Italy with Kids in November - Itinerary Suggestions
 

My husband and I will traveling to Italy with our three kids (ages 12, 11 & 9) in late November. I would love some feedback on our tentative itinerary. FYI, Milan is included because we fly out of Milan early on our last day...Our lodging is already booked so we can’t actually change the number of days we have in each city...

November 21 (Monday) - Arrive Milan, take train to Venice (staying in Apartment in Dorsoduro)
November 22 (Tuesday) - Venice (Considering...Basilica San Marco, Galleria dell Accademia, Secret Itineraries Tour?)
November 23 (Wednesday) - Venice (see above)
November 24 (Thursday) - Travel to Florence (staying in apartment 5 min from Piazza Del Duomo)
November 25 (Friday) - Florence (Uffuzi Gallery, Academia Gallery, Duomo)
November 26 (Saturday) - Florence – Day trip to Lucca (bike around the walls) and Pisa (brief)
November 27 (Sunday) - Florence Palazzo Pitti, Ponte Vecchio
November 28 (Monday) - Florence - Day trip to Siena and/or San Gimignano
November 29 (Tuesday) - Travel to Rome (staying in Apartment near Trevi Fountain) - Trevi Fountain, Spanish Steps
November 30 (Wednesday) - Rome – Private tour of Ancient Rome
December 1 (Thursday) - Rome – Private tour Vatican/St. Peters
December 2 (Friday) - Travel to Milan (staying at Hotel Carlyle in Brera)– Duomo/Last Supper
December 3 (Saturday) - Milan – Inter Milan v. Udinese Soccer Game @ San Siro
December 4 (Sunday) - Depart Milan for California

Questions:
1.Private Tour guide suggestions for Rome. I have already sent email to Francesca Caruso...waiting to hear back from her. Also have contacted Marco of Rome Connection tours which uses a car. Any experience with either of these? Also, is the car idea overkill? I am hoping to keep my kids from complaining from too much walking...We only have two full days in Rome and I want to maximize what we can see in the most enjoyable way possible.

2. Which Ancient ruins/archeological sites will be most interesting for the kids? If I use a private guide we can customize what we want to see...what do you suggest?

3. What sights are good for kids to enjoy in Venice? Any we should consider or remove from the list?

4. What sights are good for kids to enjoy in Florence? Any we should consider or remove? Do we have too much, too little, grouped wrong? Any tours we should consider?

5. Should we consider a different day trip from Florence rather than Siena and/or San Gimignano of should we spend another day in Florence itself? Thought about Cinque Terre but seems like the weather will make this not a great option.

6. Has anyone seen a professional soccer game in Milan? What is the likelihood we will be able to obtain tickets? It is my understanding that we will not be able to purchase tickets until 1 week prior and that we can purchase them at Banca Populare Di Milano...is that only in Milan? Can we purchase them online or at other banks in Italy?

Can’t wait to hear your feedback and expertise!

Lisa

With kids, I’d forget the “big ticket” sights like San Marco. Let them chase pigeons in the Piazza, take a traghetto across the Grand Canal (there’s one at the end of calle Lunga San Barnaba in Dorsoduro), and show them the intimate details of Venice. Let them kick a soccer ball around the campo, watch the garbage barges, wander down tiny streets. If it’s sunny, a walk along the Zattere is nice. Watch the fish being unloaded from boats at the Rialto markets.

I wrote a treasure hunt for kids in Venice. Yours may be a little too young for it, so it might be a treasure hunt that includes parents:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-teenagers.cfm

The festival of the Salute is on November 21st. You HAVE to go!

I wrote a trip report last year, and here's what I said:

Sunday, 21st November, and it’s the festival of the Salute. This festival commemorates the delivery of Venice from plague in 1630, and the citizens were so thankful (after repeatedly praying to Mary for deliverance) that they erected a church. “Erected a church” is an understatement. The Chiesa Santa Maria della Salute took some 57 years to complete, and rests on a raft of wooden piles, 1,156,672 piles, so the documents claim. But show me a contractor that never exaggerated the work done to the Quantity Surveyor when compiling a progress claim, or who ensured that there was no double counting of work achieved. It would have taken the most dedicated QS to keep count, but that’s what the “as constructed ” docs claim. And I can just see the piling contractor rubbing out the QS’s chalk marks on counted piles. Venetians historically have mostly been on the right side of a contract.

