>>>the 3 nights in each city<<<
>>>We could also take a day trip on the train to surrounding cities.<<<

You don't really have time to add day trips. Three nights in a location only gives you two sightseeing days. You really need to add a night to Rome as there is so much to see.

I thank all of you that has given me such good advice. We have now booked 3 nights in each of 4 cities. In order they are: Venice, Florence, Sorrento and Rome. We have booked a tour in Rome called the Scavi tour. I have heard that a tour company called_ Walking tours of Italy is good. Has anyone had experience with them? Does anyone have any suggestions for tours in any of the cities I have mentioned? We would like to do at least one tour in each city if possible. Thank you- John

that sounds like a very good introduction to Italy, John. Thanks for coming back and telling us what you are planning.

the Scavi tour is most interesting and you should really enjoy it. afterwards you should be able to enter St Peter's without going outside the security area and queuing again, and also you could take the opportunity to go up into the dome - the ticket office and lifts/stairs are on the right hand side of the Basilica - ie the opposite side to the entrance to the Scavi tour.

People often do walking tours [with the company you mention and others] in Rome, particularly of the Forum. I would definitely recommend doing some sort of guided tour of the Forum as it can look like a heap of stones otherwise - i've been 3 times and it still looks like that to me.

as for the other places, I really don't think you need a guide for Sorrento. It's a lovely place and you will probably just enjoy strolling around. In Florence and Venice, particularly the latter, part of the fun is wandering around and getting lost, but a 1/2 day tour of Florence, if you have a particular interest, might be useful. WHat is a good idea is to pre-book entrance tickets to the Uffizi [the premier art museum in Florence] and the Accademia, where you can see the original David. otherwise a good guide book will probably help you with what you can see in a couple of days.

in Venice, you might like to book "the secret itineraries tour" of the Doge's Palace, which gives you entry to the palace afterwards as well. It is also possible to book a slot for seeing the Basilica di San Marco, which is actually free but the queues can otherwise be quite daunting. otherwise a guide book and a map will probably be all you need.

Please make sure you book your train tickets from Venice to Florence a day or two in advance.

We took advice on this forum that it wasn't necessary to book ahead, got to the station early in the morning to find the trains sold out, and waited until the afternoon for the first available train.

It would have been so easy to pop in somewhere while out and about to get them.

It probably didn't help that I had a fever of 104, didn't know at the time why I felt so crappy, and couldn't find anywhere to sit!

Loved Venice though!

Lucky you to get the Scavi tour, we weren't able to.

Happy and safe travels.

Again thank all of you for your input. We will be travelling by train from Venice to Florence, Florence to Naples, and Naples to Rome during the two weeks we will be there. There is a choice of trains Italia and Trenitalia. What experience or suggestions to any of you have? Thank you- John