janisj

OK - that helps a little since you won't have to wait for the bags. But unless you all want to schlepp your carry-ons in/out of the city you'll still have to hit LHR Left Luggage to stash the bags (and allow time to collect them when you get back to LHR) . . . OR you could head in to Paddington Station and leave your bags there. I think both LHR and Paddington charge £15 per bag if left over 3 hours.

That will be one exhausting day.

Sassafrass

March is very iffy weather wise, in Italy. We have been there a few times in March and April and had rain every day and snow once, so I would definitely not think about the CT. After arriving in Florence, we have twice cancelled going to the CT because of weather that made much walking impossible. Further South on the AC, it stormed in the morning, but the sun popped out in the afternoon, so it was a bit better. Going to the Amalfi Coast for a day to see if you would like to return will not give a good picture. You would need at least one full day on the ground there to get any feeling for it.

That 12 hours in London might be fun, but will increase the exhaustion by time you reach Rome. With a group I took on a school tour, we had a long layover in Germany. I insisted on touring that day, and it was great, but nobody could stay vertical by time we landed in Rome. Everyone in the group (including grownups) literally went to sleep and refused to get up. Some even missed dinner. This also affects the option to continue on when landing in Rome. If you will be too exhausted to do that, you will end up staying twice in Rome, eating up more time getting to and from hotels. Both the AC and Florence are too far to be safe places to stay the nights before a flight from Rome, though Naples might be an option, depending on departure time.

Alandavid’s plan to visit only Rome, Orvieto and the Amalfi Coast, including Pompei is very good. You will certainly not need a pool in March though and I would not take a bus on the AC. If weather is good and ferries are running, great. If not hire a private driver.

Were you planning to rent a car, take a tour or use public transport for Tuscany? Were you planning to use a driver or public transport on the AC? Weather can affect ferries.
It might have saved a little money, but RT into/out of the same city when you want to see a more distant place eats up time and costs more money getting to that place and returning to the arrival city. Next time look carefully at multi-city (not two, one-way), as into Venice, out of Rome, or into Rome, out of Naples, etc.

Now, you have to be realistic and work with what you have.
With that layover in London, when do you depart from home and what time and day exactly do you arrive in Rome? What time is your departure from Rome?
Scheduling will be tight and more precise information can help get best itinerary advice.

Let’s see a layout
Day 1, depart home (time)
Day 2, arrive London (12 hour layover about 8 - 9 hours for touring)
Day 2 or 3, depart London, arrive Rome (morning? afternoon?)
etc.

janisj

Ditto all of the above ^^^

Except for this bit:

Let’s see a layout
Day 1, depart home (time)
Day 2, arrive London (12 hour layover about 8 - 9 6-ish hours for touring) *
Day 2 or 3, depart London, arrive Rome (morning? afternoon?)
etc.

* Maybe 6 and a skosh more if you land on time, get parked at a gate right away, and the E-gates are up and working properly. What with border control, ditching the carry-ons, travel in to London and on to any desirable site(s), then travel back to LHR in plenty of time to retrieve the bags and hopefully reasonable security queues.

Sassafrass

You are right, Janisj, I was forgetting the trek into London and return.

AJPeabody

I have been here a long time. Never has anyone asking about similar hectic itineraries ever reported back what happened on such a trip. Will this OP be the first?

dfourh

People are too traumatized to write trip reports. Instead, they create monumental works of art:

lavandula

Ha ha, I had to share this with my DH (and explain it to my daughter, who is too young to know either of the references ).

Lavandula

shelemm

"If it's Tuesday This Must Be Belgium" is still a gem of a movie after all these years. Holds up really well.

bilboburgler

hi zavierxz, which itinerary, we now have several bouncing around?

Sassafrass

https://theromanguy.com/italy-travel...rome-worth-it/

This blog gives excellent information and advice on how best to see Pompeii from Rome and how much you can/cannot do in one day from Rome.

One thing I did not notice mentioned, though I was not thorough in reading, is that days are much shorter in March, so sightseeing hours of places like the AC are reduced. No point being there in the dark.