Itinerary planning help for Italy

I agree in large part with Roberto's comments above. Unless you just want to check off names on a list as you zoom by, even list one is exceedingly ambitious for a first trip to Italy. Adding any of list 2 blows my mind. Italian secondary road driving involves quite a mind shift compared with Germany, France, and the UK. Route numbers are infrequently used and often at a road junction there will be more than one direction indicated to a destination. I've been at a crossroads where 3 of the roads indicated Napoli. Italian toll roads are not cheap, fast (even though there are frequent speed limit signs), lots of tunnels (some on a bend, some unlit), and Italian drivers are renowned for tailgating. That being said, I drive to Italy almost every year and driving there doesn't bother me - even in the south. You really, really, really need to understand the signage, the rules and customs - I call it getting into the Italian drivers' heads. Once you understand what they expect you to do you can do it. I tend to adopt some of the local customs when driving there. Driving becomes more challenging as you go south. I have also found driving in the Veneto can be a challenge with trucks nose to tail in the slow lane so it is difficult to get off. Use a GPS. Learn about and avoid the dreaded ZTL.

With this short of a time frame, make sure you fly (Open Jaw) multi city heading on most airlines. Into Naples and out of Venice. If you only have 2 weeks, try this: 1 Depart 2 Arrive Naples Curreri Viaggi bus to Sorrento 3 Sorrento Pompeii 4 Sorrento Naples or Amalfi Coast 5 Naples - Rome 1h20m E19 6 Rome 7 Rome 8 Rome Late afternoon train to Oriveto 1h10m E7,50 stay Orvieto 9 Oriveto Late afternoon train to Florence 2h17m E13,60 11 Florence 12 Florence Early afternoon train Venice 2h08m E19-45 13 Venice 14 Depart As you can see this is a very busy scheduel, but doable. If you have extra days you could add in Assisi and add a day to Florence to do a day trip to Siena. Plus 1 day to Venice
Hope this helps.

1. More than Bolzano, you should try to see the Dolomites mountain in the region.
Vernazza is one of the 5 terre (Cinque=5 in Italian). Doing everything you mention in 2 weeks is extremely challenging, due to the distances involved. Even if you cut Bolzano and the Dolomites out, it would be very busy in 2 weeks. 2. You can't possibly add Sicily, Sardinia and Corsica to the list of no. 1. Sicily alone is a one to two week affair minimum. Same with Sardinia+Corsica. 3. You can do by train most big cities. You can do everything with a combination of trains and buses. However Renting a car is advisable for small towns (like in Tuscany and Umbria) because you can squeeze more than using trains and buses. Connections to small towns by train or bus are not that frequent.

Keep in mind that every hotel change means packing suitcases, checking out, getting to the train station with your luggage, then finding the new hotel, checking in and unpacking. Be realistic about how long it will take the 3 of you. Use the trenitalia website to see the train schedules and journey times. This will also help you plot out your itinerary.

You need to cut several cities/areas out of your proposed itinerary. You are absolutely trying to cover too much ground & you will end up exhausted and not in any one place long enough to truly soak it in & enjoy it. Chani is correct; you need to factor in transit time between destinations, to/from the train station, time to check in/out of hotels, etc. On my first trip to Italy I underestimated the time needed to transition from one place to another and my itinerary was not nearly as cramped as yours but I still found it exhausting. On my next trip, I will spend more days in fewer places so that the pace is not so hectic. I would save the Cinque Terre & Sorrento/Amalfi Coast areas for another trip and concentrate on Venice, Florence, Siena (with day trips to Assisi & Volterra), and Rome (with a day trip to Orvieto). I propose flying into Venice and out of Rome to avoid backtracking. As for a rental car, the only place that it's handy is in Tuscany (but not in Florence), however if you're only planning to spend a few days visiting hill towns, I would forego a rental car and use the train. Have a great trip. You will love Italy and will probably start planning your next trip to Italy while on this trip!

David is so right. You can hardly NOT enjoy every minute in Italy. And you can NEVER see as much as you want to. If you're rushing to get somewhere else all the time, you'll be stressed out and won't be able to enjoy where you are when you are there. With 14-18 days, I'd say keep to 4 locations and plan day trips. That way, you have flexibility. If you love Florence, you don't have to leave it, if you're tired of it after a day and a half, there are great day trips. That also leaves time for the unexpected, whether it's an opportunity or a delay.

Aparna, You will most definitely not be able to cover all the places you listed in a 2.5 week time frame. Visiting a minimum of 13 locations (including three major cities) in an 18-day time frame means you will only have 1.4 days for each place. More importantly, there's no allowance for travel times, some of which will be longer. Suffice to say, you're going to have to reduce your list considerably or add more time to your holiday. Does your 2.5 weeks include your two travel days to and from Europe? I'd suggest making a list of each city, ranked in the order from most important to see to least important. Beside each city, list how many days you'd like to spend in each. Larger cities like Rome, Florence and Venice will require more time, as there's SO MUCH to see and do! Which cities you'll realistically be able to visit should become apparent very quickly. Also keep in mind the transportation times when choosing, as if Venice and Sorrento are next to each other in the list, that will require the better part of a day for travel, so you may want to change the order. Be sure to consider the travel times between each location in your planning! I wouldn't even consider Sicily (which includes Palermo), Sardinia or Corsica as you simply won't have time. Travel by train will be the quickest and most efficient method, so that's what I'd suggest. Good luck with your planning!

Remember that you will have a child with you - his/her tolerance for museums, art galleries, churches etc. will likely be way less than yours and they may make their views known in no uncertain terms. So when you are in Venice include beach time at the Lido - ditto in Florence, visit one of the resort towns nearby. Kids are usually intrigued by sites like the Colosseum in Rome - but include a visit to the Borghese Gardens where there are kid-friendly activities. Rather than stay in a town in Tuscany, think about staying at an agroturismo - a farm that offers accommodation. In Rome this year I took a four hour food tour of the Testacchio area. The group of 10 included a young girl who had an absolute ball - and charmed all in the shops we visited. This is a great tour for the whole family. Italy is a country to enjoy at leisure, do not try and see it all in one trip. Better five days each enjoying Venice, Tuscany and Rome than rushing, rushing, rushing to catch a train to cross off another town on the list. Don't forget to stop and have coffee at outdoor cafes, or wine or gelato.....