Italy Itinerary - Feedback Welcome

You have a nice allotment of days planned! I would add those days to CT and any of the existing stays.

hey hey wilhelmr1
can you look at flights to a city in italy instead of back tracking to frankfurt. look at multi-city: into venice, milan, rome then out from another.
italy will be busy and always is especially with the places you want to see. seems no off season anymore, all over the world is busy traveling so we go with the flow.
it's also easter time that people stay longer, USA spring breaks. look at booking.com to see what's available on your dates, see something, email direct to hotel if a better price, trenitalia or italotreno for train reservations, booking early better prices. use italian train names for station
remember check-ins are 3-4pm and check-outs are 10-11am unless you can get early check in. takes about half day to check out, get to train station and ride to next place. sometimes we pack up a little picnic sandwich/drink for the ride. your "2 nights are one full day to explore", look at april 25th and may 1 as public holidays and what's open /closed. good luck and enjoy. keep asking questions
aloha

Have you checked Google Flights that allows you to check premium economy and business class fares: https://www.google.com/travel/flights? Also, can you fly in and out of Venice/Milan/Genoa and Rome/Naples airports (multi-city or one-way)? Once you buy your plane tickets you can design the order of your itinerary. If you fly home from Venice, make sure it’s not an early morning flight so you don’t have to pay for an expensive water taxi to the airport.
Frankfurt: If you can, sleep in Frankfurt’s old town called Dom-Römer Quarter.
Venice: if you fly from North America to Venice, don’t expect to get a lot done on arrival day. Venice needs a minimum of three nights (two full days).
Milan: If you go to Milan, add a night and make it three nights. Milan itself is OK, but adding Varenna and Bellagio that over looks the most scenic part of Lake Como will make this destination better. All you need to do is take a direct train from the Milano Centrale station to the Varenna-Esino station (1h 15m): https://www.trenitalia.com/en.html. After you arrive, take a 15-minute ferry from Varenna to Bellagio and walk around. Afterwards, go back to Varenna walk along the path before returning to Milan.
Cinque Terre (Vernazza): Sleep here a minimum of two nights so you can visit all the towns by ferry. This is the place you want to linger and enjoy its spectacular cuisine.
Florence: You need four nights in Florence if adding a day trip to Siena by direct bus (1h 15m). Don’t take the train to Siena because it takes longer. Furthermore, the bus drops you off across the street from the old town.
Rome: You need a minimum of four nights in Rome if visiting Vatican City.

I would book flights to and from Italy so that you only spend 1 night in Frankfurt, not 2. It's a hassle to get into and out of the airport, so I would book a flight from Frankfurt to Italy at the beginning, without spending the night in Frankfurt. Then do the Frankfurt visit after Rome.
Will you use Sorrento as a base for your Pompeii visit and a possible visit to the Amalfi Coast?
Or, add Lake Como between Venice and Milan.

It's a very nice itinerary!

I also wonder why Frankfurt RT? Is it because that is a direct flight?
I would look at flying in to Venice or Milan, out of Rome or Naples.
Search for "multi-city" not 2 one way tickets.

Where are you flying from?

My only suggestion is to try to fit in a smaller town. All of your locations are big, busy, crowded. A 2 night stay in somewhere like Orvieto will give you a bit of a break from all of that.

With your 3 extra days
I would add 1 night to Vernazza- it takes time and effort to get to/from-
2 nights in a small town- Orvieto would be my choice between Florence and Sorrento- breaks up that long journey

I appreciate the suggestions to fly to/from Italy. That makes a lot of sense and was my first choice. However, I've spent the past 10 days looking at flights and, after an extensive search, I decided that a 14 hour direct from Seattle to Frankfurt was the best option for us. At this point, two months out from my trip, there are reasonably priced coach flights to Italy and expensive business class flights to Italy. (The last flight to Venice/Rome I found was about $15K for two business class tickets.) As I mentioned, I'm tall and it's not comfortable to sit on a long flight in coach. Maybe if I would have started looking for flights two months ago, I could have found a more reasonably priced business class flight.