So the Festival dawned in fine Venetian style, crowds of people crossing on the temporary bridge - which used to be built on a raft of boats, collapsing in style in the 1930’s, precipitating many, including the English eccentric, Sir Osbert Siswell, into the Grand Canal. So the 2010 bridge is a more substantial affair, substantial prefabricated steel, on substantial floats, secured by substantial piles knocked into the canal.

Loads of people, candles about a metre long on sale (3 euro per), kids with balloons, Mass being said on what seemed a continual basis, and an absolute conflagration of candles in the church. A fine Venetian affair not dampened one bit by the rain that fell for most of the day. I always wonder about candles in churches, with works by Titian, and Tintoretto seeing their fair share of candle grease. But given that the smoke has been happening for 450 years, maybe everyone has become used to it, and it keeps restorers in business.

We took our DD, 10yo at the time, on her first European trip, to Italy, several years ago. She said, and still says, that she loved everything, but her favorite cities were Venice and Rome. (We spent time in Florence, Venice and Rome, plus almost a week in the countryside of Le Marche.)

She's very interested in art, as are we, so not the average kid in that respect. But in Venice, she also loved wandering around, looking at the mosaics in the churches. She thought Santa Maria dei Miracoli was gorgeous, and liked the crypts (housing early Venetian doges) under San Zaccharia. And a gondola ride, of course.

We also visited the Accademia, San Marco, including the museum in San Marco (great views over the Piazza, as well as being able to see the mosaics much closer up), took the boat over to San Georgio. We did not take the Secret Itineraries tour.

In Florence, the Uffizi, Accademia, Pitti Palace, San Lorenzo/Medici chapel, Santa Maria Novella (to see the Giottos). The latter is quite disorganized and kind of messy; I'd only recommend it for real art-lovers. We all enjoyed visiting the market, and did our own taste test by buying about 4 difference kinds of pecorino cheese, and trying to decide which we liked the best. One morning (I'm a runner, and run most mornings), DD ran with me, and we ran up to Piazzale Michelangelo to watch the sun rise. Magnificent!

You're doing quite a bit of moving around; you may decide, once you're there, to skip the day trip to Pisa and Lucca, and spend more time in Florence.

In Rome, along with time at the usual, Vatican Museums, Galleria Borghese, St. Peter's, Colosseum, Forum, we also visited Palazzo Barberini (Raphael's "La Fornarina"), which in addition to being a pleasant smaller museum, is in a beautiful palace. An especially interesting church (for adults and kids) is San Clemente, which has layers: construction was begun on the upper church in 1108; the church under it was built in the 4th century; that was built over a Mithraic Temple from the late 2nd or early 3rd century, which is still underneath, along with remains of a Roman house from the 1st century). St. Ignatius has a great trompe d’oiel dome. We also visited several other church for specific pieces of art - Caravaggio, Michelangelo, etc.

Our daughter loved all the ancient Rome stuff, including the items scattered here and there all over the city; the signage for that stuff seems to be better each time we visit. For example, the Stadium of Domitian, which Piazza Navona is built on top of - it's on the east side of the Piazza, I think. She also found the Portal of Ottavia interesting, and wanted to see the Circus Maximus, even though I warned her that it's a grass-covered field, more or less. Oh, and the cat sanctuary at Torre Largo Argentina (where Julius Caesar was assasinated, BTW) was a big hit for our cat-loving DD. We did not visit the Palatine Hill - that's a bit more difficult to envision, so we left it to the last (after the Forum and Colosseum), and let her decide - she was tired by that point (we adults had visited Palatin Hill on previous trips).

We didn't take any guided tours, as we wanted to move at our own pace, and not be stuck to having to meet someone at a certain time or place, but be able to be a little more flexible (that's our usual travel style). We used a variety of guidebooks, including the Blue Guide (very detailed) and Rick Steves' books (less detailed, but can be more interesting, and I feel he has good overviews of history).

