We are flying RT Chi to Venice in late March, and will have 8 days aside from flight time.
We don't plan to rent a car, but hoped to see Florence, Sienna, Pisa and Bologna using the train. Is this crazy, and can we see Tuscany without a car? I hate tours, but maybe should consider. Would you experienced Fodorites help me in planning a useful itinerary? Nothing is in stone except for the flight. I know many of you love Venice, but I was a)concerned of the cost to stay the whole time, and b) would love to see more of Italy. Thanks in advance.

That's a lot to cover with 8 nights. Since you have to be back in Venice the night before your flight home, to eliminate an extra hotel change, upon arrival in Venice, train directly to Florence.

Stay there 5 nights with a daytrip by bus to Siena and another by train to Pisa.
Train back to Venice for your last 3 nights. You could stop in Bologna enroute to Venice, but I would save it for another trip.

Good advice from Susan - that's the only way to make sense of this hurry-up trip.

Pisa can be a half-day trip from Florence - sure, there is more to see there than the leaning tower and the adjacent baptistry and cathedral, but maybe you don't have the time.

From Florence you can take a train to Pisa anytime, no need for reservations, and it takes only about an hour. If you get up early, you can be back in Florence for lunch.

But better: Take the train to Lucca first - look it up, a stunner! Then after a good look around, take the train from there to Pisa Centrale, it's quick, walk to the leaning tower and back to the station, and get back to Florence - a great day's worth!

Siena from Florence is a very popular daytrip - you can go by yourself, by long-distance bus or by train (station is a bit outside of the old town), but better: Take a coach trip that is met in Siena by a guide who will walk you around, it is highly interesting that way!

Some of these coach trips go back to Florence, others return via a visit to San Gimignano (not on a train line) which makes for a more interesting (but longer) day.

Those excursions are advertised all over Florence, your hotel and any travel agency you stumble across will have fliers and can hook you up.

Stop in Bologna for a few hours on your way to Venice - read up on it or watch a DVD before you leave home so you'll know what you want to see in that short time, and print out some itineraries from Google Maps.

When you book your train ticket from Florence via Bologna to Venice, do it a few days in advance, and tell the agent about the date and about your plan - seat reservation is mandatory on that journey and s/he will have to book you on two separate trains. Not a problem, unless you forget...

Train schedules at www.ferroviedellostato.it

Thanks to both of you. This is a very good start. Do you think we'll miss not having a car?

Answering your car question requires a clarification and what you expect to get out by using a car.

If Tuscany = Florence+Sienna+Pisa, then as others mentioned, a car is not necessary.

If Tuscany is NOT Florence+Sienna+Pisa, then you MIGHT want a car depending on your objectives.

SusanP indicated a sensible itinerary for this type of trip.

You initially said "hoped to see Florence, Sienna, Pisa and Bologna "

For that, as explained (did you look at the train schedules and compared to drive times on Google maps?) the train is excellent.

If you have changed your mind about targets, now involving towns where a car is not a hindrance but a help, then maybe a car is indicated. Have you?

8 days in Italy arriving in Venice, with plans to travel to Tuscany and Bologna. As planned, you can easily spend most of your daytime on trains, buses, and rental cars.
I suggest

3 days Venice
2 days Verona [rent car to also see Padua and Vicenza]
3 days Florence and return to Venice for plane [check times; you may have to spend night before in Venice.

If it were me, with 8 days, I would only go to Venice and Verona, otherwise I would have the feeling that I am entirely on the go. The Region of Veneto is enriched with culture.

Again, many thanks. No, I am just starting to plan. I haven't searched trains, tours, or anything else. This is only our 2nd trip to Europe, the first being to Rome with a cruise this past Oct. I doubt we'll be taking any more big trips for a while, hence the desire to see as much as possible. May I ask, what cities do you think might be dispensable? We may never make it back to Italy, with all of Europe to see.

Susan has a great plan--I would go for it.

You don't need train reservations for the day trip to Pisa from Florence, but, if you want to climb the Leaning Tower, I'd suggest you make reservations. March may be quiet, but, if this is important to you, don't leave it to chance. Make a reservation.

http://www.opapisa.it/index.php?id=16&L=1&T=2