After I book flights from FRA to VCE and FCO to FRA, my transportation cost to Italy (including 2 hotel nights in Frankfurt) will be around $4k. With our schedules, we can spare a few extra days.

The flight to Frankfurt is booked. I can change anything other than the flight.

If my decision to fly to Italy via Frankfurt turns out to be a mistake, I'll have gathered some useful information for our next trip.

As we found out this last spring, 2025, the May 1 holiday is a big one, and folks will be taking off additional days around the holiday. We were in Lake Como, staying in Varenna, and the regional trains and ferries were packed, with long lines just to buy ferry tickets. Getting on the ferries involved another long lines.
As the AC/ Sorrento is just as popular, be prepared for huge crowds, traffic, and long lines. The spring is not an offseason anymore. Perhaps look at staying in Salerno for additional options, and smaller crowds. We used Aldo Limos to get around the area. It was expensive, but with the poor public transportation options, and the traffic congestion, it was a nice alternative.
If you're talking about 2026 trip, I'd strongly advise you to secure lodging asap. I think the availability of a places to sleep may further impact your itinerary.
I would always stay another day in Venice. And you could day trip to Padua. We love the hotel Ai Mori D' Oriente in the Cannaregio area of Venice. There's a great vibe in this neighborhood, but absolutely no crowds, and it's a short walk to a vaporetto stop on the Grand Canal.
Whatever you decide, enjoy, and have a safe trip !

Valadelphia – Good suggestion to add an extra day to CT. Thanks!

Princess Pupule – Thank you for the suggestions, especially the one regarding train reservations.

Mary Pat – Thank you for the suggestion: to sleep in Frankfurt’s old town called Dom-Römer Quarter, to take a day trip to Lake Como from Milan, and to take a bus, not the train, to Siena.

Julie – Yes, we plan to use Sorrento as a base for day trips to Pompeii and Amalfi Coast. Thank you for the Lake Como suggestion.

ChristineH – We’re flying from Portland. Please see my other post as to why Frankfurt. Very good suggestions to add 1 night to Vernazza and 2 nights in a smaller town. Thank you!

Thanks for expaining about your flights-makes perfect sense now

Get your lodging booked asap-
There are recommendations here in forum -use Search function, filter by date

Or start another thread asking for recommendations

I like booking.com to search-use the filters for location, budget, amenities like AC, elevator, bkft
Read the reviews there as those can only be left by folks who have actually stayed at property
You can filter the reviews as well
You can book there or find hotel website-see which gives you best rates

Pat – Excellent tip about trains and ferries being packed around May 1. I hadn’t considered Salerno. Salerno sounds good, except maybe a bit long to travel to Pompeii for the day. I also had not considered Padua. The Venice hotel suggestion sounds lovely. Yes, I know I need to get hotels booked asap. Thank you!

We have enjoyed both Salerno and Sorrento
Pompeii and Capri are easiest from Sorrento
Paestum and AC towns easiest from Salerno

Salerno also has direct fast train service to/from Rome and Naples

If you allocate one of your extra nights to that area you could do
Sorrento 3
Salerno 3- from Salerno easy train to Rome

It’s one more location change but I would rather do that than deal with the chaos and overcrowding of transportation to/from Sorrento
( Sorrento will be crowded, Salerno won’t be --not touristy at all)

You might be able to take a night from Florence-needs 3 nights plus one night for every day trip.
You will have been to Pisa so maybe a day trip to Siena and hilltowns( guided bus tour)

Just checking - 5 nights in Sorrento to do a day trip to Capri and see Pompeii, are you going to see other ruins / etc? As an alternative to Sorrento, you could stay at Hotel Forum in Pompei (one i) the small, modern town right next to the Pompeii ruins. It does not have the Sorrento views, but it's also a lot more reasonably priced for an excellent 4-star hotel, with easy access into the ruins. And it has the advantage of being on the Regioinale train route, much nicer than the Circumvesuiana subway system. (Note the tours all start from another entrance about 1-K walk away.) Here's our trip report from December - https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/great-trip-to-pompeii-naples-over-new-years-december-26-january-2nd-2026.

