Ineedavacay

My daughter and I are leaving in 3 weeks for a 2 week trip to Italy, we land in Venice and fly out of Rome. I would love to take her to see the coast. We are going to visit Pompei for sure and she wants to climb Mt. Vesuvius...which I think may be very cold the end of March. I would love to see both the Amafli Coast and Cinque Terre, however time constraints would push me to pick one so I am not traveling too much.

Here's what I have so far.

March 12 land in Venice at 5pm
March 12 - 15 or 16th in Venice - Help for music related itinerary here. we have La Fenice on the agenda, would love to catch a performance, don't know if that will work out. Daughter wants to buy a mask/see a mask made, I wonder how much of the city will be flooded?

March 15th or 16 - Leave Venice - Train to Milan to spend a day at the Duomo and La Scala, no overnight here....Train to Florence.

Open Agengda.....could use some help (Thinking either Florence or Cinque Terre here). Toying with ideas of places tied to music, since my daughter is a music major

Arrive Rome on Saturday so we can see/visit the Porta Portese flea market on Sunday...Do they for sure set up in March?

Spend remaining time in Rome (are the fresh food markets open in March) and Sorrento (this would be Amalfi time and Pompei/Vesuvius).

Lodging average budget 100 Euro a night, will pay more if safety is a concern, desire clean and location, have Venice lodging and Sorrento, could use tips on other.

Food wise, while we would love to be wined and dined, we are going more to spend time together before she graduates college and to experience as much of Italy together as time will allow. We would like budget ideas, as I know I could blow many Euros on amazing food choices, however, we would rather see and experience and still taste a bit of Italy, without blowing the budget this time....My guess is there will be many return trips...the more I read and learn, the more I would like to explore this amazing place!

We leave 3 weeks from today and I have booked lodging only in Venice....any help to clear my very confused mind would be most appreciated!

Also, tours....any recommended tours that I should be doing on day one to get acquainted with places or just stuff not to miss in our situation....Thank you experts in advance!

nytraveler

Well if your daughter is really interested in music I would not head to the Cinque Terre - which i s primarily for hiking. florence sounds a much better choice. I would check out the options for musical activities in Venice, florence and Rome - you may be able to find tickets now for things hard ot get later. Plus you'll know what you want to see/do. If you just google musical activities or event sin each city you will find a host of choices.

I hate to say it but I would do a day trip to see Pompeii - it;s a long day - but better than sorting our another hotel and hauling your luggage around. (SInce openings in the area will be limited since you are so early in the season.)

Dayle

Ineeda,

Before you definitely plan to do a "day trip" to Milan - I would advise checking the travel time for that day. You would actually be spending more time getting there and going on to Florence, than you would BEING there.

Train from Venice to Milan is 3 hours. Train from Milan to Florence (without looking it up) would be about 1.5 hours. Time to see duomo 1 hour tops. Were you going to try for a tour of La Scala? I'm not familiar enough to know if they are given. Maybe another hour tops?

Plan your travel wisely - you get more for your time and money.

Hotel in Rome - Hotel Giardino Rome **. Great location for walking everywhere. Lovely, helpful, friendly owner Katy answers e mails promptly. Typical breakfast, nothing special. Clean, cozy. No elevator, 2 flights up. Very good value. Price will be more than 100E/nt. even for a two star during low season.

Ineedavacay

nytrav - my daughter IS really into music, I would be the one being drawn to the coast, and from the look on her face when we last took her to the sea....she would love it as well! How to divide up 2 short weeks and get the most of it, we've already put aside the hill towns for another trip, I suppose Cinque Terre may be a trip that a husband and wife would gain more from than a mother daughter? I do think we will end up not going north to Cinque Terre, most likely we will visit MIlan as her professor has told her the La Scala is a MUST SEE so we can't miss that, can you all please provide different information if that true?

Dayle, I know! I really don't want to make it a day trip, but it seems there is a fashion convention in town that week and the hotels are ridic in prices, plus trying to learn a city for one day is not worth it to me, but to take my daughter to see La Scala if it's a big enough deal....I'd sign up Perhaps, Milan is skippable?

