Our complete Italy Itinerary!!!

I hope you will post a "here's what we actually did" itinerary after you get back.

If you can truly stick to a schedule like this, I'll be very impressed. I find I never accomplish as much in day as I set out to do. I decide to linger longer over lunch, or spend more time in a museum, or I take an impromptu hike, or things just take longer than I expect. Plus I need downtime!

My favorite part of your itinerary is Venice. "Just walking around at a relaxed pace" is how I travel just about everywhere. Throw in a tour or timed museum visit, but otherwise, all my days are open to do what strikes my fancy.

No judgment here! Everyone like to travel in their own way, and there's no right or wrong, best or worst way to do it. I'm just astonished by the level of detail you've included in each day.

Good luck! And do report back after your trip.

Do you arrive in Rome the 24th? Or does the 25th also include arriving from the U.S. and getting to your hotel etc?

We arrive at 9:30am on the 25th. It will be a LONG day with jet lag but the best way to combat jet lag is to get out and be busy. lol

Looks a bit brutal here and there, I expect you’ll be back in your lodgings for afternoon rest out of the heat— if not go sit in a church

Do you have your timed entry booked for Borghese?

I may have mentioned this before Make an "A" List and a "B" list for each day. I agree with the previous post that said come back and let us know what you actually did! I think we all start out thinking in these time blocks rather than events and things just take ALOT longer than we thought. Also remember that eating takes a lot longer there unless you are doing grab and go. And make time to stop and have a Spritz/Beer, especially in that heat! I was surprised that we got chips and olives and sometimes slices of pizza with our drinks. Oh and of course gelato breaks.

For instance the Early Morning Tour of the Vatican will require an early wake up, transportation and once at the location grab a coffee and a bite to eat before the tour starts. For Castle St Angelo, is that timed tickets or do you have to wait in a line to enter? I think we were there for about 2-3 hours.
For Trastevere we did the Twilight walking food tour with eating Europe and it was so much fun, we highly recommend it.

A couple of thoughts.

Day 10, 11, 12 - Venice

If your train arrives at 10:38 and St Mark's is first on your list you will be right smack dab in the peak of all the day-trippers going to St Mark's which is first on their list too.

If you want to walk it via the normal straight route starting on Rio Tera Lista di Spania and Rio Tera S Leonardo into Strada Nova you should know that you will be taking the long way around. Logical, and follows the yellow signs, but the long way around on probably the ugliest thoroughfare in Venice, full of tat and rubbish and day-trippers. The more direct route is much less busy because few tourists bother to look, and because you need to cross two bridges over the Grand Canal.

Or you could hop onto a vaporetto (number 1 although if the number 2 down the Grand Canal is going beyond Rialto it will be slightly faster) down the Grand Canal. Problem is that still puts you in day-tripper (and cruise shipper) central.

It all depends on where your hotel is of course, because I expect that you will want to check in and leave stuff in the room, so any advice for the beginning of day 10 will need to pivot around that.

Rather than going up the tourist-packed Campanile in St Mark's Square I'd suggest considering the wonderful and gloriously un-touristed church and bell tower of San Georgio just across the water from St Mark's. It is cheap, the monks are nice, it sort of hides in plain view, and when you are up there (I have been many times, at least once every visit) you get what you can't get at St Mark's - an unobstructed view of St Mark's Square, St Mark's Campanile and St Mark's Basilica. And the basin with all the dancing boats, and all the way down to the Arsenale and the Biennale Gardens. And back towards the main body of the fish shaped islands.

You can get there easily on the portion of the number 2 which uses the Giudecca Canal between Ferrovia (the stop for the station) and St Mark's. Or going the other way on the outer route of the number 2 it is just just one stop after St Mark's.

St Mark's Square will be much calmer after 3 or 4 in the afternoon and before about 10 in the morning.

Just a thought...

Also,

Day 7 - 2 hours seems a lot to me in Pisa. Are you doing a lot more than the Field of Miracles? 15 to 20 minutes is enough for the outside of the Tower (are you planning on climbing it?) and seeing the other buildings there, and maybe 5 or 10 for a cup of coffee (my fav is on the corner).

And, yes, it is absolutely critical to advance reservations for the Borghese Gallery (Day 4). In the before times that was something like 2 months or so. This year and next I have no idea how far in advance will be needed.

