I am traveling to Italy and France in July 2010. We arrive in Venice on the 20th of July and fly out of Paris on the 31st.
We have not booked any internal schedules but would like to spend a few days in Venice, Rome, and Paris. If we can include Florence in that time - that would be great!
There are 7 traveling: 1 Adult and 6 youths (15,15,15,16,18,18).
Ideas??
Well the good thing about youth is that you will save a lot of money on train tickets. It is not worth it to get a rail pass, or maybe you could get a savers pass. I am going to Rome and Venice in March and in Rome you should buy a Roma pass. It gives you 3 days of unlimited bus and metro and gets you into 2 attractions for free and right in front of the line and discounts on the rest. With Kids so young, limit your sightseeing, kids get tired quickly.
If you like art, I wouldn't pass up Florence! It was beautiful. I liked Venice a lot, but my fiancee and I felt the 2 days we were there was plenty. I would scale down Venice and add Florence. I think the kids will really like Rome. Lots to see and keep you busy and yes... use the Metro, super cheap!
Is flying into Venice set? If not, fly into Rome and work your way north. Flying into Venice, heading south and then back north takes away quite a bit of your time. You have 11 days so you need to be creative with your travel time if you're going to cover everything. I count the day you arrive since you can put in a full day if you don't give in to the temptation to take a nap at the hotel. Also, travel in the late afternoon when possible. That way you don't lose your best sightseeing hours riding the train. So, fly into Venice, spend 1 or 2 nights in Venice and leave late in the afternoon or early evening of the 2nd or 3rd day. Personally,two days in Venice are enough for me and I'd stop in Florence on the way to Rome but if that's not something your interested in, divide the rest of your time equally between Rome and Paris. You'll lose a day since the trip is 11 - 16 hours depending on the train taken. This will give you 4 days each in Rome and Paris.
