Planning a honeymoon in Italy

Old May 14th, 2010, 10:36 AM
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Planning a honeymoon in Italy

Hi everyone,
I am planning my honeymoon to Italy, YAY! These are the details: We will be flying into Venice on Tuesday October 5th and will be making my way down to Rome, which we will depart on Tuesday October 19th. So we have 15 nights, 16 days to fill up. My next step is to figure out how many days I need to spend in each region/city. A first time in Italy for both of us. We will have a car for the Tuscany & Amalfi Coast portion of our trip. Cities we would like to hit:

1) Venice
2) Florence, Pisa, Cinque Terre
3) Tuscany
4) Rome
5) Amalfi Coast

Can you please recommend how many days we should spend in each, or perhaps what the best route to take would be. Any advice would really help!!!

Thanks so much!
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Old May 14th, 2010, 11:03 AM
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I would spend no less than 3 nights in each place. Less is always more. Mostly on your honeymoon. Take time to savor the moment, not running from place to place.

I would do do either the CT or Amalfi, not both.
It will give you reason to return.
jetsetj is offline  
Old May 14th, 2010, 12:37 PM
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You need a recount. You have 14 nights and sure as s--t don't have 16 days because you lose both the 19th (airport) and nearly all of the 5th (jet lag). And if you're flying FROM the US on the 5th, you just lost another night and day.

Florence is in Tuscany and you can use it as a base of operations for the area.

I'm guessing you want to see Pisa for the Tower because this is your first trip. For you, Pisa is worth either 15 minutes -- ooh, there's the Tower, it don't look stable, snap the pictures, time to go -- or a couple of hours as you try to climb the Tower and realize that the steps are too smooth for comfort and there are a lot of dang people coming up as you're going down. Siena is far better and its main cathedral (Duomo di Siena) is even more interesting than the one in Florence.

Rome is one of the great cities of the world and gets short shrift. Don't short change it.

Given the time of year, if you're looking to the Amalfi Coast as a beach trip, then go to CT because the weather may be getting a bit cool for beach lounging by mid October.

If you just want to see the Amalfi Coast, visit Pompeii, climb a volcano, etc. that's different and you can stay in Sorrento for that and take a bus to Positano, etc.
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Old May 14th, 2010, 12:47 PM
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No we're flying NY on the 4th getting to Venice on the 5th. And leaving late on the 19th....so thats like 1/2 a day. But you're right - it is 14 nights....

Thanks for the advice!
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Old May 14th, 2010, 01:13 PM
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I agree with the replies so far. You don't have as much time as you think, only 13 full days. Your arrival and departure days aren't worth counting unless your home is elsewhere in Europe.

If it were my honeymoon, I'd pick hotels in Venice, Rome and a third place. The location of the third hotel depends on your priorities and interests. Do you want to see the treasures of Florence in depth, then stay in Florence and make a day trip or two to Siena, Pisa and/or Lucca, or into Chianti. If you want to see the beautiful coast, visit a few of the Cinque Terre but generally have some time to relax, then stay there. If you put the Tuscan countryside at the top of your list, then stay somewhere in Tuscany, rent a car for exploring, and perhaps make a day trip into Florence by train.

You will lose at least a half day every time you change hotels and move to the next destination, so you want to keep those moves to a minimum. I wouldn't go south of Rome on this relatively short trip because you'd have to cover some of the same ground twice.

Everyone has their preferences, but I would spend 4 nights in Venice and split the other nights between location x and Rome as you wish, either 4/6, 5/5 or even 6/4.
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Old May 14th, 2010, 01:53 PM
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If it was my honeymoon I'd be going to Lake Como and staying here....

http://www.lakecomoapartment.com

but I guess that just complicates things for you more!
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Old May 14th, 2010, 02:11 PM
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Lake Como would be terrific, but it wasn't mentioned by the OP so perhaps holds no interest to him/her.
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Old May 14th, 2010, 04:51 PM
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For my honeymoon I wold slow down and spend some time just relaxing and soaking up the local atmosphere versus rushing from site to site and city to city.

You will be jet lagged when landing in Venice - so need 4 nights (3 days) there. You need 2 days (3 nights) for Florence and 4 days (5 nights) for Rome - leaving you with 2 nights for something else. So - realistically you can spend a couple of days in either Tuscany or Cinque Terre (Amalfi Coast is too far south and out of the way).

Naturaly if you prefer you can hit more spots - but will spend a large proportion of a limited time in transit, locating hotels and checking in and out - and not much enjoying La dolce Vida. (How will you have time for a relaxed dinner and an 11 pm walk through the flood-lit fountain-splashed piazzas of Rome if you have to be up at 7 am to catch the train to somewhere? How will you find time for a relaxed late afternoon drink and munchie in the outdoor cafes opposite the pantheon, watch the locals strolling by and listening to music from a nearby church if you're raacing to hit the Colosseum before it closes?)
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Old May 14th, 2010, 09:32 PM
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I live near le Cinque Terre and your travel dates are not optimal for this area if you are thinking of locking yourself into a hotel reservation. I have to say while I consider Lago di Como the single most beautiful to look at destination in Italy, I had to bail on taking a friend last October because weather had dipped to freezing.

