you guys are really being great in putting up with my chaotic agenda! Since my last post, I figured I would assume (!) that my c/c company would see it my way (a whopping $1.23 difference between r/t rome/rome and my (I think) better idea of an open jaw flight) so..here it goes..this also does not include our arrival 1/2 day in rome, which I figure to be jet lag and
orientation..
4 days Rome
4 days Florence (same 1/2 day Pisa and
organized tour Siena/San G 1 day)
3 days Venice
2 days Milan
again, the above are full days, with train travel between cities..I figured Rome was certainly worth 4 days, Florence had day trips, as well as the city itself involved, Venice, like Pisa, is really a non negotiable, and worth time spent, and Milan would be a great finish, with the Scala and the Last Supper.
Now that you know MY thinking, considering I have never been there, I am turning this over to you seasoned Italy travelers, which is why, of course, I signed up for this forum to begin with! Thank you for all of your prior, and if I am not Too annoying,O:)
future assistance..I might mention, so you may forgive me..I have really been trying to get hubby here forever..he finally said okay!

Obviously, it's better if you can do the open-jaw flight instead of round trip Rome. You also seem to have added a day, as your latest post includes 13 days, whereas the previous one was 12 days. With the open-jaw flight, your latest plan seems good. I haven't been to Milan, but do a search and you will probably find more than enough to fill your 2 days there. Or take a day from Milan and add it to Rome, where you can never have enough time!

I did indeed add an extra day, because my original itinerary included a post flight day rest day, which in the past was really just a luxury, a luxury I would gladly forfeit for a better trip!
I am such a travel junkie =P~ , that when hubby and I came back from a recent trip in the evening, stayed overnight at the SFO hotel, I had him drop me off at work the next morning!
that probably makes me straight-jacket suit material for sure, but I really live to travel!

SusanP- in reading your post, and checking my "bible" aka Rick Steves, you are right--because according to his guide book, "half of Milan's sights are closed on Monday" which was for us to be the first of two days in Milan. So then if I added a full day to Rome, and subtracted from Milan, it would look like this:
5 days Rome
4 days Florence
3 days Venice
1 day Milan
am I getting closer to perfection within reasonable boundaries????

Hi daisy58,

That looks perfectly reasonable with the added bonus of not having to uproot yourself and settle back in to Rome a few days later. Given your flights, I was trying to make you feel better, but this is definitely the better of the two scenarios.

I would still try and make the most of your time in Florence by seeing as much of Tuscany as you can. Friends just returned from a whirlwind 3 week cities only trip (self guided) and said they really wished they had seen more of the countryside than just from the windows of a train.

HI daisy58,

This plan sounds much better (and either 5 Rome/1 Milan or4 Rome/2 Milan sound fine).

My only question is will you be happy spending pretty much the whole time in cities or would it make sense to cut out a city in favor of a smaller town venue? Just personal choice though as this plan is good. Flying open jaw and staying in 4 locations for the 2 weeks sounds great.

Have a fabulous trip!!

I think that last one sounds great. Even though you won't be staying overnight in a hilltown, you will be able to get a good taste of the countryside in your daytrips. Have a great time!

at the risk of sounding toooo obsessive,my first waking thoughts
this morning was ..reverse it! I figured that since the first day would be a 1/2 day of jetlag and orientation,
it would probably be better in Milan than Rome. That being said, and only taking into account full usable days,
how about this scenario?
2 days Milan
3 days Venice
4 days Florence (same side trips)
4 days Rome
????

That also sounds great! In fact, that might "fix" your Monday problem in Milan. And, many people (including Rick Steves) say transitioning North to South works best anyway. But, if you can't do it that way, the other is just fine.

I also think SusanP is right when she says you will have a good taste of the countryside with your day trips.

Happy travels!

oooh..havent gotten to that part of the book yet, why is north to south easier? just curious. I also figured doing it this way, we would be fully functional with our bearings and time adjustments to help us better spot and avoid the dreaded nasty little pickpocketing children in Rome I keep reading soooo much about (a friend of mine got her wallet lifted by a group of these kids at the Sistine Chapel a few years back.
I like this itinerary enough that even if my c/card co. wont cooperate, I might just spring for both tickets (I stood to get 1 free) and save the points for another trip. the $950.00 or so won't dramatically change my life, but the right itineray can make or break a trip!

