I agree with the many others who suggested not going with the rail pass. I had one on a "backpacking" trip about 10 years ago and certainly did not get my money's worth...my plans changed once I reached my destination. And I only got the pass because everyone else seemed to be doing it.

I'm a bit concerned about the $20 food budget - it might be sufficient, it might not, based on their tastes/habits. Maybe the girls don't eat a lot, and they likely won't be eating in the fanciest of establishments. But a Diet Coke could set them back $3 or more, depending on when they go. None of the hostels I've been to provide breakfast so that should be considered...on the other hand, if they go the "bread and cheese" route, they should be fine!

I agree that the $20 a day food budget is almost too low. Even a cheap meal should set them back at least $5.00, with very little left over for gelato! While breakfast can be fairly inexpensive (grab a coffee and a roll), even a McDonalds meal (and I'm not suggesting they go there!) would cost about $5.00 (with exchange rates). Perhaps you could not do the rail passes (which I agree with everyone else about) and bump up the food budget to $25 per day?

Another idea often suggested when people are trying to make trips on a limited budget... is to go to less places.

If you purchase the plane tickets as planned & the girls go to Rome w/ only 1 side trip to Venice for a couple days, this might free up some of that $200 you allocated for a rail pass, which could be put into the food, misc. and lodging categories which I think are budgeted a bit too low to be realistic (I'd say approx. 5 bucks more per day in each category you mentioned).

Encorporating these ideas might make for a more comfortable trip.

The railsaver.com tip was terrific. According to it, if the girls take in Rome, Florence and Venice, second class youth train tickets would be a total of $92.00. I have now revised the budget a bit to $30. per girl per night for lodging and $25. per girl per day for food. Ticket taxes remain the same at $63. each; I've left miscellaneous at $150.00. Total comes to about $1,020.00. Do these sums and catagories seem reasonable?

Great news. Yes, sounds much more comfortable. And for $60/night (their combined allowance) they might be able to find interesting B&B, convents, or 1-star hotels along with youth hostels to stay in.

..another site the girls can check out- venere.com. they have a good list of one star hotels, residences and b and b...OIf they do a little planning (and a little babysitting??) this should be a wonderful trip.

Hi Marie,

For lodgings in Venice, I highly recommend the B&B Peterson.

www.bedinflorence.it

My wife and I stayed there last year and were very pleased.

A double with a shared bath is 52E/nite.

See my trip report for details.
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34451044

Thank you to all who replied. We have ordered the tickets and the girls are very excited. They know much planning and the earning of at least their spending money will be required.

Marie...what a wonderful gift! I know the girls will have a blast

MarieC-My daughter spent 5 weeks in Italy this past summer and absolutely loved it. Rome was her favorite but Venice was close second. The trains in Italy are very easy to use and she didn't have to buy her ticket much ahead of time. I agree with Julie Colorado, my daughter usually made her plans a few days in advance. Although I was a little worried about her not having set plans, it worked out fine. Depending on what they are seeing and how much they like the location, their plans may change.

Although my daughter stayed in a hotel in Rome (which was through the college class she took), during the rest of her travels she stayed either in hostels or a budget hotel. I know in Venice they stayed in a hotel, in Florence it was a hostel.

If the girls are going to be there for two weeks, they might also like to go to the Amalfi coast. I know you have your budget planned out but if they could save a few extra dollars it would be worth it. The train from Rome to Sorrento is $24 one way (change in Naples) and then they can take the SITA bus to Positano. The fare is around $14. (There are other ways to get from Rome to Positano-can't remember for sure which way she used but price was similiar). She stayed at the Hostel Brikette in Amalfi for around $20-25 a night. They have a huge terrace overlooking the coast. People pay a ton of money at hotels in the area to get the same view. During the day, they hiked in Ravello and enjoyed the beach (rocky) and in the evening relaxed on the terrace What she liked about it was that after the hustle and bustle of Rome and the other cities it was a great way to relax and enjoy a quieter setting. On the way back from Positano, she stopped at Pompeii. We had heard varying reports about Pompeii-much of it related to how hot it is in the summer. She was very glad she went to see it.

My daughter kept a journal of what she saw and all the places she stayed. I will need to get some of the names from her but I will be happy to share them with you. If you want to email me directly I can give you names after I speak to her. My email is [email protected]. I will also be happy to share this info with anyone else on this forum who is interested.

One last thing-she bought both the Lonely Planet and the Let's Go book. She decided to take the Let's Go book with her and it was invaluable.

Hi Marie,

I just realized that I made a mistake.

The B&B Peterson is in Florence.

I recommend Rick Steve's Italy or Rick Steve's Rome guidebooks for great budget food in atmospheric places in Rome. 30 per day would be a better food budget, if the B&B includes free breakfast. If it doesn't include free breakfast, they will need 35 euros per day for food.

Rome is a wonderful place for food and family-run restaurants have great atmosphere and great fun. Gelato is very fun too...nothing like it here in the USA. They will need 20 euros for dinner to have some fun choices. If they choose carefully they can get lunch for under 10 euros. That leaves breakfast and gelato. A double scoop of gelato is about 2 euros, depends on where you order it.

Food's not cheap in Italy. The worst thing is to eat lousy, expensive food! Really recommend they bring a guide for fun budget restaurants. Even budget food in Italy can be expensive by U.S. standards.

An excellent dinner can be had at the family-run Ristorante der Pallaro in Rome for 20 euros each...includes everything, bottled water, wine, pasta, 5 courses actually and dessert too. You will pay more than this for less food at most restaurants. This is an example of cost of dinners in Italy. (No added costs here, just 20 euros each.)

this was our #1 favorite restaurant in Italy by a unaninous family vote, including votes by my teen daughters! No menu at this restaurant because they give you everything they made that day and it's all homemade and wonderful, so much food you can't even eat it all.

I plan to return to Rome and will definitely eat here again. It's at Largo del Pallaro,15. Get the girls maps...Streetwise Rome is excellent map, plastic-coated and has a steet and piazza index. On this map look south of the Pantheon and the Piazza Navonna, and just a little east of the Campo d' Fiori, and you'll find the street, Largo del Pallaro, abbreviated on the map as "L. d. Pallaro". Eat inside and meet the family, be surrounded by regular customers, Italian speaking.

It's okay to buy train tickets after you arrive in Italy...but do buy them a few days in advance.

But make those hotel reservations in advance. The best places will book up; Italy is very popular, especially in June. You don't want them to have to stay somewhere less desirable, maybe unsafe or dirty, because the good places are full! And the good places with good reputations WILL be full in June! You can count on that.

The Rick Steve's guidebook also has recommendations for budget accomodations that sound interesting.

For a good 10 day trip choose 2 destinations and stay in each for 5 days. In Rome there is plenty to do to fill up a whole week, I promise!!! They will love Rome. They could even spend the whole 10 days in Rome.

Venice is unique and romantic, but expensive. Food is more expensive in Venice. If they are going to Venice it will be extra important to get a couple of guidebooks or personal recommendations for good food for good prices in Venice.

Transportation will be cheaper too if they stay at 2 destinations. Point-to-point train tickets will be the cheapest choice if they are only going to take the train to 1 or 2 destinations.

Can't emphasize enough how helpful that Rick Steve's guidebook was for food especially in Rome. After the first 2 days my teens said they won't eat anywhere unless it's in the Rick Steve's guidebook because we had tried to choose a couple places on our own and gotten very disappointing and overpriced food. The Rick Steve's choices were fun, good food, good atmosphere, and good prices!