Rick's sample 3-week itinerary

22 Days in Italy ... Here is the link:

http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/destinations/italy/italy22.htm

thnx so much. That is just about the trip I want to take, with some changes.

Its a nice trip; you can't do it in 22 days. Rick can, and you would be able to after you did it once or twice. But if you search on this forum, you'll see that people who tried it said the pace was exhausting.

Figure you will take about 1/3 more time to do it.

I don't plan on doing the south of Rome part. I am coming from Zurich to Domodossola, above Milan, then Venice, CT, Florence and Tuscany, last couple of days in Rome.

Using Rick's itinerary as a guide I can make it easier. I was spending too much time going back and forth so this helps.

thnx

NanC: Mike is spot on. It seems like you're on the right track here. You list 7 destinations, doable in 22 days; Rick's itinerary is 10 destinations, not including his south of Rome destinations--your itinerary has 6 destinations in common with Rick's. Your itinerary is good but no longer resembles Rick's. I've had the feeling Rick's itineraries are not doable by us ordinary mortals.

NanC: Mike is spot on. It seems like you're on the right track here. You list 7 destinations, doable in 22 days; Rick's itinerary is 10 destinations, not including his south of Rome destinations--your itinerary has 6 destinations in common with Rick's. Your itinerary is good but no longer resembles Rick's. I've had the feeling Rick's itineraries are not doable by us ordinary mortals.

I got the idea from Rick on when to go to CT. I was trying to go from Domodossola to Venice, to CT and then down to Tuscany and area. It just didn't look reasonable. Going to CT after I got to the Florence area makes sense. That is what helped.

Now I am looking for a hotel for 3 days in Venice. Without breaking the bank! I want to be IN Venice, not on the outside, tho.

Thanks all for the comments. They have been invaluable.