I surprised DD, a big chocoholic, with a tartufo at Tre Scalini, in Piazza Navona (Rome). She loved it, of course. She also loved sitting there and people-watching, and watching the vendors of every junk item you could imagine.

Our kids know that we walk a lot on European trips. I've found that, as the trip goes on, they get more and more used to the walking. Also, gelato helps.

Can you decide on day trips out of Florence once you're there? You could then decide whether you wanted to commit the travel time based on everyone's mood and energy level, as well as what the weather is like.

We tried Peter_S_Aus's treasure hunt, and found it a bit difficult for our DD on her own (and even with us parents helping). But we did find some of the places, which was fun. In Florence We also used a small book, "Kids Go Europe: Treasure Hunt Florence" that DD enjoyed. In fact, she got a little OCD about filling it out. They also have the similar sort of thing for Venice, but not Rome, but we didn't get it.

You may also want to check out the History of Science museum in Florence. It may be a nice break from the art museums. If there's time, the Borghesi Gallery in Rome is beautiful, and much less overwhelming than the larger museums.

We took our kids to Italy when they were around the same age. They weren't big art museums fans at the time, so we mixed up the kinds of sight-seeing (museums, ruins, etc) and had some down time in between.

We were in Rome this summer with our boys (14 & 11). We downloaded the Rick Steves podcasts for the sites (Coliseum, Forum, St Peters) and we all enjoyed listening to them. My kids hate guided tours, yours might be different. They do love exploring ruins, especially the churches with ruins underneath throughout Rome. They also loved the ambience of Rome and they're good walkers. We did do the Coliseum Underground tour which they loved, but only because it got entrance into the bottom and third floors.

My suggestion is to leave some room for experiencing and enjoying rather than trying to schedule every minute. My family would be overwhelmed with a day trip from Florence to two cities especially a day after getting to Florence.

Between Pisa, Lucca, San Gimignano and Siena, I'm not sure which kids would like most. I like Lucca because it's not so touristy; I didn't ride a bike on top of the walls. I like Siena because I love to sit on the Campo with a glass of wine, and I like the cathedral - I'm not sure how enthralled kids would be with that. The Campo, depending on the weather, they could run around in, or just people-watch. San Gimignano may be the best choice, but the furthest to get to. The town's really cute, and the view from the area by the towers is great. And the kids can run around that area. Oh, and there are two fantastic gelaterie in the main piazza in San Gimignano. I would say to show your kids websites or pictures of each of the cities, tell them what the travel time to and from is, and get their input on which of them they want to see. (Actually, we went to Le Marche instead of Tuscany because we thought that area would be more interesting to our DD; there are a lot of castles in Le Marche, which you don't see too many of in other parts of Italy.)

How are you planning to get to any of those locations? That may help you make your decision, as well. I think Pisa and Lucca are easier to get to than Siena (I've read here at Fodor's that bus is the best way) or San Gimignano (bus, then another bus), if you're taking public transportation.

My opnion on stuff like mask making - they can make masks at home, even if they're not genuine Venetian masks (of course, they won't be "genuine Venetian masks" even if your kids make them in Venice). But you know what your kids like.

Re the gondola rides, I've taken them twice, once me and DH, then another time, when we took DD. She liked it, it's a real experience, but it's not cheap. And the gondolas move very slowly, though you do get views that you don't get just by walking around. I think it cost about 70 Euros for 45 minutes, which was plenty long enough. If you're going to do it, find a gondolier on a side canal, and specify that you want to stay on the side canals - more interesting, and less choppy water than on the Grand Canal.

lisa - my trip report is a couple of years old, and my kids were a little older -but you might find some things helpful.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...e-december.cfm

Hi again,
Experience comes with spending very little, in or outside a gondola. Enjoy your time, stop and have coffee / gelatto / tea / snacks / meal and play cards. Relax, let your kids decide what to do one day (or many) based on where you are and what they want to do. Be available for those wonderful moments that will come when your vacation is structured but not over planned.