Also, reading other comments above, you have to realize that when people try to tell ypu that Pisa is only "worth 15 minutes of your time" -- well, I don't need to explain, do I? Many people revisit Pisa more than once for multiple reasons. Jean was nice enough to note she was only stating her preferences. My preference would be to avoid Venice, which I find depressing. So if you are fixed on these destinations -- and they should be the ones you pick, not we pick -- then the real question is how fast do you want to move and what are your sightseeing ambitions?

You talk about wanting to "hit" places, and if that is what will make you happy, you can move fast without a car through every place but the Amalfi. But you will have to go go light on sightseeing. If you picked these places because their sightseeing opportunities attracted you, and you imagine you are going to be seeing a lot of Rome, Florence, etc,, then you to eliminate some destinations and prioritize.

As others have said, for a honeymoon, I would want to be looking at my lover most of the time-- not other sights. But then, I've never been much of a sightseer anyway.

Have a great honeymoon in Italy!
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Old May 14th, 2010, 11:05 PM
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I would cut down on the travels and do the following:

5th, 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th - Venice
10th, 11th, 12th, and 13th- Tuscany - Stay in the country - day trips to Pisa/Florence and other cites in the area
14th, 15th, 16th, 17th, 18th and 19th - Rome

If you thought that Cinque Terre or Amalfi were musts, you could cut down a day in Venice and add it to the Tuscany stay and head to CT or add the extra day to Rome, and take 2 days down in Amalfi. I dont think you should spend less than 4 days in Rome though, as the 19th is a dead day due to departing on that day.

Although it makes for a long day with trains, you can travel from Rome to Pompeii and Naples as a day trip.

Hope you enjoy your honeymoon!
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Old May 14th, 2010, 11:52 PM
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If you are going straight after the wedding then allow for jetlag AND the fatigue that can set in after the stresses of preparing a wedding. You have been given some good advice, I agree with those who say to slow it down and drop either CT or Amalfi so you can spend more time in the other places. My preference would be to stay in Florence and then do day trips to Siena and Pisa if you want to see them both. But, I do have to admit that I love Florence very much.

Good luck with your wedding and have a happy honeymoon! Cathie
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Old May 15th, 2010, 07:07 AM
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You have chosen a beautiful country for your honeymoon! I agree with those who recommend slowing it down to stop and smell the espresso rather than try to do it all in one trip.

I am not a fan of Venice so two nights there would be enough for me but I suggest you plan on three to give yourself time to recover from the wedding and the flight.

I am a big fan of Tuscany and would spend six nights there, especially if you really enjoy food and wine, as October is truffle season and the fall foods are simply wonderful!

You can choose to base in Florence with day trips to the countryside or base in Siena with a trip or two to Florence if you prefer to stay in a smaller city. Alternatively you could base in the countryside in a village or small town if that is your preference.

I love Florence and even though it has become very crowded (we usually go in mid to late October) we prefer to base there for the wide variety of dining and accommodation options and make trips to the countryside. We enjoy wines so hire a driver for a day so we can taste and enjoy without worrying about driving. You can take a day trip to Siena, very easy to do by bus and also make the short trip to Fiesole for dinner or a drink overlooking the city. You could easily visit Pisa from there as well. You would not need a car if you chose to do this as having one in Florence is more of a hassle than an advantage IMO. You would definitely need one if you opt to stay in the countryside.

Rome deserves a minimum of 5 full days in my opinion with one day perhaps to be spent in Umbria as a delightful change of pace.

I would leave out both the CT and the AC this trip and minimize the number of hotel and city changes.

Enjoy your planning and have a fabulous honeymoon!
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Old May 17th, 2010, 06:12 AM
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Thank you so much! This has been really helpful. I agree with all of you I definately don't want to be running around and not taking the beauty of Italy. I am going to cut out the Almalfi Coast and leave that for another trip. As far as sightseeing, I am really into that, so I would want to make sure that I have enough time to see and take in the beauty of each region. I really appreciate all your kind words!
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Old Jun 14th, 2010, 04:16 PM
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Otroyansky's...much happiness in your forthcoming marriage, may you have many decades together! My guess is, your final decision won't matter too much, anyway. Just drink it all in and enjoy every minute.

Just to give you some perspective as far as honeymoon's go, let me take you back 59 (yes, 59) years. Three days ago, June 12th marked my 59th...in those days, Italy was only a country far, far way. Who could afford it? We piled into our old Chevy and headed for Florida from Massachusetts...at 20-cents a gallon, no problem. On the second night going south, we stopped in Delaware at a 5-star motel, where the little square box TV required quarters in the slot every fifteen minutes. After arriving in Miami, we had found the Hotel Belmar for $6 per night, on the beach, no less. It was loaded with honeymooners of all ages and sizes. A drive-in called "Pick'n Chik'n" was two blocks away, and for less than $5 (total) it offered a veritable feast. A complete buffet breakfast was $2, lunch $3.50. I still have my journal.

Heading north, we stopped at Monticello, Skyline Drive and D.C. All motels were less than $6 and we didn't see one Michelin-star all the way. But we had one helluva time of it!

Now these many years later, have been to Italy and many other countries on six continents several times...but wouldn't have known what we were missing back then. Who knew? Eh?

Now, finish your planning, it will all come together and turn out great..and enjoy!!

Stu Tower

p.s., my lovely wife of 40 years passed on in '91, now happily remarried for these past 18 yearsl A good life is really a series of beautiful memories..and I've had much more than my share...10 grandchildren are living proof of that. I further wish you nothng more than that for the next 60-70+ years!!
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