Venice/Cinque Terra/Rome

It would be helpful to know how old the kids are, and when you are traveling. In any event, in Venice go to Murano to see glass blowing. If you have 3 extra days, take the train from Venice to Lake Como. Then train to Milan. Get the car there for Cinque Terra. Get rid of the car as soon as you can, as you do not want to have it in Rome.

I think most kids would love Venice and the Cinque Terre. I would spend an additional day at each.

debbie,

That's a good time frame which will allow adequate time in all three locations plus some day trips. A few thoughts on your plans.....

• It would help to know when this trip is taking place?
• The trip from Venice to the Cinque Terre will take about 5 hours and will involve several trains. If you need more specific information on that trip, post another note.
• For your stay in the Cinque Terre, you'll have to decide which of the five towns you want to stay in.
• Is there a particular reason you're thinking of a car from the Cinque Terre to Rome? Travel by train will be faster, easier, and a more efficient use of your holiday time.
• Is there a reason you haven't included Florence (which is the capital of Tuscany) on the list? That would be a good place to spend a few days, and would also make the subsequent trip to the Cinque Terre shorter.

If you don't already have a copy, the RS Italy guidebook as a lot of good information which will help in planning your trip.

As Ken said, no need for a car at all. There is a high-speed Freccia train from La Spezia to Roma.

Do you have 3 extra NIGHTS, or just two? I find it helpful to count nights, as you did above, for the simple reason it helps me define full days in a location. It also depends on the season. When are you traveling? If it is the height of summer, 2 or 3 nights in Tuscany at an agriturismo with a pool would be a nice break. You would need a car from La Spezia and for the agriturismo stay taking some junkets to small Tuscan towns, then could drop it off to take a train to Roma.

You got extra three days. Add Florence with a day trip to Siena. All of your travel is better to be done by train. You don't need a car. Florence to Siena is better by bus.

I never have a rental car in Italy unless I am traveling with friends. Train travel is easy in the areas you want to visit, including the addition of Firenze.

Season is important for Cinque Terre, but if your children are school age, you probably will be traveling during summer?

Thank you all for this great input.

Kids are 10 and 13

Travel is last two weeks in March

So the suggestion is to add 3 nights in Tuscany Siena....

My concern is we are trying to see too much and kids will be tired.

Wondering if we have enough time in Venice. 3 nights. Cinque Terra 3 nights and Rome 4 nights to see those places properly.

Do you suggest we add a day at each location or add the Siena part

Rental car idea was to make it easier for travel with the kids and luggage and to see more but it seems everyone is saying that's not a good idea?

Appreciate any other input.

Thanks

Debbie, rental cars are OK if the countryside is a significant part of the itinerary but they are useless for Italian cities: parking is scarce and expensive, many areas are pedestrianized, and there are no-drive zones (ZTLs) to avoid and which have steep fines for blundering into. The Cinque Terre has little parking at all; most visitors with a car park in La Spezia or Levanto and take the trains in.

So with your itinerary being heavy on places which are not car friendly, trains are a better choice. Your kids are also old enough to help with luggage (pack as lightly as possible!). It can be very nice getting onto a train in the middle of one city and getting off smack-dab in the middle of the next! As rail travel can be sort of a novelty depending on where you live, it can be part of the adventure, and your kids may find it exciting and fun. We really enjoy being able to just sit back and watch the scenery fly by.

You could add a day to Rome as there is a LOT to see plus some nice day trips from there but 3 nights in Florence may be lovely as well; great little city. I'd worry more about the kids wearing out if you had a lot of one or two-nighters in more locations.

My advice is to include your kids in your travels plans. There are tons of videos on youtube, both Rick Steves and others. See what they would like to do.

And, forget the car. Trains are fast, easy, and cheap, and great fun for kids.

Here's how you travel easily with kids and luggage on the trains:

When leaving your hotel, have them call a taxi. It will come to the door in a few minutes, and will have a few euros on the meter already (they start the meter when they get the call). Tell the driver you want to go to the train station (in cities like Rome, make sure you know which one).

When you arrive at your destination, go out the front door of the station to the taxi rank. Ignore ALL offers of taxis from anyone else. The lines move quickly. Have your hotel's full name, address and phone number written out, and show the driver (this way there's no language barrier, and he can call the hotel if there's an issue).

