Which itenerary would you pick? 12 nights- solo female

My post was accidentally flagged yesterday so I'm bumping this to the top!

I could make a case for either. Don't be overly influenced by the web. I like your idea of saving Rome for another trip, therefore I'm leaning more towards option 1.

Two nights in Venice is one day. I'd add one day to Venice. Also consider staying in Padua instead of Venice proper. Venice is a quick 25-30 minute commute with trains running all day long. Pudua is a lot less expensive.

Siena is an easy day trip from Florence. There's not a lot to Pisa other than the baptistery and the tower. Combine that trip with a stop in Lucca. Consider taking a wine tour into Tuscany as one of your day trips. Find one that offers a food and wine tasting for lunch.

Have you been to Italy before?

To me Venice is sort of a PIA to get in to and get settled so I would not want to go for less than 2 or 3 nights unless you've been there before an the 1 nights is just a stop before you catch your flight out the next day.

I would lean toward option 1. I would however change it up a bit.

Arrive Venice and head directly to Florence, this puts all your Venice nights at the end. Spend at least 3 nights here.

For Florence, there's a wide variety of day trips to do by train since you don't like busses.

Whichever you decide, you'll have a wonderful trip.

I prefer Venice over Rome and I prefer variety over Rome, so I would not choose option 2). If you want to include Rome, then I'd make it a more typical/equal distribution of time between the three top cities.

Verona is an shorter day trip from Venice than from Florence, although that also depends on how close you stay to the train station in each city. Verona can also be a logical overnight stop en-route between those cities.

Venice needs two days. Florence two. Rome 3.
I would do:
Land at VCE, go straight to Florence by train from Venezia Mestre
Florence 5 nights (day trips to Siena, Pisa and Lucca)
Train to Rome
Rome 3 nights
Train back to Venice (stop for the day in Bologna along the way)
Venice 3 nights
Fly back home from VCE.

The total above is 11 nights. To make 12 add the extra night to one of the three cities at your preference. I would probably give 4 to Venice, if you plan a day trip to Verona.

If you decide to skip Rome altogether, then I would allocate those nights to Venice and Florence, but I would give still 4 to Venice, especially if you plan a day trip to Verona.

Thank you everyone! I really appreciate these replies. And yes, this is my first trip to Italy

Good to know it's your first trip. I like Roberto's suggestions.

When planning, 2 nights = 1 full day for touring. Transit between cities eats up a half a day or so when you measure time from leaving your hotel, getting to the train station, the journey itself then on to your new hotel in the destination. Venice is complicated because from the train station you'll take a vaporetto to the dock closest to your hotel then you'll walk (maybe across several of the small bridges which are actually steps not ramped) a distance to the front door of the hotel. It is part of what makes Venice Venice, if that makes sense, but it takes a bit more time to figure things out there.

If you are stressed taking buses, will you be okay taking trains between locations and for daytrips? For instance, to reach Verona’s historical center, you will be taking a train to the town and hopping a bus for a short ride to the Roman Arena area. A site that could be very helpful for you is www.rome2rio.com where you can enter two locations and see what specific transportation, including bus numbers, etc. go that route.

Another option is to join the RS Best of Venice, Florence and Rome tour. I see one beginning April 1, 2019. You could just concentrate on enjoying your time, and the guide takes care of all transportation decisions.

I like #1. Florence and environs is lovely. Venice is worth at least a look-see. I like staying in one place and getting to know the city and Florence is one of my favorite. I do not particularly like Rome. The stress of solo travel is changing bases too often, IMO, so do #1 and enjoy your trip.

Thank you all again!
The first plan is really what I wanted, so thanking you for persuading me.

Busses stress me out, but I actually enjoy trains and metros..go figure.

I also feel I should spend four nights in Venice now...I am thinking:

7 nights in Florence, 1 night in Verona (seems like such a beautiful city), and 4 nights in Venice.

If I decide against staying overnight in Verona I'll allocate another day to Venice or Florence. I'm staying in an Airbnb in Florence, so I get a discount if I stay at least a week.

Do you guys recommend staying in a hotel in the middle of Venice? I like Airbnb to save money, but it seems most Venice Airbnb are outside the main part of the city. I read somewhere that if you stay just outside of Venice, you waste too much time getting into Venice with the herd of people.

Only stay in Venice never outside. It is so special and unique and if staying outside, you would lose what makes Venice special.

I am certain there are AirBnB in the historical center of Venice, albeit more expensive than in the mainland.
Venice is close enough to Verona that you may not need to spend the night in Verona, since changing hotels for one night is such a waste of time. However if you plan to attend opera at the Arena in Verona, then spending the night is a must, since the opera shows end well past midnight when the train service has already stopped for the night.

. I read somewhere that if you stay just outside of Venice, you waste too much time getting into Venice with the herd of people.

One of the few times where "I read somewhere" is actually correct.

Stay IN Venice

We stayed in an airbnb apartment on the very un-touristy Via Garibaldi in the very un-touristy Castello neighborhood in Venice, almost right on the Grand Canal and near a vaporetto stop --- it was a 15 minute walk to San Marco according to Google Maps and our own experience. A bigger apartment than what you need, but I'm sure there are also one-bedroom ones.

