ITALIAN HONEYMOON -- FIRST TIME VISITORS

Is your air travel already set and done?
For a first time visitor to Italy, especially honeymooners I would definitely include Venice in the trip.
I would do the following itinerary.

Day no.: Location (in parenthesis the location where you will spend the night)

1: Fly to Venice VCE (airborne)
2: Arrive Venice, check in, stroll around, take it easy to deal with jet lag (Venice)
3: Visit Venice (Venice)
4: Day trip to the Murano and Burano islands (Venice)
5: Check out and travel to Florence by train, arrive 2hrs later, check in and get oriented (Florence)
6: Florence visit (Florence)
7: Day trip to Siena (Florence)
8: Day trip to Tuscan countryside and one small town of your choice (Florence)
9: Depart to Cinque Terre from Florence via train, arrive ~3 hrs later (Cinque Terre)
10: Enjoy the Cinque Terre, hike the trails (Cinque Terre)
11: More Cinque Terre, maybe a beach day in Monterosso (Cinque Terre).
12: Depart to Rome via train, arrive ~4 hrs later, check in and get oriented (Rome)
13: Visit Rome (Rome)
14: Visit Rome (Rome)
15: Visit Rome (Rome)
16: Fly back from Rome to the US. You will arrive the same day (Home)

Not quite a week in Rome, but 3 and 1/2 days will give you plenty of time to visit the eternal city. Some people would easily settled for only 2 full days in Rome and be satisfied. The above trip is a good combination of art and leisure which should satisfy both of you. Also this is the only way to squeeze Venice and Florence in the picture. If you like art, you can't possibly skip those two gems.

Congratulations to SLS and her intended.

I like Roberto's answer.

I might wonder if the CT is the right balance for fewer days in Rome - I'd perhaps plump for Varenna or other village on Lake Como for a honeymoon, for me in May. Mid Como has such exquisite views of the mountains and the different parts of the Lake, and is likely less busy if you avoid the national holidays than CT.

I love starting in Venice. Whilst both Venice and Rome can seem overwhelming and overwhelmed with people in both places it is my experience that it is pretty easy to get away from the crowds and both cities are highly romantic.

There is a vast amount of in situ art in both cities as well, far more than can be seen in a month of Sundays. But you can start and you will find (and I hope your intended will too) that it doesn't have to be overwhelming. There is plenty of time to plan, and there are several contributors here who have plenty of knowledge of those areas.

I'm not completely convinced that two weeks is sufficient to see the big 3 cities plus rural and/or waterside on a honeymoon.

Regarding hotels - what amenity level? - what price bracket? Are we pushing the boat out for the honeymoon and considering, for example, a suite on the Grand Canal; or alternatively a one or two start walk-up on a side street?

I so look forward to helping you with this as my wife and I approach a special anniversary.

If you'd rather follow Nigel's advice and do a lake instead of the Cinque Terre, then you would put those two nights at a lake immediately after Venice. Then you would move Florence and Tuscany down a couple of nights and you would go to Rome directly from Florence, since the Cinque Terre are eliminated from this scenario.

Regarding the lake, Nigel suggested lake Como. It's one of the favorites in Rick Steves' world, but it's quite a detour from Venice, since Lake Como is located north of Milan. A reasonable alternative from Venice would be to visit instead Lake Garda, which is in Veneto and just over one hour from Venice. Lake Garda, especially the northern half, inserted between the Prealps mountains, is just as beautiful as lake Como.

It's up to you. But you can't fit both Cinque Terre and a lake in just 15 days in Italy. One of the two has to go.

I just returned from Varenna, it's real nice and would be amazing for a honeymoon. You could also consider something like:

Fly into Milan, take the train from Milan to Varenna (about 1 hr). Spend 2-3 nights in Varenna. You can explore Varenna, and the mid lake towns connected by an easy ferry. If you stay 3 nights you can also day trip to Lugano Switzerland (a swiss lake town)

take the train back to Milan and take the high speed train to florence. Spend 2 nights in florence to see the museums.

take the rapida bus to Siena (about an hour) and stay 4 nights in Siena. You can use the buses to access some of the hilltowns each day. You can also use guides to explore the wine region, I did a tour with Roberto from Rick's show and loved it. he was a great guide. google "tours by roberto" for the address.

take the train to Rome for the week that you want for 4-5 nights you want there.

SLS,

First of all, congratulations! A few thoughts.....

Roberto and Nigel have provided some great suggestions, which should give you a good start to your planning. I suppose the first question to answer is whether you'd both prefer to visit "the big three" on your first trip or a mixture of larger and smaller places. At that time of year, Venice will likely be quite busy, so you'll be dealing with crowds and the "hustle & bustle" of spring shoulder season. Given your art background, I'm sure you'd enjoy the Peggy Guggenheim gallery.

