Tour ends in Rome
 

This is our first visit to Italy; we are touring Tuscany and Umbria, finishing in Rome. We have an additional 7 days to spend and can't decide where to go. Our return flight is from Rome & the dates are 3/30-4/6/15. Thanks for your suggestions!

It's not clear how many total days you have in Rome.

If it's 7 total I would base yourself there and explore - with a couple of day trips - perhaps to Orvieto or Ostia Antica - or enve Pompeii if you are willing to do a very long day.

If you are already spending enough time in Rome as part of your tour, I would spend the week on the Amalfi Coast with Positano as a base. I would not want to spend that much time on a first trip to Italy and not visit Venice, but that does not make sense logistically since it would involve a lot of backtracking.

The first week of April is a little early for the Amalfi Coast.

Where exactly is your tour of Tuscany & Umbria taking you and for how long? We might make suggestions knowing where you are already visiting.

I too might recommend Venice because it's not so crowded during the off-season. My first visit there was at the end of March and it was nearly deserted. Cool and foggy but not cold enough to need hats. Loved it!

What do you want to do? The fast train system in Italy plus cheap air fares opens up a lot of options for you. If you want to go to Venice it is not all that much longer than getting to Positano from Rome (and a heck of a lot cheaper.) The fact that you have 7 days means you could spend some time in Sicily if you like or even another country. If you are willing to rent a car and drive you can have wonderful adventures and see and do unique things.

The last few days of your trip will be affected by Easter but all that probably means is that you will pay higher prices in some places and you should make any transportation reservations well in advance. But you are likely to see crowds in Venice and Florence and Rome.

Some people love to travel to Italy for food experiences. Others for great art and historic sites. Still others for beautiful scenery. Some are very religious and think seeing the Pope and visiting other Catholic sites is a reason to stay in Rome. Still other people think no trip to Italy is complete without Venice. Some people would head up to London or Paris or Berlin for 5 or 6 days or go to Greece or Spain.

What direction are you leaning in?