Need itinerary help, first time to europe!
 

My husband and I are planning to travel to Italy during April (we are flexible about which part of the month to go). I have a couple of questions for all of you experts!:

1. Is the end of April better than the beginning in terms of weather? We would love some warm weather, but also do not want to it to be too crowded.

2. We have 12 days (two for traveling) and we would love to see Rome, Florence--Siena--Tuscany, Amalfi or Cinque Terre and Venice. Is that too much to pack into ten days? And what do you all suggest in terms of where to start and where to end? We are definitely more into country/beach excursions but also want to make sure we see the cities.

Thanks so much for all of your help!

nvrbeen :)

Yes, IMHO that is too many places in too few days, especially if this is your first visit. I'd go closer to the end of april unless their was a huge price difference in dates.

I know you said you were country/beach people, but also think about hitting the big three: Venice, Florence and rome. You could fly into Venice, then take the train to Florence and another train to Rome. That would give you a taste of three great cities.

I'm sure other folks will provide other options.

Thanks so much for the advice, i had a feeling we were tying to jam too much in. I am still really interested in going to a coast city though. hmmm, maybe we need to shoot for 14 days instead! Thank you!

Take a look at http://www.bobthenavigator.homestead.com/

Read Bob's essays on planning a trip to Europe, budgeting and miscellaneous travel tips.

Then look at Bob's Five Favourite Itineraries. They will give you an idea of what is feasible (albeit they are for trips ranging from 12 nights to 15 nights, so you would need to trim your 10 night itinerary accordingly).

Adding a few extra days will really give you a much fuller range of options.

Maybe somebody can advise you about the weather on the coast in april. Early in the month might be too cool and rainy to take full advantage of those areas. I want to go hiking in the CT, but not risk my life and limb on wet trails.

Hi nvrbeen,

April is a super month for Italy, but the weather is what it is. As for crowds, avoid Easter week.

The South tends to be warmer.

With 10 days and your first time you may want to consider limiting yourself to two areas . . .

Amalfi - Rome
Tuscany - Florence

Personally I would consider the following based on your interests:

Fly into and out of Rome (or Naples), Assuming Rome

3 nights Rome
3 nights Sorrento/Positano/Naples
1 night Capri
1 night Paestum
2 nights Rome

This is very consolidated geographically speaking, but gives you lots of Coast time (5 nights), a few beach opportunities, and there is more than enough world class activities to keep you busy. You will need to make choices.

Have a great trip.

Given 10 nites in Italy, I would choose 3 destinations--you pick it. I would stay south with Rome, Amalfi, Tuscany in April--later the better.

Another vote for more time, and less places! I have only been to Venice (twice, in august, which I loved) so can't advice on other areas of interest or the weather.

I can't tell from your post if you've traveled around other parts of Europe before. So know your own travel preferences. But for me, I just *hate* feeling rushed, checking in and out of hotels, making a bunch of train reservations, dashing here & there. I so much prefer to get to know one small area of a town, stroll the streets with the locals, drink wine at sidewalk cafes, shop at the open air market, find a favorite restaurant and go there a few times (oops, I'll stop now... obviously I'm overdue for a European trip of my own ~ LOL). Enjoy!!!

I wouldn't leave Venice out of any trip to Italy. I've been to Europe several times (and lived there) and Venice is one of my favorite places. I'd leave Rome out before Venice. Of course, this is just one of many opinions, but I really think Venice is magical. And yes, later in April would be better than early.

hi nvr

I suggest that you go after Easter. Last week in April is still shoulder season.

I recommend, for a first trip,

1. fly into Rome or Venice and out the other

2 fly into Florence and Venice and out the other

In April, with 10 full days, I would fly to Rome, spend 4 days in Rome, 3 in Florence and 3 in Venice, flying out of Venice. Even though you like beaches/countryside, April can be quite cool and sometimes rainy and cities offer more to do in rainy weather. If it is your first trip to Italy, I suggest the cities. As an alternative, you might want to consider 4 days in Venice and 6 in Florence and Tuscany. Whatever you decide, I would try to include Venice.

Hi all, thanks so much for all of your advice. I think after much discussion we will try to make the tip 12 days and see rome, venice, florence and possiblty do a few day trips to amalfi. All of your suggestions have really helped us out...so thank you very very much for your time and toughtful replies! Any suggestions on places to stay in the big cities...We are looking for mid-range.