I also know that 100 euro/night lodging in safe and great location areas is wishful, but it;s a target....any it's March.....noone has commented on the weather goods and bads yet

isabel

I would split the first week half and half Venice and Florence. Check train times and prices, it might make more sense to do Milan as a day trip and then you wouldn't have to worry about what to do with your luggage. If you decide to do it on the way from Venice to Florence check to make sure Milan train station has left luggage - it's a huge station so probably does but I would want to be sure.

Then I'd do about three days in Sorrento, finishing with the last half week in Rome before you fly out from there. In Sorrento I can recommend Hotel Ulisse - http://www.ulissedeluxe.com/. It's about 70€ at that time of year. Sorrento is a little bigger than Amalfi or Positano so there will be more open that early in the season. You could easily take the bus to Amalfi and Positano for day trips. Also Pompeii is only a half hour so an easy day trip. In Rome I can recommend Hotel Julie. It's more than 100€ a night but if you figure in the half week in Sorrento the entire week would be just about 100€ per night average. It's a five minute walk from the Trevi Fountain so very central for major sights.

ekscrunchy

If a prime interest is seeing a performance at La Fenice, perhaps you ought to buy tickets in advance.

http://www.teatrolafenice.it/

bardo1

A well located hotel in Rome withing your budget (not easy to find):

http://www.solealbiscione.it/eng/default.html


Regarding La Fenice in Venice: Get tickets NOW for a 3/12 or 3/13 performance (if not already sold out). La Boheme closes 3/13.

Anna_Galea

Hi,

We have just visited the Amalfi Coast and Sorrento coast during last Christmastime, and it is a lovely unique place, the scenery of the Amalfi coast is really breathtaking. I would suggest that you either stay in Praiano or Positano if you prefer lodging in the Amalfi Coast, or if you want to stay in a quiet town nearer to Pompei and Vesuvius, and Sorrento I would suggest Massa Lubrense or Vico Equense, we lodged in both these two towns, in Massa Lubrense for one night, and Vico Equense for two nights. Vico Equense has a train station in the centre of the town which can take you direct to Pompei, Naples etc. We stayed in Relais il Pennino in Massa Lubrense, and Il Cubo Apartments in Vico Equense, these apartments also offer a free light breakfast in their adjacent coffee shop and are brand new and very high tech, the higher apartments have the most beautiful view of the Vesuvius and harbour, if you decide to go there ask for a high level one. Do not miss the Amalfi Coast, it has the most breathtaking view ever. To see all the sites and towns I would suggest at least 3 nights in this part of Italy. I would be very glad to answer any of your questions. We managed to see most of the best sites and towns, including Pompei, but did not have time to go up on the Vesuvius. Vico Equense is only about 12 km away from Sorrento, and Massa Lubrense about 7km, and if you lodge in Sorrento try and dine at the Pizza al Metro and at Vic's Street in Vico Equense. From Rome by car it took us about 3 hours to reach this southern part of Italy.

Enjoy Italy, I never tire of going to that country, everything is wonderful, the food, wine, people, medieval towns etc. During Christmastime we were four days in Tuscany, and 4 days on the Amalfi Coast. We hired a car, so we managed to see so many beautiful towns, and scenery. I would gladly answer any questions regarding Tuscany, as on our last holiday we made stops in Florence, Siena, San Gimignano, Pisa, Casole D'Elsa and Volterra.

Have fun!!

franco

And if your daughter is really into music... do her a favour and get those Bohème tickets at the Fenice for the 13th, when Gianluca Terranova is singing Rodolfo. He is certainly not a world-class tenor, and Rodolfo seems not ideally suited for him, but he is a very steady singer with an excellent high C, and all in all, he knows what he's doing (and is an interesting stage performer, too). I've already seen him at the Fenice (in a different opera). Sébastien Guèze, the other Rodolfo (on the 12th), is most probably a tenorino, and in any case (even if the voice should be large enough when heard in a theater - I know him only from youtube so far) a really, really bad singer. (The Fenice is generally not a great opera theater; a great building, but most often with poor-or-worse performances.)
Pay attention that both (12th and 13th) are afternoon performances.

annhig

hi franco - interested in what you say about la fenice. I've been twice - once to an oratorio and another time to a concert - both very good - but I've not seen an opera there yet. one day! do they always have the fire brigade waiting at the end of the performance? [presumably to check for smouldering wires etc. to stop it going up in flames again].

