My husband and I leave for our first trip to Italy in 3 weeks. Our schedule is tight. We arrive in Rome on Friday morning (Day 1) before 10 am and are planning to stay in Rome Saturday and Sunday (Day 2 and 3) leaving Monday to Orvieto (Day 4). We plan to spend Monday night in Orvieto. On Tuesday afternoon we go to Florence (Day 5). We are in Florence all day Wednesday and Thursday(Day 6 and 7). On Friday we go to Sorrento (Day 8) for Saturday and Sunday (Day 9 and 10) returning to Rome on Monday (Day 11). We fly home early Tuesday. I was really looking forward to visiting Orvieto, I studied archaeology in University and loved Eutruscan history, but I am now questioning if it is worth the effort to go there for what will amount to 3/4 of day. It is on the way to from Rome to Florence but is it too much of a detour. If we don't go we will add a day to either Rome or Florence. I am leaning towards Florence so we can easily fit in a day doing a wine tasting tour. I have already scheduled a tour for a day but I thought an extra day in Florence might give us enjoy Florence at a less rushed pace. When we originally booked this trip we were going to cruise the Mediterranean, but decided we were not actually going to see much of the Mediterranean that way;) If we had planned to visit Italy initially I would have added a couple more days and planned an open jaw flights. Any opinions would be appreciated.
Posted by
Toledo
653 posts
Tracy, consider adding a day in Rome. Orvieto is beautiful, but you'll be doing a lot of traveling as it is. There is a very good Etruscan Museum in the Villa Borghese (Galleria Borghese is on the property as well), and a day trip to Cerveteri is closer than Orvieto.
Posted by
Seattle, WA, USA
7737 posts
You're risking sliding down the slippery slope of "While we're there, we might as well see...." which can then ruin your entire vacation by spending way too much of it in transit. Orvieto is really wonderful. But so are Rome and Florence, in different ways. Good luck.
Posted by
Alta Loma, CA, USA
1446 posts
Tracy, I agree with the others...stay in Rome & visit Orvieto on a future trip. Orvieto is definitely worth a visit but you've got a tight schedule and I'd just stay in Rome another night. There's so much to do in Rome & you'll barely scratch the surface as it is but I think it would be more relaxing to stay put one more night. Moving around is very tiring. Enjoy
Posted by
OP
Bridgewater NS, NS, Canada
24 posts
Thanks for the replies. You have confirmed what I thought we should do. I think we will drop Orvieto on this trip and save it for a future trip when we have more time. I am hoping our B&B has availability on the 31st if not we will head to Florence a day early.
Posted by
Lake Worth, Florida, USA
101 posts
Don't forget about jet lag when you decide on your plans. I usually feel it on day 3. Orvieto is a short ride from the highway exit so it is something you can see on your way to Florence. It took us less than 20 minutes to get there from the exit and parking was very easy. If you know what you want to see you can spend a few hours here and than head to Florence. The drive to Florence is about 2.5 to 3 hours from Ovieto.
Posted by
OP
Bridgewater NS, NS, Canada
24 posts
I should have added that we are traveling by train.