Hello!
After reading the forums, this is my first attempt at a rough itinerary (we'll probably be in Italy by the very end of June or very beginning of July, if that makes a difference):
Cinque Terre: 3 nights- looking at Vernazza or Monterosso to stay.
Florence: 5 nights (maybe day trips to Lucca or Siena, although may want to cut nights in Florence and actually stay in Lucca or Sienna.. TBD, based on what makes more sense- would like some input)
Pienza: 2 or 3 nights; maybe stay in an Agriturismo (or should this be visited from Lucca or Siena or should we still day trip to these places and come back to Pienza?)
Rome: 3 or 4 nights
As of now, these are the main things we want to see/do in each area:
1.Cinque Terre: Just explore and relax.
Florence: Accademia, including some time devoted to the music area with the instruments and old manuscripts (we’re both music teachers and musicians); Il Duomo; Uffizi Gallery (the main works), Vassari Corridor, and Boboli Gardens; Cupola del Bruneleschi, Ponte Vecchio/Piazza della Signoria area, Palazzo Pitti and Oltrano neighborhood; maybe a day trip to Siena or Lucca (this is where it starts getting fuzzy)
Pienza- use as a base to go wine tasting, maybe take a cooking class, relax a little, maybe go to Sienna or Lucca from here... or maybe use Sienna or Lucca as a base and make Pienza a day trip? No clue.
Rome: Colosseum, Pantheon, Vatican City (maybe do one of those underground tours), St. Peter’s Basilica, Main highlight only of Vatican Museums, Piazza Navona, Wander around Centro Storico, visit Campo de Fiori area, Roman Forum and Palatine Hill (although, not sure if this is a “must see” since we’re seeing all of the other ruins), and of course the Spanish steps and Trevi fountain. Have no idea how long some of these things take (we might be toured out at this point and just want to see some of these sights as opposed to taking a two hour in-depth tour)-might add Trastavere if there's time.
With this in mind, here are my questions:
Does this seem like enough time in each area? Are there any major sights/things to do that we are missing? For your reference, we would like a mix of relaxing/wandering/spontaneous time, and getting the major “to do”s done in the city. We would also do reservations for all of the big sights to maximize our time. For your reference, although we like art and history, and will probably take tours of a couple of the places, we’re not bent on hitting every single cathedral, seeing every single work of art, doing an in-depth tour of every single ruins, etc. What we DO like is live music, good food, leisurely biking and light hiking, and just little fun unique “off the beaten path” kind of things. We're not crazy party people, but wouldn't mind some after dinner drinks/entertainment on a few nights.
Should Pienza be skipped on this trip? Is it too hard to get from Florence to Pienza and from Pienza to Rome? (My husband wont mind renting a car and doing a little leisurely driving for a few days when we’re in the countryside, but might feel nervous about actually picking up and dropping off the car in Florence, Rome, etc. and having to worry about navigating in allowed areas etc. and worrying about driving with crazy traffic in a place he isn’t familiar with.). Would maybe a base of Siena or Lucca be better?
If anyone has any ideas on how to organize the whole Tuscany hill-towns part of the trip, please help away lol!