First Travel Day - Rome to Florence - Stop along the way?

Let your body adjust following your arrival in Rome.

I’d stay overnight in Rome. That way you could drop off luggage, freshen up and get outside. I’d walk to and tour the Colosseum. Then meander about walking under the arch of Titus. I’d then have a meal, return to your accommodation and get a good nights rest.

Board the train to Florence on the morning of day 2, well rested.

Lastly, and maybe it was just me, but when I first saw the Colosseum after walking beneath the Arch of Titus I had to sit down. The age, the history and the reality it still stood overwhelmed my senses.

With luggage, and I assume jetlag, I would go straight to Florence, but leave enough time before the train for possible delays.

Agree with those who posted - dealing jet-lagged with luggage as a stopover sounds like no fun at all.

Also if you want to stop someplace like Orvieto - a classic spot to stop over - you will need to take the slow train rather than the fast train and this will just stretch out your trip to Florence for no good reason. You will get to Orvieto in about the same time it would take you to get to Florence in the first place.

Don't try to do too much too soon, enjoy your trip,
=Tod

A fast train Rome to Florence is two hours, plus the time to get to Termini or Tiburtina from the airport.

Stopping in Orvieto means using slower trains, and the trip is much longer only on train travel time - then add up the time for visiting Orvieto and also finding somebody to take care of your luggage while you are visiting the town. However, it is still possible (but the luggage thing is an annoyance).

Driving is much slower than the train as you are capped to a maximum speed of 130 km/h, while the fast train slips around 220 km/h on a straighter itinerary. You need four hours to drive from Rome to Florence even without stopping anywhere. The only practical stop if driving is Orvieto. Or maybe Arezzo, less interesting.

Siena is not on the route between Rome and Florence, it means a detour, it is quite long driving and unfeasible by train.

There is no easy way to get to Saturnia, even by car it is a long trip.

Hi. We’ve flown into Rome numerous times and have always chosen to take the fast train to Florence the day of arrival. By the time you arrive it will probably be mid afternoon. You’ll have time to check in and then explore Florence depending upon your jet leg and energy level. We don’t sleep on the overnight flights so we are usually quite tired our first day. Florence has tons of things to see and do (it’s our favorite European city) and you can always take a day trip via train or bus to other places such as Sienna or other Tuscan towns. There are also plenty of day tours to various places. We love to go on wine tours into the Tuscan countryside. Florence is very well connected. When you get to Rome you could also take a day trip to Orvieto if you choose. It’s easy via train but you may find that you have more than enough things to do and see in Rome.

Voting with the go-straight-to-Florence folks for the many good reasons listed. :O)

Thanks everyone! Very helpful!

We just returned from our road trip from Florence, through Montelpulciano/Montalcino, Siena and ended in Rome. We rented a car started and ended it two different cities to avoid waisting travel time. We wanted to immerse ourselves in small town culture along our travels. We prebooked Must See places (timed tickets) like Academia, and a private Tour for the Uffizi in Florence. And only one tour of the Vatican.
Otherwise, we kept a list of desired stops and played it by ear. Worked out great. Saw everything without stress.

Our first stay was a very small town of Impruneta at an Agritourismo (wine/olives) 25 minutes south of Florence.

Vecchio Borgo di Inalbi. Reasonable prices. The people and food were fantastic. Easily travel to Florence. Parking garage next to train station.
https://www.inalbi.it/en/index?adblast=6176681694&vbadw=6176681694&gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIstut4JrWiAMVqGVHAR1NuTsGEAAYAiAAEgLyffD_BwE

Our Second stay was much more lush and also reasonably priced: Locanda Poggioleone, near Castiglione del Lago (Lake Trasimeno) https://locandapoggioleone.it/en/
Great, non touristy area. And it's easy drive time to Montalcino and my favorite, Montelpulciano.

We highly recommend a cooking class Barbara at her home. Worth every penny to learn about the region, drink local wine and eat great food. Grandma's recipes, traditional Tuscan cooking class
https://cesarine.com/en/experiences/grandma-s-recipes-traditional-tuscan-cooking-class-QLpoXTDoga?srsltid=AfmBOoo6Kthp7FbB7TrMiZpSCcSdnLPygi7Hq03vDtZR1suN9VxMOJWA

We didn't like our overnight accomodations choice outside of Rome as it turned out to be a residential apartment turned into hotel like rooms. Tiny, noisy and terrible parking. Bus stop too far away. Spent time site seeing, but wasn't impressed with our Vatican tour guide through Viatour, Rome Your Way. Rome was extremely noisy, busy and wasn't relaxing. You need special driving skills to manage these streets. There are no Rules for motobikes darting and weaving. All drivers were agressive. But, it's a must see city.

Glad you had a great trip, PXM Massachusetts! :O)
Just to note, the OP is not renting a car nor do they need one for their particular agenda, IMHO. As well, the OP is a first-timer to Italy; the standard advice is not to get behind the wheel in a foreign country potentially jet-lagged right off (what we might assume is) a transatlantic flight.

Carrie, you didn't mention when this trip is? If it's in the late fall through early spring months, shorter hours of daylight will be a factor. As mentioned above, you're unlikely to make it to Florence until mid-afternoon, and that's assuming your flight is on time... which is another point: don't purchase advance train tickets to Florence until you arrive in Rome unless they're changeable or refundable. Delayed flights are not as uncommon as you might think!

Carrie, Just checking, looks like you have a total of 6.5 days in Italy, if you choose to go straight to Florence the first afternoon. You can certainly go to Sienna on a day trip, but I wouldn't personally add to this itinerary until you get there, because both Florence and Rome are fantastic destinations with tons to see! So, agree with others to just head straight to Florence on a fast train. I would take a look at what you really, really want to do & make sure to have those pre-booked tickets if that includes the main attractions. Maybe consider a tour in Rome as you're only there 2.5 days? Despite the noise & the crowds, Rome is a fantastic city, good to have an idea where you're staying and what you want to see ahead of time, makes it a bit saner. Have a great trip!