LB_NJ Posted November 21, 2022 #1 Share Posted November 21, 2022 Just booked a TA cruise that ends in Rome. Would like to stay in Italy/Europe for around 5 days to a week before we fly home. Never been to Italy and do not speak Italian (or really anywhere else in Europe except England and Geneva). Looking for help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CruiserBruce Posted November 21, 2022 #2 Share Posted November 21, 2022 First of all, to stay in any medium to large city in Europe, you don't need to speak the local language. Discussed here frequently. You could spend many days in Rome easily. But a good idea would be to spend 3 nights in Rome, then train to Florence for 2 or 3 nights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LB_NJ Posted November 21, 2022 Author #3 Share Posted November 21, 2022 12 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said: First of all, to stay in any medium to large city in Europe, you don't need to speak the local language. Discussed here frequently. You could spend many days in Rome easily. But a good idea would be to spend 3 nights in Rome, then train to Florence for 2 or 3 nights. What about Venice? The cruise ship stops for a day in Florence for a day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare marazul Posted November 21, 2022 #4 Share Posted November 21, 2022 (edited) 15 minutes ago, LB_NJ said: What about Venice? The cruise ship stops for a day in Florence for a day. You can spend 3 nights in Rome. Then train to Venice and spend 2 or 3 nights there. You can fly back from Venice. Edited November 21, 2022 by marazul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare cruisemom42 Posted November 21, 2022 #5 Share Posted November 21, 2022 (edited) Just to reassure you, I fully agree that you do not need to speak Italian to be able to enjoy sightseeing in Rome, Florence, Venice or any major tourist destination. Having a few words can be useful, but mainly for establishing goodwill. I could easily spend 5, 7 or infinite days in Rome. Pre-COVID I generally spent 5-7 days there at least once a year and it is one of the easiest cities to find new, worthwhile things to do -- between world class museums, new ancient sites that are constantly opening or re-opening, good restaurants to try, and nearby day-trips, it is the perfect "city break" location. That said, if you want to see a bit more of Italy, especially Venice, I think the idea of splitting your time with 3 days in Rome and 2 in Venice is good. Just make sure you're allowing enough time because traveling from place to place does eat up time. The fast train between Rome and Venice (an easy way to travel) takes about 4 hours, so if it were me, I'd try to spend the time as follows: -- Full day in Rome (day you get off the ship) -- Full day in Rome (2nd day) -- Almost another full day in Rome -- look at booking a train that leaves at maybe 3:30 pm (arriving 7:30 pm in Venice) or even 4:30 pm (arriving 8:30ish). -- Full day in Venice -- Full day in Venice -- Depart morning of Day 6 after your cruise Edited to add: If you have to cut it down by a day, I'd say you were better served to eliminate one of the full days in Venice. Venice is atmospheric but small and there is much more to see and do in Rome. Edited November 21, 2022 by cruisemom42 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CruiserBruce Posted November 21, 2022 #6 Share Posted November 21, 2022 1 hour ago, LB_NJ said: What about Venice? The cruise ship stops for a day in Florence for a day. Yep...Venice would work. And, just so you know, the ship docks in Livorno, 90 minutes away from Florence, each way. You might consider doing excursions to other locations from Livorno, and spend a couple of days actually in Florence on your land trip, knowing in advance you are doing your land trip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mapleleaves Posted November 21, 2022 #7 Share Posted November 21, 2022 Go to your library and borrow a few travel books on Italy. Read up on popular destinations and figure out what YOU want to see and do. We all have different interests (and budgets). Look at the maps to get idea of distances and travel times. Maybe there's enough in Rome to keep you busy for a week. Make a list of the sites you'd lie to see to determine how much time you will need. And if you'd like to visit Venice or somewhere else, make another list to determine how much you'll need, plus the travel time. Another consideration is your luggage. Can you easily manage your luggage in order to get around train or bus stations? Too much luggage MIGHT limit where to visit beyond Rome. Most cruisers tend to overpack. Also, are you planning to return to Italy at some point? If so, no need to cram as much as possible into this visit and shortchange yourself. Have fun with your research ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LB_NJ Posted November 21, 2022 Author #8 Share Posted November 21, 2022 Thanks to everyone for the insights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreenFamily Posted November 24, 2022 #9 Share Posted November 24, 2022 (edited) I would spend all 5 days in Rome. I am not an expert, but my parents lived in Rome. Here are some sights I think can’t be missed, excluding the top sights you already know about. Inside St Peter’s Basilica!!!! Pantheon Church of San Pietro VIncoli Mamertine Prison The Peace Altar The National Museum of Rome(includes three sights w/ticket) Papal Basilica of St Paul’s Outside the Walls and the Abbey of the Three Fountains Borghese Gallery inside Villa Borghese Park (hidden gem) Look these up to see if they interest you, Edited November 24, 2022 by GreenFamily Weird typing 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreenFamily Posted November 25, 2022 #10 Share Posted November 25, 2022 5 hours ago, GreenFamily said: I would spend all 5 days in Rome. I am not an expert, but my parents lived in Rome. Here are some sights I think can’t be missed, excluding the top sights you already know about. Inside St Peter’s Basilica!!!! Pantheon Church of San Pietro VIncoli Mamertine Prison The Peace Altar The National Museum of Rome(includes three sights w/ticket) Papal Basilica of St Paul’s Outside the Walls and the Abbey of the Three Fountains Borghese Gallery inside Villa Borghese Park (hidden gem) Look these up to see if they interest you, I forgot to add the beautiful Santa Maria Maggiore. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GarCat88 Posted November 25, 2022 #11 Share Posted November 25, 2022 We just spent 8 wonderful days in Rome prior to our TA cruise. There is so much to see. It was great having the 8 days so we didn’t have to rush around. We booked tours of the Colosseum and the Vatican. The tours were fantastic! We also booked the hop-on-hop off bus for two days, highly recommend doing this. Language wasn’t a barrier at all. Rome is wonderful, I can’t wait to go back. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
euro cruiser Posted December 3, 2022 #12 Share Posted December 3, 2022 My first trip to Rome was my first trip to Italy. I didn't speak a word of Italian at the time and I stayed for a month without scratching the surface of things to see and do. I would seriously consider spending the entire time in Rome, maybe doing a day trip from there (Florence or Naples/Pompei are easy to reach by high speed train for the day, without the need to pack up and change hotels). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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