vespa_in_italy

Hi there,

I'm planning a 15 day trip in October. My planned itinerary so far is:

Arrive Milan
2 days Milan/Lake Como
3 days Venice
4 days Florence
2 days Tuscany
3 days Cinque Terre

I am debating on whether or not to squeeze in Rome and cut back on the other places?

This is my first time to Italy and would like to see as much as I can but not feel tight for time.

Your feedback is appreciated!

Thanks

ira

Hi,

Rome gets mixed reviews.

What are your interests?

bobthenavigator

I would stay north. You have 5 destinations in 15 days--not bad.
I would add a day to Lake Como--since day one will be recovery day--and take it from Florence. I assume you will arrive and depart Milan. If so, you need to plan for your last nite. That is my favorite itinerary in Italy--a great mix of culture and natural beauty. You can do it in the other directions and depart from Venice.

vespa_in_italy

Thanks for the feedback. ira, I'm looking to experience the natural beauty of Italy but also the arts, architecture, food, etc. If I do make it to Rome, I could only spend 3 days or so. Will this do it justice?

I do like my current itinerary but feel like I'm missing a big piece of my Italian experience.

Shanna

Hi vespa! I'm one of those who thinks that the first trip to Italy must be Rome. Not to say that I don't envy your plans; I do. I've been to Rome twice and am ready to do something else. I think by the third day in Venice, you'll just begin to know what you want to do there (read Death in Venice by Thomas Mann before you go). Frankly, four days in Florence is three days too much. Two in Tuscany? Two weeks, honey!! Haven't been to Cinque Terre so can't comment. If I were a first timer, I'd fly into Rome for a 5 days minimum (maybe a week), go to Venice for 4 days, then end up in Tuscany for the remainder. Rright now, your trip is five locations in 15 days - that works out to 3 each, not including Rome, and that's just not enough. If I left out Rome, I'd do 4 days in Venice, 3 in Cinque Terre, remainder in Tuscany, in a villa within bicycling distance of a small but lovely town (hey, try www.calboccia.com in Umbria). Also, the north will be a bit cooler than the south at that time, so maybe you're plan is good in terms of packing. Have an absolutely fantastic time - there is nothing as memorable and sweet as the first trip! (But seriously, Rome will knock your socks off if you are at all interested in history.)

usbeauty

Also, when you return everyone will ask if you went to Rome and you'll have to explain why and it will get all messy. So go.

mgmargate

Going to Italy w/out seeing Rome would be a crime.

sforza

Why not take a day trip from Florence to Rome? People seem to daytrip to Florence from Rome; why not the reverse? By Eurostar the train ride is a hour and a half. You have 4 days in Florence -- you can spare one if you want.

If I had one day in Rome I'd take the Metro to the Spanish Steps and then walk to the Borghese Gardens and get the view from the Pincio, then walk to the Trevi Fountain, then have lunch at a cafe in the Piazza Navona. You could then walk over to the Pantheon before heading through the Roman Forum to the Colosseum, where there's a Metro station to take you back to Termini. It's a long walk, and you won't have much time to do anything but see some sights and get a sense of Rome's layout.

The alternative is to save Rome for your next trip to Italy, and use it as the home base for a trip south to the Amalfi Coast.

bobthenavigator

Of course you can do Rome--you can do anything you want. You would need to drop Lake Como and the Cinque terre. Is that a good trade off to you. It takes 6 weeks to see Italy--you have 2 weeks. Pick 5 destinations and do not look back--you will return.

vespa_in_italy

Phew, thanks for the responses! It's great to hear from people who have been. Wow, I haven't started planning and it's getting hard already! I do want to go to Rome, but am going to have to pare back on the other places.

I will have to deal with "How come you didn't do Rome" bit.

Thanks everyone. I really appreciate the feedback!

bobthenavigator

I have done 12 trips to Italy and did not set foot in Rome until my 8th trip. Think geographically--who cares what others think? When we did do Rome we did a week and did it well. This may help :

BOB the NAVIGATORS? FIVE FAVORITE ITINERARIES

MAGICAL FAIRYLANDS:
* Arrive and depart Munich--14 nites--May thru Sep.--car travel
* ITINERARY: Salzburg, Dolomites, Venice, Lake Garda, Bavaria
============================================
BELLA ITALIA:
* Arr Milan, dep Venice--15 nites--car & train travel--April thru Oct.
* ITINERARY: Lakes, Ligurian coast, Tuscany, Florence, Venice
============================================
CLASSIC ITALIA:
* Arrive & depart Rome--12 to 14 nites--car & train travel, all year
* ITINERARY: Florence, Tuscan & Umbrian hilltowns, Rome
============================================
LA DOLCE VITA:
* Arr & dep Rome--12 nites--car & train travel--March thru Oct.
* ITINERARY: Amalfi coast, Tuscan hilltowns, Rome
============================================
OF ALPS & LAKES:
* Arrive and depart Zurich--12 nites--train travel--June thru Sep.
* ITINERARY: Berner Oberland, Lugano, Lake Como, Luzern

THE VILLAGE SAMPLER: My personal favorites?north to south
? Arr Milan & dep Rome---car travel---plan 3 nites per location
? Lake Orta, Castelrotto, Portovenere, Montalcino, Ravello

mgmargate

You haven't been to Italy until you've been to Rome.

clevelandbrown

As you say your interests include art and architecture and food, you definitely want to have plenty of time in Florence and environs. I would suggest adding a day to Florence and taking a day trip from there; that will give you some flexibility if you decide you want to see more of the art and architecture in Florence. We spent a week there and didn't get to see everything we wanted. We also spent a week in Venice with like results. I think three days might be too little to get to see this jewel.

You should look into an open jaw airline ticket, where you land one place but return from another, to save you some travel time.

With but 15 days, I don't think you have time to do Rome justice, so I would save it for your next trip. We didn't do Rome on our first trip, and no-one has ever asked us to justify it.

Enjoy your trip.