10 day Italy Itinerary Feedback Request

Is your husband flying into the Verona airport? What time is he supposed to land?

Speaking from experience as a wife who also has a husband who does not acclimate quickly or easily, I'd avoid changing hotels after just one night, if possible. Sirmione is beautiful, but he could just as easily recover in Verona (then do a day trip to Sirmione from there), or you could bite the bullet, and go straight to Sirmione upon arrival day.

Overall, your pace is faster than what I would prefer, but you know your travel style best. I've never been to Sorrento or Palermo, so I can't comment on those cities specifically, other than I personally would try to cut out one city (maybe Sirmione? maybe Sorrento or Palermo?) and allocate those nights elsewhere in order to cut down the number of 1 or 2 night hotel stays. Moving hotels and cities will eat up a lot of time and add stress, especially for someone who doesn't easily recovery from jetlag. Coming from the East Coast of the US, my husband takes a solid 3-4 days before he's fully acclimated, so when we travel, I know that our first few days need to be as low-key as possible. I'm sure other people on this forum can offer you better advice about Sorrento and Palermo, but that's just what jumps out at me :)

Palermo is likely where you’re entering Sicily, so that’s probably non-negotiable. But how are you getting from Sorrento to Palermo? Ferry? Train? Air? I’d imagine that any of those will involve a connection in Naples. While we stayed in Sorrento for our New Year’s 2012/13 trip, we had several nights for the general area, including seeing Pompeii, a day trip to Capri, seeing Sorrento itself, etc., etc. If Pompeii ruins are your only real objective for having a 2-night stay, consider staying in Naples. That should give you the opportunity to additionally see the National Archaeological Museum in Naples, where most of the artifacts recovered from the Pompeii ruins are actually displayed. Also, maybe visiting the ruins at Herculaneum (aka Ercolano), another ancient town buried by the same Vesuvius eruption, yet with some different results, and worth seeing. Then, you could also have actual authentic Neapolitan pizza, in the place where pizza was invented. If you had 3 or 4 nights, Sorrento might be the place to stay. But 2 nights, with Pompeii as the reason for being there? Then Naples is your place - unless you simply got a room in the next-door modern city of Pompei, to see the ancient city of Pompeii. If you’re already staying in Naples, then you’re ready to catch your ferry, train, and/or plane.

Oh, and for Rome, maybe you’re already taking care of this, but for some sights, you should get pre-reserved “skip the line” tickets, so your fast time isn’t so furious. Book your tickets now, limit time you to stand in lines, then get to your next sight. Rick Steves’ Rome (or the more general Italy) guidebook with cover the details.

Don’t pass up the chance to have gelato (I hope it’s not a dietary problem)!

I'll echo the comment to stay in Naples rather than Sorrento, if your goal is to visit Pompeii. It is a vibrant place, and it is much more convenient logistically - you can easily take a flight or ferry to Palermo from Naples.

Ok, wow great feedback, thanks Erin and Cyn we'll have to chat and review our priorities and objectives. I think reconsidering jet lag impacts will be prudent and also perhaps dropping pompei (save it for an Amalfi Coast trip), spend more time between lake Garda and Rome. So in that case, flying from Rome into Palermo. Thanks also for the pre-reserved “skip the line” tickets reminder, I have seen that in previous posts as a must do if you value your time.