My kids enjoyed The Diary of Melanie Martin by Carol Weston when they were about your kids' age. It's a fun story about travel to Italy.

My kids loved Pisa, much more than Siena. We've never been to Lucca. Our motto is remember you'll return, and don't try to "check" things off.

I think your timing for each city is just right and I do think you will want to do both your day trips from Florence. Florence itself will have less of interest to your kids than Venice or Rome. They will enjoy Pisa because everyone has seen the photos of the tower. Be sure to walk from the train station to the Piazza where the tower is - it's not a long walk and will let you see the real city of Pisa which is quite nice, untouristy, and something most people miss. Biking the walls of Lucca sounds like something kids would like. In Siena you can climb the tower that looks down on the Duomo (and the Piazza) - I think kids would like that climb. In San Gimi there is a torture museum - I didn't go but my husband and kids liked it.

I do think that in Venice the best thing for kids - and adults for that matter - is just to wander around and get 'lost'. And ride up and down the Grand Canal on vaparetos. Don't do too much in the way of museums.

And I'm not sure why you need private guides in Rome. I would think kids would get really bored unless the guide was really entertaining, which I really don't think most are. Your kids are old enough to do a little reading research before the trip - and the adults can certainly do some too - and you can put together your own tours. And there are so many podcasts and audio tours available if you are afraid you'll miss things.

Have your kids watch movies that take place in the locations you are going to before you go - then they'll enjoy seeing 'for real' the places they saw in the movies. There's a thread on movies that make you want to travel floating around right now - http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-to-travel.cfm

Here's a link to my photos - I have galleries of all the places you are going. Maybe have your kids skim through it and pick out places they'd like to see - http://www.pbase.com/annforcier

You need to be aware that if museums are crowded, your kids -- and even you -- are going to get very little out of marching through the Uffizi or the Pitti Palace. All they will see is the backsides of other people. Even if the aren't crowded, unless your kids are predisposed to enjoy religious art, the many religious paintings in these places are not likely to impress them.

You would do much better to take them inside churches, I think. Climb up into the dome of the Duomo in Firenze. See the monk's cells in San Marco in Florence. These are unique spaces, not just hard-to-understand mythology framed on a wall.

Your older kids are old enough to express some interest in what they would like to be doing for two weeks, and what they think their youngest sibling might like to do. November rules out a lot of possibilities (rain might cancel your plans for Lucca), but perhaps they would be more interested in seeing the glassworkers in Murano, a gondola repair shop, a cheese maker or gelato maker in Florence -- or even drink a sip of wine at a winery -- or go toy shopping in Rome or visit a Vespa showroom.

By the way, I think a gondola ride would be worth it. Skip the entrance fees to museums and get a gondola ride instead.

I can answer a couple of your question.

We went to Italy with our kids several years ago - one turned 9 in Venice and the other turned 11 two weeks after we returned home, so about the same age as yours.

Honestly, my kids LOVED everything about Italy; looking at your itinerary, I think you've done a really good job of planning. None of your days are crowded - you've allowed plenty of time for sites and a relaxed pace.

Venice: definitely do the Secret Itinerary tour. This was a a request of my birthday boy. As others have said, feeding the pigeons in San Marco was a huge hit - they could have done that for hours, and just wandering around. be prepared for their clothes to need some washing afterwards, though. We went to Murano, Burano, and St Michele (the cemetary island.)
All were great.

Lucca: we stayed a week outside of Lucca and made day trips. For Pisa, either get tickets ahead of time or try to get there early. The first day we attempted it, we got there about 10 and could not find parking - it was a madhouse (this was in Oct). So we went back the next day first thing int he morning and no problems. Biking the walls and just wandering around Lucca were definite highlights.