Thanks again!

nvr been

If you haven't been to Europe before, the best advice anyone can give you is this: don't drive. It is hard to convey the aggrevation of navigating in Europe where street signs are either invisible or nonexistent, roads change their names ever 10 feet, streets are 1/2 of you car's width and a one-way maze, parking is impossible, cost is exhobitant and asking for direction in a foreign language becomes frustrating and pointless. Getting between cities isn't quite so bad, but as soon as you get near an urban center with more than three streets, the trouble starts. I don't why this is kept such a secret in travel discussions.

I second Degas' the opinion of sticking to the Rome-Florence-Venice corridor by train with perhaps and/or a Florence-Siena or Florence-San Gim bus excursion.

I think Surovy is right about driving in europe and also Siena and San Gim being very popular bus excursions from Florence. Lucca is another daytrip option via train.

I will respectfully offer a counter-point-of-view to Surovy...

DO DRIVE! Otherwise, you'll miss the beauty of the countryside and the people and the charm of the small towns and villages. And (very important) the freedom to come and go on your "country/beach excursions".

Of course (it's a no-brainer) you should ditch the car as you approach a major city - and that's easy to do.

As to the expense of the car, this is offset by the less-than-costly city accommodations etc. during the limited time you have it.

I equally respectfully must disagree with kH ([email protected]).

At a rental fee of $100/day, $4 a gallon gasoline, astronomical road tolls and cost of an international driver's permit, there is no way that money saved by staying out of town will compensate you for the car costs for the $120-150/day cost. And money could never compensate you for the aggrevation. (Weekly rentals bring the fee down to $80/day, but then you are stuck with car in a city, where it is wasted, some days.)

The other factor is that this is your first trip. There is more than enough to keep you occupied in cities where you don't need a car. You can take busses to Siena, etc and travel the same roads you would if you drove.

If you want to take trips to the Hilltowns etc, busses can get you there just fine, although you have to plan carefully. The car gives you more freedom, but busses/trains don't greatly limit where you can go.

If you go back and want to explore more, then you might want to consider driving. But on a first trip, keep it simple.

I disagree - for me driving is the way to go. For two or more people the cost to drive is within the ballpark of other types of travel. And a car gives you the ability to see anything you want on your own timetable, change plans as the mood strikes and not be tied to the vagaries of public transport. As far as road signs, I have found those in europe to be generally easier to follow than those in the US, perhaps since the number of foreign visitors is so high. The driving conditions are generally at least as good as in this part of the US (potholes in the road are usually few and far between). Yes, once in the town roads are narrow and it's hard to park - but we've never not been able to pass and there are always plenty of garages if you don;t find a place on the street. And garage prices are universally lower than they are at home. As for directions, buying a good road map - and downloading detailed city maps - is a must. And if you do (rarely) get lost momentarily I've always found locals more than willing to help with directions - using sign language if you can't understand their lefts and rights. And why travel if not for a (very) little adventure.

Surovy, $100/day? Our cost came to about $700 for 3 weeks. Yes gas is higher, but so's the milage on the small cars of theirs. But that's not my real point; it's what nvrbeen said in the original post that led me to reply in the way that I did:

"We are definitely more into country/beach excursions but also want to make sure we see the cities."

I read that to mean that the priority does not lie with the cities. I simply don't think busses to hilltowns would satisfy this couple and what's the big deal about driving a car in Tuscany or the Amalfi area?

www.lacalcina.com

Pensione La Calcina in Venice is a lovely 3-star hotel. Great location on the Guidecca canal. Quiet yet close enough for an easy walk to all things central.

I was originally sent here by my friends in Switzerland, but have seen lots of favorable posts on this board since my two stays there.

Thanks again to everyone for posting all of your advice. I think we will end up renting a car so that we won't feel trapped anywhere (we are pretty much control freaks so it will feel good to have our own transportation--even though we won't know where we are going! :). I do think that we'll spend the bulk of our time in Florence and take day trips to siena, pisa, San Gim etc. And I am really excited about seeing amalfi as well.

Does anyone have a particular recommendation as to where on the coast we should go/stay? We would love a little nightlife!

Thanks so much!!