I'm planning a trip to Italy next month (March 5 - 21). My mom and I will be visiting Venice, Florence and Rome. We have allocated 5 nights in Venice, 4 in Florence and 6 in Rome. This will be the first time in Italy for both of us.

We will be staying at Hotel Commercio & Pellegrino (Calle delle Rasse, Castello 4551/A) in Venice, Residenza Ave Roma (Lungotevere Tor di Nona, 3) in Rome, and Hotel Perseo (Via Cerretani, 1) in Florence. They all seemed to have good reviews on Tripadvisor so I'm hoping they're good selections. The price was right at all of them! I have a long list of restaurants to try in each city, but if anyone has any favorites near these hotels, I'd appreciate if you'd share them. My mom might not want to go far from the hotel after a full day of sightseeing.

We have been pouring over guide books and websites and have a good idea of what we'd like to see, but I'm having a hard time putting days together in ways that make the most sense.

Would you Italy experts mind taking a look at our plan. Maybe let us know if some of our days are way too empty or way too full. I've tried looking at the itinararies for "3 day in Florence" or "5 days in Rome" from various guide books and they either include things we aren't interested in or seem way too rushed for our tastes. We like to have things planned but leave enough time for unplanned discoveries and wandering. Here's what I have so far (please excuse any misspellings - I do alot of my planning while commuting and at times the ride is bumpy making my writing hard for even me to read!)

Venice
Ca'Rezzonica
Accedemia
Santa Maria della Salute

Torcello
Murano
Burano

Rialto Market
still need to add to this day

St Marks Basilica
Palazzo Ducale with Secret Itineraries tour
Museo Correr

Ghetto
Ca d' Oro
I Gesuati

Florence
Accademia

Duomo
Ponte Vecchio
San Lorenzo Market

Winery and Siena tour

Bargello or Uffizi (I know many won't agree with possibly missing the Uffizi, but we much prefer sculpture to paintings and feel that the Bargello may be a better choice for us if we can only see one)

possibly Pisa - it's not on the top of my list, but mom really wants to see it. Because she lets me make most of the decisions on what we'll see and do, I hate to skip one of the only things she's specifically requested.

Rome
Vatican City (on Tuesday with Context Rome)

Ancient Rome (on Monday with Context Rome)

Galleria Borghese
Spanish Steps
Trevi fountain
Crypt of the Capuchian Monks

Piazza Navona (this will probably be done the day we arrive - Sunday)
Pantheon
Santa Maria Sopra Minerva

Campo de Fiori
Torre Argentina Cat Sanctuary
(the rest of this day is wide open)

Trastevere
Basilica Santa Maria

There's alot more on our list of things we'd like to see, but these are the most important to us. Sorry this post is so long...I wasn't sure if it was better to do it all in one or make multiple postings. Thanks in advance for any help you can give us!

Are you grouping by what you plan to do in one day?

Yes. But everything is still open to suggestions and can be changed around. Some days I know I don't have enough planned...some days I probably have too much.

Don't forget to include "travel" time in your planning. You will use up a day by the time you pack, check out, go to the train station, arrive, and check in at the new locale.
You ought to also allow time to people watch, particularly in Venice. Your Mom will enjoy the evening serenade at St Marks Square. She might even find a dancing partner!
BTW, skip the islands in Venice unless you have something specific to see or you really want to purchase Venetian glass items.
And enjoy vino and pasta!

My husband and I did most of your planned sights in 14 days, so I think you will have the time to include Pisa. The tower itself is not the point, the whole group of architecture are wonderful to see.

I would not miss Ufizzi no matter what.

We did day trips from Rome, with 6 nights, you can prob. add a day drip too.

Rome's tourism website has 2-4 day itineraries. They show you a walking map with all the things for that day mapped out.
http://www.romaturismo.it/v2/romain4...in4896ore.html

I'm a bit confused by your Florence list. You only plan 3 days (is that 3 hotel nights?)yet you appear to have 3 days of sightseeing in Florence and 2 day trips. The Accademia is very small and you probably won't spend more than an hour there. You might take a look at the Florence museums website for times. I assume you have planned around days that things are closed. You didn't list the days.
http://www.polomuseale.firenze.it/english/uffizi/

Hi Sandy, there is a day in Florence where you only have Accademia on the itinerary. I'm assuming this is the day that you arrive in Florence, if so, then leave Accademia until about 5pm. We found that at this time of the day the tour groups have all gone and we only waited about 10 mins for entry. The gallery is open until about 7pm and one hour is more than enough time. At other times of the day, the queues stretch for miles.

There is lots of art in the Uffizi that didn't interest me at all, however it is worth a visit purely to see "Birth of Venus" and "Primavera" which both brought me to tears.

I think your trip looks pretty good, not too rushed. Are you going to use trains to go from city to city? I would, it's very easy. Buy the tickets from the machines at each station, you can choose 'English' and use a credit card. The only thing to watch is that even at the biggest train stations, Italian trains don't make a big fuss when they are leaving the station, there is just a TINY 'toot' and off they go, so make sure you are on board in plenty of time.

Hi Sandyy

I recently did a similar itinerary in October and I had a wonderful time. I wouldn't worry about having too little planned, you won't have any problems filling your time.

One of the best parts of Venice is just wondering around. On the day you have planned for the Rialto Market that would be a good day to explore the San Polo area since it is on the same side of the canal.

You'll love the Secret Itineraries Tour. It was really fun. To save time at St. Mark's Basilica go the bag check first. Once you've checked your bag they will give you a card that will allow you to go the front of the line. A real time saver if there is a long line.

When you finish with the Accademia Museum cross the bridge and you will walk through two of my favorite squares in Venice - Campo San Anzolo and Campo San Stefano. Hopefully the weather will be nice enough for strolling.

If you plan to purchase food items (olive oil, balsamic vinegar, etc.) to bring back home I think Florence had the best selection and prices.

You'll love Rome. My recommendation for all three places is take your time to enjoy a nice leisurely lunch at least one time in each city.

Thanks everyone for the suggestions and advice!

Kybourban, thanks for the link to the Roman tourism website...I'm sure it will be a help.

I was a little confused by my Florence plans also, which is why I posted! LOL We will be there four nights and have three full days. Does this make more sense?

Accademia - arrival day (depending on what time we arrive from Venice, we may be able to fit some of the next day in this day...maybe the Duomo?)

Duomo
Ponte Vecchio
San Lorenzo Market
Uffizi

Winery and Siena tour

Bargello (first thing in the morning)
Pisa