Nigel,

The things listed for Venice are in no particular order. We will just hit them as we walk around. Well the Doges and Basilica we will probably need timed entry tickets but yeah.

Don't mean to be Debbie Downer, but I'm exhausted just reading what you have planed. You might want to consider making a list for each location prioritizing the things that interest you the most. Then if you run out of gas part way through the day, you'll have seen / done the most important ones.

• the Pantheon is open now
• All squares, from Piazza San Pietro to Piazza della Signoria, are free of charge

Will you be getting multi-day vaporetto pass in Venice ? At €7.50 a trip, it's worth it for us -- just to be able to hop on a boat for a few stops throughout the day instead of trying to walk everywhere. And you seem to have some island trips planned. Definitely take an extra trip at night to enjoy the lights.
Remember, it's July/August in Italy -- hats, water bottles, take advantage of benches and shade.

I think are getting that pass. Seemed to be a good deal. I think someone told me it is also good for Burano and Murano?

Yes
Multi day vap pass is good for the islands
It’s definitely a savings, nice to be able to hop on whenever you like and it saves your feet

Be sure to validate each pass each and every time you get on a vaporetto

You can purchase at kiosks right outside train station

Firenze Pass-$100

As of right now, no idea how the Firenzecard will work in July or what it will cover.

http://www.firenzecard.it/en

"At this moment, the Firenzecard Circuit has not yet been reactivated in order to allow the completion of the reopening plan of the participating museums and sites, and the Firenzecard cannot be used for access to the museums."

They'll probably work out the bugs but Florence used to have a terrific museum card for longer stays (we used it) that has since been reduced to a fraction of its former value so I'd keep tabs on what will happen with this card. Could be that it'll still cover enough of what's on your list to make it worthwhile but no promises.

Kathy, we saw that it wasn't currently being offered. We are hoping by the time we get there it will be. If not no biggie

Gotcha! Will cross fingers that it's up, running, and a decent value when you go!

Another note (sorry): I see that you still have the cathedral in Florence scheduled for Sunday? A reminder that it's closed on Sundays but maybe seeing only the exterior is the plan? If so, that's OK.

Personal note about Ponte Vecchio: the best place to admire it is just about anywhere that's not ON it, IMHO. That's probably why the majority of snaps taken of the thing are of its exterior.

I suggest you sit down with a map of Rome, Florence, Venice and Siena. You can order them online. Then, map out items on your list to help you use your time most efficiently. For instance you list Piazza Navona, the Pantheon, Spanish Steps and Trevi Fountain with some on different days. All of these sites are within a 10-15 minute walk of each other. You could group them and hit them all in half a day.

Who are you using for your guides in Rome? We highly recommend Walks of Italy and have used them in Rome and Florence.

We have been to every place you have listed and seen most, but not all of the items on your list. I think you'll love San Gimignano and Volterra. Since you will be on a tour, you won't have complete control of your time, but one of our favorite memories of Tuscany was standing on the promenade outside of Volterra watching the sun set on the town. My Facebook wallpaper is a photo I took there.

I'm glad you are scheduling in unstructured time at the end. I wonder how the crowds will be, if tourism will be ramped up by then. Hopefully for you the cruise ships won't be up to speed. Day trippers from cruise ships have just about ruined the major spots in Rome and Venice. Also, we've been in Italy in late July/early August and it can be brutally hot. when we were there, there was no air conditioning!

Have a great trip! I hope you report back to us.

A few thoughts on your itinerary. I'd agree, it's very busy!
Landing on Sunday, July 25th at 9.30 AM, you could make Rome as early as 11.00 AM (or later) depending on the lines at Immigration, your form of transport into the city, and where your accommodations are -- or it could be later!

On Sundays, the market at Campo de' Fiori is closed - they'll be set up in restaurant mode.

Mondays are usually the BUSIEST day of the week at the Vatican (as they are generally closed on Sundays). Thus, I'd flip Monday and Tuesday.

Regarding your Tuesday, as mentioned in a different thread - I believe there's far too much on the docket for that one day (based on living in Rome, guiding tours for a few years there, and having a motorino to get around). So, I'd drop Aqueduct Park. The trip out there by metro & walking, one-way, will take 35-45 minutes. That's a huge chunk of your day just getting there. Having ridden the Rome metro and buses for years, IT ALWAYS takes longer than you think it will!

