Help with Italy Trip

Your trip to Venice is about as short as it needs to be.
Skip Pisa and Lucca detour. Pisa is really not that popular of a destination--other than the Leaning Tower. Lucca is lovely, but the boys might find it a little quiet. You should add that time in Florence.
Your time in Rome is also minimal, but you are going to have time to hit the highlights.

It's a shame that you're not going for a couple of weeks, I'd tell you to find an agriturismo or villa south of Florence, and tour all the hill towns in the region--including Volterra, Siena and San Gimignano. Traveling with 8 is best done by train, as it'd take two vehicles to move by rental car.

You'll want to check websites to see what destinations are closed on and around Easter.
Accommodations for 8, for just 1 or 2 nights, are going to be a problem.

With that many people and only 8 nights, I would drop Firenze, Pisa, Lucca and add time to Venice and Rome.

You said Accademia, Doge's palace in the morning and may be Burano/Murano in the afternoon after Lunch are your plans for Easter. Murano and Burano in an afternoon, on a major holiday, is not only ambitious but may be rather closed down. Are you certain the Accademia is open? Easter is a day when many places that are normally open to tourists actually do close.

When we go to Murano and Burano we spend 6 hours coming/seeing/going. I'd leave Venezia between 9:00 adn 10:00 and plan it it taking most of the day. You might look at adding Torcello, birthplace of Venezia, as long as you are all the way to Burano.

I think you are going to have to have two apartments or four hotel rooms for such a large group. Try looking at Booking.com or VRBO with that in mind.

Day 3: 04/06
Drop the luggage at the train station.
Visit Saint Mark's Basillica and anything else that we can fit in before lunch.

First off, this is Easter Monday. It's probably a holiday in Italy which means there are likely to be crowds of locals at sights and on public transportation. I don't remember for sure, but I think it's about 45 minutes by vaporetto from St. Mark's Square to the train station on a workday not in rush hour. If it's crowded, you may have to wait in a long line to get on the vaporetto. And with more people getting on and off, the journey could be longer too. Going back and forth to the train - not to mention the time to check the luggage and then to retrieve it (plus the cost) is probably not worth it. Leave the luggage at the hotel, pick it up when you're ready to go to the station. Or change the schedule to visit the basilica on your first day, plan to see something near the train station on Monday.

The boys would probably enjoy the Secret Itineraries Tour at the Doge's Palace more than the palace (and art) itself. The SI tour goes to parts of the palace that are not otherwise accessible. There are few tours and groups are small, so you need to book in advance.

I would skip the schlep to Pisa/Lucca. From Florence you can day-trip to Lucca or Siena. I agree with the other posters that Pisa isn't worth it, given the limited amount of time you have.

You have the visit to the Vatican on Saturday. There are generally fewer crowds on Thursday and Friday. The Vatican Museums are huge. To get to the Sistine Chapel, you have to walk through most of them. To avoid a long wait in line, book timed-entry tickets in advance. . . or book a tour. It will cost more, but will probably be more interesting for the boys and generally more efficient to get through the site.

I almost never recommend spending time in Pisa for adults with limited time, but if the boys want to see the leaning tower, go to Pisa for a half-day (combine it with Lucca for a full daytrip, they can walk/bike the walls that surround the city). Don't try to fit in more stuff in Venice, take an earlier train to Florence and do the Pisa or Pisa/Lucca daytrip from there the next day, without hauling luggage. See some things in Florence on the afternoon you arrive. Sunset from Piazzale Michelangelo (with an overpriced drink and priceless views) can provide a nice orientation to the city (if you have a tourist map from your hotel, the kids as well as adults can pick out landmarks).

In my experience, kids deprived of the leaning tower can stay grumpy for a long time. Better to have satisfied, enthusiastic travel companions (regardless of age).

Agree totally with advice above about dropping some cities and adding time to Venice and Rome. Also agree that Murano & Burano in only an afternoon is just barely scratching the surface. It should take most of the day to do them justice. TC

Thank you so much for your feedback. The only reason I included the side trip to Lucca and Pisa is for the boys - to climb the leaning tower and ride bikes in Lucca.

Based on your replies, it is very clear that there is not enough time to visit Burano and Murano.

