OVERWHELMED BY ROME, HELP!

Just a few comments. Move your Pantheon Visit to Day 1 with the Piazza Navona visit (they're very close) and add a visit to Santa Maria Sopra Minerva and San Luigi (to see the Carravaggio paintings) as they are all close together. The "Holy Stairs" are not at the Vatican (my apologies if you already knew that) but are at St John Lateran which would be more proximate to San Clemente. Your Pantheon/Navona trip might fit better on your Foodie Tour/Trastevere day. After the tour ends hop the bus to Trastevere and then when you've finished in Trastevere take the #8 tram which ends at Largo Aregentina which is walking distance to the Pantheon. See the Pantheon, Santa Maria Sopra Minerva and San Luigi then it's a VERY short stroll to Piazza Navona where you can relax and do some great people watching. If there is luggage storage available in Orvieto I'd go with your initial plan to catch and early train to Orvieto, stow your luggage and spend five or six hours in Orvieto before heading on to Florence.

I think your itinerary looks good. I would do the alternate Day 4 and 5. If you want to see the Borghese (which I highly recommend), then book your tickets soon.

Orvieto does NOT have a left luggage facility. It's a very tiny station.

Here is my revision: Day 1:Mon "Caesar Shuffle"(Colosseum to the Forum, Mamertine Prison,Trajan's Forum, Capitol Hill), "Dolce Vita Stroll" w/Spanish Steps & Trevi Fountain Day 2:Tues Foodie Tour, Trastevere/Jewish Ghetto, Pantheon/Piazza Navona & maybe Santa Maria Sopra Minerva and San Luigi Day 3:Wed St. Peter's Basilica, Scavi Tour 1:45PM , Vatcian & Sistine Chapel, & dome climb Day 4:Thur National Museum of Rome and/or Borghese Gallery, Santa Prassede, San Clemente/holy stairs & shopping Day 5:Fri check out 8am & catch train to Orvieto leave Orvieto to Florence arrive in Florence 2-3 or
Day 4: Thur early checkout to Orvieto (1/2 day) arrive in Rome 2pm/3pm National Museum of Rome and/or Borghese, Santa Prassede, & shopping Day 5: Friday San Clemente/holy stairs train to Florence (arrive in Florence approx 12pm) or should I just cut Orvieto out, not knowing how long a lot of these things will take, if I can fit some of the thigns we want to do in another day I can open up another day as well... any thoughts?

Sarah, I like the revisions - especially the idea of dropping Orvieto. You have ALOT on your plate and it will be nice to have some open time for the things you missed or want to reschedule (or are closed on the days you have them scheduled to visit).

I think your revised schedule will be a lot easier timewise. Orvieto is lovely and worth the stopover. Where are you staying in Rome?

We are staying in the Vatican area

S Prassede is no where near the Borghese (not much is, as I recall... at least not much that interested me). However, the Holy Stairs are a pleasant walk (about a mile) down a major street (Merulana, if I remember correctly) from S Prassede/SM Maggiore. So I'd combine those on the same day. And while you're at S Prassede, I'd suggest a stop at SM Maggiore, which is about a hundred yards away. It's the oldest of the papal basillicas and has some stunning mosaic work. It should be open all day (unlike S Prassede). And St John Lateran, across the street from the Holy Stairs, is also lovely. And while personal preferences vary, I'd strongly suggest the Borghese over the National Museum. The collections of the two museums are dramatically different, so decide based on their websites if you haven't already checked the web. But you'll need reservations for the Borghese, and be very careful about giving yourself enough time to arrive, per their timing instructions; otherwise, you lose the reservation. (Everyone enters at the same time, on time.)

Sarah, Your proposed itinerary should be possible, but it seems somewhat "ambitious and busy". I've found that it's usually not possible to stay on-schedule when touring around Rome, so I suspect you may not get to everything on your list. Regarding your Day 5 plans, it would certainly be possible to fit in a short visit to Orvieto, however I'm not sure whether luggage storage is available there (never had occasion to look). The train ride from Rome to Orvieto is a bit more than an hour. If you left Roma Termini at 09:00, you could spend about four hours in Orvieto having a look at the impressive Duomo and enjoy lunch there. For the trip to Florence, there appears to be a direct train departing at 14:31, arriving 16:48. While that's a bit later than you mentioned, that's a reasonably good time to arrive. Check-in to your Hotel and drop your bags, and then head out for a fine hot meal. Happy travels!