You can't drive in city centers with your own rental car due to the ZTL's, but taxis can. So, taking the train and using taxis is actually the best way to get door-to-door service (which I agree is indeed a plus with children and luggage, and well worth the extra cost compared to buses or walking from the station). If you drive yourself, you have to park on the outskirts and take a bus or taxi anyway, so the train is no less convenient.

I'm not sure there will be much to do/see in CT in March. It will be too cold for swimming. Not sure about the hiking at that time of year either.

March is technically before the official season in the Cinque Terre. If the weather is good, people will go there (Easter week?) but if it is bad it is not a good place to be. Without hiking there's not much to do. An agriturismo in Tuscany would give you a relaxing place to stay and you can go to the small hill towns or to Firenze as the spirit moves you.

Venice - 4 nights wouldn't hurt. Gives you time to go to the Laguna Islands and maybe a day trip to Padova. Not sure if the Brenta Canal is open for the season by then, but worth checking.
Tuscany - 4 or 5 nights, a nice rural experience. Find an agriturismo with lots of kid-appeal. Maybe a coooking class.Head to Firenze if it rains.
Roma - 5 or 6 nights and take some time to just wander.

I think 5 nights is perhaps too many churches for your kids in Rome.

Day 1-3 Venice (3 nts)
Day 4-6 Cinque Terre (3 nts)
Day 7 Pick up a hire car in La Spezia and drive (via a stop in Pisa) to agriturismo near Siena (3 nts)
Day 8 Exploring Siena
Day 9 Free morning (or full day) to recharge. Afternoon to San Gimignano, or Chianti drive
Day 10 Return hire car and spend the day in Florence (1 nt)
Day 11 Train to Rome (4nts)
Day 12-14 Rome

Concerned about "not that great weather" in CT in late March. If trails are closed, too cold to swim, boats are not operating, etc. I wouldn't go there. Roberto, Ken and others can probably give you the best advice.

I just listened to Rick's live talk and (if I got it right) he made the following points about the Cinque Terre:

• Some trails are always open. Ask the locals, but not the official TI people.
• Forget the beaches. They are okay for Italians who don't have much choice, but they are nothing like U.S. beaches.
• Cruise ships are ruining the area. They bring one to three thousand people into a nearby port and this tiny area is not equpped for many hundreds of visitors arriving at once. During day-tripping hours the trains, shops and cafes will be packed and the popular trails (which are narrow) will be impassible.
• There are also a lot of other people (tourists and locals) staying in nearby towns who will day-trip to the CT.
• If you go when cruise ships are in port, stay away from the areas accessible to and frequented by day-trippers.

You are traveling over the Easter holidays, and there are likely to be a lot of other tourists in the area and cruise ships too. With young kids, you may have a much better time going to one of the lakes or visiting Tuscany or Umbria.

Things that may interest the kids, besides trying every flavor of gelato:

Venice The Secret Itineraries tour at the Doge's Palace (must book in advance); the Rialto market in the morning; going up the bell tower (general entry) and/or the clock tower (by tour, book in advance); a gondola rowing lesson, riding in the front of the vaporetto along the Grand Canal and also across the lagoon; glass-blowing demonstrations (you can see them around San Marco as well as on Murano).

Rome The Colosseum and the Forum with a guide who can bring the history to life; Ostia Antica; the Catacombs; watch a game of bocci in the park and ask if the kids can try it.

I would also recommend Florence with a day trip to either Siena or Lucca. Lucca might be fun for the kids, as it is a smaller town, and you can rent bikes and bike around the top of the city wall and through the town itself. You could reduce Venice to two nights, Cinque Terre three nights is good if you are planning on doing beach time. I wouldn't miss Florence; Florence, Tuscan towns, and Cinque Terre are our favorites in all of Italy!

If you are planning Cinque Terre to avoid cruise ship visits then this may help ...
http://www.cruisetimetables.com/cruises-to-livorno-florence-pisa-italy.html
http://www.cruisetimetables.com/cruises-to-la-spezia-italy.html
Late March is the beginning of the cruise season and it appears that March 24+25 may be days best avoided.

Since you will be there in March, I would skip the CT altogether and add those days plus one of the extra three days to Florence. I would add another of the extra days to Venice. That will give you 3 full days in Venice and Florence, and four in Rome. You can add the last extra day to whichever place you want depending on the day trips you would like to take.