Venice to Cinque Terre/Florence

Lodging recommendations are well covered in both the Italian and Rome guidebooks. Either buy them or go to your local public library.

I don't think it makes much difference whether you go to CT or Florence first but since Florence is south of CT I would hit CT first, continue to Florence and then on to Rome. You can check train schedules at trenitalia.com. There may be discount fares available if you book early - like tomorrow - but those fare are no change, no refund once booked.

Frank outlines the logical routing, but doing it the other order is not disastrous

Perhaps I am wrong to be concerned, but if I were leaving for Italy in a couple weeks, not having hotel reservations would tie my stomach in knots. Hopefully my concern is misplaced, but I suspect pickings may be slim on such short notice

For CT --- stayed at Hotel Pasquale.( Monterosso)... would not hesitate to stay there again

For Rome-- Hotel Aberdeen --- found it to be a good value and well located to transportation

Jemma,

The most efficient route is to travel Venice > Florence > Cinque Terre > Rome, as that minimizes transportation times. The trip from Venice to the Cinque Terre will take the better part of a full day (about 6 hours), so that's not the most desirable method. For the trip from the Cinque Terre to Rome, use one of the direct trains that travel from La Spezia Centrale to Roma Termini. That way you won't have to change trains, and travel time is only about 3H:45M.

As someone else mentioned, a good way to find reliable lodgings would be to check the RS guidebooks. With the Cinque Terre you'll first have to decide which of the five towns you want to stay in. For travel at the end of May, I'd suggest getting something booked soon!

Venice-Florence 2hr05min.

Florence-Vernazza 2hr27min

Vernazza-Rome 4H08m.

Total travel time either way there is only an hours difference. This way breaks the trip into mor reasonable travel times.

Very helpful everyone! I like the idea of splitting up the travel into smaller segments, so Florence first it is. Appreciate all your advice.

I might check the La Spezia cruise ship calendar to see if there are days when the cruise ships don't overwhelm the CT.

If all the CT hotels are booked, you might try Tellaro or a spot near there. We found that to be a nice spot a couple years ago, and there are boats over to the CT towns so you can still visit them too. Just an idea for possible alternative, if needed.

You guys rock! Thank you!
1. We will visit Florence then CT (checked and only only cruise stop during our stay)
2. Added a night to CT and subtracted one from Florence