Need help with 1st time itinerary!

Hi Julia -
Before launching into itinerary suggestions, how many nights on the ground in Italy will you have for this trip? It's a more accurate way to count your time. Also, what sorts of things is your family interested in seeing, and are you wishing to do this trip entirely by public transit (that's a definite for Rome, Florence or CT) or partly by rental car?

Not all young people are the same; I've been an art/museum/architecture geek from a young age but my "engaging" may not be your daughters'. There's TONS to see in Florence and Rome but whether they'll enjoy most of it or not is up to their preferences. :O)

Just curious: the very, very common first trip to the Boot is the "Holy Trinity" of Rome, Florence and Venice. All three are very different cities, all three can be easily accessed via "fast" trains, and English widely spoken in the hospitality industries. It's also possible to fly into Venice and out of Rome, eliminating backtracking or 1 final night close to a departure airport; that would be necessary for a Rome> Volterra> CT itinerary. Any interest in that plan?

Editing to reference the post below: how overwhelming one might find Rome may depend on where one resides (in a large city /suburbs of a large city versus small town) and how much traveling in general someone has done. We've also explored Rome almost exclusively on foot as the historic center - where most of the sites visitors wish to see - is reasonably compact, and it's really the best way to experience the Eternal City, IMHO. Again, though, it can depend on physical shape of the traveler or how much shoe leather they're willing to expend so whatever works! :O)

Erin, I was 18 the first time I saw Italy too so we have that in common! Sounds like we both fell head-over-heels for her on those early trips too, eh? Wow, 6 months in Florence...so jealous! :O)

My advice, especially for first-time visitors to Italy, is to start somewhere "smaller" (Venice or Florence), then head south and end in Rome. Rome is incredible, but it can be overwhelming. The city is spread out, it gets hot, it gets crowded, there's SO MUCH to see, and it's just not as easily navigated as Venice or Florence, where you'd walk everywhere. There is PLENTY to do in both Florence and Rome to occupy 4-5 nights each, which cuts down on the time you have to transition between cities and allows you to really get a "feel" for the culture of the cities.

I first went to Italy when I was 18 in high school, then did a study abroad in Florence for 6 months at 20. It's such a great age to explore! My top recommendation for Rome, if you plan to visit the Vatican/Sistine Chapel - the "early entrance" tours are worth EVERY PENNY. You'll have to be up super early, but you'll be in and through the Sistine Chapel before the doors even open to regular visitors. It's an amazing experience!

9 days is not enough to see everything one would like in 3 places... so don't try... 9 days is plenty to have a great fun time if everyone is on board with some group activities and also have a chance to wander a bit on their own or in pairs.

You don't say how many times you have been to Europe before, so it will be important to recognize that changing cities is a half-day affair with checkout-travel-checkin. 9 days thus loses a full day to travel if you want to hit 3 places.

Check out the Trenitalia website for roughing out a travel plan:

https://www.trenitalia.com/en.html

Rome-Umbria-Florence is quite compact, but "where" in Umbria may suggest some driving.

Volterra will definitely require some driving. A great place but not exactly on the way to Florence. CT is farthest from Rome (5 hours plus by train). Florence is 3 and a half hours from Rome.

I usually start by listing what we really want to see (4 voters here) and allocate a half day to each activity in each place. Subtract travel time. Include cafe time to sit and enjoy life in a new place with GREAT FOOD (the laundromat requirement can dovetail nicely with cafe time).

have fun!

My main suggestion is that you make the planning a big part of this and that it include all of you. Use your travel guides and make lists of places to see and things to do. There are tons of videos on YouTube that might help answer some questions (but certainly don't ignore us!!!! We love to get involved.) and generate new ideas.

The big 3 (Venice, Florence, Rome) are a bit much for the very few days you have available to you. Personally, I would fly into Venice and spend 3 nights there. There is no other city in the world like Venice! Venice is not really a late night place so it might be a good place to get over jetlag. In Venice my favorite hotel is Hotel Ala (hotelala.it) Venice is about walking and riding the vaporetto. Get lost - or at least try. Don't ignore the other islands (well, maybe you can ignore the Lido).

