jamikins

What if there is a train strike or problems with the trains that day? I just like the security of not worrying about transit problems before a flight.

Improviser

It is never a wise idea to count on getting to the airport from another city. As jamikins notes, too much can go wrong.

I think you need to get your head around the fact that EVERY time you move, you lose most if not all of a day carusoa. Moving in the morning or the evening is nonsense. If you leave in the morning, yes it is 3pm before you can check in and upack. If you leave in the 'evening', it is not the evening when you leave. You check out in the morning, stroll around for a couple of hours waiting to leave and then leave in the afternoon unless you are happy arriving in the late hours of the evinging. Separate travel days completely from time IN places. A travel day is NOT a day IN anywhere.

Jean

Regarding your days in Florence... Once you know the days of the week you'll be in the city, check the open/closed info on each of the sights you want to see. Many things are closed on alternate Sundays and/or Mondays. If your visit falls over those two days, it can be tricky figuring out how you're going to see everything, and you may want to take your day trips on those days.

http://www.polomuseale.firenze.it/en/musei/tutti.php

If budget is a concern, check the cost of the one-day car rental for Paestum. If it were my trip, rather than make the trek to Paestum (as interesting as it is), I'd go to Capri, esp. since it's on the groom's list.

I'd live on the edge and stay in Sorrento the last night. A strike would be called in advance, so you could make other transfer arrangements. You can watch these sites (links below) for strike info. FYI, the Circumvesuviana train between Sorrento and Naples is not part of the Trenitalia system.

http://www.slowtrav.com/blog/italy_transport_strikes/

http://www.mit.gov.it/mit/site.php?p=scioperi
[official govt. site, but only in Italian]

Caliban

The Sorrento leg has things that are weather dependent and involve travel. You want a nice day for Pompeii and Herculaneum, for instance, but the Archeological Museum can be done on a rainy day. Capri requires both sunlight and a calm sea (no wind or recent storm) for the Blue Grotto. Be prepared to switch "days" depending on the day. By the way, the three day Campagne Artecard covers 2 admissions, 1/2 off subsequent admissions, and regional transport, so if it hasn't changed it's a great deal.

Getting from Sorrento to the Naples airport requires both travel time plus allowance for public transport glitches (if by train and switch in Naples) or road conditions (if by bus or private driver). Schedule mismatching between transport modes and flight times adds more time.

Finally, my pet peeve is that people will travel half way around the world to a great place and then use it as a hotel base to travel elsewhere. Venice is great, Venice is expensive, why stay only a few days there and then use one of the days for Verona instead?

My advice: Ditch Verona, leave from Naples.

msteacher

Overall you have a good itinerary, and you have done a nice job of outlining a plan for each day. However, I would encourage you to then travel with a flexible attitude, as in "these are the places we MAY see," rather than "these are the places we MUST see." You will find that the weather, your mood, the city, or whatever will likely inspire you to scrap some of your proposed day trips. That's OK. It is terrific to have a proposed outline, but also give yourself permission to change it as the spirit moves you. Have a wonderful trip!

Delaine

I think your plan is good too, except you don't have enough time in Venice. Follow Caliban's advice and skip Verona on this trip. Verona is nice, but I wouldn't spend all the time involved to get there and come back when there is so much to see in Venice.

vincenzo32951

I mostly agree with what others have said:

Given the short time you have in Venice, I'd make the most of it and skip Verona, especially if you plan to visit Murano, Burano, etc.

Skip CT. That's a long day trip. Maybe take the bus to Siena from Florence for the day.

Capri/BG are weather-dependent. You have listed "ferry from Positano to Amalfi." So I guess you're going to take the bus from Sorrento and explore Positano? How much time does that leave for Amalfi? If you were adding a day, maybe take in Amalfi and Ravello.

I wouldn't risk an early train from Sorrento to Naples to get your flight. I don't know your budget, but if you're set on doing that, you might want to arrange for a driver to take you -- about 100 euros, I think -- instead of the train. Yes, there's still a risk in doing that.