OTOH, Lago di Como and Varenna are perfect for Luna di Miele and a good first stop to get over jet lag and also up to speed with actually being in Italy. If you'd prefer that approach, flying inbound to Milano would be the best idea. While there you could visit the posh resort of Bellagio or other locations on the lake. While it could also be somewhat busy, it's a much more relaxing location. Enjoying an evening passeggiata along the lakeside promenade between the main part of town and the Ferry dock is wonderful. At one point there's a bench where you can stop and watch the boats.

For your other stops, I'd suggest Florence (with a day trip to Siena via Bus), the Cinque Terre (I agree with Roberto that Monterosso would be the best place to stay) and then Rome. With your background, I'm assuming that visits to the Uffizi and Accademia in Florence are going to be a priority. If so, be sure to make reservations. Whether you decide on Venice or Lago di Como, the other locations can be done along a reasonably logical travel route.

For your stay in Rome, are you planning to visit the Borghese Gallery? If so, note that time-specific reservations are compulsory. Visitors are normally allowed two hours inside the Museum, but there's no time limit on the gardens outside. When visiting the Borghese, note that they don't allow ANY Daypacks, Purses, large Cameras or anything of that type. They provide a check room at the entrance to store items while touring the gallery.

There are an ENORMOUS number of sites to see in Rome, so plan your touring carefully so that you don't waste any time. The Guidebook provides good suggestions on how to get through the queues at the Colosseum and other popular spots. Rome will be the "busiest" part of your trip, and will most likely be hot and crowded at that time of year. One thing you'll have to decide (a frequent source of debate here) is which part of Rome you'd prefer to stay. Some of us like to stay in the area near Roma Termini station as it's so convenient for transportation, while others prefer areas near the Pantheon, Piazza Navona, etc. The Guidebook has good information on reliable hotels in several parts of Rome. You may also find it helpful to have a look at the excellent www.roninrome.com website, as there's a section there on hotels.

I'd highly recommend getting a copy of the Italy 2014 Guidebook ASAP (it's available now), as it provides LOTS of information on sightseeing, transportation, hotels, restaurants, etc. It will also help in your planning. Having good information at hand should help you to have a problem-free first trip to Italy (and hopefully many more trips after that).

One other point to mention is that there are some potentially expensive "caveats" to be aware of with either public transportation or rental cars in Italy. For one example, you may find it interesting to read https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/transportation/trenitalia-tripple-charge (this sort of thing happens to those who don't do their homework). If you need further information, post another note and I'll send you my usual "boilerplate" on the subject.

Once you've made a definite decision on which places you'll be visiting, it will be easier for the group here to provide more specific recommendations.

Good luck on your planning!

In my opinion, it's hard to find someplace with more natural beauty than the Amalfi coast.

Fly into Naples, and base yourselves in Sorrento. Have your hotel send a car to pick you up at the Naples airport (ultimate luxury). Spend the week taking daytrips to Amalfi, Capri, Pompeii.

Then finish your honeymoon in Rome, and fly home from there.

You're seeing that you're going to get tons of conflicting advice. I suggest you get the RS Italy book, skim through it, and plan an itinerary that matches your interest. Because of the time period (mid-May), it's going to be iffy to do the CT if you're planning on swimming. It might be warm enough, but it might be gray and cold.

As Michael says, you're seeing the problem: Italy has about 2 months of "first visit must sees," and you will have be very selective if you only have two weeks. And all we can do is give our favorites and less-favorites. You should have a great time whatever you decide.

In addition to looking at guidebooks (Rick's and others), looking at videos may help you decide. Rick has lots of videos on Italy, and you can watch them on Hulu or YouTube.

You could spend a week in Rome, and then go to Sicily! Just a thought! After many, many trips to Italy, finally convinced my husband (who has family in the North of Italy) that we should go to Sicily, and it was wonderful! We went back this September. It is very inexpensive to fly Rome/Catania or Rome/Palermo (but remember, that Palermo is much like Naples, dirty and gritty with lots of loud, loud traffic) Taormina is Romantic, and sweet and in May not yet crazy with tourists, and you could spend a few days there, and see the Greek Ruins, and spend a few days at the beaches at Cefalu! We finally did a "splurge" and spent a few days at a beautiful seaside resort Hotel Le Calette, and if there is a more beautiful place on earth, I'd like to know where it is!

We flew Rome/Catania, stayed 4 days in Taormina, visited a beautiful Vineyard, then took the regional train to Cefalu, and our jaws dropped at the view! Then two nights in Palermo, back to Rome and home to the US.

