Florence and Rome

That is a hard one to advise. I save my money and spent it on taxis. I am not sure a wheel chair or a walk would work all that well given the general poor conditions of sidewalks and streets.

Betty - if your cane works at home, I think you will do fine with it in Florence and Rome, especially if you are accompanied by a daughter.
Enjoy your trip!

Betty, what a wonderful trip to look forward to. While I can't comment on wheelchair or walker, I'm wondering if some seniors message boards might be able to provide suggestions. Both Frommers and TripAdvisor have senior travel message boards, I believe, and I'm sure there are others. Others must have confronted this issue. I would suggest ensuring you have central hotels with elevators, air conditioning, etc. When I traveled with my mother, planning down time was important, and it was nice if it was easy to return to the hotel for a short rest during the day. I do suggest having the airlines meet you at the gates with a wheelchair for use in the airports; no use hiking through the termals. And I vote for using lots of taxis. Walking in Rome and Florence can be exhausting (uneven sidewalks and curbs, the paving stones in streets, stair steps that are abnormally high or abnormally low, etc). Just remember to take your time and not be rushed by crowds or other's expectations. For my mother, the canes with with the 4 "feet" at the bottom sometimes provided more stability than a regular cane when she was tired. But mostly, enjoy your trip!

Betty, We see people walking with canes here all the time. In fact, I have seldom seen a walker and only a few electric scooters and wheel chairs on the street. Some museums have wheel chairs, and if you have a mind to see a specific museum, you might check their website to see if you can reserve one. The Vatican Museums, for example, allow you to reserve in advance. Rick has a resource on this website you might want to consult http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/tips/easyaccess.htm.