Oktoberfest 2017

I went to Oktoberfest back when I was in my 20's. It was fun then but I have zero desire to go now that I am older. And never for 3 days! But that is me. I am not even that enthused about Munich either. Hotels etc are going to be expensive and hard to come by during Ocktoberfest. I ended up having to stay in Augsburg and training into Munich back then. Personally, I would take two days from Oktoberfest and add them to Venice, Florence or Rome. Pisa you can visit from Florence. No need to stay there. How many nights will you be in Europe?
As to your other questions: first get a couple of good guidebooks. Rick's books are good. Have you watched his shows? The guidebooks have hotel and restaurant recommendations. Also for hotels, check out Booking.com, Tripadvisor, etc. for ratings and reviews then go directly to the hotel website to book.
Communicate in English or preferably in German or Italian. At least, learn a few commonly used phrases. I downloaded a language program from my library (Mango). For money, use ATMs same as you would here. Don't bring dollars with the plan to buy Euros there. That is a waste of money. Again, Rick's books will tell you how to deal with the money thing.
Places to visit will be covered in the guidebooks. For travel, you will be going to an area that is well covered by trains. Do not get a rail pass. Buy tickets through the railways themselves or use Rick's site that has a section devoted to buying rail tickets. It is really easy and train travel in Europe if fast, easy and convenient.
Finally, come back to this site for more specific questions about hotel choices, places to see, etc. There are MANY folks here who have traveled extensively in Europe or who live there.

I forgot to mention... when booking flights, fly into Munich and out of Rome. Use the multi-city function when checking out flight options.

I have a different opinion of Munich than cbrochu30- it's one of my favourite cities in Europe. I've been there on four different trips, including twice during Oktoberfest in the past five years (I'm 65 now). There's plenty in and around Munich to keep you busy for three days even without going to the Theresienwiese, where the big party takes place. However, "Oktoberfest" and "budget-friendly" are terms that don't normally appear in the same sentence. Prices for hotels and apartments more than double during the fest, and they book up very early- now is not too soon to start looking. Munich has a great transit system, especially their ubahn (subway), so don't feel you have to locate right in the popular central core of the city. You may find cheaper accommodations farther out (although Augsburg is a little TOO far). On one trip I stayed in the tiny Hotel Uhland, only a block from the Oktoberfest grounds. It was quite comfortable and a reasonable price, but that was in May, not Oktober.
For travel from Munich to Venice, you can check train schedules and buy tickets from bahn.com, the German rail site. For trains within Italy, trenitalia.com serves a similar purpose. Note that you usually can't buy train tickets more that 60 to 90 days in advance, but you can get an idea of schedules and prices by plugging dates two months from now. And by all means, use trains to get around if you are only planning to visit the large cities mentioned (with the possible exception of Munich to Venice, which is a long train ride- check skyscanner.com for possible cheap flights). I know you'll get lots of great suggestions from some of the regulars on this forum, so keep checking back.
Happy travels!

"We are planning on flying from Atlanta to Munich, going to Oktoberfest for 3 days... I have no idea where to start, safe and budget friendly places to stay and eat."

Since your focus is mostly Italy and budget is a concern, I'd probably skip the Munich frenzy. Besides the very high hotel costs and the €10 O'fest beers, you will also need to pay for transport to Italy, and possibly more for an open-jaws flight.

Have you been to Germany before? If you're looking for a brief "intro" visit, I'd consider flying into Frankfurt and spending 3 days near there in the Middle Rhine Valley where you'll find a collection of medieval castles, dozens of old-world villages - and in September, smaller wine fests every weekend.

Bacharach
Oberwesel fest
Marksburg
Rheinstein
River cruises

We stayed in St. Goar (home of Rhinefels Castle) at the Rhineview apt. a few years ago; current prices are still under €50/night. The Hotel am Markt serves Schnitzel with a side for around €10. My favorite spot there is Alla Fontana.

Fly to Italy from FRA or from Frankfurt Hahn airport (Ryanair.)

with the possible exception of Munich to Venice, which is a long train ride
Munich to Venice is one of the most beautiful train journeys I know in Europe: right through the mountains via de Brenner Pass. The direct train takes some 6,5 hours. Without all the time lost with getting to and from airports, checking-in and waiting at the luggage belt, it is hardly slower than flying and so much more comfortable. When bought in advance, tickets can be as cheap as EUR 39.

