Eecommended Order for Italy Tour

Hi there, Pathfinder, and welcome to the forum -

I'm not exactly clear about your question so could you explain a bit more? Are you wanting an itinerary for touring on your own or for one of the RS escorted tours, such as these:

https://www.ricksteves.com/tours/italy

There is no single "Rick's tour": developing an itinerary/route depends on multiple factors, such as how many days you have, how you intend to get around, what you're interested in, how many travelers you are and their ages, etc. The more you can tell us about yourself and the trip you wish to take, the better we can help you. :O)

A good start would be to look through some guidebooks and get a sense for what appeals to you. Be aware that the Italian train system is amazingly extensive and relatively inexpensive, so planning your own trip is very doable.

Choose a region of Italy as a starting point. The make additions to it.

Do keep in mind that Ricks tours whisk you from one location to the next. If doing on your own additional time is needed.

If you're referring to one of the tours Rick sells, they follow the order they follow. You can add days before and after, and many people do this. When you book a tour with Rick, you get a discount on help from one of their agents, who can help you plan the before and after time.

Link to all of his Italy tours: https://www.ricksteves.com/tours/italy

If you're referring to Rick's recommendations from his books or this website, he does have a suggested itinerary for a three week trip: https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/italy/itinerary.

However, this is only one way to do it. It all depends on how much time you have, what you want to see, which airports work as start and end cities for you, etc.

Also, like all his suggested itineraries, his Italy one is VERY fast-paced. Many of us feel they are too fast to enjoy, and that's particularly true of Italy, since it's best enjoyed when savored more slowly and not rushed through.

One specific tip: if you want to go from Venice to Florence to Rome, it's usually easiest to do it in that order rather than the reverse. That's because flights from Venice to the US often depart very early, and getting to Venice airport for an early flight is time-consuming (90 minutes or more) or VERY expensive (a water taxi is something like €120). Flights from Rome can depart later, but even if yours doesn't, a taxi to Rome airport from the center is €48 and takes about 35 minutes. So, flying into Venice is easier than flying out of it (again, there are exceptions, depending on where you're headed in the US and one which airline).

If you want more specific help, let us know where you're starting from, how long you have, if you have any must see (or must avoid) places, who is traveling (kids? seniors?), and as much other detail as possible. The more details you provide, the more specific we can be in our responses.

This is Rick’s recommended 3 week trip
Very fast paced
https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/italy/itinerary

Remember, 2 nights in a location give you at most 1 1/2 days.

Thanks for the recommendations. We are in the first stages of planning. All the best
Dan