Never been!

No, I don't think cost will impact this decision. Hotels in all of those cities are relatively expensive (but booking ahead can help you find one that fits your budget). Budget flights from Paris to Italy tend to cost about $50 if booked ahead; see www.skyscanner.com. And a multi-city airline ticket from the USA (into your northern destination and home from Naples or Rome) is not likely to cost much different in either scenario. It need not be a strictly linear trip - if price and timing to fly home from Rome is better than from Naples, you can easily save Rome for last.

Florence and Rome would be slightly cheaper than Paris, Rome simply because of the higher transportation costs between Paris and Rome. Personally I would consider a Paris/London/Amsterdam trip since Italy will be/can be very hot and humid in July in Italy. That is a tough time frame for heat and humidity.

You have a big problem, 2 weeks and a years worth of choices! You have to make some awkward decisions.
What do you want? Cities or countryside? museums or green outdoors? History or contemporary? Cool north or hot south? You have a whole continent to choose from.
I would say restrict your self to maximum 4, maximum 5 places (2 weeks = 14 nights = 4 x 3-4 nights).
You want to pick a taster of 4 different places to show you variety, and tempt you to come back.
The below is one of dozens of possible options to show you a introduction:

• Fly into London
• Train to Paris
• Train to somewhere in Berner Oberland (Switzerland)
• Train to Venice, fly home.

Or start in Paris, add a second Italian city (Rome). Don't forget July is high season and Italy is hot in July.

We tend to focus on one area when we travel, so my logic would naturally lead me to staying in one country. However, I think it's fun to see different places on a first trip. So that's difficult! Perhaps as the others suggest the weather in Paris would be cooler so it may be a break from the heat in Italy? I don't think you can go wrong. It's a good problem to have! :)

I think either choice would be great for you! I'd say look at you tube videos, travel shows (yes Rick Steves) and see what way you are drawn.

It might be a drag getting back to the airport and flying again not too long after you arrive if you chose Paris. But, there is nothing like Paris :-) Yet, there is nothing like Venice either! You really can't go wrong. Expect it to be hot in Italy but just be prepared for it.

Sounds very exciting...get planning!

A guidebook and a map will be very useful for planning.

I am tempted to say stay in one country if you have two weeks.

Start by planning nights on the ground; do you have 12, 13, 14?

I am in Roma every July, it is tolerable if you stay hydrated and cross the street to stay in the shade. Evenings can be very pleasant.

The Amalfi Coast is on both your options, and will be a nice break from cities. If you fly into Napoli and take transportation (a hired car would be a nice birthday splurge) to Positano, you could head back up to Roma, Firenze, Venezia and then home. If you drop the Amalfi Coast (or shave nights from other cities), you could fly to Paris for a few nights, and celebrate your departure at the caviar bar at CDG.

I like
Paris, my favorite large city,
Berner Oberland, Switzerland, amazing mountains
Venice, a city like no other, my favorite small city
Rome. Roman Ruins in walkable city

This gives you a variety to your trip.

If you are able to be in Venice on July 15? If so you can see Festa del Redentore. It is an amazing firework display and a time when all Venetians come out and sets up tables and have a dinner party on the water and then enjoy the fireworks.

http://events.veneziaunica.it/content/redentore-feast-2017

Your starting point is that you want either Paris or Venice and Amalfi Coast is a must. That's a hard choice for me because Paris and Venice are my two favorite cities in Italy (as you'll see, we are all prejudiced in our advice ☺) and I suspect that the Amalfi Coast will be very, very crowded with tourists and perhaps not live up to expectations. It also may turn out to be the most expensive place both to get to and to stay in.

So I'd choose to fly into Venice and start there (great place to be laid back soak up the atmosphere while getting over jetlag), then to Florence and Rome by train and finally fly to Paris. You'll want at least 3 nights in each location and you're cheating yourselves and Paris if you don't spend at least 4 nights there.

Uh, Chani, Paris is in France!

A blank canvas, how refreshing!

But...it probably won't be refreshing in most of Europe in July. Especially in the lower two-thirds of the Italian peninsula, it could be hotter than Hades. I think before you make any plans you have to honestly gauge your tolerance levels for heat and lines/queues, because with the dollar and Euro almost even, Europe is decidedly a value and will be overrun in the popular spots, and unfortunately crowded in even some of the non-popular areas.

That being said, you can still travel smartly and see the requisite sights. Even though I've been there & am going again in March, I can't imagine much worse than being caught in a traffic jam on the one road in and out of the Amalfi Coast in the middle of July. You have to have the flexibility to zig & zag with what's presented to you. For that reason, I'd scrub the A.C.

I'd fly into Paris, stay in one of the funky arrondissements (neighborhoods) that are fun but maybe not so frequented, and learn the Metro schedule. It will be hot and smelly at times, but it's by far the most economical and efficient way to get around. Stay 3-4 days, then hop a train to Switzerland--we loved Lucerne. There's the lake, great scenery and it might not be so hot. From there after a couple days, maybe go on to one of the small towns near the Swiss/Italo border or as far south as Verona. A daytrip to Venice would be easy from there. Finally, finish out the trip in Rome in an air-conditioned hotel or B&B. Try to do your stuff in the morning or evening, not the middle of the day.

