Italy itinerary 8 days: Venice to Rome — How to spend 8 days in Italy perfectly?
When you think about Italy, you usually think of three things: pizza, pasta, and beautiful old ruins. I spent eight days in Italy on Intrepid’s Highlights of Italy trip, seeing Venice, the Cinque Terre, Florence, and Rome, and I can tell you there’s a lot more to it than that (but don’t worry, pizza and pasta were still strongly featured). Here’s how to spend eight beautiful days in Italy. Now, have a look at our 8-day Italy itinerary blog: From Venice to Rome: How to Spend 8 Days in Italy Like a Local
Days 1 and 2: Venice
Our vacation began in Venice, where I had a full day to explore the “floating city of canals” – or “sinking city of canals,” if you want to be pessimistic – before meeting the rest of the company in the evening.
To make the most of your time in Venice, wake up early and go to Piazza San Marco (Saint Mark’s Square). This will allow you enough time to get a morning cup of coffee and watch the sun sparkle over the sea before the plaza fills up with other visitors (believe me, you won’t be able to wield a selfie stick by 11 a.m.). If you wait in line to enter Saint Mark’s Basilica, you’ll be rewarded with a vista as beautiful as the sun beaming across the Grand Canal.
While you’re there, go next door and ascend the steps to Saint Mark’s Campanile – the bell tower – for a panoramic view of Venice. If your camera or smartphone can capture panorama shots, that’s even better. Climbing the bell tower costs only €8. Bargain. Next, spend a few hours intentionally getting lost in Venice. Venice is more than simply a handful of beautiful bridges and a scenic vista or two. Every time you turn a corner – and the city’s intricate tunnels and bridges mean there are a LOT of corners to walk around – you’ll be treated to another postcard-worthy vista.
On the second day of the Intrepid trip, a few members of the group and I took a ferry (about €20) out to several of the smaller islands that surround Venice: Murano and Burano. Murano is famed for its glass-making, so you’ll witness a lot of hand-crafted glass creatures, vases, and chandeliers that will leave you wondering, “How the heck did they do that?!?” Burano is well-known for its charming, colorful homes (Facebook likes on your photos guaranteed). If you have a free day, it’s well worth the trip.
In the evening, do the tourist thing: ride in a gondola, and watch as the sun sets over the canals. Gondola rides are expensive, so if you get a group of your fellow travellers together it will be cheaper for everyone. Score one for small group touring.
Days 3 and 4: The Cinque Terre
Cinque Terre, oh, Cinque Terre. A chain of centuries-old beach towns that sparked a thousand Instagram postings. To say the Cinque Terre is beautiful is an understatement – and it also provides a somewhat more relaxed and quiet few days of touring than other of Italy’s larger towns (peaceful by Italian standards, anyway).