I have verified ( from the websites) that most of the sites in Venice are open during the Easter long weekend. I have also read on previous posts on this forum and others, that most of the restaurants are closed during that weekend. Can any one confirm that?

If any of you have visited Venice during Easter, will there be other alternatives for food like neighborhood markets or bakeries? Would it help if we reversed the order of cities, visiting Rome during the Easter weekend instead of Venice? Will we run into the same issue in Rome? On this forum it is advised not to fly out of Venice back home, but the airfare is in the same neighborhood and also the flight home is @ 10:55am. I am not sure if that gives us enough time to get to the airport.

I was in Rome for Easter in 2012. Easter Monday is definitely a Holiday. We took a train from Rome to Florence on Easter Monday and it really was NO big deal. We did make dinner reservations in Rome for Easter night and in Florence for Easter Monday in advance of our trip from the U.S., but in retrospect, don't know if we really needed them, as both cities are such big tourist cities that we probably wouldn't have had a problem, but it's always better safe than sorry. With eight people, however, I'd definitely make sure that you have reservations for these two days.

Congratulations on taking your kids on this adventure! You can do Pisa as a day trip from Florence. I'd find a place in Florence and just STAY there and take the train as a day trip. The fewer times you need to unpack and pack and change locations with the kids the easier this trip will be on you. You are correct that finding lodgings for 8 can be difficult, but VRBO may be your best bet. Apartments are always better with a family! If you can find two apartments close together that will be the way to go. In Florence I used VRBO 68776, which will take six, but not eight. You might want to check it out and email the owner, Christina, and ask if she rents two apartments, as we were Very Pleased with her and her apartment, She's a very lovely woman

Thank you so very much for all of your replies and suggestions. I have one more question - any advice on how to insure my trip? Should I insure it through the airlines or are there any other options? I never insured any of our trips before, but would like to do this time.

Sri, what a wonderful and ambitious trip you have planned! You've already gotten a lot of good advice. I'll try not to repeat, but add a few ideas. Certainly moving a group of 8 people of different ages around is a challenge, and you need to realize that at every step your group will move at the pace and schedule of the slowest person. That includes getting rolling in the morning, checking out of a hotel, finishing a meal, every step. Don't try to cram too much into one day, or at least leave the least important site for last, in case you are behind schedule or wiped out. As others have said, your Easter Day schedule is WAY too full. You say the boys aren't much into art and museums. I myself am much older and I AM into art and museums, but I still find both the Academia in Venice and the Uffizzi in Florence very tiring, and if I may, quite boring. So many old religious paintings and portraits on the walls, room after room, for a long time. With your group, and a short trip, I would skip those two. There are so many more active places to see and do, and of more interest to the four boys. The Academia in Florence is great though, much smaller and quicker, the very large original David, plus other great sculptures and a modest number of paintings. Unless I'm confused, I think there is a room of old musical instruments there too. I like the idea of a full day trip from Florence to Lucca and Pisa, without any baggage, especially if seeing and even climbing the Leaning Tower is on some of the boys' bucket list. Go early to Lucca, walk around the old town (including a neat Grom gelato shop in a very old building, and a bell tower you can climb with trees growing up on top.) Then you can rent bikes, go up on top of the very wide walls around Lucca, and have a picnic and some rest up top. Then it's just a 30 minute train to Pisa, and there is a small train station very near the tower etc, although I don't know if every train stops there. You can get some local knowledge at the Lucca station, I imagine. It only takes maybe half an hour to see and photograph the outside of the three beautiful religious buildings at the Field of Miracles, longer if you go inside the buildings, and still longer if you want to climb the tower, which I believe requires an advance timed reservation. Then you may need to walk through town, about 20 minutes or so, to the Pisa central station for the train back to Florence for dinner, or you can spend for taxis. There are wonderful outdoor food markets in Venice, Florence and Rome, and a terrific indoor market building in Florence. Very interesting for the kids, I think. Don't know if you can find a horse and donkey meat stall, certainly in Padua and Verona, but maybe not in the markets you will be.
As for travel insurance, be sure you know just what it is you are trying to insure. I think the most important part is evacuation/repatriation in case of a truly serious accident or major illness. That cost, although unlikely, can be many tens of thousands of dollars, or more for a whole family. The second major thing would be trip cancellation insurance, in case you have to scrub the whole trip after you have paid for your air tickets and any other prepaid items. Also, if someone might need coverage related to a "pre-existing condition", check the details carefully. Some, maybe most, companies require you to buy coverage within a certain time (say 15 days) of your initial payment toward a trip. RS Tours refers people to TravelGuard. I have used that insurance company myself, have heard excellent things about it, but thankfully have never had a claim. I myself would NOT buy travel insurance from an airline, maybe someone here has a different view about.