If you MUST stop in Florence, what is on your list? Florence is beautiful and there's lots of Renaissance art to look at, if that's your interest. I know this is heresy but if you only have a few things on your Florence list, maybe just one day would do it? Take an early train from Venice, store your luggage at the train station, have time specific reservations for your to-do list (we'll all be glad to help you with order and timings), and then head to Rome at the end of the day. The Freccia trains are frequent, comfortable and fast.

Rome deserves all the time you can give her. Remember that Rome was not built and can not be seen in a day. But! If you get tired of one century, theme, or culture, you only need to turn left at the next corner! Rome is also a place for your daughters. The Monti and Trastevere districts are very young adult friendly and safe. You 'older' people will enjoy them too! Maybe Rome would be a good place to rent an apartment. I like staying near Piazza Navona because just about everything is within walking distance. An apartment would give you a chance to cook a few meals using some of the amazing fresh vegetables, fruits, cheeses, wines, breads, meats and fish from the local markets. My favorite place to eat is Carlo Menta in Trastevere (near the church Santa Maria in Trastevere). Local foods, local customers, extremely reasonable prices.

So, get planning and stay in touch! Remember: your family deserves this!!!!

You’ve got a fairly short time in a country that has so much. You’ll be back, think of it that way. Here is a contrary view- make Rome your base. Set aside a day for the Coliseum and the Roman Forum. Book a guided tour ahead of time, it will be well worth it. Likewise a day for the Vatican-Saint Peters, the Vatican Museum, the Sistine Chapel. Likewise a guided tour will enhance your visit and save you much aimless wandering. If you love art the Villa Borghese is a do not miss, buy tickets ahead. Consider a food tour that visits the Trastevere neighborhood. Escape for a day trip to the hill town of Orvieto- a short train ride. Do a tour of the underground. Another day trip to Ostia Antica to see the fabulous ruins of a Roman city. When you find a neighborhood you like (you will like Trastevere) wander, snack, visit the shops, drop into a church that looks interesting. Buy the Rick Steve’s Rome guide, best investment you’ll make!

Lots of great tips already posted, so I'll paraphrase what i believe was a Rick Steve's line... "plan like you are coming back", (because you likely will). I agree with Kathy's thoughts on the "big 3", (Venice, Florence, Rome). Dont try to see everything @ each destination, just pick out the top highlights for each location - and leave time for soaking it all in. I do lover 'small town' Italy, (Cinque Terra, Siena, Orvieto, etc.), are all great...but hard trade offs if you havent seen the majors. Venice can be done in 2 days, (and a great place to start your journey), and its the experience of wandering + exploring that i personally like. Really only 2-3 must see sights, the rest is just immersing yourself in the place. Florence is a favorite, so much to see & do, (but again 2-3 days for is plenty), and then Rome is a great place to end your first trip to Italy... if you do start in Venice, i highly recommend taking a boat from the airport, we did this a few years ago with our kids, and it made for a unique + epic start to that trip.

My #1 suggestion is to add more days. Italy need not be an expensive destination if you don't need fancy lodgings, so I'm guessing your very short time frame is due to one person's work schedule. If that's the case, that person can return home when necessary and the rest of you can spend some additional time in Italy. Eight or nine days for Italy is painful unless you plan to spend every night in one place--and I agree Rome would be a good option for that, but Florence would work if you love Renaissance art and the opportunity to day-trip to a bunch of small hill towns.

Travel times for the big 3 are:

Venice-Florence: 2-1/4 hours
Florence-Rome: just over 1-1/2 hours
Venice-Rome: 4 hours

The speed of those trips is due to the availability of express trains on those routes. The Cinque Terre area doesn't have that sort of rail service, so it takes more time to get there than one might expect from looking at maps.

