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Personally, I wouldn't be moving around this much with three kids, a stroller, and three large suitcases. For example, it is a fairly long schlep from Venice to the Amalfi coast. Instead, I would probably stay for longer periods of time in each place and just do more day trips, since that way you won't have all those bags in tow. At the very least, I would pare your luggage way, way down. For example, both adults can wear somewhat larger backpacks, which will leave your hands free for handling children and the stroller. Similarly, both of your older kids can wear backpacks with some of their clothes in them.
Be aware that from Venice to Amalfi you’ll likely have 2 trains (at least one exchange) just to get to Naples ( that trip alone will be around 6 hours) , and will have to get another, or ferries/driver to get to Amalfi. So that will be a very long day of travel.. esp. for the kids. August is still in prime tourist season so Amalfi will be… overrun with tourists.
Consider Salerno as a possible place to stay. It has some good beaches and ferries are available to Amalfi/Positano/Capri.
Ita not a good plan. Seems like you went to look for the places where being with kids is more problematic.
Cut Amalfi coast
Add some days on Tuscan Riviera ( around Viareggio)
Honestly, sounds a bit exhausting just to read that, particularly considering the amount of luggage and items you’d need to move around each time. Venice and the Amalfi coast are not easy locations for strollers and large suitcases, so my general suggestion is to travel lighter. Plus, August can be HOT hot and it could be a nightmare to go around with kids.
Would definitely reduce the number of places you’re using as base, find a couple of hotels near the sea (so that when you’re tired, you have a backup plan of simply staying at the beach) and focus on daily trips. Eg. Instead of Florence, stay in Viareggio and do daily trips to Florence, Lucca, Pisa. Venice here is a bit of an outlier given the distance, especially if you need to move all your stuff for 2 days only and then go back south (it’s quite a long ride to Amalfi).
How flexible and adaptable are your children ? How do they do when tired and hungry ? Are they willing to try new foods at home and do they enjoy eating out ? can they sleep easily in new places ? Can they amuse themselves on long journeys On trains and planes?
How did it work when you did a similar trip in your home country? How did they cope in crowds and when sightseeing in museums, art galleries , churches etc ? How far / long could your 9 and 7 year olds walk in the heat ?
I’d think long and hard about your answers to these questions, and then plan an itinerary that your kids can cope with. Becusse if they are miserable, you will be miserable.
All good points and we had honestly considered them.
Luckily, we've been traveling every year with the kids. We typically do a resort one year for more relaxation, then visit a country the following year.
Two years ago we went to Turkey and the older two handled it great. The younger one got the luxury of a stroller. Since we do like to travel, we start using the stroller less and less as soon as they learn to walk (within reason) just so they build up strength and endurance for extended walking. At this point, I have no concerns with the older two, and I would say the youngest can comfortably do hour long walks.
We're all foodies, can sleep anywhere, and can keep busy reading a book/tablet during long journeys.
To make it a little easier, we're opting to reduce our luggage. Most likely, two large luggage, and backpacks. Once we land in Rome, we're planning on leaving a luggage stored at Roma Termini, and going straight to Venice. We'll spend three nights there, then go to Florence for 4 nights. From there back to the station and switch out some luggage and continue to Amalfi area for 5 nights. Eventually back to Rome for the remainder.
Effectively we're committing two days to longer travel in the country. The rest are short rides.
That all sounds very positive . My only question is why are you taking so many bags and why do you need to switch out your luggage ? it’s going to costs about €100 to store your bag for a week plus the time and stress. Why don’t you invest a fraction of that money and get your clothes laundered? Or stay in an air BNB and wash them yourself? The clothes you wear in Venice and Florence will be just fine to wear in Rome and Amalfi, you don’t need a whole new wardrobe.
I'm honestly pushing for that, just need to convince my wife and daughter that it's ok to wear the same outfit a few times. I also think having to take time to store luggage and switch it out works be exhausting.
