I would appreciate any comments on a tentative Italy itinerary for a 15 night trip in late October /04. We have never been to Italy before, and enjoy art, architecture, and beautiful countryside. Husband has always wanted to see the Tuscan countryside. Here is what I am thinking:

Fly into Venice
Spend 4 nights Venice
Train to Florence, 2 nights Florence
Rent car, 5 nights Tuscany (prefer 1 home base with daytrips to surrounding towns and villages - no ideas on this yet, any suggestions appreciated!)
Drive to Rome, drop car, 4 nights Rome
Fly out of Rome

I would greatly appreciate comments and feedback on whether or not this itinerary seems reasonable, and if you would suggest any tweaking.

Thanks!

Sounds great to me!

sounds perfect & very well balanced to me!

may consider adding 1 night to florence or rome, or not.

i'm sure get get plenty of suggestions on your tuscany home base question, i can't help you there.

I can't believe I'd ever say this, but you might think about taking one of your Venice days and giving it to Rome. Overall, I'd say perfect though! Ciao.

OK, I was just about to book my flights and the flight times seem to work a lot better (shorter layover times, better connections, and less total time in transit both ways) if we fly into Rome and depart from Venice, so now I'm thinking about doing the same itinerary but in reverse. I had been thinking that it would be a bad idea to fly into Rome because I've heard a lot about how "intense" it is and that it can be difficult to deal with when you have jet lag. However, I really, really hate everything about air travel so the better flight itinerary is making me lean strongly towards flying into Rome and out of Venice instead. Is this a mistake?

Our Italian trip is in this order: Rome, Siena, Florence, and Venice. We figured that we wanted to get the "intensity" of Rome in the beginning when we're just starting our vacation (and still fresh!) and then winding down at the end in Venice where it's more mellow. This way, you won't be exhausted when you return home and need a vacation after your vacation!

travelgirl-

I would definitely take the shorter plane ride! Flying into Rome isn't that bad. The Leonardo Express train zips you from the airport to Termini station in 30mins, then you can cab to your hotel. If you don't want to deal with the train, book an airport shuttle. Do a search here for Rome airport shuttles and you will find many references.

I agree--nice trip, but I would reverse it--IF YOUR DEPARTURE TIME FROM VENICE IS DECENT. It is a real bear for an early takeoff there.
Find my trip report on slowtrav.com from last Oct. for some ideas in Tuscany. Look at palazzodelcapitano.com for a great centro location in San Quirico.

Thanks for the comments so far ... Bob, why do you say reverse it if the departure time from Venice is decent? Departing flight from Venice would be at 6:30 am. I'm not sure what you mean it is a real bear for early takeoff there? Is this a no-no, and if so, why?