Personally, I would absolutely include the MANN, Archeological museum of Naples, it's SPECTACULAR. Have a great trip!

ChristineH
Thank you!

I’m considering your suggstion:
3 nights Sorrento
3 nights Salerno
Easy train to Rome from Salerno.

I don't understand what you have in mind for travel to/from Sorrento.

It seems like coming from the north to Sorrento, we would still have to deal with the chaos and overcrowding of transportation to Sorrento. Or would you travel from the north first to Salerno then continue by ferry or bus to Sorrento for the first 3 nights, then return to Salerno for second 3 nights?

To get to Sorrento from the north your choices are:
Train to Naples- switch to the local Circumvesuviana or the nicer Campania Express
Or
Private driver (about $180)

If your budget allows I’d have a driver meet you at Napoli Centrale. This area is just one of the times that throwing some money at transportation is well worth it. JMO

For your day trip to Pompeii- the Circumvesuviana is fine- get going early- the train starts in Sorrento so you should get a seat. You won’t have luggage so that is not an issue.

Ferry to Capri will be fine as well.

To get to Salerno from Sorrento I would ferry all the way. The views of the AC towns from the water are the best views.
The ferry port in Salerno is a quick 5-10 min walk from the station and town.

From Salerno- ferry to the AC villages you want to visit.
To Paestum- easy regional train- check schedule carefully- there is a mid day gap- buy RT tickets in Salerno as the Paestum station not manned

Train, bus and ferry info on this site, plus other handy info:
https://www.sorrentoinsider.com/en/e/getting-around-sorrento-italy

Campania Express- a slight improvement over the Circumvesuvina if the timing works out
https://www.sorrentoinsider.com/en/campania-express-train-schedule

Check Mondo Guides- their Pompeii shared tour was worth it for us and the Capri shared trip was delightful
They also also transfers and shared transfers

If you decide that you want to go to Salerno first then direct fast train there from the north.
From Salerno take ferry to Sorrento- then consider a driver to get you back to Napoli Centrale.
(I might opt for Salerno first just because it's already such a long haul coming from Florence (or Orvieto) make sense?

Let us know you need help with train info/booking

I see Pat mentioned day trip to Padua from Venice. We liked Padua, it's a quick train ride. We stayed 3 nights.
Another option is Verona, where we also stayed 3 nights- a lovely little town.
Vicenza is another
Just depends on what your interests are- but be sure you give plenty of time to Venice itself!

hey hey wilhelme1
thanks for update, too bad about flights but at least you're okay with it. been there done that, learn but our mistakes.
are you dates still the same for cities? fly in later morning/early afternoon to venice to check-in 3-4pm, add a day
VENICE:
day trip to treviso (30 minute train) to get away from venice crowds rossiwrites.com/ treviso italy how to visit. home to tiramisu, radicchio, water canals , architecure history, prosecco road & hills
schezzini.it alessandro does a chichetti/bar tour, (history, wine and appetizers/tapas to taste) email him in contact website
gondola ride, we reserved with [email protected] met at jewish ghetto for pick up, about 30-40 minutes, he sings opera while steering, down back canals & crossed grand canal. so so worth it . we brought bottle prosecco with plastic glasses to celebrate.
alongdustyroads.com vaporetto to burano for day trip. walk around have lunch (one of my favorites places)
isoladiburano.it
we took vaporetto to island of mazzorbo, stop before burano. went to tattoria alla maddalena for salami/cheese & glass of wine. walked around small island to bridge to burano, nice day, crossed over to enjoy burano, either buy the 3 day pass or buy R/T ticket to take it back without waiting in lines. (europeforvisitors.com/ venice)
went to harry's bar for famous bellini near st marks plaza, tourist price but we're tourists!
eatwith.com
search any city you are in, some food tours, dinners in locals house, cooking class, tasting. take your pick
MILANO:
tripsavvy.com/ galleria vittorio emanuele II
located at piazza duomo as a luxurious shopping arcade, high end/posh/designer stores and restaurants for your wife. mosaic floors with tiles of the zodiac, stop at taurus the bull to spin your heels for good luck, get your camera ready for your wife's picture
known for milanese risotto since area known for rice, look for mall rooftop viewing.
if you hope/want to see last supper book early (cenocolo.it)
zaniviaggi.com
boat tour on navigli canals, roam around, have lunch/dinner and enjoy. (bbc.com milan, italy's lost city of canals)
if you like italian cars, take a train to museoauto.com from milan for half day away from busy milan, enjoy
sanbernardinoalleossa.it church of bones
doeatbetterexperience.com milan street food
so many things to see and do, many don't feel the greatest about milan or naples, but you wife likes "fashion" go enjoy it and what it offers. fun to see what other cities offer if it's not on the regular busy cities, enjoy what there is
aloha

