Itinerary Help for a Honeymoon

Andy: You mentioned Venice, some travelers (including me) would say that a honeymoon in Italy should include Venice!

With 14 nights, and already planning on Tuscany and the Cinque Terre, one other place would be good. Rome or Venice - they're both wonderful, but it kind of depends on what you want to do with this trip. Rome - Tons of history and culture, big-city experience, and beautiful too. Venice - Gorgeous, unique city, tons of history and culture but fewer museums to visit, perfect for just wandering around.

Also, consider your route. Where will you fly into and out of? I.e., you could fly into Venice, then on to Tuscany (you didn't mention if you'd be visiting Florence, or just the rural areas of Tuscany), then on to the Cinque Terre, and fly out of Milan. If you choose Rome, you could fly into Rome, then up to Tuscany, over to Cinque Terre, and again fly out of Milan.

Montepulciano to Volterra would be at least a 2-hour drive each way; Montepulciano to San Gimignano about 1 hr 40 minutes. Use mappy.com to plot routes and times. You could visit them both on one long day.

If you have a car (which is a good idea in Tuscany) you can visit those places. Take a look at the adjoining area of Umbria, lots of interesting hilltowns there.

As for the other 4 days, you have a bit of a lead time :-) What I suggest is taping some travel shows on Italy (Ricks, for example, or Samantha Brown) and seeing what strikes you as interesting.

I've got some itineraries my wife and I have used for Italy in the past year on my blog (address is with my name) that include must-see places. You don't want to move too much, but one suggestion would be to fly into Rome and proceed this way:

-3 nights Roma
-Bus (easy) to Siena
-3 nights Siena, seeing the town for 1 or 2 days, and using the others for day trips to nearby Tuscan hill towns like Volterra and San G
-Bus to Firenze
-2 or 3 nights Firenze
-Train to Cinque Terre
-2 or 3 nights Cinque Terre
-Early AM Train to Milano; store bags; see Duomo, Galleria Vittorio Emanuele, and Last Supper if you make reservations for afternoon (can be done in about six hours, including a bite to eat)
-Train to one of the lakes north of Milan (Como? Maggiore?)
-1 night Como or Stresa/Maggiore
-Train to Venezia
-2 or 3 nights Venezia
-Fly home from Venice

I've got some pretty detailed info, as I said, on the blog, under itineraries. Buon viaggio!

Hi Andy - Fly into Venice and fly out of Rome! I would stay 2 nights in Venice, 3 in Rome, and take a day from Tuscany. I did go to Montepulciano, Volterra and San G....our base was Siena. You could drive or take the train from Montepulciano...but you'd be back tracking quite a bit. If you are coming from Cinque Terra I would go to Siena and check out Volterra and San G and then go to Montepulciano.

I went to Venice on my honeymoon and never regretted it. We went back two years ago with the kids and it was great to see the city again. We have also stayed in CT - several times. Monterossa is the biggest of the towns and the most activity. I have also stayed in Riomaggiore and really liked it there. As far as specific accommodations in those places I like to use tripadvisor.com to get good timely recommendations. Rome is great city and I really enjoy it there - but depending on where you are staying in Tuscany you may find it quite easy to take a day trip there

Also take a look at http://gadtravel.blogspot.com/

The Rome first or last issue is an interesting one, and I can see both sides. On one hand, it's so true: Roma is intense and chaotic and gigantic...and as a big city it's probably better to have your Italian groove on before you get to the Eternal City. BUT on the other hand, hitting Roma last, for all of it's advantages, can find you alreay tired from all of the sites and travel and hotels and without the energy and freshness to pursue Rome with vigor. To me--and I know that Rick says take on Rome at the end--this one can cut both ways. Either way, hey, you're in Italy in the spring, on your honeymoon!

To each his/her own, but I'd choose Venice over Rome, especially for a honeymoon!

It so much depends on your interests and budget also if this is your first visit and whether you think you'll be able to return to see more. I love the excitement and history of Rome and think that everyone should see it but its a big city. If you stay in the historical center it becomes more manageable. You might want to finish there the LAST two nights and fly home from Rome but fly into Florence ideally. We enjoyed Montepulciano and the hilltowns with not to miss Florence and Siena. I still prefer the Amalfi coast and be on the Mediterrean. I love Sorrento and day trip or stay a night in Positano, ferry to Capri and take the quick train to Pompeii. Four nights would be nice. We also prefer Santa Margherita just east of Cinque Terra. It's got the fishing boats with more chic and we walk to Portofino and ferry back. Venice is so strikingly romantic and magical although touristy. Two to Three nights there. Lucky you

Andy,
For ideas in Tuscany see http://www.slowtrav.com/italy/tuscany/hs_planning.htm