rome (FCO), collect your luggage and make your way to the airport train station, an easy walk. At this station, buy a ticket for the next Leonardo Express train to Roma Termini (leaves every half hour, takes 30 minutes). At the same time you should buy your ticket to Florence SMN. Give yourself at least 15 minutes between the time the Leonardo Express arrives at Termini and the time your next train departs for Florence (Termini is a big station and it may take a while to walk from the Leonardo Express platform to the new one).

We flew into Rome last summer and our flight was on time but it took an hour and a half for our luggage to arrive on the conveyor belt. Locals that were waiting with us said that this was not uncommon.

Thanks for all your suggestions, everyone! I guess I am done with the itinerary! Now it's time to plan for accommodations.