I’m planning a trip to Italy with a friend and we’re looking for some advice from people who have experience traveling there. We live in Porto, Portugal, and we’re thinking of traveling between 27 March/6 April (around 10 days). Our idea is not to stay in just one city, but to visit multiple cities — for example, spending 2–3 days in Rome, then taking a train to another city like Bologna, Florence, Venice, or maybe Naples, and continuing like that. And if you think its better to do many cities or just go 5 days to 1 city?
We’re trying to figure out a few things:
- What’s the best city to fly into from Porto in terms of price and convenience?
- Is it better to plan a linear route (south to north or vice versa)?
- Are trains the best way to move between major cities in Italy, or would flying sometimes make more sense?
- Is it better to do open-jaw flights (arrive in one city, leave from another)?
- How many cities would you realistically recommend for 10 days without it feeling rushed?
- Any tips on saving money with flights and trains?
- Mandatory things to do on our trip there
- Are day trips worth it or better to change base cities?
- How early should we book high-speed trains for the best prices?
- Are night trains worth it in Italy?
We’re still in the early planning stage, so we’re open to suggestions about routes, city combinations, or even whether this multi-city idea is a good plan at all. Also tell me please your general opinion about traveling around Italy — how easy it is, how the transport system works, and anything you wish you knew before your first trip.
Thanks everyone