Itinerary question

I will leave it to experts to give you better guidanace, however you are listing 13 places that you would like to see in 13 nights.

When you consider travel time and the logistics of changing hotels if necessary you will need a vacation after this trip.
Also, what city are you arriving in and departing from?
When we have travelled to Italy, it has always been more enjoyable to stay in one city for at least a few days before moving on to another.

Just from your question, luckily you have time to rework this into a more practical and enjoyable itinary.
Additionally, does your 13 nights include travel to and from Italy? Depending on when you arrive you are going to loose part of that day, same with departure.

Irene, you didn't mention Venice. Was that an oversight or have you spent enough time there before?

You have 13 cities listed to visit on a 13 day trip. It's too much. With only 13 days I wouldn't try to visit more than 5or 6 cities. Find a base and make easy day trips. As it is, you're going to spend your entire vacation in train stations getting from one city to the next. Also, note that you are going during high season so you're going to find high crowds in most places you've listed.

Donna

Thank you. I thought it was too much. I have been to Venice before, that's why didn't include it. 13 nights is total, arriving on September 25, departing on October 7.
Some towns I was going to combine into 1 day- like Pisa and Lucca.
Will have to cut things out. Does it make sense to fly into Genova and leave from Venice airport ( from Padua)?
Thank you!

Yes, you should definitely weed out the places you want to visit.
Padova is a good place to stay. Vicenza is around the corner, as is Venice. I was not so impressed by Verona. Instead I'd do a nice daytrip from Padova to Fanzolo, where some 100 metres from the tiny railway station you'll find one of the villas of the famous Palladio. (In Vincenza you shouldn't forget to visit the Teatro Olimpico!).
I'd invest some time in Genova, a wonderful city which needs at least two days to discover its charms. I'd prefer that much more than Portofino and overcrowded Cinque Terre.
Pisa and Lucca can easily be combined on one day, with Lucca as a base. From there Siena can easily be reached by taking the train to Florence and there pick up the bus to Siena (bus station is just across the street from Florence's main station: Santa Maria Novella.) Again: have at least a day and a half for Siena, giving up San Gimignano.
You'll have to figure out how you can reach Volterra.
Transportwise Orvieto and Assisi, both worthwhile destinations, is a problem. I'd suggest staying in Perugia, from where there are regular buses for Assisi itself (Assisi's train station is some kilometres out). Orvieto will be a long day-trip.
Figure out the logistics by using the website of the Italian railways: www.trenitalia.com/tcom-en (use the Italian originals for place names).

Thank you, tonfromleiden! It is very helpful.

Too much.

While Genoa is a great city, I would give up all that area, Genoa, Portofino, and 5 Terre to make your trip easier. Fly into Pisa and then figure out Tuscany, then move on to Padua and fly out of Venice.

What you're proposing will definitely work with a bit of trimming and some advance prep. Since your time is short, I'd drop either Portofino or Cinque Terre. And Orvieto, nice as it is, is an obvious possible cut because of the transportation time and the fact that you really would want a generous full day there, not however many hours are left over after you subtract train time.

As already suggested, start fiddling with the Trenitalia schedule to see how things fit together. Some of your destinations will probably work better by bus. Pay attention if your guidebook says the train station is at the foot of the hill, a 30-minute walk from the historic center, whereas the bus drops you off near where you want to be. You may encounter some not-too-convenient bus terminals, too. Those walks into town will affect the efficiency of your day-trips, unless you're prepared to shell out money for taxis.

Rome2Rio.com can usually be relied upon to provide the name(s) of the appropriate bus companies and links you can follow to check online schedules. Be aware that trying to make a day-trip to another city by bus on a Sunday is very dicey, though there will probably be some level of service between major cities like Lucca and Siena. Always, always check the bus or train schedule before finalizing your plans. Do not rely on statements such as "6 to 8 buses a day". Those buses (or trains) are scheduled to meet the needs of the regular travelers, who are locals going to and from work and to and from home for the mid-day break. There may be nothing moving between 9 AM and 1 or 1:30 PM. Sometimes having a real meal at mid-day means waiting 2-1/2 or 3 hours for the next transportation back to you base city.