Rome: Yes!! We used Francesca Caruso. Best.Thing.We.Did. It was a huge splurge, but well worth the money. She is fantastic. We emailed back and forth beforehand to tailor it to kids and some things I thought they'd like. We started at the Basilica San Clemente, which is awesome! Layers of history from an ancient Roman street to a "modern" (by comparison) church. Then on the the Coliseum and Forum. The time flew by and she was sooooo good with the kids, kept it really interesting. She went over the agreed upon time, so my DH tipped her really well (he hadn't said anything, just handed her the money) and off we went for lunch. She tracked us down 30 min later to tell us we had overpaid her!

As far as a driver, I'm not even really sure where he would park that will not involve walking, so personally I think it is "over-kill." The two areas you are talking about touring are compact, so it seems to me either the car would mean a "drive-by" of the sites or would only be useful for picking you up and bringing you back. Rome is a very walkable city.

I would not plan on CT in Nov - we went and if the weather isn't good, the whole day will be shot.

Two last suggestions: 1. gelato makes for happy kids! (We had a two-gelato-a-day rule and not a whine the whole trip)and 2. do not eat by the tourist sites - even just walking a block or two over makes all the difference in price and quality!

While Zeppole has a point that some kids don't do well in museums, I wouldn't necessarily write them off altogether. Some kids do really well in them. My kids are 12, 10, and 8 and they've been to the MFA in Boston many times, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Met and MOMA in New York, and the Getty in LA. They enjoyed themselves and no one had a melt down. My trick to get in early and never stay for longer than 3 hours, including 30 minutes for lunch, and end with a trip to gift shop for a cheap souvenir. I always get a book from the library about the museum's collection. The kids look at it with me and pick out some things they would like to see. When we go into a gallery, I ask them to find me the painting or object the like the most and the one they like the least. Then we talk about their choices. My son always gets an audio guide. Sometimes he listens to it, sometimes I wind up holding it, but it keeps him interested.

I really like taking the kids to museums on trips. They get to see amazing art, but they also learn that everything isn't about them. They know that sometimes they have to do something that mom and dad want to do, just like mom and dad do things because the kids want to do them.

Unless your kids love art, I think you have included too many museums. I would think twice about the Accademia in Venice. There is lots to see and do in Venice and wandering along the canals is a lot of fun. Riding the Vaporetto from one end of the Grand Canal to the other is great for young and old.

The Uffizi in Florence is also a bit of a dose for a young child and is wall-to-wall people, making it difficult to navigate. Walking up to the Piazelle Michelangelo for a great view of Florence should be fun for all. Visiting some of the more manageable museums such as the Bargello or visiting Santa Croce (which has lots of art) would be less intense.

The rest of your itinerary looks great. This should be a wonderful experience for the kids and for you!

Another vote for the bikes in Lucca! We were there in July and the kids loved that..and they are older than your kids. At the end of riding around the walls, also ride through the town. My kids liked that part as well and a lot of streets are pedestrians only.

Not only did we have gelato every day, but we had a running contest on which of the entire vacation was the best. My daughter voted on the rice gelato from Blue Ice in Rome. My favorite place was in the Chianti area. It made for lively discussions!

And now for some unusual suggestions, but things my kids loved this summer...

Speaking of Rome - go to the Mouth of Truth, wait on line (it moves fast) and get a picture of each child with his/hand in the mouth. The mouth is supposed to bite off the hand of liars! My daughter loved doing that, but I'm still wondering why she was able to keep that hand!

Also, go to the Cat Sanctuary in Rome - it's not far from the Piazza Navona. There are ruins below street level and hundreds of cats live there. (They are fed and given their shots by a group with an office there so it's not as sad as I had initially thought) In the summer, the cats came out at dusk when it was cooler, but in November it could be any time. My daughter loved it so much, she kept asking to go back. My daughter kept count of the number of cats we saw in any visit.

Another thing my kids loved was a park near the Piazza del Popolo. This park is above street level of the Piazza. Go up the steps to the top for a great view of Rome and then off to the right (from the steps) find the Casina Valadier (it's a restaurant, but we didn't go in) in the park and outside is the coolest - and free - sculpture garden with all sorts of things the kids would love. Our favorite is the huge arm holding a lifesize motor scooter. We sat on the scooter for some great pictures. They will love it (as long as it's not too cold!) There was another with Batman and Superman, a huge red snail, a big colorful heart. Many bright and colorful.

