Florence and Venice vs. Siena - tough decisions

Siena can be very crowded, especially during the Palio. Personal space kind of diminishes. Just be aware of that. In Venezia and Firenze, a one-street detour can get you away from crowds.

Julie, Since your daughter has issues with crowds, the Palio would not be the thing to do. Google it and see if you can view videos of the event. And it is highly unlikely the crowds will be much less in the few days before the event. You original plan of 4 nights in Rome, 3 in Florence and 3 in Venice appears to be workable. All three of the cities will be crowded to some extent and it will be hot in Rome. In Florence and Venice (and in Rome to a lesser extent) the crowds usually thin out as evening approaches and are not too bad. In fact, in Venice the early mornings and evenings many of the must see places are almost deserted. Hope this helps.

In July in Austin it is frequently 103F to 105F. If Rome is in the 90s it will be an improvement.

Julie

julie,

If your daughter has issues with crowds and not being touched, the Palio will NOT be a good experience for her. The crowds are packed in like sardines, and if you're in the centre area you won't be able to move until the race is over.

If you want to visit Siena for a short time, it's very easy to do as a day trip from Florence by Bus. The Corse Rapide bus is about an hour each way, and you'll be dropped in the centre of town rather than at the rail station which is at the bottom of the hill.

Good point about the crowds at the Palio. I think the four of us will watch some videos, go over the sights at the diffent locations and then have a family decision about what to do. Letting go of the idea of that lodge won't be easy for me though. Swimming pool! 19th century garden! Swimming pool!

Another thing to remember is to make sure you get any cards that allow you to skip lines. Roma pass for Rome, Firenze or Amici card for Florence, not sure for Venice. In peak season, these won't eliminate lines, but will at least greatly reduce them. Also, probably should skip the copula and bell tower tours at the Doumo. Very cramped spaces with people usually packed in the staircases may not be good for your daughter either.

And as someone else said, side streets offer much smaller crowds. The main shopping thoroughfares, such as Via Por Santa Maria in front of the Ponte Vecchio in Florence, will be very crowded, but one street over much less so. You may have to do a little more zigzagging to get places, but the crowds are much less and often will bet you there quicker because of the smaller crowds.

Avoid the buses and metro since they will be packed. Also the boat to Murano was claustrophobic for me when we were waiting to get on.

Howdy!

Julie, we lived in Dallas at the time of our first European trip during July and August - during a +20 degree F heatwave. But the lower humidity felt sooo great! Now that I live in N. CA where the summer weather may be 100F+ but 15% (or less) humidity, Europe feels.so.humid :-( And you already know how Texas feels. Even IF you live in Austin! Gig 'em, Aggies!

Anyhoo...this is a hard call. The taxi boats in Venice can be packed during the summer; they can be worse than the actual sites :-( But you're in Venice to see The Biggie Sites, so it will be hard to escape the crowds unless you hit the big sites very early or late in the day. There is an incredible amount of day trippers there from cruise boats, etc., so anything you can do early or late is better. As already stated, the huge crowds are mostly around St. Mark's, so with little effort you can escape the throngs. And I LURVE Siena! Lurve it! But probably No Palio for your daughter, and probably not for me, either. I don't want the extra crowds for a 4(?)-minute race. Siena has crowds, but in my experience it's nowhere near as bad as Venice. The main crowds in Siena seem to be in the 'inner ring' street just above Il Campo.

But...Venice is Venice (sigh)! I'd hate to ever give up Venice!

Would you arrive at the lodge by car or by train and taxi? The lodge is not close to 'central' Siena, but I see there is a bus stop nearby and of course taxis are available (and quite The Sienese Experience!) so you could get to and from Siena.

There are other accommodations in Siena (I know, I know, you love that lodge!), so maybe you can work Siena into your plans without cutting one of the other locations. Your family might find 4 nights there about 2 too many if they aren't really interested in history, architecture, etc. While you're in the orangerie and taking cooking classes, what are they doing? They may not like that much swimming LOL! Four months there aren't too many for me, but...that's me ;-) If you choose another place in Siena for, say, 2 nights, try to NOT be there for July 2.