If you have already bought your tickets, the clock is ticking on how much time you have to buy insurance at a reasonable rate.

We had to change our plans to accommodate the two older kids (plan around their high school activities) and have decided to postpone our trip to July.

Our new dates are from 06/29 - 07/15. We have already purchased the flight tickets from Atlanta to Rome round trip. I wish we were able to book an open jaw ticket, but unfortunately had to choose between saving a lot of money vs. spending a whole day in travel to catch our flight from Rome. Based on our new dates, the following is our revised plan:

Day 1: 06/30
Arrive in Rome – 9:55am
Take a train to Florence from Roma Termini.
Sleep in Florence.

Day 2: 07/01 - Florence
Visit Duomo, and one other art gallery/museum (Uffizi or Academia).
Sleep in Florence.

Day 3: 07/02
Day Trip to Pisa/Lucca
Sleep in Florence.

Day 4: 07/03
Uffizi or Academia and other sights in Florence
Sleep in Florence.

Day 5: 07/04
Train to Venice
St. Marks Square, Bell Tower and Basillica
Sleep in Venice

Day 6: 07/05
Doges Palace (Secret Itineraries Tour), Academia and Guggenheim
Sleep in Venice

Day 7: 07/06
Day trip to Murano and Burano
Sleep in Venice

Day 8: 07/07
Venice to Milan / Interlaken
My friend would like to visit Interlaken for a day or two and I am trying to convince him that it's not a good idea as it is not enough time. May be I am wrong but please let me know if I am off base
Sleep in Milan /Interlaken

Day 9: 07/08
Milan / Interlaken
Sleep in Milan / Interlaken

Day 10: 07/09
Milan
Sleep in Milan

Day 11: 07/10
Train to Rome
Explore Rome
Sleep in Rome

Day 12: 07/11
Colosseum, Forum, Palatine Hill and Capitoline Museum
Sleep in Rome

Day 13: 07/12
Villa Borghese, Vittorio Emanuele and any other sights that we can cover
Sleep in Rome

Day 14: 07/13
Day trip to Pompeii
Sleep in Rome

Day 15: 07/14
Vatican
Sleep in Rome

Day 16: 07/15
Flight back home to Atlanta @ 10:30 am

I would very much appreciate your feedback and suggestions on the itinerary as I have to firm up the plan and start booking accommodations. I am very confused about the middle part of the itinerary, especially the three days from 07/07 thru 07/09.

I have checked trains from Venice to Interlaken and it will be an 8hr journey if everything goes according to the plan as we have to change trains in Milan and Spiez. Given that, should we visit Interlaken from Venice and is that a good idea?

On the day trip to Pompeii, will we have enough time to see the National archaeological museum in Naples?

If we skip Interlaken, should we spend all three nights in Milan or add one of the nights to Florence and probably take another day trip to Siena or CT area?

Thanks a lot
Sri

If your friend wouldn't object take a look at Lake Maggiore. http://www.visitstresa.com/About_Stresa.htm

Plenty for the kids to do in this area, plus the http://www.lagomaggioreexpress.com/Inglese/benvenuti.html to Locarno Switzerland.

Do this trip from Florence, train time is 4H26m. then from there, head to Venice train 4 Hours.

Rest of the trip looks good.

Hi Gerri, are you suggesting that we skip Milan altogether and head to Stresa and Locarno from Florence on 07/04 and then on to Venice and back to Rome on 07/10?

Thanks,
Sri

I disagree about adding time to Venice. Our kids preferred Florence to Venice (it was the favorite city of the trip). They did like the visit to Murano. If you add time any where I would suggest Rome. A trip to Ostia Antica from Rome is an easy day trip. Appia Antica was another highlight for our family. Everyone likes different things!

