Looking for advice on first trip to Italy

A few suggestions. First, your itinerary is sensible.

With a car, I'd look into staying in an agriturismo somewhere near Siena. You'd have parking and more options for rooms for your family. I'd save time by dropping the car closer to Rome - maybe even at the airport where you can take a train into Rome and transfer to a train for Naples.

There's no point to flying back from Naples to Rome - it's a short train ride.

Your budget per night should give you plenty of options - even for a family of five. With a car, you should explore options for a two-bedroom apartment or villa.

Hey, Tom: have a great trip!

1. Flying into Milan, you should definitely train it to Venice (just about 2 hours away) for a few nights.

2. Venice to Florence is also just over 2 hours via train. A few nights in Florence is a must.

3. Six days in Siena is a VERY long time in a small town...albeit a great town well worth a few nights.

4. The bus ride from Siena to Rome is just about 3 hours, and very comfortable and easy. In Rome you can leave the bus, and board the train to Sorrento.

Hope this helps. To be THAT close and really miss Venice and Florence--and spend so much time in Siena--just doesn't make sense to me. Also, you're north-south spread--Milan to the Amalfi Coast--seems very long for ten days, although do-able.

Good luck, and have fun!

I agree with John; Venice and Florence are both 'must see' destinations. on another note, if you haven't yet booked your flight from Naples to Rome, you might want to look into taking a train instead. It might save you time once you consider getting to the airport, checking in, etc. Train travel would also probably be less costly. The Amalfi coast is beautiful, but why not stop in Rome for 2 or 3 days, especially since this is your first visit. Buon Viaggio!

Two hours Milan to Venice? Two hours Venice to Florence? I don't think so. When we did it, it was more like 3+ hours, and that was the fast train. Or, have trains gotten faster in four years?

Just an FYI to keep in mind, we have driven from Milan to Florence (and Siena is further)-- it's a long trip. So is by train from Florence to Sorrento. Sorrento is a good location to see the Amalfi coast, islands, and Pompeii. Sounds like you will be spending more time commuting than seeing the sights (like Florence). On the other hand, since you will be in a car in the Siena area, maybe head to the beach one day, but go early, after all you will be there at the height of the season and it gets crowded. Happy Travels.

We found a great place just outside of Sorrento that makes a very nice "home base" for exploring the Amalfi Coast. The town is Massa Lubrense, a quiet fishing village. The hotel is BellaVista. It has a GREAT restaurant and a pool that the kids might enjoy. It is right on the bus route with a stop right out front. About 10 minutes beyond Sorrento.

http://www.francischiello.it/