want a great trip to Italy
 

My husband and I would love a romantic trip to ItalY: want Rome and what other city? advise a good travel agent or could we choose on our own? where do we start?

You have started by coming here. While you might find a travel agent who can match the collective info you can find here, chances are "we" can serve you better, and you will have not only a marvelous trip, but a marvelous time becoming more knowledgeable and feeling the enjoyment of putting this together based on what YOU want.

1. Start with providing a little more info: how much time are you comfortable allocating? what budget? what month or season? first time to Europe? any particular affinity for Italy (family roots, field of study, hobbies, etc)?

2. Layer that with books. Go browse through a dozen at the biggest bookstore or library available to you, and choose a minimum of one lavish _picture-filled_ book, and one that you can read - - much like a novel, more than an encyclopedic collection of hotels, restaurants, museums, etc.

3. Pick one or two other _tentative_ destinations: leading candidates would be Venice, Florence, Lake Como (or Garda or Maggiore), other locations in Tuscany, the Dolomites, Sicily - - and probably a half dozen other ideas if you have a particular reason to want to add your own alternative. Do not contemplate _three_ destinations in addition to Rome unless you have more than twelve days. Now start "searching" - - this site especially, but the internet broadly speaking - - and ask increasingly more specific questions here.

It _will_ come together for you, assuming you find the thrill of discovery and learning about _your_ trip and _making_ it your trip, as so many of "us" do here. Come back often, and watch your trip come to life.

Best wishes,

Rex Bickers
Westerville, Ohio

I would recommend one of the following from Rome:

1. North to Florence and the Tuscany region, or

2. South to Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast area.

Look at one of those two regions, post the key words in the search, and you will find a lot of valuable information concerning hotels, restaurants, sites, etc.

I would lean toward the South.

You might want to visit Karen Brown's website to look at her Italian Inns and Italian bed & breakfasts, or order her books. They read like a romantic trip. J.

Having visited Italy a number of times, I would recommend including Venice if you want a romantic trip. I can honestly say I have loved every place I have been, north to south, but Venice is unique and very romantic. Happy planning!

With luck bobthenavigator will chime in, he specializes in Italian itineraries.
In the meantime, follow the advice above. The first two critical factors imo are how much time for the whole trip, and what are your interests.
You must already have some things that you've always dreamed of seeing in Italy. Michelangelo's David? Vineyards in Chianti? The Vatican in Rome?

I agree with Rex that Rome is a demanding, large, and hectic city. Spending less than 4 days there will likely leave you unsatisfied and worn out with running from sight to sight. Running from city to city, esp when Rome is in the mix, takes away from the experience of Italy, imo, since you are in the mood for a romantic trip.
There is not much romance imo in packing and unpacking every few days, spending a lot of time in train or bus stations, rushing to meet a schedule, etc.

Florence even with its myriad of museums can be skimmed in 3 days or so, unless you want to move into the Tuscany area or do daytrips there from Florence. Venice is a three-day place, and is a good place to end a trip because it is relatively tranquil. Unless you are going there in July or August when it is very very crowded.

Then there's the Amalfi Coast for coastal scenery (driving is pretty much the way to go), Naples, Capri, Sorrento. Easily doable from Rome..

Time of year may also affect your decision--many places in Italy are hot and crowded in the summer, both with international and Italian tourists.

Bob the Navigator, our wizard on planning Italian itineraries, is traveling in Spain at the moment, so I've dug up his "Favorite Italian Itineraries" post for you.

BOB the NAVIGATOR'S 5 FAVORITE ITINERARIES
_______________________________________
MAGICAL FAIRYLANDS:
* Arrive and depart from Munich--14 nites--May thru Sep.--car travel
* ITINERARY: Salzburg, Dolomites, Venice, Lake Garda, Bavarian castles

========================================

BELLA ITALIA:
* Arrive Milan, depart Venice--15 nites--car & train travel--Apr to Oct.
* ITINERARY: The Lakes, Ligurian coast, Tuscany, Florence, Venice

========================================

CLASSIC ITALIA:
* Arrive & depart Rome--12 to 14 nites--car & train travel, all year
* ITINERARY: Tuscan & Umbrian hill towns, Florence, Rome

========================================

LA DOLCE VITA:
* Arrive & depart Rome--12 nites--car & train travel--March thru Oct.
* ITINERARY: Amalfi coast, Tuscany hill towns, Rome

========================================

OF ALPS & LAKES:
* Arrive and depart Zurich--12 nites--train travel--June thru Sep.
* ITINERARY: Berner Oberland, Lugano, Lake Como, Luzern

My husband and I visited Italy twice in the last 2 years and here was our itinerary:
1st. trip: Milan, Bellagio, Sirmione, Venice, Rimini, Bologna, Florence, Pisa, Santa Margherita and back to Milan.
2nd. trip: Rome, Tuscany, Assisi, Naples, Capri, Sorrento and back to Rome.
Note: Each trip was one big circle and it worked out great. Each trip was also 2 weeks long. We rented a car both time and had no reservations except the 1st. few nights and the last night. Thanks to this web site, I had written down the names and phone #'s of recommended hotels and the then when we decided where we wanted to be the next night, I would call the hotels and it never was a problem getting a room. Well, sometimes it was a problem but it always was an adventure.
My best advice - do as much research as you can especially from this site - it's the best one I found.
Also, look at a map of Italy and see what appeals to you and go from there. You can't make a mistake as far as I'm concerned. I love Italy!