If you're heading to a place where you want to see indoor sights, check the schedules carefully. It's Italy, so usually only a few of the very largest are open throughout the day. And there will be one closing day a week, plus a holiday here or there.

What's going to help is that there are several places on your list where you probably won't need a whole day (and I'm allowing for some wandering-around time), so the left-over time can be spent sightseeing in your current base city.

Thank you everyone for very helpful suggestions.
I really want to see Genova, so I think I will fly into Genova and out of Padova. I looked into train and buses schedules and discovered that for me would probably make more sense to stay in Florence for my Tuscany portion of the trip, it seems to have more options for day trips than Siena. Please correct me if I am wrong, if you think Siena is better. I've been to Florence before (stayed 4 nights without making any day trips).
So, my itinerary looks something like this now:
Fly into Genova and stay 3 nights- then go on to Pisa- Lucca (1 night)- Florence (5 nights with day trips to Siena, San Gimignano, Orvieto may be, it is 2 h 10' by train one way); then to- Padova ( 3 nights with day trips to Vicenza and Fanzolo). Fly home from Marco pollo airport.
It's actually 12 nights.. sorry I was confused, looks like I have even less time.
Does this look better or still crazy busy?
Thanks!

Flights from Venice Marco Polo connecting elsewhere in Europe tend to leave very early in the morning meaning a very early trip across or around the water. I often advise flying into Venice and out of the other airport.

Hi Irene - as much as I LOVE Italy, this itinerary stresses me out! Travel between cities is not difficult, but it does take time and doing all of this will mean you spend the entire time on trains and buses and not much enjoying the places you are going. I would skip the Cinque Terre - it is lovely but not so easy to get to - OR I would pick a base there and spend at least 2 nights to explore it and skip something else. Portofino is wonderful - one of my very favorite places - but seems far away from everything else on your list. I have been to Pisa and was really underwhelmed (the tower leans, the tourists mob). Siena, Volterra, SanGimignano, and other Tuscan hill towns are all fantastic. I would pick 3 bases (Siena would definitely be one for me) but certainly cut back on destinations.

It sounds like others have already emphasized that this will be way too much for one trip, so I won't dwell on that (but wholeheartedly agree). I think it's all a matter of personal preference, but having been to both Genova and Cinque Terre, I loved the charming Cinque Terre much more. There's not as much to go and see compared to Genova, but it is so fun just to stroll and swim and eat yummy food (particularly at the end of your vacation). I'd say that Cinque Terre has a charm that Genova doesn't have in quite the same way. If you are worried about the crowds (which shouldn't be horrible in late Sept...we were there early Sept and thought it was fine on a weekday), perhaps another coastal town like Portofino as you mentioned would work.

One possible way to address your "too many places" problem would be to base yourself in Florence, then take Walkabout Tours "Best of Tuscany in One Day" tour. They take you to Siena, San Gimignano, lunch at a vineyard in Chianti, and Pisa all in one day. We really enjoyed it.

Thank you all for your great ideas and help! I will have to play with the itinerary to make it feasible and enjoyable:)))

Volterra would be first to go for me, it's time consuming to reach. Next would be Assisi, for similar reasons.

Arrive Genova - 2nts
Portofino - 1nt
Cinque Terre - 2nts
Lucca - 1nt
Via Pisa to Siena - 2nts (San Gimignano day trip)
Orvieto - 1nt
Verona - 2nts
Padua - 2nts (Vicenza day trip)
Depart Venice

You could, perhaps, steal a night from Verona to make a day trip to Assisi from Orvieto

There are buses from the Assisi train station to the city every ten minutes or so, I never understand why people think that is a deal-breaker. And Orvieto is the same, frequent funivia schedule connects to buses to the main piazza. The problem with these two places is they are longish journeys from your other cities.

It's easy to combine some cities, as you know (Pisa and Lucca). I would choose Verona or Vicenza, or base in Padova and do day trips.