but yes, ineed - if you want to see Boheme, book now. there are other musical events in venice too - your hotel or the TI can tell you about them when you get there. as for the sea - you will be in it and on it in Venice. the rest of your trip doesn't really lend itself to the seaside, does it? and it's the wrong time of year. but if you want to do it, the best use of your time, IMHO, would be to fly straight from Venice to Naples, and spend a few days on the amalfi [from which you can see vesuvius and Pompeii], before heading up to Rome on the train.

franco

Ann, I don't recall the fire brigade at the Fenice in particular, but seeing those fire brigades is pretty common anywhere, I think they have them in every theater, no?

annhig

franco - not in my experience, no, one doesn't see them in full fig at the entrance to the theatre when one comes out, as i did at la Fenice. i automatically thought of the fire and wondered if they were always there to do a special check to prevent further catastrophe.

Ineedavacay

Thanks everyone! I am looking into all of your suggestions. I'm not having much luck booking tickets on the La Fenice website, will try again for the 13th. Never thought about flying to Naples, great idea. If we cannot get tickets at La Fencie, where would you suggest tickets for a concert?

franco

Ann, actually, I didn't see that either. Must have been something extraordinary (but not a fire for sure, or we'd have read about it!).

Ineed, one more thing: as for your question how much of the city will be flooded... I'm afraid there must be a misunderstanding behind that question. On some days (it depends on both the weather and the moon), the water level will rise in the whole city, and all lower parts will be (slightly) flooded. Nobody can predict if and when it will happen. If so, it's a matter of about three hours, and then the water will be gone again.

mamcalice

Venice is an excellent place to attend a Vivaldi concert. While we were there most recently, there were concerts each night at a variety of locations. You can probably wait until you arrive to purchase tickets.

Delaine

While not a music major, I enjoy music very much. However, I, personally, would not detour to Milan purely to visit La Scala (if you were there longer and could visit the Duomo, Sforza Castle, Pinacoteca di Brera, Last Supper, Galleria, etc. that would be different). I have taken the tour of the opera house (which doesn't last very long) and didn't find it very memorable. I would rather save the time and go see an actual opera at La Fenice.

charnees

I would make Milan a day trip from Florence. Half as long on the train each way. Or check to see if the high-speed train stops in Florence. I think it does. (Frecciarossa)

Ineedavacay

Thanks you guys, we are revamping again, 4 nights Venice, 4 nights Sorrento and 6 nights Rome, no Milan this trip or Florence or Cinque Terre...BUT....less time on trains and more time getting to know each area and a return trip someday Sorrento, because we want to see Pompei and climb Mt. Vesuvius, seeing the Amalfi coast as well! Can't wait!

annhig

Ineed - that looks just great. you'll be so glad that you are not rushing around when you see all that there is to do in those places.

have a great trip!

Anna_Galea

Hi, I don't want to confuse you into changing plans again, but I do think that 6 nights in Rome is too much, and also 4 nights in Venice. I do like to travel around a lot, but I would stay for 3 nights in Venice, and 4 nights in Rome, and add on 3 nights in Florence, we have just been there a couple of months ago, and it is so rich in culture, try not to miss it if you do not intend to go to Italy again in the near future - from Florence you can even take a day trip to Siena or San Gimignano, a beautiful medieval town, which is unique. I still think that your holiday would not be too much rushing around as you are staying for quite a long time in italy. Just my opinion, I therefore would stay for 3 nights in Venice, 4 nights in Sorrento or anywhere in Amalfi Coast, 3 nights in Florence, and 4 nights in Rome, that way by including Florence you would be seeing all the best cities of Italy. Milan in not at all impressive in my opinion, except the main square Duomo, and this city is not that safe during nightime. I would leave vist to Rome for the last since you are flying out from there. Therefore I would sugest first stop would be Venice (3 nighs), then Florence (3 nights, then take a train or plane to Naples or Sorrento (4 nights),then last stay in Rome (4 nights). This is my opinion, but I still think that you have the time to do all these places at a leisurely pace since you have a whole two week holiday in just one country.