We like to stay near a vaporetto stop and use a vaporetto pass. But you can save money and just walk. It's not a big island. I think you'll be surprised at how far places look on a map but how close they really are --- I think it's because our brains are automatically reading the distances between canals or streets as American city blocks and they are definitely not.

Also, use Google Street View to see the street an apartment is on or its general neighborhood ---- yes, the Google Maps people walked all over Venice with a camera instead of driving around as usual.

Are you open to 4 nights in each city or 5 in Rome, 4 in Florence, 3 in Venice?
There is a lot to see/do in Rome (and the Vatican) and you want to do many side trips from Florence.
If you travel to Rome the same day you land you would only be moving only 2 time (Rome-Florence-Venice).
Something similar will allow you to see all 3 cities.

I'll second the recommendation for Via Garibaldi. I love that neighborhood precisely because it one of the less touristy parts of Venice, but still close to San Marco - and it has a nice Coop supermarket right in the middle. We shopped there the last time we were in Venice :-)

May I suggest since this is your first trip to Italy that you not immediately leave Venice to head to your first destination - I personally find overnight/long flights exhausting, and Italy (though amazing) is a bit overwhelming on first arrival. If it was me (also a solo female traveler) I would spend at least two days in Venice at the beginning before moving on - you'll get over jet lag and it gives the city a chance to impress you (it is beautiful). As for your Rome question, you mention that architecture is an interest, and Rome has it in spades (Colosseum, St. Peters, etc.), but if it doesn't speak to you save it for another trip. Plenty to keep you occupied in northern Italy.

Spending four nights in Venice and one in Verona sounds good to me because both are great places and I love them both. That should (depending on arrival time) give you at least three and a half days for Venice which will probably whet your appetite for a return trip. Getting an early train to Verona, staying overnight, and returning late the following day will enable you to do a fairly through visit there.

Venice is a wonderful place to recover from jetlag ---- you can wander freely without having to pay any attention to motor vehicles. I hope you do decide to spend 3 or 4 nights there.

We enjoyed eating at Trattoria alla Rampa on the north end of Via Garibaldi where it becomes a canal --- simple, good food. But the trick here (as in many Italian restaurants, maybe in restaurants in general) is NOT to eat whatever you feel like eating but to eat either one of the daily specials or to find out what dishes the restaurant does well.

Thank you everyone!

And thanks for the restaurant recommendation, Nancy. I'm saving that in my Yelp bookmarks.

I've been feeling more and more drawn to Verona, rather than Florence, so my current thoughts are to spend four nights in Venice on arrival (one night at a hostel is included in my airfare- We Crocifieri), three nights in Florence, and 5 nights in Verona (with day trips to Lake Garda and Vicenza or Padua).

Now that sounds like a really nice vacation :)

Thank you:)

Your last comment is a nice itinerary. We stayed in Verona for a couple of days before joining the Best of Italy RS tour several years ago. Verona is a very nice town with lots to see. We purchased the Verona Card and felt that it helped us see more of the historical sites than we would have seen otherwise. I will be back in Verona again at the end of this month for a couple of days, attending an opera and tentatively planning to sign up for a half-day bike tour and/or cooking class through Veronality. Look for a Trip Report from me by mid-October.

Vicenza is a nice day-trip. We walked out to the Rotanda, and it’s a nice walk along a paved walk/bike path. Reserve your time to see the Scrovegni Chapel in Padova. It’s another nice town for a day-trip. We stayed there 5 nights and did day-trips to other locations. I’ve also wanted to see Mantova, but haven’t been there, yet. It’s a short train ride from Verona.

Hi again, I just went onto the Veronality website to sign up for the cooking class and bike tour and noticed they now have a new downloadable “Top things to do in Verona” which contains lots of good details and even recommendations at the end for various restaurant types. The things to do listed are ones I would agree were great to see.

Thank you so much Jean! I would definitely love to take a cooking class- I will check the website out. I hope you have an amazing vacation and thank you for the encouragement:)

If you are looking to relax, you will enjoy Lake Garda. I agree with the previous suggestions made by some respondents to stay in Venice at the beginning of your trip since that is your planned arrival city. Definitely stay in Venice, not on the mainland. Be sure to take a vaporetto down the Grand Canal at...or just after ... sunset to see the chandeliers lit up inside various palazzi. Visit Piazza San Marco in the late afternoon or early evening after the cruise ship hordes have departed and enjoy the orchestras at the cafés. Not sure if you're already considering a day trip to the Venetian island of Burano...you will enjoy seeing the various brightly colored houses....photographer's paradise! Have a wonderful trip! Feel free to send me a PM if you have questions about ideas for Venice sightseeing.

Can't you divide your time more efficiently. 10 nights in Florence is way too much, even with day trips. Also, I would prefer Ravenna instead of Bologna.

1 week in Rome is good,
1 week in Florence is not too much.
I know a lady from Hawaii she comes almost every year for 6 weeks to stay in Florence and programs various things to do: truffle or porcini hunting, cooking classes, visits various villages in Chianti or Val d’Orcia, art visits, Siena, Montepulciano, etc.
Verona is lovely but 5 days is too much for me. Venice for 5 days ok too.
Verona à maximum of 3 days