ChristineH, thank you very much for the travel information. It all makes sense and is helpful.

Princess Pupule – Thank you for the Venice and Milan tips.

Sandancisco - Thanks!

I ended yesterday with my brain in a bit of information overload. I’m in the process of researching the various places that have been suggested, determining what exactly it is we want to see, and revising my itinerary.

Initially, I included 5 nights in Sorrento in my itinerary because the Rick’s book suggests it as a good location with good access to Pompeii, Capri, and the Amalfi Coast, and without enough research into what we want to see. On further reflection, for our interests, I think Capri is skippable and Sorrento is lovely, but seems pretty touristy. I watched a Steve’s YouTube called Italy Blitz from 2 months ago, which suggests staying in Minori or Maiori, which seem like a good idea. I also thought the suggestion by Sandancisco to include the MANN, Archeological museum of Naples aligns with my interests. Paestum seems worthwhile, but that may be one too many archeological site for my wife.

A better way to get from the Naples Airport to Sorrento is the motorcoach bus. It's faster and much more comfortable. Direct from the Naples airport to the Sorrento train station. https://www.curreriviaggi.it/en/naples-airport-shuttle

.

Paestum seems worthwhile, but that may be one too many archeological
site for my wife

Oh my gosh! Try to convince her otherwise. The Greek temples there are stunning and so well preserved.

Either Minori or Maori would work- train to Salerno then ferry.
Not really the best place to visit Pompeii from though

If you want to visit MANN then give Naples 2 or 3 nights and see some of Naples as well. I wouldn't want to day trip there or stop en route. Day trip Pompeii from Naples.

Thanks, Chris!

Thank you very much, ChristineH! I agree with your thoughts.

Here is the "final" version of our itinerary based on all of the extremely helpful feedback. It may get tweaked when I start booking hotels, which I'm starting ASAP. I'm leaning toward Minori, but haven't ruled out Salerno or another location on the Amalfi Coast. I've included a very general description of tentative activities. The extra three nights I mentioned in my original post are allocated to Cinque Terra (1) and Naples (2). It looks like a lot of moving around, but we have some free days to rest and relax. I think museums should be open on the planned dates. Travel on April 30 will probably be crowded, but at this point, I don't think it can be avoided.

4/14 Tue. Arrive Venice. (4 nights)
4/15 Wed. St. Mark Sq., Rialto area, Gondola ride.
4/16 Thu. Rialto/Dosduro areas.
4/17 Fri. Free
4/18 Sat. Train to Milan (2 nights)
4/19 Sum. Duomo, city walk.
4/20 Mon. Train to Vernazza (3 nights)
4/21 Tue. Hike between Villages
4/22 Wed. Explore Towns
4/23 Thu. Train to Florence via Pisa (5 nights)
4/24 Fri. Accademia, San Marco Museums.
4/25 Sat. Bargello, Uffizi, Duomo.
4/26 Sun. Siena day trip.
4/27 Mon. Free
4/28 Tue. Train to Naples (2 nights)
4/29 Wed. Pompeii
4/30 Thu. MANN Museum AM/train to Salerno, ferry to Minori PM (5 Nights)
5/1 Fri. Path of Lemons hike AM, beach PM.
5/2 Sat. Positano, Amalfi (Sorrento?) day trip
5/3 Sun. Paestrum
5/4 Mon. free
5/5 Tue. Train to Rome (5 nights)
5/6 Wed. Panethon, outside Colossseum, Forum
5/7 Thu. Vatican
5/8 Fri. Outlet Shopping
5/9 Sat. free
5/10 Sun. Depart Rome