Hi Sri,

Yes, skip Milan...main reason is the Milano Expo will be going on at that time. Higher prices for
lodging plus tons of people. Interlaken will also be more expensive due to the valuation of their currency.

There are so many things for the kids to do in the Stresa area plus it gives your friend a taste of Switzerland.

srim, Milano to Interlaken is over 3 hours by train each way, with several changes. If you wanted to spend 2 nights in Milano and 2 nights in Interlaken, that might work. From Interlaken to Rome is about 8 hours with a couple of changes. From Venice to Interlaken is more than 6 hours, but it's better than 8.

So, you could take the train from Venice to Interlaken, stay for two nights, then take the train to Milano, stay two nights, then on to Rome.

I would not skip Milano, since you will have to change trains there anyway and I find lots to do there (science museum if the boys are interested, climb or elevator to the roof of the Duomo, Leonardo's Last Supper, the Castle and its grounds, the Galleria, several other sights). But if those things don't interest you, you could skip Milano.

If you want to visit the Galleria Borghese, you need advance tickets for that. There is an elevator to the roof of the Vittorio Emanuele monument, great views and photo murals with labels for what you are looking at. They might enjoy San Clemente, going down the three levels to the pagan shrine below the two church levels.

Sri, you asked for feedback and suggestions on your latest itinerary, mostly in July, so I will offer some: (1) your initial post spoke of the 4 boys, 10 to 17, who are not into art and museums, but your itinerary includes many art museums, especially in Venice and Florence. I would either drop a couple of those, or better, divide your group at times, with those interested going to the Academia in Venice or the Uffizi in Florence, and the others, hopefully including an adult, doing something more youth-oriented or active. There are chapters in some guidebooks and also web sites that offer ideas on kid-exciting activities in certain cities. Just google "visiting Rome with kids" or similar, and you will no doubt find a lot. For instance, in Rome there are catacombs, the Cappuchin church with shrines etc. made of the skeletons and skulls of the deceased, etc. (2) particularly in Rome, where it will be very crowded and hot in July, with a group of 8 it would likely be very affordable for you to arrange a good guide, who can easily take you around to various sites without getting lost or wasting time, who knows where shade is, and can gear the explanations to your particular group, especially the kids. RS books or people on this forum can suggest particular guides or companies. I myself have had great experiences with Walks of Italy and Dark Rome, although mine have been with group tours, but they both have private tours as well. Their web sites would help you to think in that direction. (3) given your limited time and travel involved, I myself would skip both Milan and Interlaken, and include some closer non-urban stop, offering great scenery, more activities including beaches, ferry boats, and small town experiences. Options might include any of the three major lakes, Garda, Maggiore, or Como, or better yet, a few days in at an agriturismo (farm with lodging and maybe some meals) with a pool, somewhere outside of Florence. You would have to choose a location, dependent on whether you would have rental cars, or not. That would also allow one or more day trips to San Gimignano, Montepulciano or a number of interesting hill towns, all different from the bigger cities. Also would allow cooling off in the pool during the heat of the afternoon. Another great stop for a couple of nights would be the ancient hill town of Orvieto, just a 70-minute train ride north from Rome, with interesting sites for the kids, including a funicular up to the town, an underground tour, a large ancient well you can climb down, a bell tower to climb, small lanes and piazzas, a gorgeous church, and plent of nice shops and restaurants. Orvieto is especially nice in the early AM and evenings, when the many day trippers are not present. In general, I think your itinerary needs to consider the realities of moving around and keeping happy your group of 8 including 4 kids, at the hottest and most crowded time of the year in Italy.

Hi Zoe and Larry thank you so much for your suggestions.

Larry,
The kids are not into arts and museums and that is the reason why I am not planning to spend a whole lot of time visiting them but only hit the highlights. I included Academia and Guggenheim in Venice because, I am not sure what else to see in Venice, but afraid to cut down the stay in Venice to 2 nights, fearing that we will not be able to cover all the highlights in a day and half.

We will not have a car in Italy and so guessing that we will not be able to take advantage of the country side for this trip. So, we have to stick to day trips.

Any other suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Sri