14 Days In Italy - Itinerary Help?
 

I am planning a 14-day, trip to Italy in end of May-5/23/09 -6/6-09. We will be flying into Milan(a.m. flight) and departing from Rome. I have 2 children age 7&9.
Here is what I am thing of:
Milan (1night ) -
Venice (3 nights)
Florence (2 nights) -
I am considering Sorrento(3 nights)-some of the "day trips"Pompeii,Capri,Amalfi
Rome(4 nights)
a car--that may be key with 4 people or a train from Milan to Venice, Venice to Florence, Florence to Sorento,Sorrento to Rome. Also on www.trenitalia site I couldn't figure out tickets price.
Or should we rent a car from Milan to Rome?

My, you are ambitious! But with only 14 days, perhaps too ambitious. There is a lot to see in every area you mention, and you are doing a lot of traveling the length and breadth of Italy. My suggestion, given your flight arrangements, is to go no farther south than Rome. Instead of trying to squeeze in the Amalfi coast, rent a car out of Florence and spend those three nights at a location in Tuscany and day-trip around to the many wonderful places there. You will enjoy the Italian countryside and places like Siena. Then proceed to Rome, get rid of the car, and settle in for the rest of your visit. When I last visited, I did not want to take the car into Rome, so we drove to Orvieto, turned in the car, and went by train to Rome from Orvieto. You won't want a car in Venice either, so it is best to take the train from Milan. The Amalfi coast should wait for your next trip.

Thanks for the advice, I think I am going to plan this trip without Amalfi coast?

Considering you'll have your two kids with you, I suggest dropping Florence (for their sake) and substituting the Cinque Terre for it and the Amalfi Coast. Traveling from town to town (including Portovenere) by boat can be a lot of fun, especially for youngsters.

Another option would be to rent a car upon departing Venice and head, as axelrod suggests, to Tuscany (not Florence) for your stay there. Return the car in Orvieto and take a train into Rome. You can day-trip into Florence from an agriturismo located in the Tuscan countryside.

Can you drop the night in Milan?

P.S. You'll get more help if you post on the Italy Forum, not just Europe.

There is not an "Italy Forum".
lada is in the right place...

I tried to do Italy forum,but for some reason it went to Europe.I'm new to this.Sorry.
I wasn't sure if I need that day in Milan.I can skip and go to Como? or go straight to Venice on a train?
Should I do Florence for 1 day,Cinque Terre for 1 day and the Amalfi Coast?
I'm open to any suggestions.Thank you all for help.

>>I wasn't sure if I need that day in Milan.I can skip and go to Como? or go straight to Venice on a train? <<

Go straight to Venice by train. That is, if you're not impacted by jet-lag. That'd be the only reason to spend a night in Milan.

>>Should I do Florence for 1 day,Cinque Terre for 1 day and the Amalfi Coast?<<

That's impractical - those places are far apart.

Ops! I meant to go from Milan to Como?,then Venice 2-3 days,Florence 1 day,Sorrento or Naples 3 days and rest in Rome

I live in Italy and I think you would get the best advice if you posted a little more about what you are hoping to take home with you -- what would be your ideal family vacation in Italy.

You and your children could have a lot of fun even if you moved around a lot less. And while places like Lago di Como are of course lovely, I'm not sure the Italian lake towns are all that much more fun for children than any lake town anywhere in the world. It's a long way to go to show children a lovely view. (I'd be sooner tempted to the family fun of Lago di Garda, near Milan) were it not the day you arrive.

I wouldn't want to risk going straight to Venice if your family has never taken a transatlantic flight before and you don't know everybody's tolerance for jet lag.

Do you want a trip to Italy to be very educational for your children? Verona, near Venice, is a marvelous children's destination. It has a Roman arena that it is in better shape than the one in Rome, plus a storybook castle and some great car-free piazzas for staying up past bedtime. By contrast, Florence is filled with cars and other tourists, often very hot. It's a great town -- and if your children are already excited to see Michaelangelo and other sights they've read about, by all means go. But if it's all going to be new to them, they migh have more fun at places like Siena (mainly car-free).

If you need beach time, it does make sense to stay north, nearer Cinque Terre, unless showing them Pompeii is very important for educational reasons. Some children don't like climbing a lot of hills and stairs, so you might prefer the beach towns north of Cinque Terre for beach fun, from which you can take boats or trains to Cinque Terre. Sestri Levante might be a good choice, and you can consider Levanto, Moneglia and Bonassola, and Camolgi and Santa Margherita Ligure if you don't mind being a distance from Cinque Terre.

PS: I am a big fan of Napoli and that area, but you need to know that the city is chaotic, especially vehicular traffic, and it can be quite nerve-wracking for parents to shepherd children around it. If you have Neopolitan ancestors, you may want to dive in, but as a vacation destination, Napoli is for adventurists squared.

Typo alert -- it's "Camogli"

hi lada,

what zeppole has said, as ever, makes a lot of sense.

do your children like moving around a lot at home? do they like being out of routine? do you have fun when they are tired and tetchy?

if your answer to any of the above is NO, you are going to have a c..p time if you keep to your current plans or anything like them. in 14 days, you should aim to move twice between 3 places, at the most. 2 places would be better.

asuming you are arriving from the US, you wil proably arrive around breakfast time. you therefore have a whole day to get to your first place, and Zeppole's idea of garda is a great one. we took our then somewhat older kids to garda when they were 15 & 12 and we all had a great time.

from there you could easily get to Venice, possibly travelling via Verona as suggested above.

then get the train to Rome.

regards, ann

There is a Europe "forum" and an "Italy" "tag" under that - Europe is still not the best place to be. I'm just trying to help and I have been on the Fodors forum for a while.

Keep in mind--every time you change hotels you will waste at least half a day, probably more with checking out, getting to transport, traveling, getting to the hotel, checking in . . . It will be better for you, your children, and your itinerary to not include one-night stops.

To find a price on the Trenitalia site, pretend you are traveling next week and search for trains on a date next week. (The site doesn't show info more than 60 days ahead, 7 days for very local trains.) Once you get the list of trains, click on the shopping cart for the train of your choice. Your new window will show the price. You will probably have to specify ticket type/tariff (you want "Family"--2 adults, 2 kids under 12 covered by one ticket) . Prices should appear.

Thank you All SO SO MUCH!!It is all makes a lot of sense now!
We decide not to go to Amalfi coast or south of Rome.
We'll go to Verono(day? )from Milan on a train,then take train to Venice for 2 nights,then rent a car to Florence(2 nights) and go to Rome.

I'm dying to know how this trip went? I am plannning a trip also for 14 days....I have 3 daughters....ages 16, 12, 9. I would love to take them to Rome, Venice, Amalfi Coast, Sicily. My family is from Sicily...that should be a must. Any suggestions? We are a family who loves adventures.

Andrea, you might want to start your own post with more details.

That said, get open jaw tickets, fly into Venice and out of Sicily if possible.

One possible itinerary:

3 days Venice
4 days Rome
3 Amalfi Coast
4 days Sicily