Need suggestions for Italy trip in November

Based on arrival and departure data, you really have only 6 full days, plus one partial day depending on your arrival time to FLR. I don't consider Nov. 9 at all because you'll have time only to check out of the hotel in Rome and head to the airport (about 40-45 min) to be there a couple of hours before the Noon departure. In 6 full days you could spend 3 days in Florence. During that time you could take a day trip to either Pisa (1 hr by train) or Siena (1 hr by bus or rail) or Lucca (1 hr by bus) or whichever town in Tuscany. If you have a car you could add a few extra towns on the way to Siena (San Gimignano and/or Monteriggioni), or take the Chianti Road to Siena instead of the Autopalio freeway. Cinque Terre is probably a waste of time in November and it would take at least 2 1/2 hrs by train from Florence (one way). After Florence you can take a high speed train to Rome (90 min). There is one fast train every approx. half hour and you can buy the ticket right there at the station when you decide to depart. However advance online purchase might get you a discount over the 43 Euro p.p. o/w full price. Check on www.trenitalia.com. You would be left with 3 full days in Rome, which are barely enough for Rome only.
For hotels I generally use www.nycerome.com. In Florence I have family, so I don't have experience with hotels. Leave Venice to the next trip. You don't have the time. Also take into consideration that nearly all museums are closed on Mondays, both in Florence and Rome (incl. the major ones).

For budget accommodations in Florence, I recommend the Archi Rossi Hostel. I've stayed there on all 3 of my visits. Get a double room, en suite, preferably in the annex, which used to be a hotel. They have free walking tours every morning at 10 with very good guides. The hostel is a 5 minute walk from the train station, and 10 minutes the major sites in the center (Florence is pretty compact). Florence, with day trips to Pisa and Siena, and then Rome. Cinque Terre is a long way (slow trains) and likely to be unpleasant weather, so nothing to see or do. I also think Venice is too far for your short time frame. You'll lose pretty much one entire day just going there and back from Florence. The trains are easy to use. The faster the train, the more expensive. You may want to go for a slower train in the evening to save a bit. In any case, take an evening train, so you can use those precious daylight hours for sightseeing. There are several minimarkets where you can pick up food for a picnic dinner on the train. There is so much to see and do in Florence and Rome that you won't have time to wish you were going somewhere else. Weather in Florence can be pretty chilly but Rome should be warm.

Last train to Rome from Florence is at 22:14. There are really no other options to Rome other than a fast train (Frecciarossa or Frecciargento) Prices are not that expensive if you pre purchase online. Could be as low as 9 euro or 19 euro. In addition to Trenitalia, now there is a new train company (NTV) that offers high speed service from Florence to Rome Tiburtina station. The train is called Italo. They may have better prices. http://www.italotreno.it/EN/timetables-prices/timetables-connections/Pages/overview.aspx Regarding Venice, if you absolutely must see it, the only way would be to do it as a day trip from Florence. In that case you'd need to steal a day from either your Florence stay or your Rome stay. The train from Florence to Venice SL station takes just over 2 hours one way.
There is a train from Florence to Venice approx. every hour starting at 8:25. You would get to Venice at 10:33. You have several hours to visit the main sights before making your trip back to Florence. The last train departing Venice for Florence is the Frecciargento #9455 departing Venezia SL station at 19:32. Don't miss it otherwise you have to look for accommodations under a canal bridge. There are no more trains until morning.

Thank you so much for ll your inputs! Really insightful. Just another question, I've heard of a few skip-the-line tickets that can be booked online for major attractions. Is it really worth buying such tickets online beforehand? Cheers,
Biraja

Also considering all your suggestions that the duration may be too short to cover Florence, Venice and Rome in said duration, I am thinking of booking a night train from Rome to Paris instead of flights so that we get to spend the whole of Friday in Rome as well. Any night trains between Rome and Paris that you might suggest? Again, strictly looking for budget options. Cheers,
Biraja

With so little time, you don't want to waste any minutes/hours standing in lines, so yes, book your tickets to major museums in advance. In Rome, the Romapass is good for two free sites and discounts of 30% or so on others (everything but catacombs and church-related museums such as the Vatican is covered), and includes public transportation in Rome for three days. In Florence, there may be a pass you can use as well (you don't need to use public transportation in Florence since it is so compact, unless you want to take the city bus to Fiesole or Piazzale Michelangelo). In Rome, you'll need to reserve your ticket for the Borghese Gallery separately from the Romapass (although the cost of the Borghese Gallery is part of the Pass). As for hotels in Florence, I like the inexpensive Hotel Medici in the Duomo area (there's a top-floor terrace with great views of the Duomo complex and almost all other parts of the city).

