visiting Rome, Florence and Positano....<BR><BR>would you fly into florence and out of naples, even though its about $300 more to do that<BR>or<BR>just fly to and from Rome<BR>I am trying to balance time vs. $$. is it worth it to spend the extra cash to be using closer airports?

Does it take you more than 8 hours to earn $300? If the answer is no (and maybe even if it is yes), then I would simply fly into and out of Rome. <BR><BR>Florence is so easily accessible (90 minutes by train) from Rome that the Florence airport is a questionable timesaver.<BR><BR>And it's easy enough to drive to the Naples area from Rome - - and a pleasure to have a car there - - rumors of rampant car theft notwithstanding.<BR><BR>Best wishes,<BR><BR>Rex<BR>

fly into rome!<BR>you can take the train so easily, which in itself will be a great part of your trip. <BR>but, that's me and i love trains to an unbelievable degree.<BR>if you are american, and not from a bit city (ny, dc) i would suggest you do the trains because it's a totally new experience, not something a lot of americans do, ever.<BR>most of my american friends here have never even been on a train. it's true.. i was shocked.<BR>so fly into rome and train to florence.<BR>you can write, read, sleep.. and enjoy the view.

to the top, for krk<BR>

Dear Krk:<BR><BR>I am going to disagree with the majority and say pay the extra for the flights. This is espeically so if you are going to be in Italy for 10 days or less. Here are several reasons why:<BR><BR>1. Luggage. You have to lug your luggage up onto the train, even in first class. OK you can find porters (sometimes), but it is still not that much fun, espcially if you are rushing to make the train. In Naples, the trains departing for Rome depart from underneath the main station, and we could not find an elevator or working escalor, hence we had to carry suitcases down a long flight of stairs.

Dear Krk:<BR><BR>Please ignore my message above, it was apparently too long. Here is Part I of the entire message:<BR><BR>I am going to disagree with the majority and say pay the extra for the flights. This is especially the case if you are going to be in Italy for 10 days or less. By the way, I am assuming that your flights into Florence and out of Naples are US-Italy flights, and not simply connecting flights to Rome. If these are intra-Italy flights only, then I would say take the train.<BR><BR>By the way, I love Italy and I love trains, and I love Italian trains, but here are several reasons why the flight option is better:<BR><BR>1. Luggage. You have to lug your luggage up the steps onto the trains, even in first class. OK you can find porters (sometimes), but it is still not that much fun, especially if you are rushing to make the train. In Naples, the trains departing for Rome depart from underneath the main station, and we could not find an elevator or working escalator, hence we had to carry several suitcases down a long flight of stairs.<BR><BR>2. Convenience. If you fly into Rome and stay there for the first part of your trip, then you will have to get back to Rome from Florence or Naples before your US flight. All US flights depart Rome in the early morning, which means you have to spend a night in Rome. If you stay at the Hilton (very convenient as you can walk to the terminal), this will cost you about $200. If you stay in central Rome, you will have that hotel expense, plus you will have to leave for the airport around 6 am or so on the day of your flight. The $300 extra for the flight looks worthwhile. FYI, renting a car will cost you at least $300, plus the hassle of driving and finding parking places, which are pretty scarce in Positano and most of the coastal towns.<BR><BR> If you are flying into Rome but going immediately to Florence or Naples, this will be a LONG day after a night spent sitting in an airplane seat. You will arrive in Rome at about 8:30 am, jetlagged. You will have to get from Rome airport to Rome central train station (with all your bags remember), and then get a train to Florence/Naples. If your flight is late in arriving or there is traffic on the road into Rome, you may have to wait quite a while for the next train. Positano is about a 2 hour drive from Naples, so this may mean you won't arrive at your hotel until late in the afternoon -- and the whole day is basically gone.<BR><BR><BR>See the rest of the message below....<BR>

To continue...<BR><BR>If you take the option of flying into Florence and out of Naples, you will still get to experience the trains between Florence and Rome, and then Rome and Naples. This would probably be enough. If you fly into and out of Rome, you will just be repeating one of the train trips in reverse…doesn’t seem to add much to the trip in my view.<BR><BR>You can look at train schedules at the English website of Trenitalia (the national rail service) at &quot;fs-on-line.com&quot; or just type in &quot;Trenitalia&quot; on your browser and the site should come up.<BR><BR>Hope this is helpful. Have a great trip!<BR>

Hi krk,<BR> My wife and I are planning a similar trip. We will fly into Florence, go to Naples and Sorrento and return via Florence.<BR><BR> The reason for this is that the flights out of Naples all seem to be very early in the morning, while we can leave Florence later. So we will take the train back to Florence the day before.

Hi krk,<BR> My wife and I are planning a similar trip. We will fly into Florence, go to Naples and Sorrento and return via Florence.<BR><BR> The reason for this is that the flights out of Naples all seem to be very early in the morning, while we can leave Florence later. So we will take the train back to Florence the day before.<BR><BR> I'd be happy to know how your trip turned out.