Cost-wise, book your air ASAP and trains 90-120 in advance if your travel days/times are set. It will save you as much as 60-65%, but with no change/cancellation available.

Enjoy your planning!

Hard for someone else to choose between these 2 plans.
if you have 14 days you have time for either plan. Either sound great, plan on some serious walking.

Paris feels much more like a big city than anywhere in Italy and is very different than Venice and Florence which both feel tiny in comparison and are much more pedestrianized.
I would lean toward the Paris, Rome, Amalfi trip personally. I know my wife would choose that one!

Costs are probably comparable.
I think it will cost you less to fly from the US to Paris than it will Venice, but you will spend more on meals in Paris and probably more on sites there than in Venice and Florence.
Lodging costs probably similar, Hotels probably a little higher in Paris but if you are willing to airb2b it, Paris is actually cheaper than either Florence or Venice just because there is so much inventory.

Inter-Europe flights can be really cheap if you shop around in advance, we flew one way from Venice to Paris on Vueling Airlines for $39 per person one way this Sept. ; think I found it on Kayak.com

If you can book your return flight from Naples and not Rome either way so you can travel South and then fly out after Amalfi.
Naples airport is close enough to take a car/taxi from your lodging in Amalfi to the airport day of.
We ended our trip with Paris our last vacation and in the future I won't end the trip with a city requiring tons of walking like Paris or Rome. I would rather do the leg work earlier in the trip and end somewhere relaxing like the Amalfi Coast ; that way you don't feel exhausted when you get home.

This would how I would break it up:
5 or 6 nights Paris
4 nights Rome
4 or 5 nights Amalfi Coast

lisa,

As this is your first trip to Europe, my first suggestion would be to read Europe Through The Back Door prior to your trip, as that has a lot of great information on how to travel well in Europe, and the differences you'll encounter there. After that use the country or city-specific guidebooks (preferably RS books as I find them to be well organized) to plan hotels, sightseeing, transportation, etc.

It would help to have some idea on what you might be interested in seeing there? What prompted the desire to travel to Europe at this time: museums, galleries, historic sights or other? A few additional questions.....

• are those the only two Itineraries you're interested in?
• where are you flying from?
• what type of budget are you working with?
• which part of "Amalfi Coast" are you planning to visit?

With only a very short two weeks, you'll have to plan carefully. Be sure to include transportation time between locations in your planning. Each move from one place to another will take about four hours, and in some cases that will be longer.

You'll need to do some research on using public transit as especially in Italy there are some potentially expensive "caveats" to be aware of. There are also other things you'll need to get up-to-speed on such as accessing cash in Europe, travelling with technology, avoiding pickpockets, etc. July is likely going to be hot and crowded, so pre-booking hotels will give you more choice on both price and location.

Of the two options you mentioned, I'd lean towards Paris, Rome and the Amalfi Coast. That will provide a look at two countries and both Paris and Rome have some great museums and other sights. Using open-jaw flights will be the best option regardless of which of the Itineraries you choose (ie: inbound Paris, outbound Rome).

Good luck with your planning!

Either would be a great trip. We've been everywhere you mentioned except the Amalfi coast, which is on our short list for our next trip.

Try to avoid overbooking, trying to see too much in not enough time. Accept that for everything you see, there will be 10 things you wanted to see that will have to wait for another trip. Plan in at least one down day mid trip to just knock around at a relaxed pace.

Your trip is heavy on big cities and touristy places. That will give you one view of Europe, but there's a completely different Europe out in the country away from the cities and big tourist attractions. You could get a glimpse either traveling from Venice to Rome or taking a day trip from Florence south into the small towns in Tuscany.

Consider taking tours in Venice, Rome and Florence. We took three Walks of Italy tours last December. They were small, less than 12 people and the guides were great. Furthermore, they come with tickets that allow you to skip the lines. We also took a tour in Amsterdam last July of the Jewish section of town. In addition to an excellent walking tour, we walked right in the Anne Frank museum. The line for general admission was an hour and a half!

My wife and I have traveled in Europe on our own; all plans and reservations made by us. And, we have done RS tours. Therefore, as most responders herein, we have several experinces on both sides of trip planning. So, if you are a first timer, I highly suggest you take a long look at an RS tour. Why? Because an RS tour will effectively train you in traveling Europe. The tours give plenty of free time. They take the load off planning, have small groups with tons of room on the buses. Our last trip to Europe, self planned, was 3 weeks driving in France with a week inParis. Our next trip will be 17 days of Italy with RS. We are tacking on extras before and after the tour for another 12 days. An RS tour will get you comfortable with doing all this and enhance the enjoyment of a first time, then take a shot at self planning on your next trip. Right now I suggest you keep it simple. Other than this there is some very good advice already provided by previous responders for a first timer trip. Should be a lot of fun!