Hello.
After securing lodging/airfare for our (wife, me) trip to Italy in Sept 2011, I've started working on what to do/see in Rome (5 days), Florence (3 days) and Venice (3 days). I curious as to what major attractions should we purchase advanced tickets?

Rome?
Florence: Accademia, Uffizi, others?
Venice?

I'll continue to plan over the coming months but if there are any places we should get tickets to ASAP, please let me know. Is there a thread discussing this? I've been unable to locate one.

FYI, we are young, very mobile, enjoy some art/history but not highly knowledgeable. This is our first trip to Italy. We prefer food to alcohol experiences, love exploring new cities by foot and tend to be pretty content seeing sites on our own. Thank you.
abs004

There is nothing that you have to prebook ASAP.

There's a list of things to prebook in Rome here:
http://www.roninrome.com/%20transpor...e-book-in-rome (It's not just about transportation.)

For Florence, it's really only Uffizi and Accademia.

In Venice, you can prebook the Secret Itineraries tour of the Doge's Palace and entry to the Basilica di San Marco.

You may also need advanced tickets for the Borghese Gallery. We were able to get them last minute a few years back in March (may not be the case during busier times), but if you really want to go there (and it's well worth going to), and you have a specific date and time in mind, then it's worth reserving in advance. Also many here recommend the Vatican Scavi tour. You probably would have to book something like that in advance as well.

Hello- im going to Venice, Rome and Florence in May. Ive never been but i have been planning my trip for over a year and have done plenty of research. Everywhere ive researched- ive noticed that the vatican in Rome can have wait times of anywhere from 2 to 3 hours just to buy tickets...so i came across a website called viator.com and was able purchase vatican tickets in advance and i paid an additional fee to "skip the line" hence i dont have to worry about the long lines upon checking in. Pope John Paul is scheduled for his beatificiation in May and they expect over a million visitors to the Vatican during this time so i didnt want to take the chance of coming across a huge line and spend the entire day waiting around.

I also found a similar pre-pay "skip the line" ticket for the Accademia and Uffizi in Florence as they too are famous for long lines. Im travelling with a fairly large group with two elders so i didnt want to risk waiting around for two hours...yea its more expensive than standard admission but i figured it was worth it.

A friend of mine did this too and she recommended it- in particular she said the lines at the Vatican where "disgusting-ly long"

For venice, i really dont plan on visitng any art galleries (already visited plenty in Florence by this time) so im focusing on just walking around in venice and sight-seeing. I do want to go on a gondola but im told its ridiculously expensive- i was able to find one through viator.com that was reasonable.

Since we are a large group- it was essential for me to pre-book as much as i could to avoid any uncertainties and i found viator to offer me the best prices.

There's also another site i came across that offers similar deals at www.tickitaly.com

I have come across the Roma Pass which allows for 2 free visits to any site in Rome and free 3-day pass for unlimited use of the subway. But i plan on purchasing them at Termini train Station upon arrival as they are typically pretty easy to get (from what im told). My friend told me the roma pass allowed her to skip lines at the Colosseum and forum too and its only 35 euros so i figured its worth it for all the extras you get.

Also- are you planning on doing any wine-tasting in italy? Just as an FYI, my friend told me that many local wineries frown upon people who show up without any reservations- so she suggested i reserve them in advance.

Whatever you decide to do- i hope it works out Im really looking forward to my trip and im sure you are as well!

Thank you all for the info. I'll check out the viator site and look into "skip the line" options. Excellent link for Rome.

Regarding trains (in Sept), do you think we'll have any trouble getting tickets between those cities on the day of travel? Or would it be best to buy all (point-to-point) tickets in Rome at the train station when we first arrive? I'm assuming you can purchase point-to-point tickets in advance.

Thanks again.

You can PROBABLY get train tickets on the day - but you might miss out on your desired train. So it is worth buying them at least a day in advance. You could buy them all in Rome when you arrive.

I've spent a while in Venice, and written about it - far too many words! But if you have a lazy half hour, you might enjoy

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...rip-report.cfm or

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...st-verbose.cfm

This street finder is handy for Venice:

http://maps.venicexplorer.net/venice...dule=civici_gp

Viator or tickitaly are just resellers and mark up the price. You can book the same tickets and skip the lines (and they don't charge extra) directly with the Vatican or other museums. Most only book about two months in advance.

For Vatican tickets or tours by the Vatican:
http://mv.vatican.va/3_EN/pages/MV_Home.html

For the museums in Florence:
http://www.polomuseale.firenze.it/english/Default.asp?