Go to the Cappucine Crypt in Rome. The monks bones are arranged in artisitic displays - even the chandeliers and it's actually quite beautiful and very different from a normal crypt. Facing the church, it is up a flight of stairs to the right, not underground.

By the way, we walked from the sculptures to the Spanish Steps so it wouldn't be far from where you will be staying. Going up to the top of the steps, turn left at the tops and it's about a 5-10 minute walk (probably closer to 5). A short fun thing to do if you want to get out and about, but don't want to take transportation.

lisa,

Rome: the Basilica San Clemente is just a couple of blocks from the Colosseum, which is next to the Forum/Palantine area. All the arches/temples and everything are *right there,* so your kids will see them all, no need to pick and choose. For me, San Clemente is an absolute must.

One suggestion is to pick up a copy of Rome: Past and Present (sold by vendors outside the Colosseum) - it has overlays of what these different monuments looked like then and now - very helpful and not very expensive (I'm thinking $15?). Also, there are these guys dressed like gladiators you can get your pictures taken with. I know some people say they are cheesey, but they were super nice with my kids and we got some awesome shots - my boys really loved posing with swords and in pretend fights. I can't remember what they wanted for posing with them - maybe $20 or something - but it was priceless to us.

Have you seen the advice to buy your combo Colosseum/Palatine tickets at Palantine Hill? You avoid the big line at the Colosseum this way.

I forgot about the Cat Sanctuary - that was our first stop when we hit Rome, lol.

We had two and a half days in Rome, so to give you an idea of what we did and the timing:

Day 1: we arrived late in the afternoon. Headed to the Cat Sanctuary and the Pantheon. I'm allergic to cats, so didn't go in, but my Dh and boys spent about an hour there. Got food. We didn't, but we could have easily hit Spanish Steps etc too.

Day 2: 9 a.m. tour with Francesca of the Ancient Sites. We met her at San Clemente then headed to the Colosseum & Forum. Our whole tour took about four hours, this included buying our Roma Passes. You could go faster. Had lunch. Then on or own, we walked back to San Clemente to take some pictures because when we were there, a mass was taking place. We then got pictures with the gladiators, gelato, etc. Walked all over Palantine Hill. Went to the Mouth of Truth, but the line was too long. Headed "home" in Travestere and had dinner.

Day 3: Spent a good part of the morning just wandering in the direction of St Peter's. Spent an hour or so at Campo dei Fiori (there was a market going on). Went to Castel Sant'Angelo. Spent a long time here. Had lunch, waited out a rainstorm. Then walked over to St Peter's, climbed to the top. Went back to the Mouth of Truth. Then home for dinner and to pack. We did not do the Vatican, but could have put it in here instead of Sant'Angelo.

I do not feel our days were rushed at all. We strolled every where, stopped often for gelato or pictures - there are ruins every where! It is so hard to describe, but all the sites you want to see are just *there* as you walk by, so many of them will not take a long time and you can accomplish a lot. So for instance, the Pantheon...we got the audio tour and looked around and I think it took maybe 30 - 45 min? Without the audio tour - you could be in and out in 20 min and not feel like you gave it short shrift. Depending upon where you are staying, you probably will pass many of these sites on your way to the Ancient part of to St Peter's - we did.

Pisa: The Tower is the big thing, yes. We wandered the town and the kids strolled on the wall surrounding the Arno River, got gelato (sensing a theme?) but you would not have to do that if you wanted to fit in Lucca too. If the timing was right, you could probably be done with Pisa in two hours.

If you'd like, email me at [email protected] and I can send you some pictures from our trip that might help.

PS I do not think you can fit in Borghese Gallery with your other plans. It is not close to those sites and isn't a "stop by," - you would want hours for it.

We saw the Leaning Tower in the morning and rented the bikes in Lucca in the afternoon. Although we had a car (we were going to Tuscany the next day and had to pay for a week of the car no matter how long we used it so we picked it up while in Lucca), apparently it was very easy to go from Pisa to Lucca by either train or bus. I'm sure you know you should try to be a bit flexible while in Florence because you obviously will want to plan the Pisa/Lucca day for the warmest/best weather day.

