One week in Italy: a multi-city route
One week, one train line: Rome, Florence, a Bologna day trip, and Venice.
Photo by Rafael Peier on Unsplash
Interactive map of the route. The full stop list below works without it.
About 440 km as the crow flies
How do you spend a week in Italy?
One direction, one train line, no wasted transfers: fly into Rome, ride north through Florence and a Bologna day trip, and fly home from Venice. Wayside's self-guided walks are waiting in Rome, Florence, and Venice, and the only things worth booking before you leave home are the timed museum slots and the high-speed seats.
- Days 1 to 3
Rome
Begin in the ancient city
Rome opens the trip, and it goes deepest: the Wayside walk from the Colosseum through the Forum and up the Palatine traces the city from its founding myth to the empire, while the Campus Martius loop covers Campo de' Fiori, Piazza Navona, the Pantheon, and the Trevi Fountain in one Baroque sweep. Give the Vatican its own morning, from St. Peter's Square to Castel Sant'Angelo, keep an evening for Trastevere or Monti, and reserve the Colosseum slot as soon as it opens.
- TicketsOne €18 ticket covers the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, and the Palatine Hill. The Colosseum entry is timed, the slots open 30 days in advance on the official ticketing site, and EU citizens aged 18 to 24 pay €2.SourceParco archeologico del Colosseo: ticketsParco archeologico del Colosseo: opening times and tickets
Rome one-day itineraryRome walking tours
Next leg · 233.8 km
- Days 4 to 5
Florence
Renaissance, on foot
Florence packs the Renaissance into a walkable core, and the Wayside routes thread it: the cathedral loop runs from Brunelleschi's dome past Orsanmichele to Piazza della Signoria and the Ponte Vecchio, and the Oltrarno walk crosses to Santo Spirito, the Brancacci Chapel, and the artisan lanes of San Frediano. Book the Accademia for David and the Uffizi for a timed slot, then climb to San Miniato al Monte for vespers above the city.
- TicketsThe Uffizi costs €25, or €29 when you reserve a date and time before your visit, which is the ticket plus the €4 booking fee; from April through September, book rather than queue.SourceUffizi Galleries: official ticket faresVisit Tuscany: Uffizi and Accademia tickets and booking
- TicketsMichelangelo's David is at the Accademia, where a full ticket costs €20 plus a €4 booking fee; a combined 48-hour ticket with the Bargello is €26, and a 72-hour ticket across six museums is €38.SourceGalleria dell'Accademia di Firenze: tickets
Florence one-day itineraryFlorence walking tours
Next leg · 79.8 km
- Day 5, day trip from Florence
Bologna
Wayside tour coming soonA pause on the line
Bologna is the natural day trip from the Florence base: high-speed trains link Santa Maria Novella and Bologna Centrale in about 34 minutes, and the city sits at one of the crossings of Italy's high-speed map, so it works as an out-and-back or as a pause on the ride to Venice. Come hungry, walk the center, and catch an evening train back. A Wayside tour is coming soon.
- TransitFrecciarossa trains from Florence's Santa Maria Novella to Bologna Centrale take about 34 minutes, and Bologna is a hub where Italy's high-speed lines meet, which makes the day trip easy to fold into the ride north to Venice.SourceTrainline: Frecciarossa routes, times, and faresTrenitalia: Frecciarossa routes
Next leg · 130.8 km
- Days 6 to 8
Venice
Finish on the lagoon
Venice closes the week, and the Wayside walks here ask for no plan beyond good shoes: start in the Republic's front room at St Mark's Square, with the Basilica di San Marco, the campanile, and the Doge's Palace, then give the Rialto market a morning and finish with Titian at the Frari and Tintoretto at San Rocco. The Cannaregio route reaches the world's first ghetto and the quiet northern canals. Sleep on the island rather than Mestre, and be out early before the day crowds land.
- AccessVenice's day-visitor access fee ran on selected days from April 3 to July 26 in 2026: €5 if paid no later than the fourth day before the visit, €10 in the last three days, charged 8:30 to 16:00 and only for the old city. It stopped applying after July 26, 2026, and any return takes a new city decision; guests sleeping in Venice are exempt from arrival to departure, because they pay the overnight tax instead.SourceComune di Venezia: Contributo di Accesso FAQVenezia Unica: Contributo di AccessoComune di Venezia: Regolamento del Contributo di Accesso
Less time?
With five nights, cut Venice and fly home from Florence, keeping the Bologna day trip; with four nights, cut the day trip as well and keep the week to Rome and Florence.
Planning your route
How do I get between the cities on this route?
The route runs entirely on the Frecciarossa high-speed line, so every move is a direct train with no changes: Florence to Bologna takes about 34 minutes, and the fastest Rome to Venice service covers the corridor in about 3 hours 31 minutes. Buy seats ahead and the fares stay low.
SourceTrainline: Frecciarossa routes, times, and faresTrainPal: Rome to Venice trainsTrenitalia: Frecciarossa routesWhat should I book before I leave home?
Book the Colosseum slot the day its 30-day window opens, reserve the Uffizi and the Accademia a few weeks out, and buy the high-speed tickets as early as you can, since they go on sale months ahead and the cheapest fares sell first.
SourceParco archeologico del Colosseo: opening times and ticketsUffizi Galleries: official ticket faresTrainline: Frecciarossa routes, times, and faresWhere should I stay in each city?
In Rome, the centro storico between the Pantheon and the river puts the Wayside loops at your door; in Florence, stay inside the old center so everything is a stroll; in Venice, sleep on the island rather than in Mestre, so the evenings are yours after the day visitors leave.
Can the week run in reverse?
The same trains work in the other direction: fly into Venice, ride south through Bologna and Florence, and fly home from Rome, keeping the Bologna day trip paired with the Florence stay.
More of Italy
- Walking toursWalking tours in ItalyItaly packs an improbable range into a long peninsula: the Alps and the Dolomites in the north, the Apennines running down the spine, olive groves and vineyards through the center, and a volcanic south where the soil is dark with ash. Its cities are old, and they're still thoroughly lived in. In Rome, nearly three thousand years of history sit in layers beneath the modern streets. Palermo folds Norman, Arab, and Baroque architecture into the same few blocks. Venice keeps an empire's worth of art floating in a lagoon. Food changes with the dialect; each region keeps its own pasta shape and its own wine, and locals will explain at length why their version of lunch is the correct one. It's the rhythm of daily life that lingers: an espresso at the counter, an evening walk through the piazza with half the town.
- Know before you goItaly essentialsItaly's national essentials: entry rules, high-speed trains, the euro, plugs, the emergency number, holidays and the best months to visit.
Do it yourself
Follow it in the app
Wayside has self-guided walks waiting in Rome, Florence, Venice, and Milan, so you can start exploring the moment you land.
Provenance · last verified September 27, 2026
Researched and routed by Wayside, with inter-city detail checked against the source.
SourcesParco archeologico del Colosseo: ticketsUffizi Galleries: official ticket faresGalleria dell'Accademia di Firenze: ticketsTrainline: Frecciarossa routes, times, and faresTrenitalia: Frecciarossa routesTrainPal: Rome to Venice trainsTrenitalia: Le Frecce faresParco archeologico del Colosseo: opening times and ticketsVisit Tuscany: Uffizi and Accademia tickets and bookingComune di Venezia: Contributo di Accesso FAQVenezia Unica: Contributo di AccessoComune di Venezia: Regolamento del Contributo di Accesso
Photo by Rafael Peier on Unsplash