12 days in Italy !!!!! Help with itinerary

Wow ~ I will leave it to far more experienced travelers on the board to give you specific feedback but from where I'm sitting this current schedule has you on a bit of a whirlwind which might not give you time to actually sit back and enjoy the charms Italy has to offer. Italy doesn't move as quickly as perhaps NYC or someplace like that so its not clear to me how you'll get to see too much with this "if its Tuesday this must be Florence" route. I didn't go to the Amalfi coast but I understand the driving isn't fast or easy so it seems like an odd side trip for you considering everything else is north of Rome. You might find it useful to go to google maps or mapquest to see how long it take you to get between these points. Don't forget to factor in parking and walking to the destination from your parking location. I do know you can do Cinque Terre as a day trip from Florence rather than relocate to there for a single night.

All the best for your trip!

Whoa there! You are going way too fast. I made that same mistake on my first trip to Italy, but even my itinerary was leisurely compared to this. There is really no point in going to the Amalfi coast for less than 3 nights... Even Rick Steve's says 3 nights there, and he is hyperactive with his "this place can be done in 4 hours, and this place deserves an overnight" sorta schedules. If you just want to take a peek at Naples or Pompeii, it can be done as a day trip from Rome, but otherwise you really need to rethink this. I highly suggest dropping one of the following: Amalfi coast, Cinque Terre, OR lake Como, and add the time elsewhere. NO one-nighters! Seriously, you'll be so glad you did!

This itinerary has you spending most of your time in the car with your other couple. Do you like these people? They might not like you after this trip. :-) just kidding.

In all seriousness, you should drop the Amalfi Coast. That's a 3.5 hour drive from Rome and in the opposite direction of everywhere else you are going. I would also drop the cinque Terre and add this time to your other destinations. Trust me, there is plenty to do in the places you are visiting.

Lake Como- take a look here in Bellagio http://www.borgoleterrazze.com/borgo.php

Thnx guynightss !!! I realized it was ambitious when planning it. Skipping Venice for same reason.

Rome 3 nights
Florence 3 nights
Cinque Terre 2 night
Lake como 2 nights
Milan 2 night

I think this is better rite??

I would drop a night from Milan and add it to lake Como.

When I said no one-nighters, that does not apply to Milan if that is where you fly out of. By all means, add that to Lago di Como, or add another night to Florence/Tuscany since you are interested in wine. In fact, stay outside of Florence in an agritourismo in the Tuscan countryside, and just go to Florence as a day trip to see the biggies.

Oh, you might want to change the order just a bit: Rome, CT, Florence, Lago di Como, Milan.

Can you recommend place to stay in Tuscany n lake como ??....around 120 euro or less :).. looking at prices rite now it's so expensive.
Servers me right for booking so late :)

Look at tripadvisor for the towns where you want to go and then look at the B&B's and Inns and alternative accommodations. Agriturismos in Tuscany will be your best option.

You asked for a place to stay in Tuscany near Lake Como??? Lake Como is not in Tuscany, it's in Lombardi. Unless my geography is more confused than I think it is, it's closer to Milan than to anywhere in Tuscany.

If you are still planning on renting a car and keeping the current itinerary it is going to be a pain, and I am someone who drives most of the time. Florence (problems parking unless you stay in Tuscany and take a bus into the city... which is definitely a possibility) parking in CT (also limited and not easy) The drive to Lake Como is nice and you might enjoy that part of the trip with a car. I would probably try to do the whole first part by train and then pick up your car in LaSpezia (after CT) and go on to Lake Com and return car in Milan. I love driving around Tuscany and visiting small villages so I would stay outside Florence and do a day trip in, but that still leaves you with a car to deal with in CT... I have done it and it's not impossible, so if you are going to keep it just find a hotel that has some parking and they can give directions/advice. I think you will find some in Monterossa with parking.

If wine touring, try these two agriturismos. Both have easy access to Florence and Chianti wine roads.

http://www.agriturismomontalbino.it/ more of a working farm

http://www.borgorapale.it/ apartments if available are a good value

Add the extra nite to Tuscany

Thnx everyone for advise.
I will check out the places few of u suggested. Also I was looking for places in lake como. I know the Drive from CT would be 3 hours is there a scenic route we can take.

"Lake Como" has many towns. We recently stayed in Varenna and like it very much. I would use. Booking.com to see what is available for your planned nights. Varenna, Menaggio, Bellagio, Cadenabbia are all possibilities. Not sure about the town of Como itself. I think less charming....

Our itinerary is pretty full but we want to do more in less time.

In order to "do more in less time" and maximize your touring time, I'd suggest scratching the idea of using a rental car and stick with trains (high speed trains whenever possible), especially with such a VERY short time frame. Note that each driver would require the compulsory I.D.P. and you would have to be VERY careful to avoid the dreaded Z.T.L. areas (hefty fines for each pass through one of those). Does the 12 days include your two travel days?

Regarding your last Itinerary....

• Rome 3 nights - sounds good.
• Florence 3 nights - I'd suggest adding one of the Milan days here. Florence is in Tuscany and it makes a great home base for touring the area. One popular trip is to travel by Bus to Siena as it's only about an hour each way.
• Cinque Terre 2 nights - as you're travelling in early July, I would HIGHLY recommend getting some accommodations booked SOON in the C.T. (especially with two couples). It may already be too late but I'd suggest starting in Monterosso as it's the largest of the five towns and therefore has the greatest number of hotels. If you can't find anything in the five towns, you could try Levanto. The Guidebook has good listings in all of the towns.
• Lake Como 2 nights - the usual favourite with many here is the small town of Varenna, which is only about an hour from Milan by train. Again, the Guidebook has lodging suggestions, but you could start with Royal Hotel Victoria, Albergo Milano, Villa Cipressi or Eremo Gaudio. If you'd prefer to stay in Bellagio and have a "generous" budget, you could have a look at the Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni. Bellagio is an easy 20-minute Ferry trip from Varenna.
• Milan 2 nights - unless you have something specific to see in Milan (ie: Last Supper), I'd suggest using one of these days elsewhere. I'm assuming you'll be departing from MXP for the flight home?

There are also some potentially expensive "caveats" to be aware of when using trains and other public transit in Italy, so it would be a really good idea to do some "homework" on that point.

July is PEAK travel season so you may have to adjust your budget "upwards" for short notice hotel bookings in all the places you'll be visiting.

Looks like your planning is well under way, now. Buon viaggio.