My wife and I will be visiting Italy for the very first time in July and want this to be a very memorable trip. We are looking at spending 3 nights in Venice, 5 nights in Florence, 3 nights in Sorrento, and finish with 5 nights in Rome before heading back to the U.S. For our Long nights in Florence and Rome, we would do some day trips to other destinations. For those of you that has been to Italy many times, what would you recommend? I sincerely appreciate your wonderful suggestions.
Thanks,
The first step in planning your trip is to get a good guidebook, such as Rick Steves’ Italy. Once you have read it, you will have a better idea about what’s available in each of the cities you list. Asking for suggestions from the forum without any indication from you about activities you enjoy is too broad a category for practical assistance. Please come back when you’ve done a little preparation on your own.
From Florence you could do a day in Siena
From Sorrento a visit to Pompeii or Herculaneum will consume most of a day. Another day could be spent traveling the Amalfi coast by boat or wheeled transport.
If you need a less rushed day in Rome, Ostia Antica may do. ( But if you have done Pompeii it may be too much of the same for your trip. OR if you did other things with your time in Sorrento and did not get to Pompeii or Herculaneum, Ostia Antica would make a good alternative to satisfy your craving for Roman towns that have been preserved and unearthed)
Hello Patricia,
Here is a our tentative plans on what we have decided to do on our trip to Italy:
Venice ( St. Marks's Basilica Church, St. Mark Square, Doge's Palace, San Marco Bell Tower, Shopping, and visit Murano & Burano)
Florence ( Visit many museums, Day trip to Tuscany, and food tasting)
Sorrento (Day trips to Amalfi Coast & Pompeii)
Rome (See all main attractions)
Thanks
Sorrento (Day trip to Amalfi Coast & Pompeii
I hope you meant day trips to AC and Pompeii, because you can't do both on the same day.
That's correct for those two separate trips..
Day 1: flight to Venice, then boat to Venice, check into hotel, take a walk around, go to dinner. Try not to go to sleep till 9pm-ish
Day 2 - Full day in Venice: St. Mark's Square, Rialto Bridge, Tour St. Mark's Basilica, Gondola ride for two
Day 3 - Visit the Doge's Palace, visit a glass shop, take a Grand Canal Cruise, Frari Church, Tour the Accademia museum if you like art.
Day 4 - Take boat to Murano Glass Factory if your are so inclined and have time. Check out, travel to Florence.
Day 4 - continued in Florence. Check in, unpack, walk around. Have dinner.
Day 5 - Accademia where you see the David - make sure you get tickets ahead of time. Uffizi Gallery - get tickets ahead of time. Fit in whatever else you can.
Day 6 - Duomo and the Babtistery. Do Rick Steve's Renaissance Walk if you want.
Day 7 - Day trip to Leaning Tower of Pisa
Day 8 - Day trip Tuscany/Siena or in Florence do Bargello, Ponte Vecchio, anything else you missed. I do a search on the web "Top things to see in Venice (or wherever) and add them to my notes.
Day 9 - morning visit somewhere you missed. Pack, check out, travel to Sorrento. Stop in Pompeii if you can for a two hour visit.
Day 9 - Part II in Sorrento. Check in, unpack, walk around, see some sites if you have the energy. Get your bearings.
Day 10 - Day trip to Pompeii and Mt. Vesuvius or trip to Capri and do the Blue Lagoon and the chair lift to Anacapri
Day 11 - If you like to hike do the Path of the Gods hike. Research how to get to the start of it and how to get back to Sorrento
Day 12 - Relax and enjoy Sorrento. Check out, travel to Rome
Day 12 - Part II in Rome. Check-in, un-pack, walk around and get your bearings. Eat gelato! Maybe do the hop on and off bus.
Day 13 - Collosseum (get tickets ahead of time) and Roman Forum next to it. Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps if you have time.
Day 14 - Sistine Chapel and St. Peters - Get skip the line tour!
Day 15 - Catacombs of Rome and/or Galleria Borghese and its gardens.
Day 16 - not sure but you'll get lots of suggestions. Eat gelato. :)
Day 17 - Relax, pack, check out, head home. I'm sorry :(
If you want an out of the ordinary experience in Venice, check out Row Venice. It’s gondola rowing lessons given by members of a historical preservation female rowing club. You can choose afternoon, early evening or later evening classes and several people at a time can be in the boat. The early evening tour is a cichetti (small snack) tour, which includes rowing up to a couple of small bars and enjoying a glass of wine and a snack. You’ll practice on smaller canals and eventually row out on the grand canal. It’s an extraordinary experience, which my husband and I enjoyed immensely.
Ms. Chamberlain,
Thank you so much for your recommendations and I will take in consideration on what you proposed. I know we cannot see or do so many of things on one visit. So it's important that we capture the highlights and just enjoy our two weeks in Italy.
Thank you.
I took this "free" walking tour in Venice and it was excellent (I took the morning tour). You have to book in advance but there's no penalty for no-shows. Another tour I really enjoyed there was the Secret Itineraries Tour at the Doge's Palace (must book in advance, the groups are small and fill up quickly). Both gave a lot of insight into the fascinating history of the city.
Thank you Chani and we will take advantage of the free walking tour opportunity.
Eat gelato. Walk. Eat more gelato.
Italy is the home of "the sweetness of doing nothing" (dolce far niente)
On my first night in Florence last year, I took a walking food and wine tour from Walks of Italy....it was superb! It was a great way to see and learn about Oltrano, which is across the river, as well as identify some great restaurants (some of which I plan to visit again shortly). Best of all is the opportunity to try so many Florentine specialties. It is a perfectly lovely way to get a feel for the people and place!
