Need help planning first time visit to Italy

If it were me I would stay in Siena before Florence, primarily because it is easier to get to Sorrento from Florence, the only time you would have to change trains would be in Naples. I would also take the bus from Rome to Siena. I also suggest cutting Siena down to two nights and adding at least one more night to Sorrento. There are a lot of things you will want to do in that area - Pompeii, Almalfi Coast, Capri, Naples, Pasteum, etc... I was in Sorrento for the first time last year for 4 nights and I wish I had a couple of more nights. I would rather spend 6 nights in Sorrento then 6 in Rome - and don't get me wrong I love Rome.

Here is my suggested itinerary - Rome 3N, Siena 2N, Florence 2N, Sorrento 5N, Rome 2N.

Ru,
Consider going straight to Florence after landing, only about 1.5 hours from Rome. This will cut out one day of travel and put all your Rome days together at the end. From Siena to Naples (you take the commuter train Naples to Sorrento) look at using an IC rather than the AV it will add a half hour to an hour to the trip but cut the cost in half.

We did Sienna as a day trip (with a car) while staying in the Tuscany area; not sure if there's enough of interest to stay for 3 days there. If its hill towns you're after, I'd suggest staying in a smaller one and doing daytrips by train or bus to visit other ones in the vicinity.

I agree with the earlier suggestion about going directly to Florence from Rome upon arrival, then working your way south. If it were me I'd spend just 1 day in Rome at the tail end instead of 2, and add the extra day on to Sorrento.

Recommend using Easyjet.com and fly between sites. Train trips can be scenic but very long and you lose a lot of valuable time in transport. Be sure to make it to Sicily and Taormina (40 km south of Messina). Look at the site info on Wikipedia and check out the Capotaormina Hotel. You will want to move there!
Angela

Thank you all for your valued advice. After reading all the postings I'm now thinking of heading straight to Siena upon arrival in Rome for 2N, from there take a bus to Florence for 3N, head to Sorrento from Florence for 4N, and Sorrento to Rome 4N. Which do you think is the best mode of transportation for each leg of my itinerary? We won't be renting a car at all. Therefore its either bus/train. I was considering either Hotel Aberdeen or Hotel Smeraldo in Rome since we will have to book 2 rooms but someone suggested we look into renting apartment, any thoughts? Thank you.

Bus is the best way between Rome and Siena. It is about a 3 hour bus ride. Bus is also the best way between Siena and Florence. Train to Naples then to Sorrento and Train back to Rome. The advice about flying between each town is silly and I have never seen that advice on this site before. So ignore that.

Ru,

"Which do you think is the best mode of transportation for each leg of my itinerary?"

Train would absolutely be the best mode of travel for this Itinerary. Travel times will be somewhat longer if you use slower regional trains, but will be very fast if using the EuroStar Italia / Alta Velocita (of course, the fast trains cost more but the cost for second class tickets should be manageable for a family of four). I wouldn't recommend using EasyJet or other budget carriers as this will probably take longer than train, after factoring in the times to & from airports, check-in, security and waiting times.

The area around Termini would be the most convenient for transportation, so that would be my suggestion. I have rooms booked this spring for Hotel Aberdeen so that looks like a good choice (I don't have any information on Hotel Smeraldo, but if it's in the book it must be reliable).

As this will be your first time to Italy, it would be a good idea to have a look at Europe Through The Back Door, especially the "Rail Skills" chapter.

I'll have a closer look at your Itinerary later tonight when I have more time, and try to suggest an efficient route for the cities you've listed.

Cheers!

Your revised itinerary sounds good. I would suggest the Piazza Navona, Campo de Fiori or Pantheon areas in Rome. I am not a fan of the Termini area but many people like it. I do think an apartment would make sense for you. We stayed in a great apartment in Rome in between the Piazza Navona & Campo de Fiori areas. It's called Palazzo Olivia & you can get various sized apartments to accommodate 4 people. You get much more square footage in an apartment than you do in a hotel & it was nice to have the extra room to spread out a little. It was also nice to have a little kitchen.

I would visit Siena as a day trip from Florence. I would stay in Florence 3 days & spend 2 in Florence & 1 in Siena. I would then add the extra day to Rome & visit Orvieto as a day trip. It's a wonderful little town and easy to get to from Rome via train. Have a wonderful time.

Hi Ru,

I did two trips to Italy - one for 10 days and one for a little longer - and went to a lot of places you're considering with a few day trips to other areas. I've put together some notes/tips to cover Rome, Florence, Siena, Cinque Terre, Venice, Orvieto, etc. If you'd like I can send you a copy. I think you'll find it helpful covering everything from what to pack, where to exchange money, train tickets, accommodations, museum reservations, Roma Pass, etc. Just email me and I will send you a copy.

Great trip ahead of you - have fun!
Jeanette

Ru,
Rome to Siena by bus is faster, cheaper and less transfers than by train. See http://www.sena.it/
From FCO to the bus station see http://www.trenitalia.com/cms/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=6d8287507ffba110VgnVCM1000003f16f90aRCRD&vgnextchannel=bafb09296b85a110VgnVCM10000080a3e90aRCRD

Siena to Florence is faster and easier by bus, see http://www.sitabus.it/sita-toscana/Firenze%20-%20Siena.pdf

Florence to Naples,see http://www.ferroviedellostato.it/homepage_en.html

Thank you all so, so much! Since its my first visit to Italy with my family I shouldn't go too crazy but enjoy and have a relaxing time for those 14 days. Therefore this time maybe I should just focus on staying in Rome, Florence and Sorrento. A lot of people have suggested that I do day trip to Siena from Florence and add couple days to Sorrento. Ken before you spend too much time working on my itinerary I want you to know I'm flip-flopping on the locations! Also I'm a little nervous about changing trains especially with luggage. I think once I check the train schedules on trenitalia I will have a better feel and more confidence to venture in a new place. This is the first time I'm in charge of planning an entire vacation! So help me...?

Hi--one thing I'd suggest is to print the train itineraries for whichever train segments you might be thinking of taking, and take those papers with you. I did this and it helped, except I forgot to print the one from Cortona to Assisi. Big mistake! We were staying at a B & B which had no computer, so, we had to wait until we got to the station to see the timetables. Once there, I discovered the trains to Assisi were not as frequent as I'd thought, and we'd just missed the morning one! Instead of waiting 3+ hours for the next train and losing the better part of the afternoon, we took the train to Orvieto instead. I was disappointed to have missed Assisi, but loved Orvieto, too!