First trip to Italy, what should we do?
 

My husband and I are planning our first trip to Italy and are very overwhelmed with all there is to see and do. We don't want to try to pack too much into our trip and feel rushed and exhausted everyday.

There are so many things we would love to see: Rome, Florence, Tuscan countryside, Florence, Venice, Amalfi Coast, Cinque Terre, etc. We don't have flights or anything planned yet but assume we would need from 10-14 days.

We would appreciate any suggestions of what might be good for a first trip so we feel like we get to see a lot, but don't feel overloaded. Also, any suggestions of hotels to stay in would be much appreciated...we don't need 5 star accomodations but don't want budget accomodations either.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Follow these posts, very similar questions to yours:

First time in Italy with 3 weeks. What would be your perfect itinerary.
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34906845

Italy - information overload! Advice please
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34906740

I would suggest getting an Italy guidebook from you local library, old or new, doesn't matter. I'd take a week to read through it--some cities will jump out at you, others won't. Once you have narrowed down the cities, post again, let folks know what cities most interest you, your travel plans (dates, if you already have tickets booked, etc) and then they can help you put together an itinerary. From there, you can pick hotels, etc....I find sometimes someone has to tell me what steps 1, 2 and 3 are, or else I start getting worried about steps 9 and 10 first.

Good luck--and you'll love it. Italy is heaven on earth!

Erika

Guidebooks, travel videos and maps should be your best friends right now. Think about the type of vacation you're looking for, ie. lazy cafe scenes with no real agenda, nature/hiking, museums/architecture etc..

look at the map and try to logical map out the cities that would best fit the type of vacation you're looking for.

Will you have a car or use the train? What time of year is this planned? Have you determined your budget? That should be one of the first things you do.

On my first trip to Italy, about 8 years ago, we went to Rome, Amalfi Coast (Naples for one day), and Florence. As I recall, we had about 12 days to work with...

This was the perfect mix of big city (Rome), crazy Italy (Naples), beautiful seaside towns you will never see anywhere else (Amalfi Coast), and Leisure city (Florence).

For me, it was the perfect "get acquainted" with Italy trip, it was a quick visit to some of the best places, and gave me insight into where I liked best and what I wanted out of my next few vacations to Italy.

Although Venice is gorgeous, do keep in mind, it is a hefty distance from Rome or Florence if you plan on doing those two in the trip as well. But if you don't mind the trek it is worth it.

Of course, a lot depends IMO on what time of year you are planning your trip.

I can recommend some great restaurants in Rome and Florence if you are interested as well :)

You mention 7 places to start in your question. I'd say pick three of them for that period of time.

The classic suggestion will be Rome, Florence, Venice. But perhaps you'd really enjoy the countryside more? You could stay in Rome for 2 weeks and do day trips around. Or you could split your time only between Venice, Milan, Florence, for example.

I echo the suggestion of getting a couple guidebooks (Rick Steves is good for Italy first timers) and see what appeals to YOU the most.

Also you need to decide if you are traveling by train or rental car or a combination.

Hotels are the easier part once you get an outline for your trip.

also - what time of year are you thinking of ?
this could really affect your planning, depending on how hot/cold, busy/deserted you are hoping your chosen destination/s will be.
a mix of city and countryside would be the ideal, IMO, if you want to be able to appreciate what you are seeing, instead of ticking them off like a twitcher!
Good luck!

Thank you all for your advice and apologies for leaving out some information! We are thinking of going in the end of May/beginning of June in 2007. As far as our interests go, we are not the types to spend a full day in a museum, we tend to move more quickly and enjoy strolling along, seeing sights, stopping for a glass of wine and a snack, etc. I agree that a mix of city and country is good, we don't want to be walking around everyday for 2 weeks. So I was thinking to fly into Rome, stay there for 4 days, head into Tuscany for a few days, maybe Florence and then maybe up to Cinque Terre or Positano or something. We could rent a car if necessary although it seems from other posts that there is lots of traffic and it's hard to park. Not sure if adding Venice to the trip though is too much and too far out of the way. It looks beautiful there, but I don't know if it's worth the extra travel time.

Again, thanks for all of the wonderful advice.

Positano is on the Amalfi Coast, south of Naples. Maybe you were thinking of Portofino? In spite of what neddag says, Venice is not a huge distance from Florence, only about 3 hours on the train. I recommend starting your trip in Venice, flying into there and out of Rome. Venice is a nice relaxed place to get over jet lag. Better you see it sooner than later; it might sink!

You won't need or want a car in Venice, Florence, Rome, or the Cinque Terre. So for most of your trip train travel is best. A car is nice for tooling around small towns in Tuscany.

As indicated above, I recommend an open jaws ticket into one city and out of another, to make best use of your sightseeing time. What other city you choose might depend on the availability of an airport with a choice of international flights. Maybe Milan or Pisa. (And you can get open jaws tickets with frequent flyer miles.)

The "usual" introduction to Italy would be the "big 3" Venice, Florence and Rome. You can fly into Milan, take a 3hr train to Venice and train to the other 2 cities. You can stay in each location long enough for a day trip or 2 from each one. Then fly out of Rome.

