Hi there Italy lovers!

I haven't posted on Fodors for over ten years, but I've been looking at some of the excellent advice provided on the Italy forum and thought now would be a good time to break my posting silence.

A little background - I'm a late 30s female, travelling solo, was pretty well set on doing an Intrepid tour in Italy, but as I did my research I started thinking "I could do this myself for waaaay cheaper and I bet it wouldn't even be that difficult." So here I am! I've travelled solo in Ireland, but this is the first time I'll be going somewhere on my own with a language barrier - hence the reticence, but people do it all the time, right?

The trip wouldn't be until May 2020, so I have plenty of time to plan, but before I book flights I'd like to get the general route nailed down. My main question is whether I have the pacing right for the amount of things I want to see in each place. Since it's my first trip, I'm interested in seeing some of the most popular cities and sites, and if I fall in love, I'll no doubt be back to dig deeper.

Here's my general plan so far:

Fly into Rome - 4 nights
-General sightseeing (Trevi Fountain, Spanish Steps, Largo Argentina, various churches, etc.)
-Colosseum, Forum and Palatine Hill
-Vatican Museums/Sistine Chapel/St. Peter's
-Galleria Borghese
-Castel Sant'Angelo (at least to climb to the rooftop terrace)
-Food tour

Train to Florence - 4 nights
-Accademia
-Uffizi
-Climb Duomo dome and/or bell tower
-Various sightseeing that I haven't narrowed down yet (some of Boboli Gardens, San Croce, Piazale Michelangelo, Duomo museums, Pitti Palace, Bargello)
-Full day guided tour to Tuscan countryside, wine tasting etc.

Train to Lucca - 3 nights
-Bike the walls, climb a tower, general sightseeing and relaxing
-Cooking class
-Half day trip to Pisa

Train to Venice - 4 nights
-Looking into Walks of Italy tour that takes in some of the main sights and includes St. Mark's and a gondola ride
-Doge's Palace Secret Itinerary Tour
-Self-done day trip to Burano and Torcello
-Perhaps an opera at Teatro la Fenice
-Self-guided or guided cicchetti crawl
-If I'm feeling like I've covered what I want to see, I may do a day trip by train somewhere like Verona, Ravenna or Padua.

I will likely fly home from Venice, but depending on flight prices and timing, I'm also considering taking the train to Milan for a couple of nights to see the Last Supper, do some general sightseeing and a day trip to Lake Como or somewhere else nearby.

Your thoughts would be appreciated!

It all sounds good until the paragraph about Milan and Lake Como, unless you're talking about adding days/nights to cover these detours. Although most of the main sights of Milan could be seen in a full, well-planned day, the main sights on Lake Como require a few days because of the time needed just to get around.

Look into your flight options in doing this itinerary in either direction. Depending on where you live, the flights home from Venice can be painfully early and you may want to start there.

As for the perceived language "barrier," I wouldn't worry about that in the destinations you're contemplating. You will encounter people who have limited or no knowledge of English, but you will almost always be able to find someone you can speak with in English. In the coming year, learn the basic polite phrases, simple questions (where is the toilet, etc.) and menu vocabulary. If you're still insecure about this (and you shouldn't be, really), you can download a translation app on your phone. I just carry a small dictionary/phrase book. We once had a long conversation with a taxi driver without having a common language. He spoke Italian, my husband can speak some Spanish, and I had several years of Latin and my little dictionary.

For me alone, I would make Lucca and Pisa day trips from Florence and add 2 days to Rome.

It used to be that the international flights out of Venice were first-thing in the a.m. SOOO, I'd fly into Venice and out of Rome. Or out of Milan--get "Last Supper" tickets online if possible.

One doesn't need to speak Italian but it is so nice to know a couple of basic words. "My" Italians were formal and liked a hello, goodbye, please and thank you....in Italian. May you fall in love with Italy as we did. Sigh.

Book trains far in advance to snatch limited in number discounted tickets - www.trenitalia.com or www.italotreno.com - 2 competing rail systems using same tracks and same stations - www.seat61.com has loads on doing that yourselves online - general info train www.budgeteuropetravel and www.ricksteves.com.

Although I agree that more time in Rome is always a good thing, I like that you've given yourself some time in a smaller town. I would rather have more time in Florence and others would say Venice, but it's all just personal preference A couple of nights/days in a smaller town are an entirely different experience.

Very subjective. I much prefer staying in Lucca than Florence, love the ambiance. I think you've got it right.

