Sardinia and Southern Italy in Late May, Early June

That is entirely up to you. Rome is a large city with a lot to see (I recommend at least 4 nights). If you plan to fly back from Rome (FCO) it is probably best to do Rome at the end of your trip, before coming home (basically the last 4 nights).

Delta will start a seasonal non stop flight from JFK to Olbia (OLB), Sardinia on May 21, 2026. If Delta via JFK is in your plans you could do JFK-FCO-OLB-JFK, or the reverse.

You will need a rental car to visit Sardinia. Book one at the OLB airport.

I was thinking Rome first, then fly direct out of Sardinia. Makes much more sense to me.

Sure. Whatever works for you. Plenty of flights from FCO to OLB with with both Aeroitalia and Volotea.
You can also fly from Rome to Alghero (AHO) or Cagliari (CAG), the largest airport. But of course if you want to fly back non stop to JFK with Delta the only option is to fly out of Olbia.

I was in Sardinia last May and hope to return this May. First, determine how many days you want in Rome, as three would be a minimum t many folks, and seven is the absolute minimum I’d want in Sardinia. It “works” as they say, but it’s a bit tight. Next, determine which part of Sardinia you want to focus on. It’s a big island with a lot of variety.

Initial post was to make sure I was thinking logically in regards to location. Greater details on time spent when and where were to follow once I could confirm that these two locations make sense. Sounds like in theory they do.

Let me provide a bit more detail as to what we are looking for. Ideally, 12 days total inclusive of flights and movement around. My wife struggles as does my child to move around a lot, and as most seasoned travelers will agree, that is more beneficial than not.

My feedback from friends that have gone to Rome are crowds, grungy city, not always friendly (not so worried about this as it could be situational). For me personally, travel is about history, food, culture, local experiences, architecture, beauty, etc. Rome surely has so much history and that is a big part of why we would want to go.

The typical sites in Rome are to be expected; What about off the beaten path or special experiences anyone has had there?

Vatican would be extremely important to us and I understand private tour is the way to go here. Would love recommendations on guides. We stay in higher end places, love great meals (does not have to be high end to be great) but love a fine dining experience a few times on the trip.

Regarding Sardinia, I have not spent much time researching but know it is a vast island with various sites and activities. Would want to get close to the food scene, beaches, boating, any history, local towns worth seeing.

There is never enough time on any of these trips and If I could spend weeks at a time away, would love to do so. I think the best strategy for us would be 3 nights in Rome and 8-9 nights in Sardinia. Not going to see everything but makes you want to return back if you fall in love.

Rome
With only 3 nights in Rome (basically 2 full days) you don’t even have enough time to cover the most famous sites, let alone the less famous ones off the beaten path (assuming there are places in Rome that are off the beaten path). Which ones you want to see depends on your personal wants and interests. Some care about the Roman Empire history, some prefer the Baroque architecture of Rome, others prefer the religious sites like the ones in the Vatican. Do some research and then zero in the ones that are important to you. Food and history is something that is ubiquitous in Italy. Use the search function above to find past posts. There are thousands on Rome.

Sardinia
You can also find plenty of past posts about Sardinia by using the search function above. See example below:
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/sardinia-a4b6bf34-12f0-4f41-aa46-cc7c08ab1f7f
I’ve been a few times but always on the north half, which is probably the best. Since you plan to fly home from Olbia that is the side you should probably concentrate on.

Below

Also add your child’s age, as that could inspire some suggestions.

If you decide you want to spend the time on the mainland, but do things similar to what you would do on Sardinia, that’s not too difficult a stretch. Sardinia is a recent favorite for me, but my previous favorite was the Maremma in Southern Tuscany, a stones throw from Rome. While there are obvious differences, there are some spectacular nature areas and archaeological sites that would mimic a typical Sardinian itinerary, if that might interest you. Anyway, when there are so many great places, I prioritize time as much as anything when choosing among them all!

Good morning. I took some time to do some research on Sardinia and logsitics around doing so. Based on everyone's feedback, a 12 night trip to do Rome and Sardinia may be a stretch. Further research took me to Siciliy and possibly Ischia, but the latter seems to be geared more towards adults than a family with a 12 year old.

Would this be a better option given the travel time?

Ischia is great with children. Where are you getting the idea that it is not?

General Online research points it more towards a wellness island for couples.

I don’t think ischia with a kids is a factor—there are castles, beaches—but time still is because you are still trying to pair a mainland destination (referring to Ischia since you access it from Naples) with a very large island, so the time lost in transit would be an argument against pairing these two.

If Rome interests you, I reiterate my suggestion to spend 4 nights there out of your total 12. If you now plan to return from Rome, then it is best to leave those 4 nights to the tail end, before flying home. For sure you must spend the last night in the city where you depart from because flights to North America depart in the morning, and if you plan to fly to North America from another European hub, your flight out of Rome will be super early. Because of that you might as well spend all your nights in Rome at the end.

Sicily is even larger than Sardinia, so 9-10 nights there is probably the minimum I would go for, but some people simply decide to concentrate on a small portion of the island (like near Palermo or the Eastern Ionian coast), and spend 5 or 6 nights only in that portion.

The gulf of Naples area (Naples, Pompeii, Sorrento peninsula, Amalfi coast, the islands of Capri, Ischia, Procida) is a good option that can easily keep you busy for over a week. Sorrento would be a good base for day trips to all of the above. Maybe your 12 y.o. would be interested. There are opportunities for swimming or snorkeling at the beach (not sandy beaches, but very pebbly and rocky cliffs, and rather deep waters) and Pompeii is interesting to a kid too. Just be aware that the area is hugely popular with tourists from all over the world, therefore crowded and expensive. The o plus is that, unlike Sardinia or Sicily, that option requires no rental car (actually I suggest you don’t even think of driving in that area, due to the congestion), so you can do your trip entirely by train (and buses and ferries).