Need help planning trip

Did you mean fly out of Rome to Vancouver? Do you have a specific motive for visiting Ancona? Is the trip really just about a week long, or what are the flight dates?

Hi

We were thinking of flying out of Venice back to Vancouver if that was going to be the cheaper route. If Rome to Vancouver is a better deal then we can do that. In Ancona I have family so we were going to spend two days with them. As for time frame sometime in May excluding travel days yes it would be 7 days.

Thanks

paul,

That's an extremely short time to spend in Italy after travelling all that way. Have you bought your air tickets yet? I'm assuming if you're stopping in Amsterdam, that you're using KLM? Is the flight from Amsterdam to Venice a code share with one of the KLM partner airlines? Using a code share is a better option so that you don't have to deal with your checked luggage at intermediate airports. On flights from the west coast, note that you'll generally arrive in Europe the day after you depart YVR.

A few thoughts on your Itinerary.....

• You'll have to go through Passport control when you arrive in Amsterdam, then through security again before you board your next flight.
• When you arrive in Venice, one of the easiest ways to get from the airport to the city is via the Alilaguna "water bus".
• For the train ride from Venice to Rome, you'll need to know the stations you'll be using (in Italian). Your departure station will be Venezia Santa Lucia and your arrival station will be Roma Termini. You'll be using the Freccia high speed trains on that route, but note that these have compulsory reservations which are specific to train, date and departure time (reservations are included with tickets but not Railpasses). Don't be caught without a valid reservation for the train you're riding on, or you'll face hefty fines which will be collected on the spot! You can save money by pre-purchase of tickets, but be absolutely sure of your travel dates and times, as the cheapest tickets are non-refundable and non-changeable.
• The train ride from Rome to Ancona will probably be via Regionale trains. With Regionale trains, you MUST validate (time & date stamp) your tickets prior to boarding the train on the day of travel, or again hefty fines collected on the spot!!! Those tickets aren't easy to purchase in advance, nor is there any price break so the easiest method is simply to buy them from one of the automated Kiosks at the station. I usually prefer to buy tickets the day prior to travel so that I don't have to waste any time on travel day. One of the easiest trips will be a departure from Roma Termini at 09:35, arriving Ancona at 13:00 (time 3H:25M, direct with no changes).
• I don't see the point of returning to Rome and then flying back to Venice. If you've already purchased return flights to Venice and have to return there for your flight home, the easiest method would be to go back to Venice via train. It will most likely be faster and it will absolutely be less stressful and easier. You can get back to Venice directly from Ancona, without returning to Rome (one change at Bologna Centrale).

"Fly out of Rome to Venice" - If you need to get back to Venice to fly back to Amsterdam (re-trace your original flights), it would be simpler to get a cheap flight from Rome to Amsterdam. Otherwise, just get a train from Ancona to Venice, you've already been to Rome.
But I also agree skip Ancona and add the time to Rome, or stop off in Firenze (Florence) between Venice and Rome.

Thanks for the great advice. We wish we could stay longer but are unable to. As for Ancona we have family there so thats why the stop there. I find the trains kind of confusing though. Im going have to plug in our destinations and see whats the quickest options

Any suggestions on where is the best place to stay in Venice. Want something central?

Thanks

Paul,

Your itinerary is a bit confusing to me...
Do you already have flight tickets from Rome to Venice?

If that's the case, then it makes more sense to go to Ancona after visiting Venice then take train to Rome.

So your itinerary would look like this:

• Arrive in Venice (2 nights)
• train to Ancona ( 2-3 nights)
• train to Rome (2-3 nights)
• fly from Rome to Venice (1 night)
• fly home from Venice

In terms of trains, I'm sure your family (from Ancona) can give you advise as to best way to get there.
Happy planning!

Hi

Yes it is a bit confusing now that i have read it lol. I'm going to re post here now.

As of right now we have nothing booked. We are going to be traveling in June 2015. We are coming from Vancouver BC and would like to spend 2 to 3 nights in Venice, 2 to 3 nights in Rome and 2 nights in Ancona. We are limited on time thats why we want to limit the amount of time we are traveling. We have never been to Europe and are still learning about the going ons there. So any help with the plans would be great.

Thanks

Paul,

Since your trip is short and you don't have the possibility of adding to it,

I'd suggest looking into getting open-jaw (multi-city) flight tickets and that way you won't waste time back tracking.

You could fly into Milan or Venice then fly home out of Rome.

You could also skip Venice & fly into Florence instead.

Check all your possibilities then come back & post new questions or perhaps your family in Ancona may have a better plan for your trip.

Happy planning!

Spending one night in Venice is a complete, complete waste unless the $$$ savings is phenomenal!

Hi

Yes for sure. Thats why we will do at least 2 if not 3 days

Paul,

I may be wrong but... I think what Donna meant is that flights to Venice are usually more expensive than say, flights to Milan or Rome.

With your short time, I would fly into Venice and stay 2-3nights. Then take the train to Ancona and spend 2 nights with family. Next stop would be Rome for the rest of your time and then fly home from there. Flights back to North America are usually more convenient out of Rome than Venice.

paul,

In order to minimize your travel times (important with such an extremely short trip), would something like this work.....

• D1 - Depart VYR
• D2 / N1 - Arrive AMS - transfer to flight to VCE - take Alilaguna to stop nearest your hotel.
• D3 / N2 - Venice, touring
• D4 / N1 - Train to Ancona - easiest choice is probably a departure from Venezia S. Lucia at 09:25, arriving Ancona at 13:31 (time 4H:06M, one change in Bologna, both trains high speed Freccia so compulsory reservations which are specific to train, date and departure time).
• D5 / N2 - Ancona, visiting with relatives
• D6 / N1 - Train to Rome easiest choice is probably a departure from Ancona at 08:45, arriving Roma Termini at 12:35 (time 3H:50M, Regionale Veloce so DON'T forget to validate your ticket prior to boarding the train on the day of travel).
• D7 / N2 - Rome, touring
• D8 - Return flight to YVR - quickest method to FCO is the Leonardo Express (train, €14 PP). This is also a Regionale Veloce so DON'T forget to validate your ticket. You'll likely have a layover at a hub airport such as FRA, CDG or AMS. Which airline are you planning to book with?

Is there ANY possibility you could add more time to this trip? You likely won't get as much benefit out of your visit to Venice as you'll probably be jet-lagged and wandering about in a daze for the first day or two. With such a short trip, you might consider skipping Venice and limiting your trip to Rome and Ancona this time.

Buon Viaggio!

To find flights, start with Kayak http://www.kayak.com/flights or Matrix ITA http://matrix.itasoftware.com/. Select "multi city" rather than "one way" or "round trip." Put in Vancouver to Venice as your first leg and Rome to Vancouver as your second leg, and see what comes up. This will show you all the options.

This way, all your flights will be on one ticket. The airline is then responsible for getting you to your destination if one flight is delayed. If you book separate tickets (say from Vancouver to Amsterdam, then a separate ticket from Amsterdam to Venice), you are responsible, both logistically and financially, if you miss the connection due to a delay.

Ken has given you great advice about a route within Italy, and about connecting the cities. One refinement: a taxi from the center of Rome to the airport is a fixed rate (last time I checked it was €48), and tipping is not expected. For several people, and/or early in the morning, and/or if you have a fair amount of luggage, that's money well spent, particularly since the Leonardo Express train is €14 per person, and you still have to get to the train station to take it.