First Italy trip

You got a lot there. Some of it may end up on the chopping block.
If you have not already try to settle on a point where you are going to start and end the trip in Italy.
For example maybe book your flight there into Naples (you want to start in Sorrento) and out of Venice so you do not lose time backtracking.
This information I think will help others better help you organize the trip.

It sure looks like you are trying to do to much during your days in Florence. If you are traveling by car, you will have lots of hassles with a car in Rome, Florence, and Venice. If you are traveling by train, you better research you train connections. You might find you are spending too much of your time waiting for trains. On one of my trips to Europe in the 1970's (before internet), I learned very quickly that trains didn't operate on my schedule and I was either spending too much time in a city waiting for the next train or too little time as the departing train was coming before I wanted to leave.

All of your day trips from Florence appear to leave little time to actually see and experience Florence. If you follow through on your plans for those excursions, consider this: many people find Pisa only a partial day stop, if they are there seeing the leaning tower, the basilica and baptistery. A lot people couple Lucca with their trip to Pisa.
Above all, though, please take a closer look at Florence and what it offers before finalizing plans to high tail it out of town every day you're there. Even though you say you aren't much for museums, in Italy I have found some of the best art is that's found in the churches.
However you configure your travel, try to make sure you are enjoying Italy, not merely spending time in train stations and on trains getting to and fro and simply "checking boxes" on your to-do list. Les can be more, and this is a vacation after all. Slow down a little and enjoy.

Thanks for the info. May put off Sorrento for another trip. Don't want to be spending time waiting on trains and missing out on anything. Will definitely look into spending more time in Florence.

Do not commit yourself to flying out of Venice before you verify that will not be getting up at 3 AM to make a very early flight and paying $$$ for a private water taxi because that's the only way to get there at the crack of dawn.

You should check flying into Venezia and out of Roma.

I have noticed the majority of flights out of Venice are super early. Will look at flying into Venice and out of Rome.

Would like to visit Ferrara and Bologna. Can this be done in the same day?

I have not been to Ferrara, but a number of people here have highly recommended it, so it will definitely be included the next time I go to Italy. I know it is not a small city. Bologna is quite large. The train station is perhaps a 20-minute walk (perhaps more) from the historic center. There are buses from the train station, but I enjoyed the walk. The Bologna old town [edited for clarity] is very big--one of the largest medieval districts in Europe. Although you could see a good bit of historic Bologna in somewhat less than a full day, that doesn't mean there would also be time to go to Ferrara and see it, too. And you could easily spend 1-1/2 or 2 days just in Bologna. Bologna is also a key foodie city. Wouldn't you like to have time for a nice lunch? The tourist office conducts an English-language walking tour in Bologna that I really enjoyed. I think it's just once a day; I don't remember the time.

With only four days in Florence, one being dedicated to a Cinque Terre day-trip, I feel like you need to limit yourself to at most one more full-day trip plus perhaps a partial day to Pisa if you must. Alternatively, you could skip both Bologna and Ferrara on this trip and do a full day to Lucca + Pisa.

Very busy plan. Go for it. If can't make one planned day, so what. See it next time. I like your plan.

Much better to start in low-key Venice and end in intense Rome. Be careful when planning to count nights instead of days. For instance, 3 nights in Venice is really 2 full days. On Day 1, even if you arrive early in the morning, you won't have more than a few hours to see the city, while zonked after the flight. On Day 4, you'll be on your way to your next destination.

If you drop Sorrento (which does take a long time to get to/from, unless you can fly out of Naples), consider 1-2 nights in Bologna between Venice and Florence. You can stay there more cheaply than Florence and day trip by train (also more cheaply) to Ferrara and Ravenna, and others like Modena and Padua.

You "aren't much for museums" so I wonder if you will want to spend much time in Florence, which is all about Renaissance painting, sculpture and architecture. You can see the highlights in one day, so you may prefer to stay in Siena for a couple nights. Or a couple nights in the Cinque Terre - it's really too far from Florence for a day trip. You could see Pisa on the way to the CT - there's luggage storage at the Pisa Centrale train station.

In Rome, you can visit Ostia Antica, the remains of Rome's ancient seaport, contemporary with Pompeii.

I highly recommend the Travestere Twilight Food Walkind Tour through Eatily. It was by far a highlight of our time in Rome. You meet a group of up to 12, and it lasts 4 hours. You drink and eat at many venues you probably wouldn't find on your own...sampling. Then at one restaurant you do sit down for a meal. It was fun spending time one evening with other people, too.

Luggage storage is available at Bologna station but not Ferrara.

Day
1. Arrive Venice (3N)
2-3. Venice sights
4. Train to Florence (4N) with a stop in Bologna
5. Florence
6. Day to Pisa+Lucca
7. Day to Cinque Terre
8. Train to Naples & Sorrento (4N)
9. Capri
10. Pompeii & Vesuvius
11. Positano
12. Train to Rome (3N)
13-14. Rome sights
15. Depart Rome.

Your itinerary sounds like a marathon at a dead run. Think about flying into Venezia and home from Roma. This will give you an opportunity to maximize your time in-country. Also, the departure times from Venezia are very early, leaving before public transportation is operating.

There is enough to do in Roma and Florence that you should consider dropping your field trips. They are time consuming and all you will see is the inside of some type of transportation.

Wear a money belt-Italian pickpockets are maestros and leave your wallet at home.

Buon viaggio,.