We just did Rome (7 nights), Montepulciano (7), Orvieto (4) and Florence (5), with a day trip to Venice as we have been before and added it at the last moment. We know little Italian but it was never an issue. The pleasantries are nice to have down so they are automatic.

We did 2 Walk of Italy tours in Rome and one in Florence. The Welcome to Rome tour gave us a great overview and introduced us to managing huge crowds. I wish we had been able to add Lucca. Personally I would move a couple of days from Venice, to either Florence or Rome, but it depends on your interests. The Frari church in Venice is spectacular, as is the Duomo in Orvieto. Orvieto was a lovely place to spend time and it will always be on our itinerary. It was really nice to spend time in a smaller place.

Funny about Lucca - crowd here seems split. But I really liked the town though loved being back and walking crowded streets in Florence. But, I think many would love staying in a Lucca that also has folks out and about as any Italian town after dark.

I think your trip sounds terrific. You have a nice balance of being busy and being able to relax a bit. Learning just a few words of Italian can help you greatly but I have been able to travel independently to many different countries without knowing any of the language before I arrived.

Buon Viaggio!

Personally I think for a first trip most of your days will be full days. Not saying impossible but you'll basically need to keep to a schedule. If that's you fine.

Thanks very much, everyone!

The conversation about whether to spend a chunk of time in a smaller spot is one I've had with myself. I tend to like buzzing places with stuff going on at night, but one of the things I'm a bit concerned about when I think of travelling in Italy is the sheer amount of crowds and people....I'm not sure I will have ever experienced anything like it. I'm pretty confident that I'll relish having a few days to get away from that a little, though admittedly I have no idea how crowded Lucca is! It's a balance between wanting to give these wonderful places enough time to not feel super rushed, but not wanting to spend too much time in a place I'm not really enjoying. Last year, I stayed in a tiny town (like 200 people tiny) in Ireland for a couple of nights after reading about how wonderful it was ad nauseum on travel forums. Within the first two hours, I wanted to leave and never come back, and that feeling didn't go away. I learned a valuable lesson about the type of places I want to use (and not use) as a base in the future though, and that will be the case with my first Italy trip as well I'm sure.

Thanks for the tips about the early flights from Venice, and about needing more than a couple of nights if I decide I want to see Milan and Lake Como. I could conceivably extend the trip by up to 4 days but I'm still mulling it over. I've got duolingo downloaded and have already begun learning very useful phrases, such as "Cuccino una bistecca settimanalmente" and "Ci vieni spesso qui? Haha. Definitely plan to learn as much I can - I speak French so at least I have a bit of a romance language base!

Based on your comments, I think 3 nights (2 full days) in Lucca is OK. I'd plan on more than a 1/2 day in Pisa if you're into seeing museums, churches and plan to climb the Tower (for which you need timed entry tickets in advance). I'm not a big fan of Lucca, but 1+ days isn't much time in a place that you could end up feeling lukewarm about. You could always make a quick jaunt to Montecatini Terme.

Regarding crowds you need to think about not only what city/town you are in but what you are doing there as well.

Large, major museums are all crowded, and you plan to visit both the Vatican Museums and the Uffizi. If you are avid, thirst art fans who can't get enough Italian or Dutch master renaissance art, then that's a great plan. If, on the other hand you'll get worn out looking at portraits of cardinals and popes, ladies in repose, or Madonna and child paintings all while fighting the crowds, then you may want to rethink doing both. On top of that you've added the Borghese Gallery (better crowd control there).

On my last trip to Italy around this May time several years ago we were astounded by the crowds in St. Peters, so we were in and out in 15 minutes and spend the afternoon on a quiet walk far away from crowds. On the walk back to our hotel we spent quiet time in a remarkable historic church that was empty except for a small handful of people. Another day we were jostled by crowds around the Colosseum, and chose to hang out in a quiet spot on Palatine hill overlooking the forum instead of waiting in line. We remember those experiences better than we remember any piece of art building that we went to.

For an upcoming trip we've planned the exact opposite vacation. One spot for 10 days, in a small, less well known hill town. We're renting an apartment, and our daily plan consists of waking up, coffee, walk, (in town, along a river, or to a nearby town along a bike trail). Throw in an afternoon nap, a trip to the community pool, some gelato and that will be an enjoyable day for us. When we want we will do day trips to bigger towns nearby. - always factoring in time for that gelato and afternoon nap.

I think you'd enjoy as much time as you can spare in lake country, even if your preference is places that "buzz."

Italian is a very simple language. You can learn plenty of it before you go. Not that you have to, but if you're so inclined the locals will love you.