OK. So we've read the guidebooks, read the forums, spoke with former travelers and think we are ready to put our plan for first time travel to Italy into action. We are so impressed by the knowledge of all you posters out there, that we would feel much better if you all could give us your thoughts on our itinerary. We are flying into Rome last week of September, staying 3 nights. Hiring a private driver to take us to Positano for 2 nights. Taking ?? to Siena for night. Renting car and driving to Florence for 3 nights. Taking train to Venice for 3 nights and flying home. It is a very ambitious itinerary but my husband and I are rigorous travelers who travel light. Our questions are: 1) Are we attempting too much? 2) Logistically, can we get from each point to the next? and 3) Should we stay overnight in Siena or just stay the entire time in Florence and take day trips to Tuscany? We would so appreciate your thoughts and suggestions on this. Thank you!
You're itinerary is ambitious but sounds fun. I'm not sure about hiring a driver and renting a car. It is quite easy and inexpensive to use the trains. And in fact a car is difficult to manage in many towns including Florence that have restricted zones with huge fines. Siena is an easy day trip from Florence by bus or train.
To start off with, your trip will be more enjoyable if done in reverse. Start by flying into Venice, and then out of Rome or Naples. You will not need or want a car in Florence. Siena can easily be done as a day trip from Florence by bus. You'll only need a car if you intend to travel around the Tuscan countryside visiting wineries and/or hill towns, in which case you are better off staying outside of Florence at an agritourismo. Your pacing is OK overall, although you may wish for more time on the Amalfi coast if you intend to visit Pompeii, Capri, Paestum, Naples, or Sorrento while in the area.
Sounds like a lovely trip. How are you getting from Positano to Siena? Does the ?? mean you don't know yet? If you are spending a night in Siena and then traveling to Florence for 3 nights I would think you wouldn't want to rent a car. I would rather spend the night in Tuscany than take a day trip from Florence. I would also spend 2 nights in Tuscany so you have a full day.
I agree with Angela - Reverse it. Venice is a great place to recover from jet lag. And Rome is an easier airport to depart from.
band,
I agree with the others in that your trip would be easier in the reverse direction.
I also agree that it would be better to visit Siena (or other location in Tuscany) as a day trip from Florence, rather than spending one night there. Keep in mind that if you were following your original plan, it would take the better part of a day (at least 6 hours) to travel from Positano to Siena), leaving very little time to actually see anything in Siena. A day trip by Bus would be a better idea (IMO).
Hiring a private driver for a trip from Rome to Sorrento is likely going to be costly. Have you considered other travel methods?
Adding to Ken's comment, you don't really need to hire a driver to get you to Sorrento as it will be very expensive from Rome. Trains can get you as far as Sorrento where you could take a taxi, bus, or boat to Positano. Getting to Siena you could take trains up to Rome then a direct bus, or go by way of Florence. Other than that I don't think its too ambitious. You are spending an appropriate amount of time in Rome and Venice. Florence could be done as a day trip from Siena so you could stay there perhaps an extra night or two instead of in Florence. I hope this helps some.
Also, How to Look Up Train Schedules Online gives you the DB train schedule link and tips for using it. Note that some Italian schedules are not yet posted past June 14 and this site doesn't sell Italian tickets. Tickets are easy to buy in train stations, or you can get them up to three months in advance through www.trenitalia.com, if you're committed to travel dates and times.
It sounds like a great trip but you are covering a pretty large area. My motto has always been "if you go to Italy go, plan you trip like you will return so don' t try to see too much. But go to each city or town like you won't go back to it so see as much as you can. We pretty much divide our trips by area. It would be nice to stay another day in Rome because there is so much to see there. The jet lag is going to pretty much kill the first day from any intense sightseeing. I always rent cars when I go to Europe but agree with others that with your schedule it would better to take a train or bus depending on the leg of the trip
@Laura, you can buy tickets on Trenitalia up to 120 days on advance, I just bought tickets for August 1.