Honeymoon Itinerary

Liz626,

It's a good idea to plan your trip in # of nights (you will be on the ground) rather than days.
By doing this, you will have a better idea as to how much time you will actually spend in each of your destinations.

Regarding your itinerary;

I'd suggest adding an extra night in Venice (3 nights) & this will give you 2 full days in Venice.
Keep in mind that each day that you travel, will take the better half of that day (checking-out, getting to train station, transit time, checking-in, getting situated in new place, etc...)

I've only done self-guided tours with the help of travel guidebooks & such... but others will chime in regarding tours, etc.

Have a wonderful honeymoon!

Liz,

To begin with, congratulations!!! A few initial thoughts and questions regarding your Itinerary.....

You mentioned that you used a travel agent to make the arrangements. Does that mean that everything is booked now in terms of flights, hotels, etc.? I assume you're planning to travel by train between locations?

If it wouldn't be strain on your budget, you could certainly use a private driver for transportation from Naples to Pompeii and then Sorrento. However if budget is a concern, Pompeii is only a short trip on the Circumvesuviana from Sorrento so you could also visit the site while you're staying there. There will probably be guides at the entrance to Pompeii offering their services, or you could use one of the guides recommended in the RS Italy guidebook. I'd suggest allowing at least three hours, as there's lots to see there.

If you haven't travelled by train (or other public transit) in Italy before, there are a few potentially expensive "caveats" to be aware of. Your fiance may remember the details but if you want further information, post another note.

As Priscilla recommends, add a day to Venice. It's well-worth two full days and a nice place to enter Italy and get over jetlag. I would cut a day from Sorrento for this. You have four full days/five nights in Sorrento, which is lovely, but not at the expense of an extra night in Venice. If you do Pompeii on your way to Sorrento, you still have time for a day on Capri, a day with your personal driver and another day at your disposal.

We did a two hour tours of Pompeii with a private guide and it was enough. We could have wandered around afterward, but we felt we got a good overview of Pompeii in that time. We went to Ercolano on our own another day.

I like to use guides where they can really enhance the experience or get me in ahead of a crowd. Pompeii is a good place for a guide. The Vatican is another. I also recommend one for the Colosseo and Foro Romano as they are complex places and on my first visit, I did not want to be stuck with my nose in a book trying to figure them out, especially when it is hot out.

Thank you for your replys!!
Right now we have our hotels, train transportation between each place, and our flights booked. I wish I had found this site beforehand. I'm not sure we can add another day to Venice at this point but I will check! We chose to go to sorrento for 4 days because it is our honeymoon and we wanted to "relax" a little more. We chose a great hotel with a seaview room. Our travel agent was the one who said 2 nights in Venice would be plenty
:-(. We were going to get tickets to the sites in Rome ahead of time to skip the lines. What are the few potentially expensive "caveats" with transportation?
Thank you for your great advice! Does anyone recommend a castle or wine tour in Tuscany for the day? Or any other must do tours?

lix626,
If you cannot add to Venice, do not fret: you will be back. Unfortunately travel agents don't always really "know" the places they book as they probably have not been there. Your plan for a long stay in Sorrento makes sense to use it to relax a bit. Why don't you play Firenze by ear? You may find you'd rather have more time in the city, but if it seems like you will want a tour, there will be abundant opportunities without pre-booking.

liz,

I've sent you a PM regarding the "caveats".

You might find it helpful to pack along a copy of the Italy 2015 guidebook (available now), as that has a LOT of good information on sightseeing options in all the places you'll be visiting. There are also tips on avoiding queues (as much as possible) which is important, as crowds will be an issue at the time-of-year that you'll be travelling.

Which passes to get for touring in Rome will depend to some extent which sights you plan to see. You could consider one of the Roma Passes, which also provide some transportation. For touring the Colosseum, you could buy a Combo ticket which covers the Colosseum, Forum and Palatine Hill (buy at the ticket booth on Palatine Hill to avoid queues). If you're planning to visit the Borghese Gallery in Rome, note that time-specific reservations are compulsory.

If you'd like a personalized tour of specific sights in Rome, I'd highly recommend Francesca Caruso. She's an exceptional guide (and a really nice person) and you'll get an outstanding tour. Francesca is very popular, so if she's occupied during the time of your visit, she may be able to recommend one of her esteemed colleagues (book WELL in advance).

As I'm sure your fiancé is aware, you'll have to be vigilant to avoid pickpockets and scammers, as they will be operating in all the places you'll be visiting. Wearing Money Belts would be prudent. If you've travelled in Europe before, you'll already be aware that you'll need Plug Adaptors, and will have to check each appliance / electrical device you'll be taking to ensure that it will operate on 220 VAC.

I have only been to Venice in October and February. My guess is that in summer it may not be as nice - too hot, humid and filled with tourists, so maybe your travel agent is right this time.

Rick has free audio tours you can download for Venice and Florence as well as Rome. I've done them all and recommend them. Be sure to print out the maps! To get away from the major sites and explore a bit of "neighborhood" Rome, take Rick's Jewish Ghetto and Trastevere tours. The Ghetto is meters away from the start of the Trastevere route and not very long, so you can easily do both in 1/2 day.

I would not book a day tour from Florence at this point. You don't know how much you'll like the place (some people never want to leave, others see the highlights in a day and are ready to move on). Maybe have a tour in mind and book after you've settled in. It's an easy day trip by bus from Florence to Siena, and a 1/2 day by train to Pisa. Both can be done independently without problems.

Congratulations!

Unless your heart is set on Pisa, I would opt for Lucca instead. Or you could see both in a long day trip.

The Vatican night tour is limited to highlights, but I think it would be enough. Or perhaps an early morning tour.

Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast are great places to spend time relaxing with a large number of places to visit as well.

Thank you all so much for the very informative emails. I will look into all the advice given!