Watch out for old men driving cars down the Spanish steps.

Anonymous wrote:OP again. What about taking a high speed train from Rome to Naples (takes 1h 13 min) and then a 50 minute ferry to Capri? That seems doable for a day trip?

Factor in hotel to train station in Rome, waiting for the train, 1.13 journey time, transfer from Naples station to the ferry terminal (it is walkable for someone like me but not sure about you), waiting for the next ferry, 50 minutes on the ferry. Then?

Sure, it can be done, but it's a long/rushed day. I can tell you really want to see this part of the world but with five days you should pick either Rome or Amalfi. Not both.

We were in Rome over spring break and booked all our tickets from the official websites. The websites were pretty straight forward.
We used seat61-dot-com to book intercity fast train tickets.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Yeah, the more I think about it, the less doable it is to squeeze in Positano.

What's the best way to get tickets to the Coliseum and the Vatican? Is it through Get your Guide, or through the official websites?

Anonymous wrote:OP again. What about taking a high speed train from Rome to Naples (takes 1h 13 min) and then a 50 minute ferry to Capri? That seems doable for a day trip?

Yes, but I think it’s easier to get to Sorrento than Capri. I could be wrong.

I think you should definitely try to see the coast.

How far is portofino from Rome? It’s a different vibe, but also lovely.

Too much hassle for one night but if you could stay 2-3 nights I would do it. We decided to go for the final few days of a Rome trip about ten years ago and it was the start of our love affair with Positano. We drove (which I do not recommend) but on subsequent trips (have been back twice since) we have flown into Naples and hired a driver. Not cheap but much more relaxing.

I agree that Tuesday is too crowded. You're probably going to be doing a lot of queuing and walking.

OP again. What about taking a high speed train from Rome to Naples (takes 1h 13 min) and then a 50 minute ferry to Capri? That seems doable for a day trip?

You are there for 4 days. You don’t count travel days as tourism days. No, you don’t have time.

OP here. Yeah, the more I think about it, the less doable it is to squeeze in Positano.

What's the best way to get tickets to the Coliseum and the Vatican? Is it through Get your Guide, or through the official websites?

Team Nope here. If you want stay overnight in Florence and then MAYBE take a fast train from Florence to Naples to go to Pompeii, and then come back to Rome that evening. Italy is big and there are many things to do. You can’t squeeze them all in on one trip. I was very underwhelmed by Sorrento and unless all the tourists magically depart, Positano stinks too. It can be wall to wall people.

Fwiw, I enjoyed seeing many of the touristy things in Rome in the evening and after dark…when it was cooler and less crowded. Both the colleseum and Vatican square were beautiful around 8 or 9pm. We walked from the colleseum to the Vatican along the water near castle santangelo and it was a lovely evening.

We enjoyed popping in and out of churches during the day when it was hot and the streets were crowded (no lines at other churches).

If you’re going to Florence anyway, why not spend a few days there - it’s a beautiful city and very walkable. Leave position, Naples, capri, Pompeii for another trip.

If the main objective is to see the highlights of Rome, then I would recommend doing Rick Steve's walking tour on Monday--it covers the Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Piazza Novona, and other major stops.
If you plan to visit the Vatican museum on Tuesday, you might not have enough time for the Vatican AND the Colosseum and Roman Forum. However, if you're just visiting the cathedral at the Vatican, you should have enough time for the Colosseum and Roman Forum. Btw, do book tickets early--they tend to get sold out fast for some days and times.
I agree with others, two day trips might be a bit much--perhaps just do Florence and save Positano for another time.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. This is helpful. I'm flying in on September 8th at 11am or so and flying out early on September 13. I only have the rest of Monday the 8th, plus Tuesday-Friday of that week in Italy. It's a very short trip unfortunately.

Here's my rough itinerary:
Monday afternoon: Trevi, Spanish Steps, Villa Borghese Gardens
Tuesday: Vatican, Coliseum, Roman Forum
Wednesday: Train to Florence (day trip)
Thursday: Overnight in Positano?
Friday: Return from Positano?
Saturday: Depart

Maybe squeezing Positano is not worth it given my time constraints...

You definitely need to add piazza navona and the pantheon and some time to poke into other churches and pastry shops.
I think that Tuesday itinerary is way too much and exhausting. I would do:
Tuesday Vatican, piazza navona maybe campo di fiore or castel San angelo
Wednesday — Thursday Florence
Friday coloseum, Roman forum, add San Pieteo in vinculo if you have a few minutes as it’s right there.
Or you could ditch Florence and do positano instead.

No. It deserves 2 relaxing weeks, minium.