In between: Como, cinque Terre or Puglia

Travel days take many hours so you won’t get all of your full days in your places. What month is your trip and how many days total? Are there particular things your most excited to see/experience?

That’s what I’m thinking. I’m just skeptical on the going around logistics

We going APRIL of 24

Train travel is excellent and fun in Italy. Train stations tend to be centrally located. In Venice, you can take a bus into Venice itself from the airport. In Rome, there is an express train to the airport. How many people are you traveling with?.

Lake Como: the charming lakeside town of Varenna is a cheap and easy 1-hour train ride from Milano Centrale.

Cinque Terre is a long journey from Venice, involving multiple train changes,,especially if you stop in Pisa on the way. If you are worried about getting on the wrong train this will be stressful. The last leg is on a regional train from La Spezia that can be so crowded there are no seats—-we had to ride standing in the space between cars, by the door. And when you get to your village the trails and village streets are so clogged with people it is difficult to move.

I would stick with Lago di Como (Varenna). Your trip is not until 2024 so you have lots of time to plan and book the lodging you want in Varenna.

My husband and I plus our 16-15 YO boys

Have your husband and/or sons expressed anything in particular they want to see or do? I often track down YouTube videod (which include Rick Steves videos) and watch them with my husband before a trip to see if something strikes us as a place we really want to visit. This has also caused us to eliminate places

Hello Chef.. sounds like a wonderful trip... Try not to get overwhelmed train travel as others have said in Italy is super easy! That being said and having done your same trip several times I might leave CT for the next time and believe me once you've been to Italy there will be a next time! And as others have said that type of travel takes up a lot of your time which is better spent sunning sitting at a cafe or walking around taking in the beautiful sights! I always have my train tickets in advance some will tell you to go another way... It's what you feel comfortable with but train travel between all of your cities is very very easy and comfortable. I would keep Como..since you have written that you are bonkers for it! Very easy to navigate the transport on the lake and nice short rides to view the lake and surrounds as well as visit the villages! Happy travels

Travel light! Since you don’t want to drive and will use trains, you need to have no larger than a 22” suitcase each plus a small carry on type of bag or backpack.
You will be dealing with jet lag in Venice. I urge you to add another day to this incredible city.
“visit Siena and Tuscany” You can see that Tuscany is very large on a map. A day trip to Siena is good but staying there is much better. Visit the nearby Chianti village from Siena.
I prefer your first itinerary but you have two teenagers do understand going to the Cinque Terre.
Panzano, a Chianti village, is home to Chef / Butcher Dario Checchini and a few of his restaurants.

Have you thought about doing more northern/central Italy this trip and leaving Rome and other places in the south for your next trip? That way you can do Como and CT, along with the other places you mentioned. I personally don't think 2 days in Venice is enough, nor is 4 in Florence, especially as you want to see Siena and Tuscany. You'll be doing lots of traveling which is stressful as well as tiring, packing and unpacking a lot, and just running around a lot. I've been to Venice several times and I've always found new things to do, and imo one of the pleasures of Venice is just walking around, eating gelato, people watching in the squares and just taking in the atmosphere. It's not like any other city I've been to.

How many days do you have including the day you leave from the US and the day you leave Italy? And what do you like to do, do you want to go to museums, out of the way places, have long leisurely lunches, boat trips in Venice and Como?

If this is of any help...we flew into Milan and out of Rome.
We took trains everywhere from Milan to the Cinque Terre, to Florence, Siena, Orvieto and Rome. We didn't buy any train tickets in advance, but would check the Omio app for time options. This gave us flexibility. I live in NYC and am use to using public transportation, but never felt funny about asking for help or just confirming I was on the right track, etc. It will ease your worry about getting lost...and IF you get lost, it will be part of the adventure and you'll have a good story. We loved the train rides and the time flew.
What's important...
Do what you'd like! If your heart says Cuomo, do it. Also, trust that this won't be your only trip to Italy and that alone will relieve some pressure to 'make it perfect'. Whatever you do, it will be amazing!

I'd drop CT, but definitely include Lake Como, we are going back our second time, because we didn't get enough of Como the first time.
I'd add another day in Venice, and stay in an area away from the St Mark's. Anywhere on the island is only a 15 minute walk or vaporetto ride away. Also, with the current chaos in flying, you have a chance of canceled or delayed flights on arrival.
I'd fly into Venice, not Milan, so you don't have to travel in a jet-lagged fog.
Rome can be crazy and hectic, it's good to have it at the end of the trip , once you've had some time in Italy. However, do you really want the big city experience? Or, are you more comfortable is small towns?
You are wise to plan early, and as soon as you have an itinerary developed, book ( cancelable) lodging asap. You will get better prices and more choices booking early .
Have a great trip!

Don't let the idea of train travel freak you out. It's really a lot easier than you think. A bit more research will help. The Man in Seat 61 website is probably the definitive site for train travel in Europe, and is a great resource. And there are plenty of you tube videos on train travel and train stations in Italy. This site has its own section on train travel tips: https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/transportation/trains

As for your itinerary, I like your first one better. But I would flip it, starting in Venice, then Lake Como (Varenna), Florence, and end in Rome. I think Venice is a much easier introduction to Italy than huge, bustling Rome. But I'd add a day to Venice for sure.

Hello everyone

Thanks to each one of you!
Amazing tips and I’ll drop CT and definitely will visit Como.

I’m from NY and until this day and age can’t figured out the damn subway 🤣🤣🤣

I guess if we get lost it will be during the day and it will be an adventure.

We gonna have to figure on the packing, since I’m a heavy packer and used to car services.
I’ll keep posting as we go…

We gonna have to figure on the packing, since I’m a heavy packer and
used to car services.

You're never too old to learn new things. Packing light should definitely be something you learn before this trip. There's a whole subforum on packing in the Tips and Trip Reports section.