Hi A,

>we will probably have 2 or 3 days in florence and then another 7 days to travel.

I think that you are not giving enough time to Florence.

With 9 nights, I suggest

A: Fly into Venice - 4 nights, train to Florence - 5 nights (daytrip to Siena and one to Bologna), fly home.

B: Fly into Florence or Pisa - 4 nights Florence (daytrip to Siena or Bologna), train to Rome - 5 nights with a daytrip to Orvieto, fly home.

C: Fly RT Rome. Train to Florence upon arrival - do B.

Enjoy your visit.

How about 3 nights in Venice, 2 or 3 nights in Florence, 3 or 2 nights on Lake Como (Varenna or Bellagio) and one night in Milan before flying out from there.

You need time in Venice to get over jetlag. And I don't think you have enough time for the Italian Riviera and Portofino. (Which is beautiful in pictures but very small and very expensive. Nice for a visit of an hour or two.)

And, yes, you will need 2 hotel rooms, one double and one twin. You might find some short term apartments; that would give you more space but probably only one bathroom.

thanks everyone for your suggestions. I am going to look into all the posibilities. I appreciate all the advice!!!

As you can see on a map Capri is to far out for you allotted time...

Now to the rest you must have a minimum of two nights each for Venice,Florence,Portofino and Como so that's pushing it...
You must be organized and informed, if not ,you will have to eliminate Como....
my advice to zip over to the Cinque Terre instead as it's closer than Portofino...

ekscrunchy: I'm still working on the Thailand trip report I'm afraid. I ended up doing both the Italy and NYC trip reports before Thailand but I still intend to finish the Thailand trip report

Regards
Gard
http://gardkarlsen.com - trip reports and pictures

Venice is heaven on earth!

We visited Portofino last May, as a day-trip from Santa Margherita Ligure. It's cute, but very expensive to eat there. It's very small, so about a half-day was plenty there. I wouldn't make it a destination and go out of my way to get there.
>-

Hmm, alot of ground to cover; perhaps base your travel around Florence, flying to/from Milan from where you can cover Venice, Lake Como (love Hotel du Lac in Bellagio there); from Florence you can see Siena, Lucca, Montecatini, San Gigminano (sp?), Assisi-- you can spend a day in each without staying over, and perhaps Portofino. Save southern Italy and Capri for a return trip. Trains are efficient, but the above should keep you busy for two weeks or more. I'd stay a minimum of 2-3 days in Florence and 3-4 Venice, plus time for side trips above. So many places, so little time!

Let me make just one more suggestion, based on time and logistics: If you would really like to see an Italian lake, you can pick lovely Lake Garda which is easier to combine with Florence and Venice.

In April, Sirmione shouldn't be crowded, and you can take a boat ride further up the lake to see some spectacular scenery. Sirmione has interesting gardens and ruins, and is more in your way.

Another great place that can be combined with Florence and Venice is Verona, which is different from both of these other towns, but still amazing a full of great things to see.

The Florence > Verona > Venice trip could very easily be done without a car, and these three towns would be a wonderful way to spend your 9 days.