we are staying with another family at at Villa in CAMAIORE ITALY near Pisa in Tuscany - our first trip to Italy. My husband is eager to see Vatican. is it possible or advisabile to take a day trip to Rome?
Well it is technically possible to take a day trip but I wouldn't advise it. I think (some doubts here) it o/a an hour's trip if you don't get on a milk run train and o/a $80 round trip. That said we're probably still talking a really long day here. Better for him to go, spend the night and come back the next afternoon. This would allow for Italian train screw-ups/strikes, long waiting lines and so on and so forth. A whole day would allow him to see a bit more and better as well.
I would agree, book a room and try to get 2 days out of it.
If you cannot, then mentally prepare for a long day, bring a book for the train, and wear comfortable shoes!
Different types of trains go from Pisa to Rome. The Regionale (R) trains take 4.0hrs for this journey. The Eurostars take 2.5hrs. The suggestion is to at least take the Eurostars if you want the day trip to Rome from Pisa. Looking at current schedules, the first ES out of Pisa departs at 7:32am and arrives at Rome Termini at 10:00am. Not bad. The Vatican is a few stops away on the Metro from Rome Termini. Just make sure to line up any reservations that you may need as your time will be limited. The last ES*fast out of Rome Termini for Pisa departs at 18:00 and gets you back into Pisa at 20:25. That gives you about 6.0-7.0hrs in Rome.