Well, Steves' argument is that Italy is intense and bursting with energy and that the farther south you go, the more "intense" and rich in flavor it gets. So, for someone's first trip, he thinks it is wise to "ease" into it.

Now, I don't necessarily agree and we went to Rome first and LOVED it.....so, it was just a little chitchat tidbit, not real wisdom.

We also had no problems with pickpockets or children, but we did take normal big city precautions. I'm not saying don't be careful, but I do think Rome can get an overly harsh rap on this. Be streetsmart and aware. Sure, something could happen and sometimes does, but don't worry too much or have a negative attitude in advance. I can't wait to go back.

You will have a fabulous time!!

Whew! that being settled, on to hotels!
O-)

daisy58,

I would recommend CAF tours for your day trip to Siena and San Gigimnano. I used them last month while I was staying in Florence.

Have a great trip, and make sure you post a trip report.

Tom

Do you book CAF tours in Florence?
thanks for all of your help--I will
definately post a trip report! Better
get busy--only 177 days and a wakeup
to go!!! :)

Using Florence as base, consider a Tuscany tour with Artviva.com which combines Siena, San Gimignano, an authnetic Tuscan lunch at a farm and wine-tasting.

ANUJ-Wow! thanks for the info! this looks wonderful-far from the "wonderbread tours" I have seen on other sites! and similar pricing with it seems to be much more quality

Hi,
I think you're smart to stick with Rome, Florence, Venice with some side trips for your first trip. Capri and the south is a whole other trip if youre set on spending a few days in each city. As far as Tuscany, I was in Florence for 3 days, one of which i used as a day trip to Sienna and San Gimignano (a bus tour-it was well worth it) I am a huge art admirer/fanatic :) and with plenty of time spent in museums etc I still had time to walk around the city and relax. To save time and still get in Pisa, We took a late afternoon train (its a pretty short ride) and stayed through sunset which was great because we got to see the tower in day and night and we didnt take away from our day's activities. I did hear Cinque Terre was amazing as is the South, but you don;t want to take away from the amazing cities you're already visiting! Hope that helped-enjoy your trip!

Hi daisy

I like your idea of starting in Milan and working down towards Rome; I've only visited Milan once, and I liked it so much more than I had expected to, but I love Rome and think a last night in Italy in Rome is perfect (well, except that it's the last night, but you get my drift!).

In was in Rome in May and then at the end of the same trip in early June, and for various reasons actually did stay in 2 different places, similar to what you were talking about in an earlier version of your itineray. I would recommend either of them:
Nicolas Inn, a great B&B near the Forum, and Hotel San Francesco, a nicely-renovated small hotel in Trastevere. Both have websites.

A tip we got from Melissa, the owner of the Nicolas Inn, is to go to the Vatican museum/Sistine Chapel at lunch time instead of lining up early in the morning as seems to be usually recommended. This strategy did work for us. Lines were not too bad.

You mention Rick Steves: The Rome night stroll past the Trevi fountain and other "lit-up" sights that he maps out in his book is a good one.

In Venice, I stayed 3 years ago at Casa Martini (casamartini.it) and it is a lovely small hotel, very Venetian, owned by a charming young couple. This last trip I stayed in a small B&B in a quiet and convenient Dorsoduro location that we found through veniceby.com. The name of the B&B is Ca' Turelli.

Do you have free time in Siena on your tour? It is an interesting city to wander around in. We ate some delicious cookies from the pastry shops -- I think they are called ricciarelli or something like that (does anyone know?). After many trips to Italy and never getting to Siena, I was thrilled to finally visit there in May, even if it was only for one afternoon/evening.

Pisa: On this last trip, friends (a couple) who were meeting up with us had never been to Italy before and he really wanted to see Pisa. (The rest of us had been there in our various pasts). They were so glad they fit it in. The stayed the night there as she had found a good hotel deal, and really enjoyed themselves.

Sounds like a nice trip!

annabelle2--thanks for all your info and advice --I can't wait to go!!!

Hi daisy, just saw your thread. I have often flown into Milpensa airport and spent a bit of time in Milan on arrival also. It is a "calmer" city than Rome, and is a good place to get over what jetlag you might have. I like your final itinerary.

Not sure if you know or not, but from Milpensa airport you can take the airport shuttle bus to the central train station in Milan (Centrale). Than just take a taxi to your hotel.
The cost of the airport shuttle is 5 euro per person I believe. There is luggage storage underneath the bus so that is nice. Have a wonderful trip.