I know Italy is a big country, and lots to do, but just a thought. Google Hotel le Calette. The photographs do NOT do it justice, the water was absolute turquois! I have info on many hotels in Taormina if you want more info, PM me.

Congratulations on your wedding!!!

Are you sure you are marrying the right guy? Only kidding! (And congratulations. I always say that marriage is a wonderful thing; without it husbands and wives would have to fight with strangers. But I digress.......)

I absolutely would not rule out car rental. I have made 41 trips to Europe. Probably did the first half of those trips traveling by train until I experienced my first car rental many years ago. Since then I am a total travel by car person. My suggestion is that you spend one week in Rome. Prior to leaving call Auto Europe and reserve a compact car for pick-up at the airport. Arrive in Rome; take the bus to your hotel. Spend a great week there (A month there would not cover the many things to see and to do) take a bus back to the airport. Pick up your car and head for the hills towns of Tuscany. Tuscany is an embarrassment of riches. You can easily spend your final week there. The car will give you the flexibility to see a lot of smaller but greatly interesting places. Looking back on my travel by train days I forgot just how much time I spent getting to and from the train station and sitting in the train just looking out the window. Not to mention having to lug all those suitcases around. With the car, luggage in the trunk and away you go. Driving in Italy is easy, safe and relatively inexpensive. I usually specify a diesel; they run forever on a tank of fuel. Just a possible alternative for you folks. Lastly, the natural beauty that your lucky guy seeks will be abundant in Tuscany; especially in May.

We were in Italy almost those exact dates this year -- Venice, CT, Florence, Tuscany and Rome -- and had a blast. The hard part of this is that the timing and the destination depend on what YOU like and want to do most. Personally, I had my fill of Rome in two days, but there are others that could spend two weeks there. I liked the cities for the art/history, but LOVED the CT and Tuscany as they were quieter and more relaxing. In terms of a Tuscany "base," we stayed at an agriturismo outside of Pienza and felt that was pretty central to get around in with a car -- every hill town (except Assisi) was within two hours of us. We also hit towns our way from Florence and into Rome. I wouldn't consider the CT a base, but a destination -- we stayed in Monterosso and were very glad with that decision as it has more restaurants, shops and the beach.

Congratulations!

My husband of 28 years and myself have done two separate Italian vacations, two weeks each, in the past 3 years. Have hit all the major spots from Como (Varenna), Venice, Tuscany (Cortona and Montalcino) CT, Florence, Rome, Orvieto, and Sorrento. For a romantic honeymoon, (ours was in San Francisco) I'd suggest Venice (have a great romantic hotel suggestion- if interested PM me), Lake Como (romantic bottle of wine while overlooking the lake during sunset), Tuscany (bottle of wine overlooking the countryside at sunset), and Sorrento (overlooking the bay and Mount Vesuvius). When I book hotel rooms a view of something is a requirement. And a bottle of wine at sunset is a key theme for any of our vacations. Plan on at least 3-4 days outside of a major city to just chill, enjoy the local town, and decide what you want to do/or not after you get up in the morning; Como, Tuscany, or Sorrento.

My husband votes for Lake Como, Montalcino, and Venice in that order for a honeymoon.

Congratulations! We spent roughly the same amount of time in Italy for our honeymoon last November. We followed Roberto's routing with the exception of the Cinque Terre. We flew into Venice and spent 3 nights there. We then took the fast train to Florence and spent an additional 3 nights there and then headed to Rome for 5 nights. I had been to Italy before, but this was my wife's first trip abroad. Starting in Venice and then moving south helped ease her into Italian culture.

We did not make any side trips from either Florence or Venice, but you could probably take a night away from Florence and Rome and stop off at Lake Garda, which wouldn't be too far out of the way, for the natural beauty that your fiance is interested in. So, here is a rough itinerary:

Day 1 travel day from US (May 10)
Day 2 Arrive Venice (May 11 - stay 3 nights)
Days 3-5 - Explore Venice and the islands, maybe a day trip to Padua (May 12-14)
Day 6 - Travel to Lake Garda (May 15; stay 2 nights)
Days 7-8 - explore around the lake (May 16-17)
Day 8 train to Florence (May 17 late afternoon?; stay 3 nights)
Days 9-11 - Explore Florence (May 18-20)
Day 11 Train to Rome (May 20; stay 5 nights)
Days 16- Fly home from Rome(May 25th)

You can easily change up the number of days/nights in an area based on preferences. You can also buy frecce train tickets in advance to save a little money. Florence to Rome can be purchased for as little as 9 euros per person if book about 90 days in advance.

Enjoy!