hey hey wilhelmr1
you're welcome
with so much to think about & book couple other things, your arrival in venice needs transportation from airport to hotel.
taxi at airport to piazzale roma (train station/grand canal about $40) then again to hotel (walk with luggage, private water taxi, alilaguna airport boat, vaporettos)
alilaguna.it

motoscafivenezia.it (expensive like a private chauffeur drops you off as close to hotel) or venicelink.com has info and ways to get to venice center and rates.
book any tickets early for attractions, florence & especially vatican/colosseum/forum/pantheon. mark your calendar or alarm on phone for dates when tickets are for sale
museivaticani.va ticketing.colosseo.it basilicasanpietro.va get early morning opening. tickets go fast
just more to store in your overloaded brain LOL (watch out for scams, people here on board are great. good bad and ugly answers you'll get, your decision plus get your okays by your boss lady
aloha

Sounds like plans for your itinerary are going well! Since you're going to Pompeii, MANN Museum & Paestum, you will more than break even getting the 365 Lite Compania Arte Card, I seem to recall it was E30. (It costs more than that just to get into MANN & Pompeii.) The best part was skipping the line waiting to get into the MANN museum, just show them your QR code. As noted below due to a number of people saying it was tough accessing the app, we just printed out our confirmations & used those. Enjoy your trip!

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/experiences-using-the-campania-arte-card-or-365-lite-card-in-naples-pompeii

Looks good!

I wouldn’t bother daytripping to Sorrento but I would add Ravello

You might want to add the Borghese Gallery to your Rome plans

Thanks Princess Pupule, Sandancisco, and ChristeneH. Very helpful suggestions!

I think research and booking for this trip may end up taking more time than trip itself! This is really time intensive, but I’m getting things booked. I have (1) and (2) questions below.

Following up on Princess Pupule’s suggestion to book a flight into Italy on the first day, I modified our itinerary for a connecting flight on a different airline from the one we arrive on in Frankfurt: arrive Frankfurt at 12:45 on Condor; depart to Venice at 17:10 on Lufthansa, which leaves 4 hours 25 minutes between flights to collect bags, go through customs, and security to re-enter airport. I paid Lufthansa extra for some service that lets you go to the head of the line. We plan to apply for Global Entry, but I understand this won’t speed up the security check entering Germany. My previous itineraries had called for sleeping in Frankfurt on the night of our arrival. The same day connecting flight gives me an extra night elsewhere, which I added to Naples.

(1) If anyone thinks we’re cutting it too close on the connection flight, please let me know.

I haven’t settled on where to sleep on the Amalfi coast, (I’m open to suggestion) but it will probably be Maiori. Regardless of where we stay, we will use a travel day to go from Naples to Salerno to catch a ferry to say, Maiori.

I plan to add a visit to Paestum to the travel day from Naples to Maiori. Originally, I thought we would visit Paestum as a day trip from Maiori, but based on train and ferry schedules, I think I can fit it into the travel day. We will have luggage, but I believe we can take a train to Salerno, store our baggage near the station, then train to Paestum for 3.5 hours, train back to Salerno arriving at 16:58, and then catching a ferry to Maiori at 18:00. This would give us an extra day to explore the Amalfi coast.

The Naples-Salerno-Paestum-Salerno-Miori travel day would be Thursday, April 30 – the day before the May 1 Labor day holiday. The trains and ferry may be crowded, but I think tickets can be reserved in advance. It seems like a lot of connections, but doable.

(2) If anyone thinks including Paestum in the travel day is too much or risky, please let me know.