I wonder if I should stay in Venice for 2 or 3 days..anyone have? Any advi

I'm not going to tell you what you should do about Milan, as there is enough to see there for the day and a half you'll be there, but if you decide you want a short day trip, consider Bergamo. I absolutely love Venice so would spend 3 nights there and dock Rome accordingly. Happy travels.

Much better to stay in Venice proper than on the Lido, if you have the ability to change that.

Stay in Venice. Not on the Lido.

I woulod stay 3 nights in Venice. Visit the islands and explore the back streets and not feel rushed.

Would definitely stay 3 nights in Venice. With just 3 nights I would not visit any island-you could spend half a day doing that and there is so much to see in Venice. If you want to see what the interior of an old palace looks like, be sure to see Ca Resonico Museum. We attended an opera in an old palace and really enjoyed it. Venice is absolutely a unique place-enjoy!

I agree with the "wander the back streets" suggestion and also with the suggestion to save the minor islands for another trip. There's plenty to see and do in Venice proper for 3 days.

Wonderful ideas! Thanks. I booked for 3 days. In Lido, Italy. MM.

Another vote to stay in Venice.

Anyone that suggested Venice over Lido...can you share why? I know we all have our preferences and I would love to know what I missed. Grazie!

It's like staying in Jersey when you want to visit Manhattan. More info here
and here.

Monique - As Michael said or this: Staying on the Lido would I think be very similar to this scenario: I have heard that Seattle is a great place to visit. I want to really experience the stuff downtown and be able to walk all over the place and soak up the Seattle vibe. Should I stay in Renton or Tacoma or downtown Seattle? I can obviously get to Seattle from those spots but it really won't be the same as staying in Seattle.

You can go to Certosa di Pavia from Milano, it's a beautiful and historic place (Pavia is the town, the Certosa is a few kilometers away, there are buses from Pavia). As for staying in Venice, definitely do that if you can. The Lido is more of a beach resort area, and it takes a little more time to get from the Lido to mainland Venice on the vaporetti than it would to just step outside your hotel.

Well, I'll weigh in on the other side, to balance it up a bit. Lido, while remote from the main islands of Venice is well served, assuming the hotel is well located, by frequent vaporetto service on the number 1, and a few others. Because it is not in Venice, you have to make more of an effort to get onto the boat to go over, and especially when they are crowded it can be a bit arduous. The Lido is where Venetians go to get away from the city, especially in summer when they invade the beaches of Lido. Our first few times to Venice we wanted to be in the middle of things where we could walk out of our hotel and walk, walk, walk - which is what you go to Venice for. We have stayed in Dorsoduro and the in the sestiere of San Polo - and to be able to stroll to dinner, and especially the before breakfast walk towards Salute, and the after dinner stroll to the Rialto - is priceless. We tend to visit Venice as part of a driving holiday so the car gets in the way in Venice. So, now that we have had the overnights in Venice we save money on the hotel and parking by often staying in the immediate vicinity of Venice and taking the train. We have stayed in Padova and a couple of places in Quarto d'Altino where our current favourite is. So, while there are many downsides of staying in Lido, there can be advantages. If you are driving it is a long way but you can even take your car with you, either by the number 17 (is it - faulty memory) ferry across the lagoon or by driving up the isthmus from Chioggia.

Ugh, definitely not Lido. Lido is a nice enough place but there's nothing there that you should divert a single minute away from Venice proper for unless it's summer and you need a beach day. It's a pain in the a$$ getting back and forth - especially if you have luggage, not to mention that you have to buy the vaporetto tickets. You can bring your car there on the ferry and the ride is actually quite enjoyable albeit pricey. We've done it a couple times and it's about 60 euros round trip and good luck finding parking (we have friends who live there, that's the only reason we did it). If you're going to Venice, you owe it to yourself to stay ON Venice, if only to experience the city late at night and early in the morning when there are no crowds. That's the real Venice.

I just got back yesterday from Italy. I would suggest Florence, Verona, Ravenna and Venice. Rome was ok. It is huge with a population of over 5 million people and it is choas. We spent 3 days in Rome and it was enough. The northern part of Italy is beautiful and a little bit of a slow pace. When in Venice get a boat and go to Buerano. It is a little island off of Venice and it looks like a movie set. I may have mispelled the name. suggestions: take good walking shoes take jeans take a rainjacket/windbreaker
take cold medicine (pharmacias have different hours than US ones) Have have great time! Ciao!