10 Days in Italy, summer 2016

michael,

My first suggestion would be to drop Sorrento from the list. While it may be feasible, I'm not sure the short time there will be worth the effort. Also, staying one night in Venice will in reality only provide a few hours in one afternoon & evening for actual sightseeing.

Unless there's something you specifically want to see in Milan, I'd skip that. Another option you could consider is to fly inbound to Venice (2 nights), train Florence (4 nights, with one or two day trips) and finish in Rome (4 nights, with one or two day trips which could include Pompeii or Sorrento).

For travel in summer, it would be a good idea to pre-book all accommodations. If you haven't travelled in Italy before, you'll also need to do some research on using trains and other public transit, as there are some potentially expensive "caveats" to be aware of. You may find it helpful to have a look at the RS Italy 2016 guidebook, which you can probably find in your local Library or larger book stores.

I would also skip Milan for another time.
Why do not you fly directly into Venice? It might save. you tiredness and time on your first day. There is so much to see in Venice and 2 full days are not too many.
Venice you either walk it or sail it (rather gondole it or vaporet it), no cars in Venice nor buses. Vaporetto boats are the local bus. There are much to see in the museums, but also take time to stop and admire the architecture, Ponte Rialto, the Doges Palace and all the little squares, churches, markets, the atmosphere, go one night to the Fenice theatre, go and see the Lido and the Venitian islands so as to get a glimpse of what the Venitian soul is about. If you are sportive, try to learn how to drive a gondola..
In Florence which I know quite well, 4 days is a minimum, especially if you take Florence as a base city to also visit the nearby city of Sienna ( try to see the Pallio, reserve it now if there around 14August). The cathedral is a marval as well as its library.
Florence is wonderful! You can stay there one month and will not have seen everything yet. Main things are Pitti Palace with its Boboli Gardens, academia Uffizi. Then make sure to go to Piazza Della signoria and d'amore the fountain and the David sculpture by Micchelangelo. Visit also Chuch Santa Croce, the Duomo, Campanile. Take also the time to go to markets.
4 days in Rome is a minimum. The city is big, although I love to walk it specially in the summer. If you are also looking for some accommodation, let me know., I might be able to help.

I agree, and would also urge you to leave Milan out of your plans this time. Five places in Italy over ten days is not even something the high volume bus tour companies would offer. Allow some time to breathe along the way ...
Venice (2) >> Florence (2) >> Sorrento (3) >> Rome (3)
With 3 nights in Sorrento you have more time to consider trips to Capri, Positano, Pompeii, Naples.

We did "almost" this exact trip in June 2015. Milan-->Venice-->Florence-->Rome-->Pompeii (Then back to Milan to go to Lake Como for a day).

We took the RS 10 day tour and added a few days after that to do things on our own.

I agree...don't do much in Milan. As soon as landed, we took the fast train to Venice.

Out of the cities, I loved Venice and Varenna (Lake Como) the most. Get up really early in Venice...before the tourist start milling around and walk the city. What a miracle of engineering.

The RS book followed a lot of what they did on the tour. Get the book and research, I won't go into detail about sites in each city.

I will offer some good advice....whatever "major" sites you pick in each city, make sure to get tickets or passes in advance. We went in June and it was very busy.

Another piece of advice....find a good local guide for the major sites. Our guides made the tour worth it for us. They are full of information and pointed us to the "most" important pieces, paintings, etc. in each gallery or museum. Do it, you will agree with me...it's worth it.

We did similar number of places in 3 weeks last year and it was still rushed. I strongly suggest you prioritise, otherwise your memories will be of public transport and not much else.

For only 10 days (9 nights?) 4 cities is too much. Most of what you will see is the inside of a train (remember it takes time to get to the train station, too), after you have checked out of a hotel, and before you have checked into the next hotel. Try to think of your trip in nights, not days, since days are spent traveling, not sightseeing.

Venice deserve more than one day, Milan, not so much. Fly into Venice for 3 nights, skip Milan. There is plenty to see and do, including visiting Murano, Burano, and Torcello.

Next onto Florence for 3 nights. You can always day trip to Siena, Pisa, or Lucca.

Rome for 3 nights before you fly out. You can day trip to Orvieto if you wish. Skip Sorrento this trip, it deserves more time, also.

Are you flying out of Rome?

First, plan your trip by nights rather than days. A night is always a night, a day can be 2-16 hours of available time for sightseeing, depending on how much of the day is taken up with travel, hotel changes, playing catch-up if things go wrong, etc. I guess the first question is, how much time do you have?

So, if you arrive in Milano in the morning, you can see quite a bit that first day, spend the night, and take the train to Venezia (I would spend two nights there). Two nights in Firenze, then go to Sorrento for two nights so you can fly out of Roma (and spend your last nights there, three would be good since getting there from Sorrento will take about 3 hours including waiting time for train changes). That comes out to ten nights, compared to your day count of eight days, which gives you almost no time to see anything, anywhere.

In fact for such a short trip, I would do Venice (2-3 days), Florence (3 -4 full days), Rome ( 4 days)
I did not add Sorento, Naples Amalfi, although I really love these places, because I think it is best to see them in Spring, whereas in Venice, you often have aqua Alta in the winter and in spring, so it is best to take your time in Venice in Summer. When in Summer are you going?

Consider that when you go from place to place, you will have your luggage with you. If you do not spend at least one night in a place, you must make sure there's luggage storage in the train station. If you are staying the night, you have to go from the train to the hotel to drop your luggage before anything else.

Day 1 - Land in Milan in the morning (?) after an all-night flight from (???). You are jetlagged and probably haven't slept long or well on the flight. It takes at least an hour to get through the airport, then an hour to get into Milan by train or bus, then 1/2 hour to get to your hotel to check in, if your rooms are ready. You still haven't slept, you have about 1/2 day to sightsee, have dinner, try to get a good night's sleep.

Day 2 - full day in Milan

Day 3 - Up at 7 (?), packed, breakfasted, checked out and ready to go to the train at 8.30. Take the 9.35 train to Venice, arrive at 12.10. If you don't get too lost and are fairly staying close to the train station, you'll be able to drop your luggage and be ready to see Venice at 1.00.

Day 4 - Up at 7.30 (?), packed, breakfasted, checked out and ready to go to the train before 9. Take the 9.05 train to Florence, arrive at 11.30. You should be able to get to your hotel in a few minutes, drop your luggage and start sightseeing by noon.

Day 5 - full day in Florence

Day 6 - Up at 7.30 (?), packed, breakfasted, checked out and ready to go to the train at 8.45. Take the 9.08 train to Rome, arrive at 10.40. You should be able to start sightseeing before noon.

Day 7 - full day in Rome

Day 8 - Up at 7.30 (?), packed, breakfasted, checked out and ready to go to the train at 8.45. Take the 9.20 train to Naples. Arrive at 10.32, 15 minutes to get to the Circumvesuviana train and buy tickets, then up to 30 minutes wait for the train that takes 1 to 1-1/2 hours to get to Sorrento. 1/2 day in Sorrento.

Day 9 - full day in Sorrento

Day 10 - leave Sorrento at ??? going to ???

There's really not much time to sightsee. If you want to save time and money, you'll buy non-refundable train tickets in advance. Otherwise, you'll have to allow enough time at the train stations to buy tickets (lines can be frustratingly long, even for machines). Allow time for laundry. If you plan to stay in hostels, make sure you'll be able to drop your luggage in the middle of the day, before check-in hours.