Beyond the 9 day tour

Jill, I assume that's the Heart of Italy tour? Especially for a first trip to Italy, I'm sure you'll have a fantastic time! Were you planning to arrive in Rome a day or two prior to the start of the tour? There are a few possibilities you could consider..... > A few days in Verona and then a few days in Venice (book your flight home from Venice) > A few days in Verona and then a few days on Lago di Como (Varenna). While there you could visit the resort of Bellagio or other towns along the lake (book your flight home from Milan). Who knows, maybe Clooney will invite you for lunch? As you'll be there in the summer, it would be a really good idea to pre-book all your pre and post-tour Hotels. Happy travels!

Hi Jill, I too reccomend Verona for 2 days and 3 days in Venice. In 2010 my parents and I took ou first trip to Europe and went to Venice for 3 days and a half day trip to Murano. There is plenty to do in Venice for 3 days. You might also like the Dolomoites which are the Italian Alps and a trip to Bolzano.

I would suggest adding a few days to the front of the trip in Rome. I'm not sure how many days the tour spends in Rome but in my opinion, Rome deserves a minimum of 5 days as there is so much to see & do there. I would also suggest taking a day trip to Orvieto from Rome. It's a great town & would be a nice change to the hustle & bustle of Rome!

Another option would be what we are doing. This is our first trip to Europe, and I thought the Heart of Italy tour was perfect for us to get our feet wet and try our travel legs. We are flying into Rome a day before the tour starts and then, thinking we would be braver travelers after the tour, we decided that we will take the train from Florence to Venice, stay two nights there. Then we are flying from Venice to Paris and staying three nights, and then flying home from Paris.

We did this tour and loved it, but we did it in reverse. I would also agree with arriving at least a day early to get your bearings, especially coming from the West coast. One couple on our tour ran into trouble with a connection and missed some of the tour. We did an extra day in Rome before our departure, but wish we'd booked a few days in Venice before, as several others did.

We are doing this trip as well, only in April, and so we are arriving 6 days prior to the tour start in Rome. Because it's springtime, we are heading south to Sorrento, and doing day trips from there for 4 nights, then back to Rome to be there a day ahead of time. But in the summer time, this area might be too hot for your liking.

I recommend you get Rick Steves Italy and read it thoroughly. Also, get at least one other book on Italy, to get a second opinion and to read about places Rick doesn't mention. Then, decide what calls to you. We all have our favorites, and from Florence you can get to most of Italy with minimal difficulty. So, you can spend more time in Rome or Florence, see towns around Florence, go to the Cinque Terre or the Lakes, go to Venice or Verona, see Bolzano and the Dolomites, or even (gasp) go to a place that Rick doesn't talk about, like Emilia-Romagna or Turin. If you're still undecided, from Florence I'd see Ferrara (a gem Rick misses), then Venice. But all of the options I listed in the last paragraph are valid ones. Would you be interested in driving, interested in not driving, or willing to go either way? And are you most interested in rural areas, small towns, medium cities, big cities, or some mixture? Is there a special interest you have? This information will influence people's recommendations.