Italy trip and budget.

Without knowing what they want to see, sights, how they want to eat (restaurants, lots of wine, etc) it is hard say. That said, if she won't use tour guides, have her husband do so and keep on posting on this site. Between the two, could save them so much and make trip so much more fun. Just a small example: they are going from Naples to Pompeii via train to see the ruins and get off train at the stop that says Pompeii. Oh, big mistake, this stop is for the center of town. Now they have to wait for next train to the stop by the ruins and have wasted an hour. Is it worth it??? Without tour books where are they going to figure out to stay etc? Tour books are not fool proof but at least it gives a guideline. Keep us posted.

Assuming that two weeks means 14 nights, that's $428 a night between the two of them, or $214 each. That's well above my budget for Europe, and accommodation is more expensive for singles. Of course, if they don't use any guidebooks, all bets are off!

thank you guys for the reply. well.... i know that they will never use tour guide book(i know them very well haha... my sister only reads things from a medical journal )anyways, i want it to be happy experiance for them and i was wondering how they can arrange tour guides at least for one day in Rome and Florence. I guess for the rest of their trip i have to do the planning for them... :)

Last years trip to Italy (my first time there), we spent a total of approx 6-7K, for 2 people, including airfare. We went at the end of November, which allowed us to get some serious hotel room discounts, plus cheaper airfare. We did Milan, Florence, Siena, Assisi, Rome, Venice in a time span of 16 nights. My budget was a total of 200 euros a day, for the 2 of us. In cities like Milan, Siena, and Assisi, we didn't even come close to spending a 100 euros a day, so that would roll over into the next city. But we did not use any type of guide (except for a 1/2 day tour of Chianti and San Gimignano), we used our RS guide book.

Looks like you will be the travel agent. That said, get Europe through back door, his Italy book and watch his videos as well. Also look at Graffiti Wall for tips and good luck.

Why don't they sign up for a Rick Steve's Tour if you are going to be doing their itinerary anyways. It would save you the hassle, and they could stretch their money a bit better. They will have to be more picky on what places to see, but at least everything is taken care of for them.

Fa Sounds like she really wants an itinerary and services so she does not have to worry about anything. That is not going to happen on $6000. If she does not want to read a guide book and use its recommendations, she is telling you she needs private guides in every destination. Unless she just wants to wander in these cities. A private guide will cost $500 plus for 6 or more hours. There are small group walking tours in Rome and Florence that are much less expensive. Check out RS Italy 2011 for recommendations. Budget mainly depends on what level of accommodations they want. Top 3* hotels are probably $300 to $350 per night in all of those areas at that time. Maybe more. If she is a physician, more upscale, wants a 4* hotel, and private guides, 1st class train travel and foodie restaurants then $6000 is way too little. Ask her what brand of hotel she likes in major US cities. This will give you a clue as to what level of hotel she is comfortable in. Note US hotel brands are way expensive in Europe, ie, Marriott and Hilton. Itinerary: I would skip Pisa, it takes too long to get there from Florence to be worth the short time it takes to view the Tower. Also, the Amalfi Coast and Capri are likethis and you can take a day trip (or less) from the Amalfi coast to Capril. I do not envy your role. If I were you, I would hand it off to a travel agent who can give them realistic expectations. You are in a lose / lose situation. Good luck. Bobbie

I agree with Bobby. If they are not willing to do any research they are in for a lot of surprises and not the good kind. You won't win by enabling them and anything that goes wrong will be your fault. Good luck. $6000 for two weeks in Italy is reasonable. It depends on hotels and how much time is spent in the cities.

Fa, I have to agree with the others that the travel methods proposed by your sister and her husband are likely not going to work well in reality. If you read your post correctly, they're planning to visit four cities, one region and one island in a span of 14-days and without reading any Guidebooks. That's an average of 2.3-days per location, with no allowances for travel times (which will be at least half a day each time they change locations, and sometimes more). This will likely be a memorable trip, but not of the "good" kind, and as Richard said "anything that goes wrong will be your fault". As some of the others mentioned, I'd also suggest skipping Pisa as it's not worth the time with such a limited time frame just to see the Tower. Have they booked flights yet? Using open-jaw flights (into Venice, out from Rome) would be the best option. I suggested those two cities as there should be good availability of flights, even in October. Have you showed them any of the comments listed here? I think it's time they had a serious "reality check". Good luck!

That sounds like it would be way more then enough money for two weeks. I am planning on going to Amsterdam, Germany and Italy for three weeks next year and only plan to have a little over $3,000 for my trip and that includes day trips as well as transportation to get between cities and staying in hostels as well as money for each day. I know that will be plenty for my trip. So $6,000 should be enough but they could always save a bit more for the trip cause it is always better to have more then enough money then not enough when travelling.

Fa, I think it's time for some tough love with your sister and brother-in-law. WHY are you doing everything for her, when it sounds like she's perfectly competent to do things for herself? As someone said, if things go wrong, she'll blame you. If she doesn't want to use a guidebook, show her this helpline and then let her do what she wants. I definitely wouldn't get in the middle of this!