Guide for how to plan a trip to Italy to more than one city.
Flights
Usually works out cheaper to fly to and from the same airport (a return flight). Make sure your departing flight is late afternoon so you have plenty of time to travel from your last destination back to the first to catch your flight.
Where to go
Check the map and then the trains (you can even book your trains through Trainline before you arrive) to see what cities are easy to get to from each other. We did Venice, Milan and Florence which are 2 hour train journeys from each other (a bit like a triangle!). These are the cities we stayed in for a few days then managed to other day trips to places that were 1-2 hours away such as Lake Como, Pisa, Burano, Cinque Terre.
Planning
Keep a detailed itinerary including screenshots of all booking confirmations. I also write down my itinerary on paper including addresses and booking references in case my phone dies (jury is still out on whether this is smart planning or a bi-product of being an overly anxious person). I’m leaning towards smart planning as you never know when you’re phone’s battery could run out!
Leave plenty of time on your itinerary to allow for train delays etc. This means if anything unexpected happens like a travel delay you won’t be overly stressed on your holiday.
Book more than 6 months ahead? Create a mood board! A great way to keep the excitement for your trip and inspire you to keep saving/paying things off before you go.
What we spent for 1 week travelling Italy
Accommodation – £300
Flights- £100
Trips- £130
Spending money- £40 per day
Ways to save money
Cities can be expensive, but there’s also ways to not spend as much money.
- Use public transport rather than taxis. Most European cities have great metros (tube/subway) at a really reasonable price.
- Have a picnic- get some food from a supermarket or a takeaway pizza with a bottle of wine and have dinner at the park/near a canal/scenic location.
- Visit a cafe/bakery- living near London, one of the world’s most expensive cities, even I know I can get a Greggs chicken bake for £2- other cities will have their Greggs equivalent! In Milan (which was surprisingly more expensive than Venice) we visited a cafe near our apartment for brunch I got a coffee and spinach tart for €3!
My itinerary
Here is the itinerary from my trip to Italy:
Tuesday
✈️ 8.45 from LHR get to Venice lunchtime
🛶 sight seeing, gondolas
🏨 check in for 2 nights £344/£86 each booked Heart of Venice https://www.booking.com/hotel/it/heart-of-venice-venezia.en-gb.html?aid=304142;label=postbooking_confemail;sid=b8a05a4a93e62f75e1fe741a4830a1e3;dist=0&keep_landing=1&sb_price_type=total&type=total&
Wednesday
❤️Burano day trip £18
https://www.getyourguide.co.uk/venice-l35/boat-excursion-to-murano-burano-torcello-islands-t6853/
Thursday
🏨 check out 30 min walk to station
🚆 train to Milan 10.57am
🏨 check in 2 nights £328/ 82 each booked Premium Suite Milan https://www.booking.com/hotel/it/royal-suite-milan.en-gb.html?aid=304142;label=postbooking_confemail;sid=b8a05a4a93e62f75e1fe741a4830a1e3;dist=0&keep_landing=1&sb_price_type=total&type=total&
⛪️ sight seeing
Friday
Saturday
🏨 check out
🚆 train to Florence 12.40
🏨 check in 2 nights £335/ £84 each Hotel St James
🚌 train to Pisa
🌟 sightseeing around Florence, dinner and drinks
Sunday
Corngilia – start
Vernazza (1 hour)
Monterosso al mare (beach) (2 hours)
Riggimaria (1 hour)
Spezia for train back to Florence
Monday 27th
🚆 train to Venice (£12) morning
Fly home ✈️ 17.35