Roberto is right on with his suggestions. Your timing is similar to a trip I took with my daughter, we had only 5 days. Flew into and out of Rome on a United vacation package. With 5 days in Rome, we just had enough time to see Rome. Keep in mind that my family is not into museums, so we have lots of time to explore the ruins and other things. Florence, without museums is easy to see. Go into the Duomo for 1.5E and pay a little extra to climb to the top of the dome. (totally worth it for the views) or climb the bell tower instead, but still great) From Florence, do a day trip to Pisa by train, it's a simple 20 min walk to the Field of Miracles. Skip Venice, we did that from Florence and only got 5-6 hours there, not enough time, unless it's something you need to check off your list. From Rome, spend 2 days at the major sites and maybe take a day trip to Orvieto. @ 45 minutes by train, the funicular into town is right across the street. Also from Rome take the Metro to Ostia Antica for a morning, or early afternoon. Keep in mind that in November you won't have as much daylight hours.
Also, get to the major sites as early as you can! Even in November, the Colosseum line was LONG after 9:30AM. We got in line right before the gates opened and really enjoyed a quiet time walking around. We signed up for Angel Tours to see the Vatican Museum (yes the one that we did see) and St Paul. I wanted to see the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel..so we went. The museum is a rush of people, cruise ships coming in groups. Can't really enjoy the art. So, your thought of Florence, Pisa, Rome would be ideal for the 6 days you have in country. Trying to do much more would make you feel really rushed. Slow down and enjoy, especially if this is your first trip. You WILL go back!

The following is what I would do to include Venice. For me, Venice was magical and a wonderful break from larger cities. Since your time is limited, choose your tourist sites carefully. Know what you want to see and do. Day 1 Arrive Florence (you didn't say what your arrival time is) Day 2 Florence Day 3 Train to Venice (2 hrs) Day 4 Venice Day 5 Venice to Rome (3 1/2 hrs) Day 6 Rome Day 7 Rome Day 8 Depart If you eliminate Venice, I would suggest the following itinerary. Of course, instead of Siena you could spend an additional day in Florence. You could request your hotel in Florence to reserve times for the Museums Academia and Ufizzi. IMO, Florence is very small and compact and can easily be seen in one day. Orvieto would be a lovely diversion from the two cities. It's a lovely, quaint hilltown that has a beautiful Duomo. I would suggest Hotel Valentino for Orvieto. Reserve online to get a free buffet breakfast. Day 1 Arrive Florence Day 2 Florence Day 3 Bus to Siena or spend another day in Florence Day 4 Florence to Orvieto Day 5 Orvieto to Rome Day 6 Rome Day 7 Rome
Day 8 Depart I use the DBahn site to determine train schedules: http://bahn.hafas.de/bin/query.exe/en I get a listing of all the stops (click on the left red arrow), print it out and take with me to purchase tickets and to know which stop is before mine. Using the official Trenitalia site may allow you to purchase tickets ahead of time. I haven't used the site. Other posters can give you great info regarding this. Have a great trip!

Re: train to Paris: I never took the night train to Paris from Rome, but I've done it a couple of times from Florence, on a couchette. I remember the train would depart from Florence at about 7:30pm and arrive in Paris Gare de Lyon the following morning maybe 12-14 hours later. Since I don't sleep well in trains, it wasn't a pleasant trip for me. That was over 20 years ago, since then, the Artesia (that was the name of the famous night train Rome-Florence-Paris) has been cancelled (just a few months ago in fact) and it has been replaced by the Thello train, which however goes only from Venice to Milan to Paris (no Rome or Florence anymore). The only night train option from Rome to Paris now, is via Munich, Germany. Way too long for me. Personally, even if it were still in service, I would opt for a flight. Maybe not as romantic, but faster and cheaper. You have plenty of options from both Rome FCO (with Alitalia & Airfrance to CDG, or Vueling & EasyJet to ORY) and also from Rome Ciampino CIA (with ultra cheap low cost Ryanair). In the latter case, with Ryanair, you'll be landing at Paris Beavais (BVA), about 80 km from the City of Lights.