14 days in Italy with 2 kids(older)

Yes, we are locked into the arrival and departure cities. How about taking the night train from Sorrento to Venice? Then head to Florence and CT and ending in Milan? I have never taken a night train before but if we have to cover all that area anyway, why not sleep through it?

And allow extra time in Milan to deal with the fact that the Malpensa airport is about 30 miles out of town and cannot be reached by train; there is an efficient airport shuttle but this will take more time than you think, depending on the departure time of your flight out. Above doesn't apply if you're flying out of Linate airport.

Denise: That would work!

How long is the train ride from Naples or Sorrento to Venice?

A quick search: I see on the timetable one night train, departs Napoli 11pm arrives Venezia 10am.

Denise: here's a website where you can browse the schedules

http://bahn.hafas.de/bin/query.exe/en

How far in advance do you think I would have to book the overnight train from Sorrento to Venice? Should we take 1st class to make it more comfortable for the long ride or do you think 2nd class is ok? We are on a budget but want to be able to sleep.

I don't know the answer to your last question, I haven't done this. Can someone else out there answer her question (the one in the post immediately above this one)? People have written in here saying that you aren't likely to get a restful sleep on overnight trains.

You have 7 cities planned in a 14 day trip. Most of your time will be spent in transit and you will have little time to visit the cities. Consider cutting out some cities - Venice and/or Naples/Sorrento. Think quality, not quantity.

I have to agree with the last post - I thought it was just me, but your trip sounded exhausting. You also don't don't say how old the kids are. Mine were 14 and 15.

I'm one of those who thinks in nights and that really you need to spend a minimum of 3 nights in each place. The one place we only had two nights wasn't long enough, and due to illness we ended up spending only one night in Siena. We got there in the afternoon and then then had to leave first thing in the morning, and so didn't really get to see the place at all.

I didn't sleep very well on the night train we took, but the kids did.

You also don't say what time of year you are going. I had Cinque Terre on my original list but as we were going in December I was advised against it, so I dropped it off my list.

Just a couple of things to think about. . .

Robyn,
My kids will be 13 and 16. We have traveled France and England with them when they were younger.We will be traveling in June. We always traveled by car though. We also have always used Rick Steves itinerary. As you know he leads a very fast pace and we pretty much are following his Italy itinerary for a 2 week trip. I would take out Naples and Sorrento, but we want to see Pompeii and might be visiting some distant family in Naples. We are just trying to get a taste of these cities since we have never been.

I took a night train from Venice to Paris last May. It was a 12 hour trip. We booked a private sleeping room which I was happy we did. It was a fun adventure. The private room included a continental breakfast and toiletries and our room had a locking door which was a must for me as I had witnessed pickpockets working the train before we left. I did not get much sleep but I would travel this way again anytime.

Hi Denise,
You are obviously a more experienced traveller than me.
Pompeii was certainly a big hit with my family and was one of the must see/must do things of interest.