sundriedtopepo

We have done a few Walks of Italy tours in Rome and really enjoyed them. I think you can choose either a smaller or larger group. We liked the smaller groups.

https://www.walksofitaly.com/

nanael

We ventured into the realm of an organized tour last year when we took a Rick Steves Tour of Portugal (did 2 1/2 months of Spain on our own) - it was very surprisingly to us a great trip! No, it is not the same as spending 3 weeks in one region (Provence, Italian Lakes District, Tuscany, The Danube Route, ...) which has always been more to our liking. But many of the experiences were wonderfully unique on the tour and the camaraderie of the group was also!
I can definitely see the advantages now of this kind of travel when one wants to see several places in a short period of time.
We are actually doing 3 1/2 weeks in Rome and Le Marche this Fall on our own and then going to take a tour of Slovenia and Croatia.
Different ways of travel to suit different needs. All good! Just make sure the group is not huge. 26 was actually a nice size.

tuscanlifeedit

sammyjenkis

Lots of folks come here with questions like yours. I would be very interested to know how we are influencing your thoughts on your trip. Please keep us informed.

Taltul

I haven't been to Pompeii but I've been to Ostia Antica. My parents are great travellers and when I went to Rome and considered a day trip to Pompeii, they recommended that I go to Ostia Antica (which is a half day trip on Rome transportation). They felt that Pompeii, as a site, was not as interesting (They said many things were reproductions and the real artifacts are in a museum not on site). I'm glad we did because we had so much to see in Rome. In addition, we really enjoyed Ostia Antica - it is well laid out with good explanations. You could really imagine how the city was.
I also agree with those who recommended doing the trip on your own. We are young seniors (in our 60's) and we've done many train trips in Europe. I always buy the train tickets in advance, reserve hotels and read up (thanks Fodorites!) on forums. In addition, I use sites like Yelp and the Fork to find restaurants. If you are comfortable using the Internet, an independent tour is not difficult to organize.

sammyjenkis

Hi all and thanks so much for all this great advice. Yes I do enjoy planning my itinerary on my own with all the accompanying research. Since this is our first time in Italy I was a bit nervous at first. The replies here have given us some confidence to look into getting to the cities on our own via train, while perhaps hiring a guide for some specific locations. At the moment I'm looking into the flights and we really like the "fly into Venice, fly out of Rome" approach. The replies here have been some of the best advice I've seen on the web.

sammyjenkis

Does anyone have suggestion on time of year. Right now we are planning for early October.

suze

Sure, fall is a fine time to go.

Gwendolynn

If you fly into Venice, I would splurge on a water taxi from the airport to your hotel. It's expensive but a wonderful introduction to Venice.

suze

I don't know about the Pompeii part, but Venice, Florence, and Rome are easy to plan and do by train. Really all you need is a hotel or apartment in (preferably a central area of) each city.

sharich

We live in Australia still working so are always strapped for time when we visit Europe so when we covered the area you fancy we did a ten night coach trip with Trafalgar, It started in Rome and ended in Venice.
We had two night stays in most of the towns so not rushed and usually an afternoon or morning free to explore on your own,most evenings were free to to choose your own restaurants and enjoy the towns at night, we did a wonderful optional day trip to Pompeii which they offer, and being on the tour we had priority access to places like The Vatican, The Acadamia in Florence to see the Statue of David and other crowded attractions. We arrived in Rome a couple of days before the tour and stayed in Venice an extra night after (we took a cruise from Venice).
We found it relaxing and stress free and it ensured we saw everything we should have and some things we might have missed if we travelled independently.
There are many good tour companies that offer these tours but make sure you choose one which does two night stays, it makes all the difference.

donw

We are seniors and don't do tours. We rent a car if we're not visiting a big city, and we drive all over. Fly into one city, train to next big city, rent a car and drive, then to airport to turn car in somewhere to fly back. Lots of fun with Rick Steve's guidebooks as they tell you all you need to know.

sammyjenkis

Hi folks-
After reading all these nice responses, some of my own research, and talking with several co-workers who have been to Italy, I'm roughing out an itinerary something like this (no car option):

Day 1 Travel to Venice. Water taxi from airport to (central) hotel.
Day 2 Venice. Walk around, maybe take a 1/2 day tour.
Day 3 Venice. Walk around.
Day 4 Take the train to Florence. Taxi or public transport to (central) hotel.
Day 5 1/2 day tour to get oriented.
Day 6 Florence
Day 7 Florence
Day 8 Take the train to Rome. Taxi or public transport to (central) hotel.
Days 9-14 Experience Rome. A day trip to Pompeii somewhere in there. Maybe a different 1/2 day tour.
Day 15 home.

Comments?

mjs

I think it is a very good itinerary. Could switch one day from Rome to Florence if you wanted to explore more of Tuscany as in Siena, Lucia, Pisa etc. If you had a few more nights you could add Pompei and the Amalfi coast as a 4th destination.

Gwendolynn

Sounds good. I can imagine doing that trip. (Actually have done something similar.) Is there a reason your time is confined to two weeks?

sammyjenkis

Well yes we only have so much vacation time. We're in process of booking this trip and thanks to everyone for their helpful comments.

tuscanlifeedit

I'm so happy you're booking this. We sometimes catch flack here but your trip/thread is a perfect example of the value of this forum.

Love to hear any specific questions you might have.

HappyTrvlr

Enjoy this trip. I predict you'll return to Italy again.

suze

I think the new plan is excellent.

AJPeabody

Good plan. When you get back home, a trip report will help future travelers.

lancer11

We used Walks of Italy for city tours. They limit the tours to 12 people maximum. Only one of our tours had that many people. most were around 8. They have several city tours for each city you are visiting. Check them out.