We lived in Augsburg, which is 50 miles west of Munich and a short train ride. During the fest, even the hotels in Augsburg fill up. If you haven't booked a hotel, I suggest you do so.
We visited the fest three times and always loved it. Did the parade once and it was great, with all the beer wagons pulled by horses and wonderful costumes of the people. However, because of the crowds, you need to stake out a place on the street some time before the parade. I think we stood there for an hour and a half before the parade.

As for the fest itself, it really gets rolling later in the evening, but we always went before that. Yes, we did drink a lot more beer than we should have, but it was great. I averaged four or five liter sized steins of beer. There are about 20 tents that you can visit. I like Hacker-Pschorr, Pauline and Spaten the most.
Three days might be too much, consider cutting to two.
You can do Italy easily by train, take the train from Munich to Venice, then down to Florence and Rome. Pisa is a bit out of the way and you could do it before or after Rome. There is not much to see in Pisa except for the tower and surrounding buildings.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leaning_Tower_of_Pisa.

You will need Euros, best to acquire them using ATMs. I always take about $300 US cash as backup. You can use credit cards easily in Europe.
For Venice, I recommend that you find a hotel near the main train station (also near the old Jewish section). You can walk to St. Mark's square. Hotels close to the square are expensive and getting your luggage there is struggle.
For Florence, I highly recommend the Hotel Balesteri, which is on the Arno river, near the city center.

For Rome, I suggest staying in the area close to the Pantheon.
You probably need three nights in Venice, four in Florence, perhaps one in Pisa and as many as you can get for Rome.

As for things to see, suggest you use TripAdvisor that will advise you on hotels and things to do.
In Venice, you want to see St. Mark's Cathedral, go up in the nearby tower, take a gondola ride, visit the Doge's Palace, stroll the city as there is more to see there.
Florence, I love the Academia museum which had David and other great works. The Uffizi Museum is great if you have time. Take a walking tour of the city and be sure to walk up to the top of the Doumo. There is another church to see were Galilio, Dante and many famous people are buried as well.

Rome, the list is long. Don't miss the Sistine Chapel, which to me is the most wonderful and amazing work or art in the World. Also, St Peter's, the ancient Roman sites like Coliseum, Forum, Pantheon, Hadrian's Mausoleum, Trevia Fountain, Spanish Steps and a lot more.

For more advice about Oktoberfest you should post in the Germany section as well. There is also a lot of advice on places to stay in previous topics so search for those as well.

My one piece of advice is book hotels now. I've already booked Motel One Ost for next year at 194€/night and hotels only go up from there.

DJ

Purchasing Rick Steve's Europe Through the Back Door, or region specific travel books would be a good start or any other travel companies product.
If 3 days in Munich is your goal, you do not necessarily need to spend the entire time at Oktoberfest itself. If you have not done so, you can visit both of the Ludwig Castles, http://www.neuschwanstein.de/englisch/tourist/index.htm, http://www.hohenschwangau.deeither, by train on your own or through a tour, such as www.viator.com offers.
I did your Italy trip a few years ago, but in reverse, Rome, Florence, Pisa for the day and then Venice. The train service I used in Italy was Italo, http://www.italotreno.it/en, a commercial own company. I really enjoyed their service, Prima for Rome to Florence and Club Executive for Florence to Venice. There are daily trains from Florence to Pisa, so you can purchase the tickets the day you wish to see Pisa, it is about an hour ride from Florence and just under a 30-minute walk from the train station to the Leaning Tower.
Remember that you may have to use the Italian wording for your locations/stations: Rome Terminal (Roma Termini), Rome Tiburtina Station (Roma Tib.), Florence Santa Maria Novella Station (Firenza SMN) & Venice Santa Lucia Station (Venezia S. Lucia).
Enjoy your trip.

Thank you so much for your help. I will be looking into it all. I have been looking at hotels in Munich already and hope to have one booked this week. We are meeting friends there so it's the main reason for the trip. I am planning on seeing some castles, towns, scenery and shopping too. We might just do the fest 2 evenings. My husband mentioned renting a car but I'd rather do the trains and I don't mind walking. I hope to pack light but that's hard with shopping!! We have been to Germany, myself just a couple days and my husband has been there several times and all over the world but was always working he has done Oktoberfest a few times. He has not been to Italy neither have I, so we want to do that. I am looking forward to the train ride through Austria and seeing as much as I can. I love any help, tips and suggestions.

Munich is fun during Oktoberfest even if you do not go to the festival itself.

Hotel Uhland is a good place to stay as you can walk to the grounds. Double rooms there are €239 and they are available during Oktoberfest except over the weekend. I recall they require an advance deposit but I could not find the details on their website.

http://www.hotel-uhland.de/enwelcome.html