We are celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary with a trip to Italy. We are traveling this September and already have booked a roundtrip in and out of Rome. Our itinerary is as follows... 4 nights in Rome 3 nights in Cortona ( at a B&B recommended by co-workers) 3 nights in Florence 1 night in Lucca ( my mom's parents were both from Lucca and we have family there) 2 nights in Cinque Terre 3 nights in Venice My concern is that only one night in Lucca will not be enough to see the town and visit family. But was worried that only 2 nights in Florence would also not be enough so I added the additonal night to that leg of the trip. Our nights in Rome and Cortona are already set.
Would love to hear back with any suggestions.
Posted by
Forest Grove, OR
11362 posts
Usually I am a fan of no-less-than-3-nights-in-one-place. BUT, in your case, your trip from Florence to Lucca is short. You can leave at 09:00 and be there by 10:30. That gives you almost two full days in Lucca. Your decision on 2 versus 3 nights in Florence should depend on what you want to see and experience in Florence. Some folks skip it entirely as it is mostly about art museums; others stay only two nights and get their fill of museums in that time. Again, the transfer time from Cortona to Florence is short. You can leave Cortona at 09:30 and arrive in Florence by 10:50. If you only stay two nights in Florence, you would still have almost two full days there. If you take away a night from Florence, add it to the CT. 2 nights there is, IMO, not enough to justify the train trip (Lucca to the CT is easy; CT to Venice is long).
Posted by
Tresana, Highlands Ranch, CO, USA
23340 posts
I vote for reducing Florence to two nights.
Posted by
OP
San Jose, CA, USA
10 posts
Thanks for the suggestions! Since we would be extending the CT stay we could even linger a bit in Lucca on our way out. And with the additional night added to CT it would also make our last 2 city destinations 3 nights each which would help to slow down the trip.
Thanks again
Posted by
Westwood, KS, USA
15 posts
Sue, Congrats on the 25th anniversary. With regards to Lucca, what a great opportunity to connect with your family's history and those relatives still living there. You are very fortunate to have those connections. My sense is that your time spent there may be more meaningful than an extra museum or church tour in Florence. You could also be a bit flexible with Cinque Terra if your having too much fun with relatives in Lucca. They are relatively close to each other so last minute adjustment wouldn't throw off the rest of the itinerary.