More time in Italy v quick trip to Vienna?

It would be helpful to know how much time you have already allocated for you trip.

Responses will be different if its 3 day out of a 10 trip or 3 days out of a 21 day trip

Um - it’s about a month in total, but nearly three weeks of that is between London, Paris, Switzerland and Croatia.

So I guess it’s three nights out of about ten for Italy..... and yep, I think I made up my mind already. More Italy it is!!

Only desperation would drive me to take two night trains over the course of three nights, so I like your decision. Also, if you mean you were originally planning ten days for Rome, Pompeii, Venice, Florence and Milan, I'd say you need more time for that itinerary as it is.

A trip to Vienna isn't quick. Vienna is quite distant to the east. General Metternich once told that Vienna is so eastern that Asia begins at Landstrasse (i.e. just past Vienna's old city walls).

I would allocate the time to Italy, you are already covering a lot in a little time in that country.

I'm voting more time for Italy as well. And having said that, I vote Tuscany over the coast, but that's just me. Your interests may be vastly different from mine.

Have a wonderful trip!

You probably need those 3 nights just to give yourself enough time for the Italian spots that you already plan to hit. That is a LOT of ground to cover.

Oh my gosh, Italy, Italy, Italy. Even if I had 4 weeks just in Italy, I wouldn't give up a weekend . . . though I thoroughly enjoyed Vienna. I'm actually in Bangkok right now, but I met an Italian couple this afternoon (adjoining tables over coffee) and I was reminded of all the wonderful places I've been to in Italy in the last few years. If you are stuck for a place, stop in Bologna between Florence and Venice . . . or just spend more time in each. I never have enough time in either.

Thanks - wow, pretty unanimous!!!

Definitely going to spend a bit more time in Italy. Thinking that - Instead of spending one of my “Rome” days for a daytrip to Pompeii, I’ll spend the extra day to explore Rome a bit more leisurely - then will head down past Naples, and stay a couple nights down there, so that I can have a full day to explore Pompeii (and if I’m all done in three hours, I’ll head to Sorrento for the afternoon),

I can’t quite decide whether I’d rather head straight up towards Venice after that - so that I end up with two nights in Venice, and can have a bit more time to explore Venice - or if I’d rather stop in Florence along the way?

I would rather have two nights in Venice than one in Venice and one in Florence. I'd say the same thing if the choice were between 2 nights in Florence and splitting the time. Time spent checking into and out of hotels is a total loss.