gate73

My wife and I have already booked our flights from the US to Venice.
We are arriving on a Sunday November 21 and returning to the US on Monday November 29.
Our plan was to stay 3-4 nights in Venice, train to Florence -3-4 nights in Florence and the last night near the airport for a morning flight out.
I have heard so many conflicting reports about Venice versus Florence that I am confused.
I am looking for some advice about how to get the most of our 8 days. We can rent a car from Florence and wander around Tuscany for a day or 2 and drive back to Venice.
Any thoughts and ideas would be appreciated.
This will be our first visit to Italy and this area.


Thank you,
Gate73

sam86

I guess the answer to your question depends on what kind of things you like doing on a vacation. Art? Cities? Smaller towns? Food? Wine?

Peter_S_Aus

Sunday November 21st is the festival of the Salute in Venice, which might be of interest. Celebrating the survival of the plague.

With eight nights, four nights in Venice, three in Florence, and then a late train for the airport hotel near Marco Polo airport would work. Or three in Venice, four in Florence.

It all depends on your interests - art, countryside, whatever.
You might consider a day trip from Florence to Siena - easy to do by train or bus (bus is better, as it saves all the uphill walk from the station at Siena to the centre of the city).
Trains run from Venice to Florence about every hour, and the trip takes about two hours.

I'm a bit of a venice nut case, returning there on November 20th, so a day before you. If you click on my name, you will find the trip report from our last visit.

bratsandbeer

If you are arriving in Venice from the states you may be very tired but it may be an idea to take the train to Florence that first day. Stay 4 nights in Florence - you can make a day trip to Pisa and Lucca or take a day tour to San Gimignano. Then train back to Venice and stay 3 nights where you will be close to the airport for flying home.

Both Florence and Venice are wonderful places to see.

greg

I would also recommend what bratsandbeer suggested to travel straight to Florence unless your Venice arrival is really late in the evening. Many first timers consume precious one evening back at the arrival city just to sync with the return flight.

Going into the heart of Venice from the Marco Polo airport is quite time consuming unless you are willing to pay for the water taxi. Marco Polo - Venice center - Santa Lucia, then Piazzale Roma - Venice center - Marco Polo, as you initially planned entails four time consuming segments. If you had gone straight to Florence, your Venice part would be Marco Polo - Mestre (fast trip), Piazzale Roma - Venice center - Marco Polo, thereby eliminating two time consuming intra Venice segments.

franco

I would be tempted to recommend what bratsandbeer and greg did (going directly to Florence, 4 nights, then to Venice, 4 nights, no need to waste the last night near the airport) - were it not for the Festa della Salute on the 21st that Peter mentioned. That's one of the best opportunities to see real Venice: a feast for Venetians, not for tourists.

gate73

want to get a feel "like a local" if that is possible for both Cities and maybe Tuscany countryside.

franco

A feel like a local, in just four days? That's going to be difficult. If you want to get a deeper insight, you'll have to stay in one place for the whole eight days, as a start and a minimum.

gate73

Greg,
Thank you for the advice. I plan on arriving in Venice around 2PM. What train would I be able to catch at Mestre. Can you make reservations ahead of time on the fast train?

gate73

jabez

Agree with going straight to Florence. Take a day trip tour to San Gimingiano or to some vineyards for a tsate of the Tuscan countryside.

Mimar

There are trains to Florence every hour from Venice Mestre. They take about 2 hours for the trip. Just buy your train ticket when you arrive at Mestre. You can't be sure which train to catch; your flight might be delayed.

I agree with jabez. Just do a day trip into the Tuscan countryside. Maybe you could hire a driver for the day? There are several recommendations on this forum.

2010

You're a better traveller than I to consider going from Venice airport to the train station & catching a train to Florence after a transatlantic flight! Don't know where you are flying from in the US but I suppose you can always nap during the train ride!

I think Venice is the perfect place to fly into, stay & get over any jetlag! It's small/compact, very walkable. There's no vehicle traffic to contend with.

After a long flight (from Vancouver, BC), we found the mid-afternoon boat ride on an Alilaguna to St Mark's Square invigorating & exciting ... it is Venice, after all! And of course, there's the approach into the Grand Canal! Breath-taking stuff!!! We settled in to our hotel and out we went for a walk & dinner!

We are flying into Venice again next May and this will be our plan!

gate73

Bologna Question- I was thinking of renting a car and driving to Sienna and around Tuscany and staying overnight in Bologna. It looks like a beautiful city and is on the way back to Venice.
Any thoughts and ideas on this plan and what should I see on drive back to Bologna.

Jean

If you don't think there is enough in Florence to interest you for 3-4 days, then I guess renting a car makes sense. However, you don't 'need' a car to get to Siena and Bologna. Keep in mind it won't be fully light until after 7:30 am and will be dark before 5:00 pm during your stay, and, if the weather's poor, driving around will be more chore than pleasure.

Another idea regarding the order of your itinerary would be to head to Bologna after landing at Venice. There are several trains in the afternoon that take less than 90 minutes.

bratsandbeer

We have rented cars and driven in many different countries but would never drive in Italy. Perhaps others have driven in this area and can tell you what to expect. Because we don't drive in Italy, we took a tour to San Gimignano from Florence. We bet the 12 passenger van close to the train station around 1:30 pm. The tour guide was great - he explained so much about SG. From there we went to a winery - they had snacks and wine tasting. We arrived back in Florence about 9 PM. There was a brochure in the hotel lobby and the hotel made the reservation for us. After checking the trains and buses etc, we felt this was the easiest way to go to SG.

We also did a day trip to Pisa from Florence. This was our second stay in Florence - you may find plenty to see in Florence without leaving the city. Be sure to visit the Santa Croce Church - it is my favorite place.