10-day itinerary
10 Days in Italy
Rome, Florence & Venice
Italy's golden triangle of Rome, Florence, and Venice offers an intoxicating blend of ancient ruins, Renaissance masterpieces, and labyrinthine canals that will leave culture and food lovers utterly spellbound. From hand-pulled pasta in a Roman trattoria to sipping Aperol Spritz beside a Venetian canal at sunset, every moment here is a sensory feast.
Morning: Fly into Rome Fiumicino, take the Leonardo Express train to Termini, and check into your mid-range hotel in the Trastevere or Prati neighborhood.
Afternoon: Shake off jet lag with a gentle walk through Trastevere's cobblestone streets, stopping at the golden-mosaiced Basilica di Santa Maria in Trastevere.
Evening: Eat your first Roman dinner at Da Enzo al 29—order the cacio e pepe and a carafe of house white, then stroll to the Fontana di Trevi glowing at night.
Morning: Book the first 9 am entry slot at the Colosseum online, then walk directly into the Roman Forum and up to the Palatine Hill included on the same ticket.
Afternoon: Cross to the Capitoline Museums to see the original Marcus Aurelius equestrian statue and the breathtaking panoramic terrace over the Forum below.
Evening: Head to the Testaccio neighborhood for an authentic Roman food crawl—try supplì at Supplì Roma and finish with gelato at Fatamorgana for creative flavors.
Morning: Enter the Vatican Museums the moment they open at 9 am, work your way through the Gallery of Maps to the Sistine Chapel, then step into St. Peter's Basilica.
Afternoon: Climb the 551 steps of St. Peter's dome for a jaw-dropping 360-degree panorama of Rome, then browse the antique stalls along Via del Governo Vecchio.
Evening: Join locals for aperitivo hour around Campo de' Fiori—a spritz and free nibbles cost less than €7—then dine on artichokes alla giudia in the Jewish Ghetto.
Morning: Check out of your hotel and take the 9 am Frecciarossa from Roma Termini to Firenze Santa Maria Novella—the journey takes just 1 hour 30 minutes.
Afternoon: Drop bags at your hotel near Santa Croce, then immediately climb to Piazzale Michelangelo for the iconic postcard view of Florence's terracotta rooftops and Brunelleschi's dome.
Evening: Eat at Buca Mario, Florence's oldest restaurant, and order the hand-rolled pici pasta with wild boar ragù paired with a Chianti Classico from a local producer.
Morning: Enter the Uffizi Gallery at opening and spend two focused hours with Botticelli's Birth of Venus, Leonardo's Annunciation, and Raphael's portraits without rushing.
Afternoon: Cross the Ponte Vecchio to the Oltrarno district, visit the Pitti Palace's Palatine Gallery, then explore the artisan leather workshops on Borgo San Jacopo.
Evening: Join a 3-hour Florentine food tour through the Mercato Centrale—lampredotto sandwiches, aged pecorino, and ribollita samples fuel a deeply local evening experience.
Morning: Climb all 463 steps of Brunelleschi's Dome for staggering up-close views of Vasari's Last Judgment frescoes from the inside, booking the timed slot in advance online.
Afternoon: Stand face to face with Michelangelo's David at the Accademia Gallery—arrive for the 11 am slot when morning rush has passed and light is superb.
Evening: Book a table at Buca dell'Orafo or Trattoria Mario for a slab of bistecca alla Fiorentina from Chianina beef, ordered by weight and served blood-rare as tradition demands.
Morning: Take the 8:30 am SITA bus from Florence to Siena (1 hour 15 minutes, €8), arriving in time to walk the fan-shaped Piazza del Campo and climb the Torre del Mangia for hilltop views.
Afternoon: Explore Siena's striped Duomo, browse the Piccolomini Library inside for its vivid Renaissance frescoes, then stop at a Sienese pasticceria for ricciarelli almond cookies.
Evening: Return to Florence by 6 pm, freshen up, and end the day with a sunset Negroni at the rooftop bar of Hotel Continentale overlooking Ponte Vecchio.
Morning: Take the 9 am Frecciarossa from Florence to Venice Santa Lucia station (2 hours), arriving directly at the edge of the Grand Canal—one of Europe's most dramatic arrivals.
Afternoon: Resist the vaporetto and walk from the station through Cannaregio's quiet Jewish Ghetto—the oldest in the world—to your hotel in the sestiere of Castello or Dorsoduro.
Evening: Eat cicchetti bar-hop along the Rialto Riva del Vin and the streets of San Polo—tiny crostini with baccalà mantecato and glasses of ombra wine cost just €1–2 each.
Morning: Enter St. Mark's Basilica at 9 am when it opens—the golden Byzantine mosaics glow magnificently in morning light—then climb the Campanile for rooftop views across the lagoon.
Afternoon: Cross to the Dorsoduro sestiere to visit the Peggy Guggenheim Collection of modern art beside the Grand Canal, then wander to the sun-drenched Campo Santa Margherita for an afternoon spritz.
Evening: Splurge on a 30-minute gondola ride at sunset (€80–100 shared) through the narrow back canals away from the Grand Canal, then dine on fresh sarde in saor at Osteria alle Testiere.
Morning: Catch the early vaporetto Line 12 to Burano to photograph its rainbow-painted fishermen's houses, then hop to Murano to watch a live glass-blowing demonstration at a family furnace.
Afternoon: Return to Venice by noon, pick up final souvenirs at the Rialto Market, and visit the Ca' d'Oro palace museum for one last fix of Venetian Gothic grandeur.
Evening: Toast your journey at a canal-side bacaro with a final Bellini—the cocktail invented here at Harry's Bar in 1948—before heading to Marco Polo Airport or your overnight train.
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