And on Wednesday, Pastificio Guerra is a great spot, but there is no seating and I always saw lunch as a great time to get off your feet and relax. In fact, most of my tours started with..."What do you want for lunch?" and that determined my path and "resting place" for lunch. There are plenty of great sit-down restaurants in the area. Near the Vatican, we ate at Piacere Molise a couple of times a week. Not a lot of English, but some great pasta!

I was also struck trying to figure out Pinnochio Hill - that sort of threw me as I'd never heard of that. But based on your path - between Via Margutta and the Galleria Borghese - I think you're referring to Pincian Hill (or in Italian, Il Pincio).

It's a busy schedule. Florence looks overwhelming to me... but you know your group. When I coordinated tours, we always planned our trips around the SLOWEST walker, because they would determine the pace! I'd build in sit-down lunches, transportation time, and prioritize your sites, as you may have to drop a few. Good luck!

We have a map of all three places. We did keep must stuff for each day in certain locations of the city. As for the heat, I live in Omaha Nebraska. We are used to heat and humidity in the summer. It is hot and humid here all summer.

So, I'd drop Aqueduct Park

LOL, Ron We suggested that before and made our OP sad (so he said)! 😢 Apparently it's high on the gotta-do list. Something else might have to go?

Agree about Florence: that schedule is at dead run but I don't want to make our OP sad again today by beating that horse. HA! kursed30, you've worked your behind off on an itinerary so probably best to just cheerfully wish you a marvelous trip at this point. I do. Cheerfully. 🙂

Omaha heat can be tough (so says my wife, who used to live there!), but the challenges in Rome - and many parts of Italy - are:

1. You're go-go -go all day long, walking far more than you might in Omaha
2. The sampietrini (cobblestones - called "little peters" in Rome) and uneven road surfaces can wear you out.
3. And because many places are not air-conditioned, it takes longer to recover. (Thus, we'd take folks through places like Galleria Alberto Sordi - to use the bathroom and cooldown). Many times, we ate inside at lunch, in those restaurants that had AC. (and definitely, stop for a gelato or granita - or both!).

If you're determined to go to Aqueduct Park (Bless you!), then leave from behind the Colosseo on the #3 Tram to the Manzoni metro station (Line A), and ride Line A to the Giulio Agricola stop. From there, it's a 12-15 minute walk to the Aqueducts. This is perhaps the fastest option - other than jumping in taxis.

This may have been asked and answered previously if so I apologize

Are you arriving on one of the approved COVID tested flights? ( or are you hoping things change?)

Have you made arrangements or researched how you will get tested on departure for re-entry to USA?

You're go-go -go all day long, walking far more than you might in Omaha

Good point RnR. We average 9-12 miles a day walking when we travel. We actually get ready during the months ahead of traveling by taking frequent long walks.

Yes we have the covid tested flights from Atlanta on Delta. Even though, I Suspect that will change by our departure time. I think by that time if you are vaccinated you will be able to skip that part. They can barely keep up with flights that are only a quarter full.

There have been occasions when the unplanned/unexpected turn out to be some of the best parts of our trips. I applaud your research but don't hesitate to deviate from your path if an good opportunity presents itself. Also, don't be surprised if you have to wait in a few lines to get tickets/into major sites.

Hi kursed30,

If you can, bring a lightweight water bottle to fill up with free, pure cold water which flows from many fountains - "nasoni" - in Rome.

https://www.lifeinitaly.com

Go to the left side menu - click Tourism - in the black search box, type Nasoni. First up is Lazio. The article shows a recent update as of March, 2021.

It has a nice little history and pics of the fountains so you know what to look for.

Oh, and there is one when you come out of St. Peter's - if you have time, lol - it's tucked away a bit. I almost walked by it the first time. Ask the guard outside. When I was there, it was working each time.

Great advice Girasole

OP make sure you know how the fountains work, just so you don’t embarrass yourself and give locals a laugh ;)

Haha. Yes. Don't want water all over your face.

Here is a YT vid showing a traveler using the fountain (sans filling bottle) https://youtu.be/TDXZqi0ihuM