2nd visit to Italy

Rachael, One additional comment...... As mentioned in a previous reply, a good Guidebook will be a tremendous asset! That's something I usually pack along on trips to Italy as it's a great reference source when planning touring, and the information often saves both money and aggravation (ie: arriving at a site to find that it's closed on that day of the week). You may have difficulty finding the print versions of the RS books, but if you have an iPad, other Tablet or a Netbook, you should be able to easily download a Kindle or iBooks version of the Italy Guidebook. Regarding the RS books, the Italy 2014 print version will be available this Thursday (Oct. 24), and hopefully the Kindle version not too long after that. I didn't check the iBooks site. The Florence & Tuscany 2014, Rome 2014 and Venice 2014 Kindle versions are now available on Amazon. Unfortunately, the RS books don't cover Sicily, but you can check Lonely Planet, Fodors or others for that. Cheers!

Rachel, Rick Steves does not normally respond to questions on this forum - we are travelers who are interested in Europe, with different viewpoints, preferences, and experiences. I would start with a guidebook and a map. I also like to google images of cities I may be interested in seeing. By "that coastline", do you mean the east coast? How far south, or north? Keep posting questions, the more specific information you need the more specific the responses will be.

February is cold on this side of the planet. Sicily has better weather, being in the south. It's an easy 45 min flight from Rome. Allot at least 10 days in Sicily. A car in Sicily is a good idea, but not while visiting the city of Palermo.

Agree with the idea of going to Sicily, because Tuscany will be very cold, as will the Adriatic Coast which is a big summer tourist destination for Italians. It's beautiful in the summer and fall, but not so nice in Feb. I just got back last month from 3 weeks in Sicily, and the least expensive way to do it would be to fly into and out of Palermo rather than Catania. After visiting Palermo you can either do the West Coast of Sicily, Valley of the Temples, etc., or you can go East and stop in Cefalu (Which has a seafront that is jaw dropping beautiful) and on to Taormina, where you can base your trip for the entire East Coast, including Mt. Etna which is still active, especially in Winter, and also see Syracuse, which has incredible Greek ruins. I'm much more familiar with the East side, and if you would like more info, private message me.

Rachael, To begin with, hope you're not being affected by the dreadful wildfires (we can certainly relate to that in this area). As the others have indicated, the weather especially in northern Italy can be a bit "unpredictable" in late February/early March. I've been in Tuscany as early as April and it was at times cold and rainy. According to the Italian news this morning, Tuscany is experiencing severe weather today. While you could certainly visit there in February, be sure to plan for "indoor activities". Sicily will be warmer, but as I recall parts of Sicily got snow last winter. It's unfortunate that you booked return flights out of Rome, as open-jaw flights would have been a more efficient travel method. Does the three week time frame include your flight days? Given the LONG flight time from Oz, one method you might consider is something like this.... > Flight inbound Rome, 2 nights to recover from jet lag > High speed train to Venice, 2 nights > High speed train to Florence, 4 nights (day trips to Lucca or Pisa?) > Bus to Siena, 3 nights (cooking course or wine tour?) > Train to Rome, flight to Palermo, 4 nights (I don't know what you want to see there, so touring and transportation TBD) > Return flight to Rome, 3 nights > Flight outbound to home There are lots of ways to arrange your Itinerary, and this is only one suggestion. In calculating the number of nights, I included two days for flight times. Your flights to and from Sicily will take the better part of a day each way, so that will reduce your touring time. As you'll be mostly in cities, that provides options in case of inclement weather. You can walk around and sightsee in nice weather or visit Museums, Churches or Galleries in bad weather. Good luck with your planning!

Great feedback thanks everyone! Clearly it's at the v beginning of planning so we embraced all the feedback. It's a bugger re the weather, but it's the only time we can go. We need to suss out the coastline thing abit more. But think we will take the 45 min flight to Sicily, knowing it's not perfect trying to cover so much land in such a short time. And yes 3 weeks does include flights

Rachael, For flights from Rome to Sicily, I'd recommend EasyJet (that's the method I used). As with most budget airlines, prices are cheapest for those that book early. It's also a good idea to read their Terms & Conditions carefully, especially related to luggage limits. If any of your checked bags will be over their allowable weight, it's better to pay the overage at the time of booking rather than at the gate (much cheaper!). Finally, note that EasyJet allows only ONE carry-on item per passenger, and they DO enforce that. That doesn't mean "one plus a personal item such as a Purse or Laptop case", it means ONE ONLY of the approved size. The aircraft will probably be packed like a tin of Sardines and any food will be extra cost, but it's a good and inexpensive way to get to Sicily. Cheers!

We r very lucky and have been offered a vacant family home to stay in in Sicily in Palazzolo Aceide. Cld this be a good place to call home or is it too far from everything?? Also looking for rec for good accommodation in Palermo pls. Thank you, now it's getting exciting.