These were from my notes from Fodors from before my trip, although we didn't need to use either so i can't vouch for them:

<<Train schedules at: www.ferroviedellostato.it/homepage_en.html We used the little-known Pisa San Rossore train station and that saved a lot of time as it's 10 minutes from the Tower>>

<<Bus schedules: www.vaibus.it/index.ph>>

One thing to consider is that there is a full-size exact replica of David in the Piazza Signoria in Florence, if you don't have time or energy to get to the Accademia to see the original. This is where David was originally displayed, until they decided that it would be better preserved for the ages inside a museum.

Also, I personally think the Galleria Borghese is a wonderful museum, specifically because it's fairly small and manageable and you're only allowed two hours entry (which is more than enough time). The Bernini sculptures are incredible - I think your kids would find them fascinating.

For your Rome visit, I would generally plan on one day for the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's, and one day for "ancient Rome." And if you have time/energy/interest after that, then you can fit in other things.

I consider Galleria Borghese to be a must-see for me and my family, but that's because I really love it, and we all really like art. It is smaller than, for example, the Uffizi or the Vatican Museums, so two hours is a doable timeframe. But this is one of the few places that you need to book in advance, so do you really want to commit that time to it? And it is out of the way of most other things in Rome. When we took our DD to Italy, I waited on this, as Rome was at the end of our trip, and I wasn't sure how many museums she'd want to visit. So midway through our trip, I just went online (we were travelling in October)and booked the tickets then. You could do a similar plan.

In terms of what to see near "ancient Rome," I would definitely include San Clemente, because it's so fun. After the Forum and the Colosseum, your group may be out of steam for more ancient times. And I very much agree that Rome: Past and Present is an EXCELLENT book to get; otherwise, it's very easy to look at the Forum area as a bunch of stones.

And the cat sanctuary is not too far from there, either.

In terms of visiting some place like the Pitti Palace or Palazzo Vecchio (which, to be honest, I didn't even know it was possible to visit), I don't know that it's worth your time if you want the kids to experience a palace. BUT, the Doge's palace in Venice, which I believe you're planning to see, will be a good example of that type of thing. And if turns out they like visiting palaces, then you could visit more later on in your trip.

You do have a lot on your list for Rome, but I think your approach is good. Plan one big thing, then do or visit other things as you have time and energy. We always stay near Piazza Navona, so are closer to the activities near there. But every evening, we spend time in Piazza Navona and/or the Piazza where the Pantheon is, and also usually go to either the Trevi Fountain or Campo de' Fiori. We stop at a cafe at one of those places. That kind of experience doesn't take long to enjoy (though of course you could spend hours sitting at cafes), and you can add and subtract from the list as time and interest allows. I would suggest visiting those places near the end of your day (but early enough to make a quick stop INSIDE the Pantheon before it closes for the day), and include a stop at Giolitti for gelato (it's kind of between the Piazza del Panthen and the Trevi Fountain).

As far as I understand, you can't actually visit the gondola repair place in Venice, but you can see one. It's next to the Church of San Trovaso, along the (narrow) Rio San Trovaso, just north of the Zattere.

I want to second the votes for climbing to the top of the Duomo in Florence for a kids' activity. (the dome is a double shell and is amazing inside, plus the view from the lantern at the top is magnificent) The book, Brunelleschi's Dome, is a bit much for them, but you could read it and explain. There's lots about the competitions for major art works in Florence that is interesting.

I agree that the Uffizi is a hard place to enjoy, even for adults, because of the crowds and the poor job they have done hanging the art with little explanation of why things are grouped together, or what you are seeing.

And Lucca's walls are cool to walk or bike, looking down into the town or out across the grassy fields surrounding the walls. As is the central Piazza, which is oval in shape, built on the site of an ancient Roman amphitheater.

My grandkids liked the cat sanctuary in Rome, too. It's too bad you are not staying there longer.