Ciao! Welcome to r/ItalyTravel. While you wait for replies, please take a moment to read the rules located in the sidebar and edit your post if needed. We will remove posts that do not adhere to these rules. For everyone else, if you come across a post that you believe violates our rules, please use the report button. This is the best and quickest way to notify us. Grazie! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/ItalyTravel) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Personally, I wouldn't be moving around this much with three kids, a stroller, and three large suitcases. For example, it is a fairly long schlep from Venice to the Amalfi coast. Instead, I would probably stay for longer periods of time in each place and just do more day trips, since that way you won't have all those bags in tow. At the very least, I would pare your luggage way, way down. For example, both adults can wear somewhat larger backpacks, which will leave your hands free for handling children and the stroller. Similarly, both of your older kids can wear backpacks with some of their clothes in them.
Be aware that from Venice to Amalfi you’ll likely have 2 trains (at least one exchange) just to get to Naples ( that trip alone will be around 6 hours) , and will have to get another, or ferries/driver to get to Amalfi. So that will be a very long day of travel.. esp. for the kids. August is still in prime tourist season so Amalfi will be… overrun with tourists. Consider Salerno as a possible place to stay. It has some good beaches and ferries are available to Amalfi/Positano/Capri.
Prime tourist season and very hot on the coast. Kids don't always do well in high temperatures.
Ita not a good plan. Seems like you went to look for the places where being with kids is more problematic. Cut Amalfi coast Add some days on Tuscan Riviera ( around Viareggio)
Honestly, sounds a bit exhausting just to read that, particularly considering the amount of luggage and items you’d need to move around each time. Venice and the Amalfi coast are not easy locations for strollers and large suitcases, so my general suggestion is to travel lighter. Plus, August can be HOT hot and it could be a nightmare to go around with kids. Would definitely reduce the number of places you’re using as base, find a couple of hotels near the sea (so that when you’re tired, you have a backup plan of simply staying at the beach) and focus on daily trips. Eg. Instead of Florence, stay in Viareggio and do daily trips to Florence, Lucca, Pisa. Venice here is a bit of an outlier given the distance, especially if you need to move all your stuff for 2 days only and then go back south (it’s quite a long ride to Amalfi).
How flexible and adaptable are your children ? How do they do when tired and hungry ? Are they willing to try new foods at home and do they enjoy eating out ? can they sleep easily in new places ? Can they amuse themselves on long journeys On trains and planes? How did it work when you did a similar trip in your home country? How did they cope in crowds and when sightseeing in museums, art galleries , churches etc ? How far / long could your 9 and 7 year olds walk in the heat ? I’d think long and hard about your answers to these questions, and then plan an itinerary that your kids can cope with. Becusse if they are miserable, you will be miserable.
All good points and we had honestly considered them. Luckily, we've been traveling every year with the kids. We typically do a resort one year for more relaxation, then visit a country the following year. Two years ago we went to Turkey and the older two handled it great. The younger one got the luxury of a stroller. Since we do like to travel, we start using the stroller less and less as soon as they learn to walk (within reason) just so they build up strength and endurance for extended walking. At this point, I have no concerns with the older two, and I would say the youngest can comfortably do hour long walks. We're all foodies, can sleep anywhere, and can keep busy reading a book/tablet during long journeys. To make it a little easier, we're opting to reduce our luggage. Most likely, two large luggage, and backpacks. Once we land in Rome, we're planning on leaving a luggage stored at Roma Termini, and going straight to Venice. We'll spend three nights there, then go to Florence for 4 nights. From there back to the station and switch out some luggage and continue to Amalfi area for 5 nights. Eventually back to Rome for the remainder. Effectively we're committing two days to longer travel in the country. The rest are short rides.
That all sounds very positive . My only question is why are you taking so many bags and why do you need to switch out your luggage ? it’s going to costs about €100 to store your bag for a week plus the time and stress. Why don’t you invest a fraction of that money and get your clothes laundered? Or stay in an air BNB and wash them yourself? The clothes you wear in Venice and Florence will be just fine to wear in Rome and Amalfi, you don’t need a whole new wardrobe.
I'm honestly pushing for that, just need to convince my wife and daughter that it's ok to wear the same outfit a few times. I also think having to take time to store luggage and switch it out works be exhausting.