Venice, Florence, Rome

Are you familiar with open jaw/multi-city flights? You might want to do that rather than getting a round trip ticket.

It’s a good idea to add a bit of time on your own on both ends of the trip, especially the front end, so you’ll have a chance to acclimate and get over jet lag before the tour starts. The Rick Steves company will be notifying you of the first and last hotels on the tour, so you can try to book them for your time on your own, if you wish. You might also want to figure out things you want to do during your independent time, particularly things that aren’t included on the tour.

One thing I learned staying in all 3 Italian cities are that church bells ring early.

ALWAYS validate your train tickets.

Carry some cash.

Learn a few words of Italian

Thank you → Grazie
Please → Per favore / Per piacere
You’re welcome → Prego
Excuse me → Scusi
How much does it cost? → Quanto costa?
Do you speak English? → Parla Inglese?
Restaurant → Ristorante
The check → Il conto
Where is the bathroom? → Dov’é il bagno?

anything I need to know about?

Venice, Florence, Rome are not in Germany