How are you getting a day flight to Rome? I thought those had all been cancelled. I can’t even find one to Paris.

I’ve only been to Rome but that itinerary looks fine. Be warned the coliseum plus palatine hill day will be a lot of walking, potentially in hot sun. so steel yourself for that.

Cinque Terra is nice because there are beaches, colorful homes, and it's fun for kids to hike and get Gelato. It's also fun to see the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Lucca is also near there and has a wall where you can walk all around the city. I think this would be a more fun area than Milan.

Agree with dropping day trips in Florence. Let kids wander around in the other side of the Arno for an afternoon - great thrift shops etc. A day to decompress in the middle of the trip will do wonders for everyone.

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't do Tuscany or cinque I just a day. Pick one and slow down!

This. The Tuscany tour seems ambitious for one day. I’d choose one of those stops-probably Siena. Visiting all those towns in one day seems impossible and won’t be enjoyable at all.

I’d also skip Milan. It’s a business city, not a tourist town, and won’t be interesting for tweens (or, really, anybody).

I’d add a day in Rome to visit Pompeii.

Too much for me and definitely too much for my tweens - and we love to travel internationally.

There’s no downtime. This itinerary would crush me after Florence simply because of the time management and making sure to see everything on the list.

Have you asked the kids what they want to do? A side trip to a water park, an outdoor experience, shopping, etc. I’d strongly agree with the coastal town for a few nights mid trip and eliminating Milan and a night in Venice.

I get the hope that you see as much as possible, but it’s also a family vacation. I think everyone has a say in the itinerary and relaxing and enjoying each other and the foreign culture is the goal.

I'd personally drop the two day trips from Florence, and one night in Milan, and instead spend three days in Tuscany before Venice. Find a villa or agriturismo place with a pool and spend two days laying around and enjoying the countryside.

Alternatively, find a small coastal town in or north of cinque Terre and stay there for three nights. You can't go wrong with any of them.

Too much for me. Skip cinque terre. Spend one whole day in Siena until night fall. Day 2 of Florence is too much crammed in as well.

Agree to skip Milan. We flew out of there too and really didn’t like it. If you need to do it minimize it to the day before your flight.

Your Venice time seems to be missing a day? You say 2.5 but only 1.25 are listed. The church is the prettiest sight there (besides just walking the city). Skip Doge’s palace. We did it and I regret the couple hours time waste - it’s just not that cool especially with kids I thought.

More importantly though this itinerary sounds like an adults trip. When are you doing something more kid oriented? Suggestions of stuff we did or looked at with kids a little older than yours…

- biking Appian way when in Rome (if you add time there. You can’t do it with only the days you have now.
- tack on a beach visit day when in Rome area (again, with an extra day there) - beaches there are very different than ours
- lessons on how to row a gondola when in Venice. RowVenice does this.
- would kids like a cooking class aimed at their age? We haven’t done this but friends of ours like to when in Italy.
- are they playground age still? If so try to find some that look neat to build into itinerary.
- gladiator training school when in Rome maybe? We did not do this as kids were teens but others here have recommended it

Anonymous wrote:I’d cut Milan. Add in a day trip to Pompeii from Rome. Maybe add a day to Venice unless it’ll be peak season like July or August. Or better yet, add in some less urban time from Florence or overnight in Cinque Terra.

+1. Milan is boring. I'd spend more time in Venice or do the day trips suggested above. Go to Tuscany - SO many great towns to explore, and the scenery and drives are gorgeous. We randomly came across the spot where the famous "coming home" scene in Galdiator was filmed while looking for a restroom in Tuscany. I still recall the stunning beauty of that winding road and tall grass.

Travel is important to DH and me, and we have taken our kids on similar and a lot more intense trips since they were little. This itinerary is totally doable and fun with tweens.
Enjoy! I love Italy and have been 6 times over 2-3 week stretches each.

I wouldn't do Tuscany or cinque I just a day. Pick one and slow down!

Who does Cinque terra for 1 day? Why would you do that? It takes hours just to get there and the whole point is that its relaxing. There are some cute cities around there too but you didnt list them.

Rome is reasonable. Same with Florence. Then it goes off the rails. You can't do any of those other towns in less than a day. Most of them would be better with 2 days each. Maybe you mean just pick one hill town for the day? I don't remember which one is closest by but San Giminano is probably the most unique to do a day trip to.

I’d cut Milan. Add in a day trip to Pompeii from Rome. Maybe add a day to Venice unless it’ll be peak season like July or August. Or better yet, add in some less urban time from Florence or overnight in Cinque Terra.

Itinerary. Don't know how to fix the typos.

We will ony be doing window shopping so not sure how much time to allott for that. Just interested in seeing that area.

Rome 4 nights/3 Days:

Day 1 - Travel Day - Reach Rome in evening. Book a hotel near city center. Sleep early or walk around if jet lagged.
Day 2 - Trevi fountain, Spanish steps, Piazza Novona, Pantheon
Day 3 - Vatican Museum
Day 4 - Colosseum (get arena tickets), Roman Foru, Palatine Hill

Florence: 5 nights/4.5 Days (.5 day travel):
Day 1 - Travel Day - Checkout and leave in morning from Rome to Florence. Reach mid afternoon. Check in at Florence hotel. Walk around and explore.
Day 2 - Get Brunelleschi pass - See the Duomo, Cathedral, Piazza/Square, Baptistery, Santa Reparata, Academia, Mercato, Medici Tombs, and Bargello. If possible climb the Duomo.
Day 3 - Tuscany day trip - Siena, Pisa, San Gimignano, Chinati day trip with Lunch at Chianti winery - Book Guided Tour - 12 hour round trip
Day 4 - Uffizi (if not tired from previous day), Santa Croce, Ponte Vecchio.
Day 5 - Cinque Terre Day trip - Book a guided tour?? RT 12 hours

Venice: 2 nights/2.5 days (.5 day travel)
Day 1 - Travel Day - Reach Venice in evening and check in hotel and walk around - Ponte delle Guglie near station, Ponte della Paglia, Ponte di Rialto (connecting San Marco and San Palo), Piazza San Marco
Day 2 - Murano/Burano lagoons, Gondola ride. If time permits Doge Palace.

Milan: 2 nights/1.5 day (.5 days travel)
Day 1 - Travel Day - Venice to Milan. Arrive night
Day 2 - Duomo di Milano, Sfrozesco castle, Luxury shopping in Galleria Vittoria Emanuele
Day 3 - Morning flight back home from Milan.

13 nights in Europe and then the flight days 3 days (will be booking with 1 stop and a few hours layover since it is much cheaper)

Does this sound okay with tweens? Or should we cut out something? I feel like I am cramming too much into the trip. It will be our first trip to Europe so there will definitely be a learning curve with everything. Any tips and suggestions for a first timer from someone who has been there done that?