fakemark

Comments are much appreciated. We're planning on splitting two weeks between Italy and France, so I'd like some advice about the first part of our journey. The 7 days will start in Rome at the end of June and end at an airport that will let us hop over to Paris (Pisa, is what I'm thinking at this point).

Day 1: arrive in Rome at 6pm, check into hotel, collapse.

Day 2: Ancient Rome (Forum, Colosseum, Palatine Hill). Can I squeeze in a late appointment to the Borghese Gallery?

Day 3: Vatican (squeeze into the throngs at the Sistine Chapel, Vatican museum) & maybe the Catacombs.

If I just did the Vatican stuff in the morning, can we get an afternoon train to Orvieto and take the bus to Civita di Bagnoreggio?

Day 4: Siena

Day 5: from Siena, daytrip to Florence for the Renaissance art plunge.

Day 6: Trains through Pisa (hop out to take a quick picture of the tower), and on to the Cinque Terre. Spend the night in one of the towns after a day of hiking.

Day 7: Train to either Pisa or Milan for the flight to Paris.

Is this too much time in transit? Thanks for any help!

Lorac1127

I'm not exactly sure what you are expecting from this trip to Italy. Your itinerary has the "bones" of a good trip but sounds to me more like a race. Some of your ideas are good and some are totally unrealistic.

These are my suggestions:

Day 1: Don't collapse until you have at least taken a relaxing stroll and dinner.

Day 2: You might have time for the Borghese depending on how much time you spend at the Forum/Colosseum. Everyone enjoys these sights at a different pace. You should also plan time for a nice lunch. If not the Borghese, you could throw a coin in the Trevi Fountain or visit the Pantheon and then have dinner in or near the Piazza Navona.

Day 3: Get to the Vatican early--8:30 or so. The Vatican Museum/Sistine Chapel/St. Peter's will take a minimum of four hours. Have a nice relaxing lunch to refresh. Then do the catacombs in the afternoon.

Day 4: Rome to Florence. If you drive, the ride from Rome to Orvieto is about 1 1/2 hours. If you leave early enough in the day, you should have time for Orvieto and Civita di Bagnoregio. Then the drive to Siena would be another 1 1/2 hours. I suggest you go straight to Florence.

If you take a train or bus, you should check those schedules to coordinate times. In that case, I would suggest that you train from Rome to Orvieto and Orvieto to Florence.

Days 5 and 6: Florence--Duomo, Baptistry, Uffizi, Accademia, Santa Croce, Bargello, Ponte Vecchio, etc.
Day trip to Siena only if there is something you absolutely must see and do there...otherwise, there is lots to see and do in Florence.

Day 7: Fly out of Florence

Travel time always takes up more time than you could possibly imagine. To go to Cinque Terre or Pisa would cause you more time spent traveling than actually enjoying anything at all.

Good Luck!

chocobon

Lorac1127 has outlined a perfectly reasonable trip. If you've not done European travel in the past you may not realize the travel time needed. Getting in and out of Rome, for example, via auto, is quite time-consuming and naturally can be confusing because of the ring situation, similar to many major US cities. You need a couple of days to do the major sights at this time of year in Florence. Long lines begin in April, to gain entrance to the major galleries. There is lots to see in Siena too, so don't shortchange yourself. The Borghese took us 3 hours and we had the latest entry possible which was roughly about 4PM. The forum and colosseum take about 4 hours. Of course, all of this is up to the individual. Do yourself a favor and don't try to see too many cities in too little time. You'll be looking forward to your return trip at a later date!

fakemark

Thanks, that is very helpful advice. At this point, I'm planning on taking trains and buses between cities. Does that increase or decrease my transit times?

Also, since I'm only planning one day in Florence, I was hoping to stay in Siena and take the bus in. I figure it will be cheaper and more relaxing to be in a smaller city. Do you have thoughts about staying in Florence vs. Siena?

Thanks!

pg

Some suggestions based on a recent trip:
Day 2: Skip the Palatine Hill in favor of the Borghese gallery. I get a feeling that once you are are done with the Colosseum & Roman Forum, you may want to get indoors.
Day 3: If the Sistie Chapel is the most important thing for you at the Vatican museum, then follow the directions that short-cut the museum for people to head to the Chapel without the entire 3 mile of the museum display. I strongly recommend it. After seeing the Cathedral (1 hr), it is at least a 10-15 min walk to the museum, and it takes a lot of energy and intense museum interest, to do the full museum. Another suggestion is that you see the museum before St. Peter's. There is an inside exit to St Peter's, which will save you walking thru 10-15 minutes around the 50 ft museum walls that separate St. Peter's from the museum.

midwesttraveler

Lorac is right on the money. I would advise against doing too much on this trip. Florence in a day including travel is unrealistic. I spent several months in Florence a few years ago with numerous side trips to Rome, Siena, Pisa, et al. With 7 days, Lorac offers a good itinerary. Unless you can afford extra time or if you have a relative you need to visit, I would skip Siena and spend the time in Florence. Keep in mind that you may have to wait in line to visit the Uffizi, David, Duomo in Florence and certainly Vatican City in Rome. Plus if you want to spend time walking to the top of St. Peter's or the Duomo (which I recommend) that will take time. Pisa is interesting, but again, I think would only be realistic if you had 10-11 days.

Given the above itinerary, I would certainly take the train over renting a car. Again, I would stay in Siena only to see Siena (if you can allot more time). Stay in Florence to see Florence.

Lorac1127

chocobon and midwesttraveler, thank you for your kind words.

Fakemark, since you will be taking a train or bus out of Rome, then you should begin by checking schedules. Public transit does not necessarily increase or decrease travel times. What it does do is give you a schedule to which you must adhere--or will will miss your ride.

I agree with you wanting to spend time in the countryside because that is a must for my trips to Italy. And, yes, we have found that staying outside the cities is not only a nice balance in your experiences, but also to balance our the finances.

But since your time is limited, you should consider either Florence or the countryside and not both. Otherwise, you will be spending more time in transit then actually being in the countryside or in Florence.

You certainly could do both but what would you actually see? If you stop in Orvieto, by the time you get to Siena, most sites of interest would most likely be closed. If you wait until morning to see some Siena sites, then you will get to Florence too late to see much of anything.

Check train schedules at www.trenitalia.com and check out opening and closing times and days closed for museums, churches, etc. in Siena and Florence, and then see what is actually feasible.

fakemark

Thanks to all who have answered. Your advice is very helpful. My eyes are bigger than my mouth.