I don't know if forming a 3-person 'cocoon' around your daughter to provide a bubble of personal space helps her at all in crowds, but I'd sure like to have one ;-) I don't like The Crush, either.

Your family will just have to watch some travel videos to make a decision. In case you don't own any or haven't yet found a link to RS' videos, here is a handy link. You can watch 2-4 minute clips, or entire episodes. Happy Decision Making!

Bye, Y'all! Go have a Dr Pepper for me...

If you will have a car, an agrotourismo in Tuscany might be a good way to day trip to Florence, Siena, and anywhere else of interest, but be able to return to a quieter country area in the evening. A number of them have a pool, and I've read that some do cooking classes, wine tours, etc. If you're interested, you might want to search this forum for recommendations. This might give your child a good place to decompress.

In Venice, the smaller islands are interesting and a good way to get a break from the crowds as a day trip (or even a locale for your hotel). The main ones are Murano (which will be the most crowded because of the glass), Burano, and Torcello (and I find the latter two far more enjoyable). And there are a number of other options: for example, the beaches on the Lido (don't know about the crowds), San Lazarre (an Armenian monastery, which you can reach by vaporetto once a day and then tour), San Michele (cemetery island, with a Renaissance-era church), and a Franciscan friary on an island you need to get to by private boat (forget the name, but it's easily identifiable as Franciscan).

I've found Dorsoduro to be a quiet area of Venice in which to stay, and convenient to major sites.

Orvieto is a possible day trip from Rome to escape some of the crowds. Lovely hill town with a beautiful cathedral, Etruscan sites, small streets for wandering, small museums, etc.

If you see some fabulous Greek ruins in Turkey, you could probably get by with a day less in Rome, if you want to. I also suggest avoiding the Rome subway (last year, my sister wrote on Facebook, "first trip on the Rome Metro and I may already be pregnant"). Four people can take a taxi within the city for about the same price.

"first trip on the Rome Metro and I may already be pregnant"

LOL! Sometimes not so much personal space on the Metro...

Julie,

Keep your original itinerary...Palio is not for a sensitive child.

I think someone's idea of an agritourisimo is great. I stayed at one in Tuscany, drove to several hill towns, and many itty, bitty tiny towns. I stayed near the chianti area and I think there were cooking schools in the area. We had a llovely swimming pool where I spent my evenings. I drove to Florence, stopped several times at the small towns along the river.

It was a low key trip, but I really saw a lot. Spent a day in Florence, and a day in Rome. the the rest of the two weeks in the Tuscan countryside. Took the train to Navarra, a small northern town which was beautiful. Ate tons of gelato.

The heat in Rome (Italy) in the summer is a killer. In Rome, in June, I almost could not get around, I was so hot.

I think "the other side ofItaly" outside of the big 3 cities is just as wonderful.

So, Laura, where are the Greek ruins in Roma? I would say give one day less to Turkey and add it to Italy.

We were in Venice last summer, but a little earlier than you (june 19-22) - we stayed in Dorsoduro, also hung out in Canareggio - and I did not even know that venice was crowded until the one day we went to St. Mark's. There are lots of great places in Venice that are not crowded. And it is beautiful!!

You should do the rowing class with rowvenice.org if you go. So fun!!

Hey I am from Dallas and have been to Italy many times in the summer. It is cooler than Texas that is for sure. It also cools down a lot more at night and stays light pretty late. I don't think the heat is going to bother you at all. I have taken both my kids to Europe several times as teenagers and really I think three days in Florence is too much. You will see even the most intellectual teens, just get tired of museums and art. Be sure you plan on some out door activities and shopping. Both my kids really just loved wandering around and looking at shops and neighborhoods. (Boy and girl). I think a nice swimming pool would be a real break for them, but they loved the nights best going out to eat and walking the towns. They might get bored four days in a rural setting. I also spent twelve days in Turkey last summer and adored it. Not sure where you are going but it is fabulous and so interesting. I would almost suggest after Turkey that you consider a few days on the Italian coast instead of Florence. Just a suggestion. You will have a blast. In my opinion you can hit all the big sights in Florence in a day if you plan.