Ok, only two weeks to go before we leave. We have all of our reservations and hotels in order. Now, I need input on what to see where. I'm traveling with my finacee. Keep in mind we have both been to Rome and Florence before (although separately) and have seen most of the major sights in those cities. He has been to Venice before, but I have not.
Here goes:

August 27th - Fly from Phila. to Rome.

August 28th - Arrive in Rome, check into the Intercontinental. Rest and sleep for a few hours. Late afternoon, maybe a leisurely stroll down the Spanish Steps, early dinner then more strolling around Piazza Navona and Trevi Fountain after dark.

August 29th - Cemetery of the Capuchins, Villa Borghese/Medici, Colloseum, Forum, Pantheon (at a leisurely pace, if we don't cover everything that is ok).

August 30th - Trip on Archeobus to Appian Way and Catacombs.

August 31st - Pick up car in Rome. Drive to Tuscany. Stop in Orvieto for lunch and touring (2-3 hrs.) Drive to Sinalunga and check into Locanda Dell'Amorosa.

September 1 - Day trip to Pienza, Montepulciano, Montalcino(as much as we can comfortably cover).

September 2 - Check out of Amorosa early. Drive to Fiesole (outside Florence). Stop at Siena, San Gim. and Volterra on the way (again, as much as we can do comfortably). Check into Villa San Michele.

September 3 - Open day. Lounge by the pool and short trip to ruins in Fiesole if we feel up to it (not anxious to go into Florence, would rather admire it from afar).

September 4 - Check out of San Michele. Drop off car in FLorence. Train from FLorence to Venice. Check into Hotel Colombina. Strolling and leisurely dinner.

September 5 - In Venice.

September 6 - In Venice (maybe Murano?)

September 7 - Check out of Colombina. Fly to Rome. Fly from Rome back to Phila.

Any input on this itinerary would be appreciated. Would it be too hectic to sqeeze in the Vatican and St. Peter's somewhere (we have both been there before) or should we forget it?

Also, any suggestions on what Tuscan hill towns NOT to miss. Need input on how to maximize time in Venice.

Thanks.

Hi cat,

Being that you have such a short time in Venice, I personally would skip Murano, unless it's that important to you.

We just spent four days in Venice and still didn't have time to see all of it. Be sure to include San Marco and San Polo districts, since your stay is brief.

I agree about leaving out Murano on such a short trip.

I think it looks great! We were just there for our honeymoon but only went as far South as Tuscany. Montepulciano was our favorite hilltown, followed by San Gimignano. Also tops were Montalcino and Pienza. Cortona isn't far form Sinalunga but the opposite way of these others and not as worth it in my opinion. On your way back from Montalcino head a bit north and try to hit the Abbey de Oliveto I believe it's called (that's clse!). Very cool. Get to Siena early. We had the city to ourselves from 8-10 (the church is open) then it got packed. We headed out mid day to Drive toward San Gimignano. Stopped in Monteriggioni-very cute small walled town on the way. I'd say skip Volterra for more time in Siena and San Gimignano.

Also, check out the Gregorian mass at 9am on San Giorgio in Venice. An experience. I"d explore Venice and skip Murano/Burano also. Get a 24 hour vaporetto pass for 10.50euro so you can hop on and off vs. paying 5 euro each time or having to walk everywhere in the heat. Congrats and good luck! Ciao!

I have visited and "inspected" rooms at the Colombina in Venice, will be very eager to hear about your experience in staying there. It looked great to me.

PS
on such a short trip, I"d skip Murano too.

Elaine, I will definitely let you know what we think of the Colombina. I too am curious since I haven't gotten much feedback from people who have actually stayed there. However, it has gotten good reviews and is less expensive than the other "luxury" category Venice hotels.

Thanks to everyone for your feedback. I think we will probably skip Murano.

Any other suggestions?

why fly in and out of the same city and backtrack?

JandaO, Good question, I asked my travel agent the same thing. Apparently, doing it this way was much cheaper than flying home from Venice. Also, if we flew out of Venice, we would have a long stopover in some other European city. So, due to the cost and the fact that we thought it would be better to get the connection over with early on before the transatlantic flight home, we decided to do it this way. I must admit, that is the part of the trip I am dreading most!

I agree skip Murano if you have limited time in Venice. Also one suggestion. Do not sleep immediately after arriving in Rome. This is a sure recpie for disisater as your intenral clock will be thrown off. Hit the ground running!

There is a direct flight from JFK to Venice on Delta. Can you fly out of JFK instead of Philly?

Hmmm ! Looks like a fabulous well planned trip to me--too bad about the Rome back track thing. Have fun !

IgorVodov, we live right in Philly and the last time we flew to Europe, we took a direct flight from JFK to London. It was a nightmare from hell! The transfer to JFK and the traffic on the Belt Parkway was horrifying. Our flight was delayed due to security issues and we had to get a hotel room overnight outside the airport. Getting back to the airport again was extremely stressful. Combined with the general confusion of going anywhere from JFK, it was not a good way to begin a trip. Although I know this is probably the exception and not the rule for flying in or out of JFK, it was enough to turn me off to the whole idea.

Ok, one more week to go. Any other suggestions or input?

Also, is any one familiar with the rooms at the Amorosa? They tell me my room is located in a tower on three floors. First floor sitting room, second floor bedroom, third floor bathroom. I'm wondering if this layout will turn out to be charming or a pain in the behind (two flights of steps to go to the bathroom!) Any comments welcomed.

Thanks.

Hey cat,

A tower suite - neat.

Keep in mid that you will most likely need the bathroom when you are in the bedroom. Only one flight up, not two.

You plans sound great! You may see more than you think during your first day in Rome. If so, you can add an afternoon at the Vatican. Even if you just see one area of the museum or whatever, it would be a "bonus."

I loved our visit to Murano and Burano but agree with the others to skip them on this trip so you can enjoy more of Venice. If you are one of the rare people who doesn't like Venice, then go. You can probably get a free ride in a private water taxi to a Murano glass factory and then take a vaparetto to Burano. The colorful houses there are just delightful.

Looking forward to reading your trip report when you return!

Oops...I forgot to mention that Monteriggioni is definitely worth a stop. It is very close to Siena and has two very good restaurants. The views from this hilltop town are amazing. Siena will take the most time and San Gim the next. Volterra is smaller but the shopping is great for alabaster and we liked the baptistry and cathedral too.