12 days in Italy

Given your short trip (I assume you have 12 days there, not including arrival or departure days), and all the other things you want to do, 5 days in Rome seems like too long to me; maybe shave that down to to 3. I'd also take a day away from Florence. Pisa doesn't need a whole day, maybe combine it with...I dunno, where else makes sense?

I'd skip Naples entirely. Instead, I'd go (by train) to Sorrento (OK you go through Naples...) and spend a few nights there in Sorrento (take these days from Rome/Florence). Sorrento is lovely (and in November, it'll be your best chance for anything close to "warm"). and it makes a perfect/easy base for days trips to Pompei, Capri, and the Amalfi Coast. I'd gladly trade any day (or part of a day) in Naples for Sorrento, Amalfi or Capri.

Day trips are great, and it's nice to have a base, but remember that when you do places by day-trip, you're there with all the other day-trippers.

Hope that helps.

One thing, check prices and schedules for both to Rome and out of Venice and the reverse. Venice often has issues with having to be at the airport very early to get a flight connecting at another European hub for the flight home. Rome has a lot of flights to North America late morning, so it does not usually have that problem.

Pompei is a very long and potentially expensive day trip from Rome, but doable. If you want a day trip to a Tuscan winery, do that from Florence, since Florence is the capital of Tuscany. Maybe add a day to Florence and take on away from Rome for that.

A wine trip into Tuscany should be done from Florence, not from Rome.

Lucca and Pisa can be combined as a day-trip from Florence, though I think most people here will agree that Lucca is the place worth the most time. Someone suggested going to Lucca first and hitting Pisa around mid-afternoon, as the bus tours are beginning to depart. However, I don't know whether you have to pick up a timed ticket in Pisa (for climbing the tower??); that might make arriving late in the afternoon a problem.

I loved walking around Rome, semi-aimlessly, so I don't agree that it should be done quickly. It's a great place to explore. There are some really major sights there that require either advance purchase of tickets (Vatican Scavi tour, early admission to the Vatican Museums, specialty tours of the Colosseum, Domus Aurea, Borghese Gallery) or other crowd-management techniques. Rushing the visit doesn't make dealing with those constraints any easier.

I do absolutely believe the folks who say a day-trip to Pompeii from Rome will be very tiring. However, you won't have to worry about extreme heat in November--a big plus.

Our first trip to Europe was to Rome to visit our daughter who was studying there. We were there 10 days, and barely scratched the surface.

Day trip to Pisa? IMO, Siena would be my first choice. Lucca, my second. I LOVE Sorrento - spend about a week there every year (but in June when I know it'll be warm). Venice, for me, is a place I can't get enough of. This will be year 10 in Venice. I stay about a week each year and always leave with a list of things I promise to do next year either for the first time or again (and again and again). Venice just does not get 'old' for me. Rome is a good base for Pompeii and Sorrento. Florence is a short (on the Freccia line) train ride north - that could be another base for your day trips in Tuscany. Venice is yet another fairly short train ride north. Sounds like a lot of time on the train - no but packing and unpacking can make the day feel unproductive. Just tell yourselves "it's ok, we're on vacation" and maybe it won't feel so bad! I did say "maybe." Whatever you do, wherever you go, I'm sure it will be a wonderful experience for the two of you!

If you want to day trip from Rome, go to Orvieto. They have wineries, too. It's a little over an hour by train. For a day trip from Florence, try Siena, Less than an hour by bus.

I keep seeing forums that say that Rome is best done quickly.

Hi there -
This is confusing to me. Can you explain a little what doing it "quickly" means? Did you mean doing it at the front of a longer trip or sightseeing it at breakneck pace?

OK, your 12 days...
How much time you'll actually have is more accurately counted by number of nights you'll have on the ground in Italy. If I was to venture a guess, your current plan would give you 5 nights/4.5 days in Rome, as arrival days are partials and often jet-lagged hazes at that. Subtracting travel time between cities, you'd have 4 nights/3.5 days in Florence and 2 nights/1.5 days in Venice.

So my thoughts are:
I don't think 5 nights is too many for Rome as that would give you 4 FULL days. I probably would not do Pompeii as it's a long day from Rome and daylight will be short in November. If you want to see an interesting excavation, I'd go to Ostia Antica instead and save Naples/Pompeii for a future Sorrento/Amalfi Coast trip as O. A. is much closer to Rome. I personally would not plan any other day trips as you'll find PLENTY in Rome itself to fill the remaining 3 full days - we've spent much longer there without running out of things to do - but you could replace O.A. with Orvieto.

Florence: you definitely want to do your Tuscany wine tour from there as Florence is IN Tuscany so that leaves you 2.5 days. We found a lot to see in that one over 5 days so I probably wouldn't do Pisa but if intent on one more day trip, I'd probably do Siena or Lucca. Some folks have combined Lucca and Pisa into a one-day trip but again, daylight will be short in November. Anyway, 2 day trips would only leave you 1.5 days for Florence itself; not very much You might want to rethink the winery tour and just visit nice enotecas in the city itself?

Five years ago we did our first European trip, to Italy and covered Venice, Florence & Rome in 10days(2-3-5). Deer-in-the-headlights! We’re going back now with our grown son(& his girlfriend)for 7 days in Rome as the first trip barely touched the hilites! Venice was a blink and you missed it.(and it poured our one full day). We did find a bus tour from Florence that did Siena/winery/Pisa in late afternoon(light was fantastic)and enjoyed that(our favourites in Florence were David, piazzale Michelangelo at sunset and Porcellini leather market). Rome we did tours of the Vatican museum/sistine chapel(really hot even in late september with no a/c) colosseum/forum/palatine hill, night walk from spanish steps- piazza navona-trevi fountain-pantheon. This time we’re doing St.peters(missed the first time with a papal event),
Borghese Gallery(we stumbled into beautiful Borghese Gardens the first time by accident), Catacombs, day trips to Pompeii/Amalfi Coast and separately to Naples for a free walking tour, Aventine Hill, Castel Sant Angelo and walking the forum/palatine hill at our own pace while the kids do a colosseum tour. Plus some local markets and strolling along the tiber and catching a local bus up to Janiculum Terrace in the evening for the view over rome. Most “sights/sites” are only about a half hour walk from the central area of rome(we’re staying on the tiber just across in Trastevere); we found rome a very interesting city to walk. And we’re looking forward to this trip just as much as the first time! So 5 days in Rome is not too much! Less and all you might end up with is a snaphot of the colosseum and a stiff neck from the ceiling of the sistine chapel!

Good plan, Rome needs minimum of five nights. I always wonder when people only plan a couple of days in Rome.