I am going to italy for 11 days in total. Fly into rome and out of venice.
Currently, I booked 4 days in rome, 2 days in cinque terre, 2 days in florence, and 3 days in venice
From what i have read, seems like florence is more of a repeat of rome more or less? I am thinking if I should skip florence? should I do tuscany instead? or should I do rome->amalfi->cinque terre->venice? Is amalfi coast more or less similar to cinque terre?
any suggestions would be welcomed.
Thanks
I would suggest 4 days in Rome, 3 days in Florence, 2 days in Cinque Terre, and 2 days in Venice in that order.
Florence is nothing like Rome and very worthy of your time. If you want to see some of Tuscany, you can do it as a day trip out of Florence. Many of the hill towns are just an hour or so out off Florence with bus and train service available. Or you could rent a car for a day and ramble through the countryside.
Save Amalfi for another trip, as it's almost 200 miles south of Rome--where your other cities are far north of Rome.
Thank you so much for the reply! Is there a reason why you would visit Florence before Cinque terre?
All of Italy is ALOT of art, churches, museums, frescoes, domes, bell towers, altar pieces, etc etc etc.
I find, even for a non religious person, that it never becomes too much of the same.
They are the ever present back drop to your Italian experience.
If you think you are becoming bored then diversionary distractions abound - coffee, pizza, gelato, pasta, wine, campari, fashion, design, gardens, beautiful people on vespas .... do I need to continue ??
Roma is not that similar to Firenze, although both are loaded with art and have a compact centro storico for walking. Firenze has few monuments or sights from the Roman period (except for Fiesole, the little town above Firenze), Roma is filled with them. So you could choose depending on what kind of things you want to see. I think 4 nights in Roma is about right for your length of trip. If you love Renaissance art, 2 nights in Firenze might be tight, especially if those nights are a Monday and Tuesday (most museums are closed on one or the other of those days).
The amount of days in each city you have now are good. You can do Florence in a day, unless you are big into art. If you really enjoy art, then I would suggest adding a day to Florence. You can use one of those days in Florence and do a day-trip into Tuscany. I did this last summer with "Fun in Tuscany" Tours and thought it was absolutely perfect! I had at least 10 wine tastings, visited two wineries and the town of San Gimignano.
I would recommend going to Cinque Terre since it's closer to Florence and Amalfi is a little out of the way. Amalfi is pretty similar to Cinque Terre considering they are both "beachy" destinations, but the culture is very different.
If you are not hugely into art museums and churches then I would cut Rome back to 3 nights. An extra night in Florence would let you get to Siena on one day.
I agree that Rome & Florence are really not that similar... each has a unique ambiance. But, if you want a little of the tuscan lifestyle, you could stay in a small village in Tuscany for a few days and take a day trip to Florence and see the iconic sights, or you could skip it completely if you prefer the countryside. I love the villages and small towns, so I would cut a day from Rome and add it to Tuscany, but that is my preference
thanks all for the reply! if I add a day to Florence and use that day for small towns in Tuscany, I would probably turn my Venice stay from 2.5 days to 1.5 days. Is 1.5 days too short for venice?
wendy,
The most efficient order for your trip is the one you listed. Don't change the order or you'll waste more time in travel. Which of the five Cinque Terre towns are you staying in?
I don't agree that "Florence is more of a repeat of Rome more or less". Each city is very different and has interesting and unique sights. Rome has some of the most famous sights such as the Vatican, Spanish Steps and Trevi Fountain, while Florence has lots of history related to Renaissance art and the wonderful Uffizai and Accademia, and of course Brunelleschi's famous "dome within a dome". With more time in Florence, you could also take a day trip to Siena (Bus is the easiest method).
The only change I'd suggest is to add one day in Florence and reduce one day in Venice.
Buon Viaggio!
Thanks Ken. I would be staying Grand Hotel Portovenere in Portovenere for Cinque terre stay. My question is that if I stay one more day in Florence, is 1.5 day good enough for Venice?
Thanks
If you do Amalfi, do not do the 5 terre.
Tuscany is big and Florence is a very good starting point because it's the Capital of Tuscany. So from Florence you can go to anywhere in Tuscany.
If you like to stay in a City and just go and see small towns or villages for one day, Florence is a good base. By the way Florence is very small, you can walk to any place, no need to take the bus or the car, very different from Rome whose City centre is really huge!! It has a length and breadth of 8 km!!!
Should you prefer to be in a small Tuscanian villages, you would probably need a car or adapt to scarce bus and trains.
Other towns such as Siena, Luca, Pisa have also very good transports. But for me Florence is a Must. You will like it.
Only a day and a half in Venice would be too little for me, but you can definitely see a lot if that is all the time you have...just make the best of it. I prefer Venice to Rome and would cut time there to spend in Venice, but others would do the reverse... No right answer here!
Wendy, if you read a guidebook about all of Italy, I don't see how it is possible to call 2.5 days too much time in Venice. Remember it's going to include checking into your hotel, two or three meals a day, and (if you are like me) often stopping to take pictures. Also, think about museum and church open hours on your travel dates.
