Italy Itinerary....more time in Florence or Rome?

My sister and I are going to Italy at the end of March and are unsure of our itinerary:

Monday - Wednesday (2 nights): arrive in Venice around 8AM, depart Wed around noon-ish.
Wednesday - Friday (2 nights): arrive in Florence around 2, depart for Rome around noon-ish on Friday
Friday - Monday (3 nights): arrive Rome around 2, fly back home to NY around noon on Monday.

Our plans aren't set, but now we are unsure if we should spend 2 nights in Florence and 3 in Rome, or vice versa. In Florence, we plan on renting a car for 1 day to see Pisa (tower), the countryside (general drive through, we aren't wine buffs), and the designer outlet stores. This is in addition to the touristy stuff in Florence (Duomo, Ponte Vecchio, etc...) In Rome, we definitely plan on seeing the Vatican, Coliseum, Trevi Fountain, Sistine, etc...)

We'll be getting to each city by train, so our timetables can change. What's the breakdown of days we should spend in each city?

Whatever you choose to do, you'll just be able to scratch the surface of Florence and Rome in your time there. Given the relative sizes of the two cities, the obvious answer would be to spend the extra day in Rome. Florence is relatively compact and easy to get around, but there is so much there that you won't be able to get into many of the galleries, palazzos, museums, etc if you're spending a day driving around the countryside.

Personally, I would spend the extra day in Florence and see the Uffizi, the galleries in Palazzo Pitti, the interior of Santa Croce, the Orsanmichele, San Miniato al Monte and the view from Piazza Michelangelo but that only reflects my personal interests.

With your schedule, you'll want to make a reservation for the Vatican Museums so you don't end up spending a lot of time waiting in lines. This is also the case if you intend to go in the Uffizi or the Accademia to see David.

Note that Easter occurs near the end of March this year. Italy will be crowded, especially Rome. Easter is a heavy travel period. There are extra trains added to the schedule, but some trains that normally do not require reservations do require mandatory reservations in the weeks on either side of Easter. This is particularly true of the Intercity trains.

oh man what a tough choice, Florence and Rome are definitely two of the top places i would love to see. There's so much history and art and beauty in both of them. Maybe you should just play it by ear....try not to be too strict on a schedule or else you won't actually enjoy the time there or what's around you. But do make sure you see both and have fun!!!!

Spend more time in Rome. You can easily spend one day at the Vatican, one day sightseeing, and one day shopping. There is so much culture in Rome and Florence make sure you make the most of your trip.

To answer your question, Florence needs more time than Rome. And I'm glad you are getting out of the cities. Please, if you go to Pisa (nice tower, not much else) catch a train to Portofino and the Cinque Terre. That's the real Italy right there.

Oh and in Venice, please please please walk outside of the main tourist route and see the real city. Stroll around! Get lost in the side streets! (there are little signs that point to St Mark's everywhere so you'll always get back again). Eat where only the locals eat! You'll love it.

the both are beautiful citys, and even if i can't tell which one is better you have to consider how many things are there to see in this citys. rome is much bigger than florence, and as vatican city is huge, you'll spend half a day in there. decide in what you are interested more, and see which city has these things!

upgrade to 10 days. lol

Rome needs more more more time then florence!!
half day in Florence in enougth!
You can live in rome and have somthging new to discover every day..

Only a week?!... It's really busy vacation!! Like the Japanese way! :o)

I suggest you to spend three days in Rome and only two in Florence...
Florence is littler and in two days you can easily visit everything walking... Take a look on this website: http://www.comune.firenze.it/viverefiren...
I know that is in Italian but look at the maps... :o)
You can have an idea about the most important thing to visit...

You'll spend two hours going with the car to Pisa... but with the train you'll spend more o less one hour... See what is better for you... And when you'll be there you'll have only the time to visit the Tower and the Duomo...

Rome... You can spend a month in this city and every time seeing one different thing...
In three days you can visit the most important thing that you mentioned yet... Moreover I suggest you to go out during the night in this zone: "Trastevere" (there are a lot of typical Roman restaurant) and "Testaccio" (it's full of bar, pub and place to dance).
PS
Everything in Rome is very expensive... And do not forget to try the Italian coffee! It's very different! :o)

Have a nice trip!

Florence DEFINETLY needs more time. i lived there until i was 12, it is the most beautiful city! rome is sort of boring.

dont rent a car to go to pisa from florence, take a train (honestly apart from the tower nothin much!) ... try to cut some things down so you can spend as much time as possible in rome.. its byfar the best!! spend a 1 day & half in venice, 1 day & half in florence, & the rest in rome. there is soo much to do in rome: piazza di spagna, piazza navonna, campo di fiore, ostia beach, & all the little allys! you can skip seeing the vatican & sistine .. it takes a million hours in line, overpriced, exhuasting, & you cant even take pics!!! OVERALL YOURE GONNA HAVE FUN NO MATTER WHAT!!

Florence is a great city...but Rome is the best city of the world.

More time in Rome....100% sure

Why are you flying into Venice? You dont seem to be spending anytime there and the road trip to Florence is not particularly pretty. I would fly in and out of Rome and spend more time in the countryside of Tuscany. The Cinque Terre are spectacular but a bit far for a one week trip. I would add Sienna and drop Pisa. Check out Volterra, or Soranno area. Beautiful and great food.

Hi! I'm Italian and I can tell you that Florence,for me,is the most beautiful city of the world! It's magic! But I love "Toscana" in general! However, Rome is bigger and more caotic...I think you should spend more time there to visit everything! Pisa is quite near to Florence...take train or bus to go...and to visit countryside too (renting a car is expensive!)

Florence is quite small but Rome is quite big.

You need a week in each! Seriously, whichever you decide, please check out the museums online now. Sometimes you need to buy tickets ahead of time to get in. Also, they are not open 7 days a week. It would be so sad to get to Florence and find out you cannot get into the museums!

http://www.florence-museum.com/?gclid=CN...

more time in rome.

Alright first, slow down. I went to Italy last March and you are going to make this a completly miserable, exhausting trip if you try to do all this. I did a similar thing 2 nights Venice, 3 nights Florence, 4 nights Rome.

I have to say I didn't love Rome, I found it like NYC but with older buildings. I definitely prefer Florence.

As for your trip you will probably arrive late, especially if you are flying Alitalia. By the time you get to your hotel you won't be able to see much. Don't worry, just travel down an alley and have a great dinner off the canal. You can see Venice in one day by foot. It's really small, like most Italian cities.

Pisa is a waste of time unless you really want to see that leaning building in person. There is nothing else to do there.

The designer outlets aren't what you think either. Went once and it was a waste of time. Just like the outlets in NY. Getting a really good deal is luck of the draw.

Be careful with your train schedule changing. The trains are really on time and really booked full. If you have scheduled your tickets ahead of time you're all set. If you decide at the last minute to change them you might not be seated together. Also, if you haven't already, upgrade to the Eurostar it's like an express train.

If you aren't wine buffs skip the countryside ride unless you love bland scenery. In March nothing is in bloom.

Rome needs more time. I have been a tourist in both places. I needed more time in Rome.