VENICE & FLORENCE
 

Plan to stay a week in each city, take roundtrip train from one city. Which city would best to start from. better airports. etc.??

You could start in either, but we did Florence first and then Venice and found it to be a great route.

Florence is a bit busier than Venice so we felt that doing the busier half of the trip was better, and we enjoyed relaxing in Venice afterward.

You can fly into one city and out of the other and the price shouldn't be much different (if at all), but it will save you a lot of time. With a week in each you will also have a lot of time for daytrips.

That should have read "busier half of the trip first..." in relation to Florence before Venice.

I'd fly into Venice, train to Rome, fly out of Rome. Why backtrack to your first city? I'd do Venice first as it is more laid back to visit, and Rome second since it is much bigger and more hectic paced.

If you're only doing Florence and Venice and want to fly in and out of one, I would suggest Florence. If you have an early flight, it can be a little tricky getting to the airport in Venice for an early flight.

I have a question.....do you plan a lot of day trips from Venice? If not, I wouldn't suggest a week in Venice. A few days is the most you need.

Venice is good for 3 days...arrive, settle in, wander, see the major sites like San Marco's and Doge Palace, take a boat around the city (regular vaporetto water bus is good); go to some churches and museums; enjoy. Florence, likewise, is excellent. Time there depends on how much art and architecture you want to absorb (there's a lot!). We enjoyed a day trip from Florence over to Sienna. If you haven't been to Rome, then by all means cut a couple of days off of Venice and Florence and make it a three-city tour...the Vatican Museum and St. Peter's Basilica and the Roman Forum...simply incredible.

Sorry, don't know how Rome got into my post above. Guess was thinking mostly about the (no) need to return to your arrival city. Secondly, a week in Venice is not too long IMO. I've been twice, 5 days both trips, and that was a minimum to me.

I'm with Suze, 5 days is not too much for Venice, and there are lots of day-trip opportunities if you feel the need.

Four days in Venice wasn't enough for us on our last trip so we are planning a week the next time. I do agree that three days can be enough for some people, though. It just depends on your interests and if you enjoy a quieter, more laid back city.