Hi S,

>I was thinking to fly into Rome, stay there for 4 days, head into Tuscany for a few days, maybe Florence and then maybe up to Cinque Terre or Positano or something. ....Not sure if adding Venice to the trip though is too much and too far out of the way.<

You can always see scenery. Venice is unique.

I suggest, in this order,

Fly into Venice - 4 nights
Train to Florence - 5 nights
Visit Siena and Bologna
Train to Rome - 5 nights
Visit Orvieto and Ostia Antica
Fly home.

((I))

From Venice you can daytrip to Verona, it's only 1.5 hours by train

I would absolutely include Venice.

We just returned from our first trip to Italy in late Aug/early Sept. Please read my trip report (search sdtravels and read the short version) What of it I think would work for you: driving between cities is easy and you get to see countryside. Ditch the car when you arrive in a city to avoid parking parking problems. Skip the Dolomite/Lake part and spend more time in Florence/Rome (although beautiful, it was kind of out of the way. Pick someplace in Tuscany between Florence and Rome to stay that appeals to you. I don't recommend San Sano. Start with Venice and work your way to Rome. Rome is so spectacular that everything else after will pale in comparison. If you are interested, you can also view my photos at www.sdtravels.shutterlfly.com this may give you some idea of what you will see and help you decide how much time you want to spend. Good luck. No matter what you do, you won't be disappointed.

I completely agree with the idea of flying into Venice and out of Rome (or vise versa). If you have your heart set on the Amalfi Coast you might be able to fly in/out of Naples.

Definitely take the full 14 days-with 10, you'll lose a couple to travel, and 8 just isn't enough. I also agree with the advise to read the books and rent videos (I like both Rudy Maxa's Smart Travels and Rick Steves) to see what jumps out at you. My 3 personal faves are Venice, Siena and the Cinque Terre (avoid weekends there at all costs, though), but there are so many other worthwhile destinations.

Hi,
10-14 days is a challenging time to visit all you mentioned...I visited all these sites and more.
as a Italian I would definetely agree with fly to Venice and fly back home from Rome.
To be effective and tight with you time availability I would suggest:
2 nights in Venice;
2 nights in Cinque Terre (too bad long rail from Venice to there!);
2 nights in Florence;
1 night in Siena;
3/5 nights in Rome;
possible visit to Umbria: Todi, Orvieto and countryside..

For Rome stay, give a look at WWW.INROMESERVICES.COM for accomodations and other services...
associated hotels have excellent reviews and the apartment is fully furnished in an excellent shopping position in the most wanted location of room....few stones from Saint Peter..
People are trustable for accomodation and other services on request.
Courtesy while planning and service when enjoying your vacation,
Give a look at www.inromeservices.com
Luigi

Definitely include Venice. It is magical. If you enjoy countryside and like to stroll around and see the sights versus museum hopping, I would recommend spending more time in smaller towns in Tuscany such as Siena or San Gimignano than in Florence. Both cities are very charming, small and easy to reach and navigate. Siena is 1.5 hours from Florence by train, and San Gimignano is about an hour by bus from both Florence and Siena. I would also highly recommend Assisi (which is in the neighhborhing region of Umbria); it is about 2 hours by train from Florence, or 2 hours by bus from Siena.

To begin: buy a Rick Steves Italy Guidebook. Amazon sells used ones. To begin, it doesn't have to be the very latest edition. I would also get a Michelin map of Italy. These are also available at Amazon. Read the guide, highlighting what interests you. RS provides an indication what sites are most compelling. His rankings are very reliable and important because you are going to have to determine what is most important to fit into your trip.

Do plan on the full fourteen days. It will go very quickly. Also, as has been noted, flying into Venice and out of Rome will save you time and possibly money. Unless you are planning to return to Italy soon, you should include Venice this time.

May/June is a wonderful time to travel in Italy. As you begin to focus on what you decide to do return to this board with more specific questions.

If I had just 10-14 days, I'd concentrate on northern Italy (from Florence up), taking in Florence, Venice, Padova,and Vicenza/Verona. And if you have time to travel west, to Milan or Genoa, I'd most definitely recommend a couple of days in the Cinque Terre. My family spent two months touring Italy earlier this year, and our visit to the Cinque Terre was one of our most memorable experiences (we stayed in Manarola).

I am planning the same type of trip that you are, also for early June! :) I read theses posts every day and make notes as I read. I have not booked airfare yet, but search that daily as well. I think that we will fly into Venice and out of Rome to save time backtracking. Tenatively our plans are: Venice 3 nights
Florence/Tuscany 5
Cinque Terra 2
Rome 4
My husband can only handle a small amount of museum visits. A recent suggestion was to stay outside of Florence in Montrecatini. The idea is that we can train to Florence to see the sights. We can use Montrecatini as a home base and see Lucca and Sienna. It sounds like it makes sense to me. Anyone care to comment on that??
I too get overwhelmed thinking of the logistics of where to stay and how to get from V to F, to CT, to R!!!! WE will most likely use the trains, don't think hubby would like driving. :(
As far as accomodations, we like the smaller, possibly family run, with great locations. I feel that we don't need 5* since we are in the room to sleep. I like the experience of the smaller hotels.
What part of the US are you flying from? WE are out of Ohio!

Happy trip planning!