Italy Itinerary

Yes

Driving in Italy is different; most of the back roads are crowded and the toll roads are fast but expensive.
Avoid driving the car in Florence. Take it at a remote office. Traffic is overwhelming and parking non existent.

I would skip Pisa. There is not much to see except the tower and if you are only going to see the tower, I wouldn't waste time on that as there is much more to see in the area (expecially Florence). We went to Pisa and I would not do it again.

i somewhat agree with the last post that there is not much to see in pisa, BUT it doe not take that long top go see the tower. i think it is a one time must. good luck :):)

Barbara- this itinerary sounds insane.

3 days in Florence- I could easily find excellent things to occupy my time for all of 3 days in Florence. If, doing a day trip is desired, have him take the bus to Siena or San Gimignano or the train to Pisa. Getting to the towns is not what Italy is about. Seeing those towns, meeting the people, eating the food- that's far more important.

Barbara,

You didn't say if this was your first visit to Florence, but that Itinerary sounds FAR too rushed and busy! As another post mentioned, you could easily find lots to do in Florence for three days.

My suggestion would be to base in Florence and then take a day trip to one of the other locations (Siena is an easy trip by Bus). With your original plan, you'd be seeing most of the area through a windshield and wouldn't really be spending enough time to enjoy each of the locations.

I agree with previous posts - with such a short time frame, I'd drop Pisa off the list immediately. It's not worth it just for a short visit to the Leaning Tower (if you had more time, that would be different).

Happy travels!

The time you stay in Florence all depends on just how much you like to see art. If you want to visit the museums, one day is not going to be enough unless you plan on running through each of them. If you are like my wife and I and want to only see a few famous things and are not particularly fond of museums, one day in Florence may be enough. We were rather disappointed in Florence because it fell far from our expectations for that city.

Agree, agree: drop Pisa. Spend all three nights in Florence, and maybe visit Siena as a day trip by bus or car...either way is workable. Either that or just see Florence, and save Siena for another day.

Obviously your son wants to see more than Florence. I think his plan looks very doable. Driving through the Greve area was one of the highlights of our last trip to Italy (and we did it on accident-we got on the wrong rode to head back to Siena and it turned into a wonderful experience.) We enjoyed this area so much, that we are staying in an Agritourismo in Greve this trip and day tripping into Florence and Siena. I do agree with another post: Do not, I repeat, do not drive in Florence. Arrange to pick up the car on the outskirts of town. We drove into Florence on our last trip and I have never seen my husband so "thrown" and "upset" driving. Keep in mind, we have driven in NYC, Downtown Washington DC and we live in a big city (Seattle) with heavy traffic. Florence just did not compare. The rules for driving in a big city are so different there than they are from here. (things like staying in your own lane and stopping for red lights.) Driving in the country was a breeze, but we will never drive into a large city again. Learn from our mistake!! I know your son will have a good trip. (For me, Pisa is on my list of things I had to do once, but don't need to do again. It's right below the Changing of the Guard in London and above Graceland in Memphis.I don't regret doing it-actually enjoyed it, but won't go again) I know many have said to just stay in Florence, but if it were me, I would want to see more. If he does decide to spend all his time in Florence, he might look into taking a all day bike ride up into the hills of Chianti (Greve area)