Venice-Monterosso: 5-1/2 hours
Florence-Monterosso: about 2-1/2 hours or more
Rome-Monterosso: over 4 hours

Agreeing with the others to add time if at all possible. For the "Trinity" at least shoot for 9 nights, minimum, but 10 would be better, and 11, best. If you only have 8 nights, I'd stick to just two locations. Sample schedules:

Venice - 3 nights/2.5 days
Florence - 4 nights/3.5 days (could take 1 day trip but there's a LOT of great stuff to see in Firenze)
Rome - 4 nights/3.5 days

Venice: 3 nights/2.5 days
Florence - 3 nights/2.5 days
Rome - 4 nights/3.5 days

Venice: 2 nights/1.5 days
Florence - 3 nights/2.5 days
Rome - 4 nights/3.5 days

When our daughter was in college, she loved a food tour we did in Paris. Husband and I enjoyed one in Florence on our last trip to Europe before the plague hit. Florence is compact so easy to get around-my #1 favorite city in Europe.

Here is a contrary view- make Rome your base.

I really like this suggestion. There are a million things to do in Rome and SO many possible day trips.
You can stay in an apartment, look for 2 bathrooms, everyone has some space. (I have a daughter- now a bit older than yours - I know what it's like to travel abroad with her!) Your girls are old enough to explore a bit on their own.
Food tours are awesome, would the girls like a cooking class or bike riding the Appian Way? You can actually day trip to Florence if you like- it's a long day but doable. Could day trip to Assisi as well.

Anyway- 2 locations at most if you don't stay put.
Fly into Rome- train to Florence- 4 nights with 1 day trip to Siena ?
Train back to Rome for next 5 nights
(could stop for a 1 nighter in Orvieto)
Fly home from Rome

Your Volterra/Umbria plans would need a car- a car large enough for the 4 of you and your luggage. Something to keep in mind.

Our first trip was 5 nights Rome- it was not near enough. We are returning again for 3rd time.
Will the girls have the opportunity for study abroad? If so THEY can always return.

If you go to Volterra you’ll need to rent a car in Florence for the day. Umbria is a region but Orvieto would make a convenient stop between Rome (1h 30m) and Florence (2h 30m) by direct train.
If you arrive in Rome in the morning you’ll need a minimum of three nights, otherwise make it four. You’ll also need three nights in Florence and if you go to Volterra make it four.
If you decide on Orvieto two nights is all you need. The Cinque Terre will be less convenient if going by train so I would scratch that off the list.

With the short amount of time you have, limit yourselves to two locations. You’ll save an immense amount of time.

Try this itinerary.

Arrive FCO. Train to Florence 2hr 19 min. Your first day is usually in a foggy haze due to jet lag.

Florence 5 nights.

Florence needs at least 2 days, more if art is important. Use the other 3 days for these towns.
By bus or train.

Siena B 1Hr 17min. Bus drops you off up in town.

Lucca T 1HR17min.

Bologna T 38min.

Certaldo Alto T 52min. Can be easily combined with Siena. Certaldo-Siena 35m-Florence. 1H32m.

Montecatini Terme/Alto T 53min.

For Volterra, you need to either rent a car or hire a driver or tour.

Rome 4 nights

Train Florence -Rome. 1H37m.

As mentioned above prioritize you must sees, enjoy the Eternal City’s by wandering and cafe stops.

Edited to add.

Curious as to why you picked Volterra?
Twilight connection??

With your limited amout of time on the ground, consider limited yourselves to only two locations. Why? It almost always takes longer to change locations than anticipated. It's not just the actual travel time, its the packing up, checking out, getting to the train station, finding the track and waiting for the train. Then, upon arrival, you have to clear the terminal, get a taxi, get to your hotel, check in (if your room is ready), and unpack to some degree.

You want good memories of unique sights, good food, good wine, and people you'll meet. If your try to do too much, I'm afraid you'll only have blurred memories of taxi rides, train stations, and riding the rails.

This might be helpful - I did a first timers trip to Italy a few years ago and wrote this website to document it for others https://firsttimetoitaly.com/ Note that there are no ads and nothing for sale on the site so I don't make any money off of this. Lots of photos, hope you like it!