Italy in late December/Early January

If you’re round tripping through Rome, I would suggest taking the train to Florence after arrival. Spend 4 nights in Florence and you could day trip to Siena (bus) and Pisa (train). Then I would spend 2 nights in Orvieto with the final 4 in Rome. From Orvieto, consider a bus ride to Civita di Bagnoregio. From Rome you should definitely visit the ruins at Ostia Antica.

Get Rick’s Italy guide book. It contains information about using public transportation to get to and from all those cities and attractions. It also will guide you through which sites offer tickets in advance so you can avoid long lines. You’re fortunate at visiting when tourism is at a low period. I live in Florida so I am averse to cold temps. I’ve been to those cities in late December and January 4 times and never needed anything warmer than a medium weight jacket, sometimes with a sweater.

Hi oyster,

We are from a colder climate in the Winter months, so we have really warm weather clothes. Not sure if we need to pack our negative temperature coats for Italy

My trips to Rome were in December. So leaving Logan at that time of year was cold.

Early December, Rome usually sees temps around 40's to low 50's. My last trip to Rome, a couple of days reached an unusual humid, 70 degrees F!

My trips to Rome in December saw mostly crisp, sunny days - a soft, windy day here and there; a short, rain day which turned into a hot and humid day spilling over to the next day.

But then, it went back to normal temps the rest of the trip. At night, it got cold.

As the month progresses, Rome can get more colder of course. Locals dress for the season mostly. So, you'll see many (women) walking around in puffer jackets, scarves and leather boots - tall and ankle short.

A heavy, longish wool coat "may be too much" in weight walking around all day/night. (Rookie mistake first time, lol)

Bring your puffer coat/jacket and layer clothes underneath. I wore a "car length" coat and was comfortable. I wore light sweaters and different lighter scarves underneath the coat and unzipped if need be while walking about.

There should not be snow. Although, there was an exception awhile back where Rome saw a lot of snow.

Bring a heavier scarf, gloves and maybe a hat if inclined. Or, buy a scarf while in Rome. You will see a ton of street vendors selling Pashminas as soon as the temps dip.

I was also going to suggest Orvieto (as the poster above suggested.) Take a peek https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_-YAqx90Pc

There are a lot of YT videos (including Rick Steves) on the smaller "hill towns" of Italy - outside of Rome and Tuscany such as -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pG45OwYbFwo - Civita di Bagnoregio, Italy: Jewel on the Hill (as Philip noted)

I favor suggesting this site -
https://www.skylinewebcams.com/en/webcam/italia.html
https://www.skylinewebcams.com/en/webcam/italia/lazio.html

Clicking on the tabs of cities gives the viewer a different perspective of what to expect for crowds as well as an interesting and fun view of certain major piazzas and cities in Italy.

I also like to suggest watching these guys https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRjnHWzQqNlMtucVh8uZt0Mqw5TfzOGf7

They are fun, easy to understand (especially for the new traveler), down to Earth and give a lot of helpful suggestions and tips for out and about in Rome. As you browse, they also have videos for other cities.

Our first trip to Italy (1984) was in the same time period as yours will be , though we had 17 days. The weather has gotten erratic, but back then, Rome was sunny and pleasant most days, reaching the upper 50’s to low 60’s. I doubt that negative temp gear will be of any use. The one word advice is, “layers.” Pack a water resistant outer garment, a fleece or wool cardigan, and some long-sleeved tees or other tops; and you should be fine. Shoes should be sturdy for walking on cobblestones. A pair of low heeled boots with rubber soles would look fashionable and be practical. Don’t forget that gloves and a hat or head scarf add a lot of warmth and take little space in your bag.
With just 8 days, I would concentrate on Rome and Florence, with day trips to Orvieto (or an overnight) and to Siena. While in Rome, be sure to visit Ostia Antica. Keep in mind holiday closings; 12/ 25 for sure, but also 12/26. My recollection is that there was a fair amount of stuff open on New’s Day; but I suggest you make a master plan so that you don’t miss things because of closings. Also, scope out restaurant times and get reservations for those special days.
With all due respect to the previous posters, I wouldn’t even consider Civita da Bagnoregio. In my opinion, it in no way merits the effort needed to get there, even in tourist season. In the winter, you might find everything shut down. There are loads of better places to see in just 8 days.

With all due respect to the previous poster, I wouldn’t even consider Civita da Bagnoregio.

Read Philip's initial suggestion. All I did was post the video for a helpful glimpse (for the OP) to add to his suggestion. .

Hi Everyone,

Thanks so much for your replies and recommendations!

I do think we will go straight to Florenence once we land in Rome to spend 4 nights and take a day trip to Sienna. OR, we will stay 3 nights in Florence (with a day trip to Sienna) and stay a night in Orvieto before heading back to Rome.

I have never heard of Ostia Antica, but we are definitely going there now after looking at the photos. It looks amazing.

Are there any vineyeards nearby any of these places you recommend? Or perhaps a vineyard tour or bike ride you recommend (if they do this sort of thing in Winter)?

Hi All,

I just tried to see if we could book high speed rail tickets from Rome to Florence. No tickets are showing up for December dates. Is it just too early to book?

I tried to book here: https://www.italiarail.com

Thanks!

oysterized when booking trains in Italy use Trenitalia or Italo (high speed trains only) but not Italiarail which levies additional fees. If you are going straight to Florence after landing, do not buy your train tickets until you arrive. While the advance purchase discounts are attractive, the tickets are non-refundable so if your flight is late and you miss the train, you have to buy tickets again. You can buy tickets for transfers later in your trip as long as you can commit to the schedule.

Hi Laurel,

Thanks for your response! I had a feeling I was looking at the wrong site.

You don't think the high speed rail will sell out once we land in Rome? We should be able to get two, one way tickets, no problem? If that's so, then that is wonderful!

It’s doubtful that a train will be sold out. On the bright side there frequent trains going from Rome to Florence some directly from FCO. If you’ll be using a cell phone, download the TrenItalia app. Very easy to use.

It would be highly unlikely for the trains to sell out. I won’t say “never” because it happened in July to some acquaintances going Rome to Venice. Long story.

You could, to hedge your bets, buy tickets for three or four hours after you are due to land. Buy the, at a discount in advance. When you arrive, if you are on time, you can decide to take an earlier train at full price and throw away those cheap tickets or wait it out, have lunch, etc.

oysterized, could you post the actual dates of your trip from home departure to the day you fly back home from Rome? With 8 days on the ground you may realistically be working with 7.5 sightseeing days if one of those is a partial, jet-lagged arrival day. As your trip also falls around the Christmas/New Year's holidays, you'll want to be be aware of any attraction closures.

If 7.5 days is the case, I'd split your time equally and go directly to Florence upon arrival in Rome.

Day 1- fly to Italy
Day 2 - arrive Rome: transfer to Florence (partial day)
Day 3 - Florence
Day 4 - Florence. -day trip to Siena
Day 5 -Florence
Day 6 - transfer from Florence to Rome
Day 7 - Rome
Day 8 - Rome
Day 9 - Rome
Day 10 - fly home

The above is a sample that doesn't take holiday closures into consideration as we don't have your actual dates.

Regarding clothing, we find that in Europe in winter we dress more warmly than at home because we are outside so much. We aren’t merely moving from car to door or walking a couple of blocks, we are walking miles, sitting outside (if it’s sunny) for coffee, etc. So I wore a long puffer coat, scarf, short, comfortable boots, and gloves. In many museums you can check your coat or get a locker, thank goodness. Carry a tiny umbrella, too. Rain is more likely than snow.