Not a bad schedule really. If day one is the day you are arriving it may be a bit much. I would absolutely go to the Borhese Gallery and park over the National Museum. Spanish steps really are that far fromt he Borghese so that works. That evening you may want to visit the Trevi fountain and have dinner in that area. Also one of the previous posters makes a good point. Holy stairs is closer to the colosseum so you might want to see it that day. Also San Giovanni Church is right there. That is the Bishop of Rome's Church (the Pope). He goes there after he is made Pope. The Church makes some claims as to some of the bones of St. Paul being there but not likely. By the way, make sure you have advance reservations for the Broghese. Also the Vatican Museum is very big. Look into what you really want to see there to save time so you can just 'walk through' the rest. Obviously Sistine Chapel is a must and some nice Raphael's.

Just throwing out my two cents here: I would not skip Orvieto. I love it there and it would be a shame to miss it. I believe you can fit Orvieto in without being too rushed or shoving in too much. I think for your time in Rome, though, you might want to be a little less structured. If you are enjoying your time in one particular spot I wouldn't rush away from it to fit in everything you have planned for that day. If this is your first trip to Rome you should be sure to see the essentials (the forums, Colosseum, Vatican and museums, pantheon, several of the big fountains/ piazzas) and any other churces or museums you are able to see are a bonus.

More like 5 minutes to Hotel Picchio from the train station. And it's not "behind" the station. You go out the front, go to your left and then turn right on a side street. Easy peasy. Good idea.

Kill me now. What ever happened to La Dolce far nienteThe sweetness of doing nothing... Italy is a country to be savored not jumping from site to site in a mad dash to see everything in Ricks book. Please take the time to truly enjoy Italy. People watch, enjoy a long lunch with a bottle of local red wine , sample three flavors of gelato while watching the trevi fountain at night. IMO...The Borghese is not to be missed, make your reservations and prepare to be in awe of the Master. Trastevere is an incredible neighborhood that I love. It doesn't feel as much of a tourist zone. You want to be at the Vatican first thing in the morning to avoid crowds. I hope you love Italy! I am going back for my third trip in September. Buon viaggio!

Just curious... for those recommending a stop in Orvieto... Michael said there is no place to leave luggage... so what will Sarah do with her luggage?

@Susan, Thanks for reminding me. I had meant to get back to the question of luggage storage. According to the Guidebook, bags can be stored at Hotel Picchio at a cost of €4 per bag. It's located somewhat "behind" the station and not in the town. I've never been in that part of Orvieto, but estimate the walk from the station would be 10-15 minutes. Check Google Maps for details. Cheers!

Thanks for all your helpful advise. With all the suggestions I have revised my itinerary yet again, lol. Take note we arrive to Rome at 9:30am on Monday, I plan to settle in at the apartment we rented for a few hours and head out around 2pm Monday, don't want to rest too much to avoid jet lag Day 1:Mon Day-"Caesar Shuffle"(Colosseum to the Forum, Mamertine Prison,Trajan's Forum, Capitol Hill), Evening- Dolce Vita Stroll Day 2:Tues Day- Foodie Tour 10AM, Trastevere/Jewish Ghetto, Pantheon/Piazza Navona Evening-"Heart of Rome Walk"-w/Spanish Steps & Trevi Fountain Day 3:Wed Day-St. Peter's Basilica/Scavi Tour 1:45PM ,Vatican Museum/garden & Sistine Chapel w/dome climb Evening- stroll/relax, dinner in apartment option 1: Day 4:Thur Day- Borghese Gallery, Santa Prassede, San Clemente/holy stairs Night- shopping, relax & site see Day 5:Fri check out 8am/catch train to Orvieto to Florence or option 2: Day 4: Thur Day-8am Orvieto (arrive to Rome approx 2pm) (4pm) Santa Prassede, San Clemente/holy stairs
Evening- stroll & shop Day 5: Friday 9am Borghese Gallery/gardens (leave for Florence around 12) or option 3: Day 4: Thur Day-8am Orvieto (return to Rome approx 2pm) Evening- Borghese Gallery/gardens @ 6pm/ shopping Day 5: Friday Santa Prassede, San Clemente/holy stairs catch train to Florence which option-for those of you that HAVE been to Rome is more doable? I'm kind of leaning towards option 2 any thoughts?

Need to remember that many tourist sites in Italy are closed on Monday. And now with the budget cuts there have been reports that some sites will also be closed on Sunday. May need to plan more slack time. In our scheduling our three or four days is always total blank. Allows us to catch the things we missed during the first three or four days or to sleep.