My boyfriend and I are planning a trip to Italy and Greece in May 2011. We plan to spend just 3 days in Athens and then fly to Venice. I know 10 days (excluding travel) isn't a lot of time,so I was looking for some advice on maximizing this trip. Ideally, I would like to go from Venice to Tuscany (possibly Sienna as a base) and then Rome. I really wanted to go to Almafi, but I don't think it's feasible in 10 days. Couple of questions: How long should I spend in each city? Struggling with the Tuscany leg of the trip. I really want to spend several days in the hills of Italy. If we use Sienna as a base, which specific hilltowns should we visit?I've read such great things about Montepulciano.
Do we just do a day trip and briefly visit multiple towns or do we some overnight trips? Any advice you have would be much appreciated!
Posted by
Forest Grove, OR
11302 posts
In 10 days, Venice, Tuscany and Rome are feasible. I'd say 3 nights Venice, 3 in Siena and 4 nights Rome. You can day trip out of Siena to many hill towns: San Gimignano, Volterra, Montalcino, Pienza, Montelpulciano. Maybe do one day to San Gimignano and Volterra (same direction) and the second day to Pienza, Montelpulciano, Montalcino (lovely drive in between). Rome is spectacular and complicated, and deserves the extra time, IMHO. Take a train to Siena from Venice, rent a car in Siena for the day trips, then train to Rome. Amalfi is too much in this amount of time. Just remember: You will be back!
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32200 posts
Christine, Could you clarify one point - do you have 10-days for the entire trip (including Athens) or 10-days for the Italy portion? In reading your post, my impression is that the Tuscany / Siena portion is a fairly important part of your trip. If that's true, I'd suggest 2 days in Venice, ~3-4 days in Siena (with day trips) and 4-5 days in Rome (adjust Siena & Rome times according to preference). Amalfi is definitely out of the question with such a short time frame (unless you drop one of the other locations). I'd suggest focusing on Rome and the north on this trip. Cheers!