Venice-Florence-Rome-Almafi trip

Your current schedule really does not allow enough time to see much of anything in Venice, Florence and Rome. I would omit at least one of those and increase time at the others.

I agree. Venice is a 2 day minimum place. Florence is a 3 day city. Rome can take your whole time allotted, but I call it a 4 day place. Then fill in with your remaining days at the Amalfi Coast.
Remember your first and last days of the trip are wasted. And every move from city to city is also wasted time.
If at all possible, extend your trip somewhat in order to make your trip better. Or save the Amalfi Coast for your next trip.

It’s super too much. You have eight nights? Consider your first and last days to be kind of a wash, travel days, so that’s really only six full days in Italy. You should pick two locations and do the others another time. Either Venice/Florence or Rome/Amalfi. That will depend on everyone’s interest. But I can’t imagine anything less satisfying and more wearying than trying to get anything out of a single hot crowded day in Florence.

Hi Danielle and welcome to the forum 🙂

Before getting into specifics like which area of Rome is best to locate in, I think you're going to hear from a lot of us that your itinerary is MUCH too hectic. 2 nights = just one full day of sightseeing, and a lot wrenches can get thrown into plan with too many (or even less) of those. And without insulting many of our well-traveled posters whom are no spring chickens anymore, expecting your mother to be able to manage well on such a tight schedule might also be expecting too much. In June, all of Italy's major destinations will be mobbed with tourists, and it takes time and energy to sightsee in and around them and keep one's sanity. Heat will likely also be a factor.

You'll also be spending more time changing locations/hotels and dealing with transport on the first 1/2 of the trip than doing much sightseeing, and what if the only day/partial day you've allowed Rome or Florence is the day most museums are closed?

Additionally, the Amalfi Coast isn't exactly known for its beaches.

In short, with just 8 nights/7 full days to work with, I wouldn't try and do more than 3 locations, and 2 would be even better. I consider 4 nights/3 full days to be the minimum for Rome so you could fly into Rome and go directly to the A.C. for 4 nights, and then return to Rome for the last 4. Still, I'll question a "beach vacation" in the A.C. and caution that it can be a difficult place to get around if one has challenges with steps and hills. The main part of Sorrento town is pretty flat but there's really no beach and what little is there is at the base of the cliffs far below the town; Positano has a beach but, well, look at the photos of the town? All of it is pretty much uphill. Salerno might be an option, however, so I'll defer to the folks who know that one better than I do. It also has high-speed rail service from other Italian cities (most of the A.C. is not on rail lines).

As this is a gift for your graduate, is a beach vacation her #1 choice for this trip and so a priority? Otherwise, I'd scrap the A.C. and do just Venice (2 or 3 nights) Florence (2 or 3 nights) and Rome (4 nights). Scrap Florence too if you've little interest in it, although it's a good base for some nice day trips around the region.

Do you spend enough time with your mother to have a strong idea of her energy level and abilities? Being in a city for part of a day, with no hotel room to return to for a rest may be a challenge. It is for me, at 68! As others have noted, it's more important for this trip to be enjoyable for her, than for it to be her last (?) chance to see the major cities of Italy. 2021 is a way off. I suggest you buy travel insurance. (I do, and I'm only 68.)

You may need some more detailed research than you can get in one thread on this board. That either means hours of using the search box top center, or going to the library for a printed guidebook about Italy. Just for example, "an apartment near the beach in Amalfi area" is a massively, wide-open desire. The towns from Sorrento to Salerno vary widely in character, price, and style of rooms available. I personally find hotel stays more restful that imaginary "living like a local". There are, literally, HUNDREDS of stairs in some of the Amalfi Coast towns. Sorrento and Positano book up six to nine months in advance.

It is not easy to get beachside in this area. Sorrento has only one, rather unattractive beach. The Amalfi Coast town beaches are all 1"- 1.5" diameter pebbles, and there are steps to get down to them, even from the closest hotels.

Your preliminary itinerary only allows you 1 day in Venice, a partial day in Florence, 1 day in Rome and 3.5 days in the Amalfi Coast area. Imo you're severly shortcutting your first 3 destinations. With only 8 nights in total, I suggest you scale back to 3 destinations at most; others might suggest just 2. The Almafi Coast area seems to be most important to you, so the following itinerary might work better. Fly round trip to Rome. Go directly to Florence for 2 nights (about 2 hours by train from FCO). On day 3 go to the Amalfi Coast area and stay either in one of the hotels just south of Sorrento that has elevator access to the beach or in an apartment in one of the towns just north of Sorrento that's at the level of the Bay of Naples. I haven't stayed in those towns but some of them have been recommended in prior posts. The Amalfi Coast towns tend to be elevated from the water, steep or have beaches that aren't a flat walk, and I think Salerno would be out of the way for what you have planned. The morning of day 7 head to Rome. That will give you about a day and a half in Rome, which I think is the bare minimum. One's preliminary itinerary is rarely the final one, so just keep tweaking it until it flows well.

If your daughter is interested mostly in the beach, I would not go to Italy. I have been to the Amalfi Coast and Naples (for 10 days) and loved it but spent only one day at the beach. It was a pebble beach. It was an enjoyable day resting from all the hiking we had been doing but, as someone from Florida, it was not a great beach.

If the beach is what really is drawing your daughter, I would go to Greece instead. We were there two years ago and went to Naxos. It has lovely beaches and walkability. Crete does also as do many other islands (although not all).

Wow such great insight already from this group! Lots of important things to think about. I will have to decide what we actually want to accomplish on this trip and go from there.....

When I read the title, I assumed it was a 2+ week trip on the ground, so far too rushed and doesn’t allow for jet lag or the time taken to get to places. At that time of year, places will be busy, so Venice deserves 3 full days, Rome 5 days, the coast 5 days and Florence 2 days. Your group each needs to decide what is a priority and drop places accordingly.

I will have to decide what we actually want to accomplish on this trip
and go from there.....

An excellent decision. :O)
I think we're all in agreement that less (changing locations; changing hotels; packing/unpacking; sitting on trains; getting your bearings in a new place; etc.) can definitely be more (sightseeing at a reasonable pace; flex time to sightsee according to whim, weather, closures and other snags) when exploring Italy! 😉

We'll be here when you and your companions figure out what's top of your lists for this adventure, OK?

will have to decide what we actually want to accomplish on this trip
and go from there

Once you narrow it down with input from mother and daughter, please return so we can help with specifics.

It appears that you have one week to visit places that take, at minimum 14-16 days to see key sites.
You have a fraction of a day in Florence and a little more than a day in Rome.

I suggest that you eliminate two of your locations, for example visit Rome and the Naples area. I recommend Sorrento for three nights and four in Rome.

The two key days in Rome are:

1) St. Peter's Basilica, the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel;
2) The Coliseum, Palatine Hill and Forum.

There is far more to see in Rome. I have been there twice, spending six nights the first time and four the second. I still have places that I have not visited.