Venice and Rome - help needed please

[MrsMattSantos]

we’re heading to Venice and Rome at the start of July for a week - and yes, I know it will be hot and crazy busy
But have never been to Italy before and look g for some suggestions…
We’ll have 2 full days in Venice and would like to head out to Murano and Burano one day, but do we need to book an organised trip for this?
I’d also planned to book the observation deck on the department store roof, but from the website this seems to be closed so wondered if any other suggestions.
In Rome we will have three full days, and wanted to go to the Colloseum but not sure how to book this?
And would like to do some kind of tour perhaps, maybe an open top bus tour, as Rome looks much bigger than Venice
but looking for any tips, recommendations or other suggestions from the wise women of Mumsnet

For Venice 2 days more than enough, for Rome 3 days not enough - especially if you like museums and willing to visit Vatican

Definitely go to the Vatican if you can.

It is a few years since I have been but you could just get a normal little ferry to Murano and Burano, you don't need to book a trip.
If booking the Colosseum then it is worth adding the Forum on as well, you can get a joint tour, I thought it was incredible.

Edited for typo

was in both last month!

It's completely up to you - there are organised tours going to murano and burano or you can just get the normal vaperetto (water bus) there which is going to be much cheaper. It's very easy to navigate, just go to one of the main drop off points (by the piazza de. roma or the train station) and they've got big electronic signs out telling you which number/letter route to take. If you buy a 24/48hr ticket (recommended) then all routes are included. You can book yourself to watch a demonstration of the glass making at murano https://www.visitmuranoglassfactory.com/ - it's very short but also only 5 euros so worth doing!

I'd recommend taking a walking tour around venice to try and get your bearings a bit and hear some interesting history, but also just be prepared to wander round and get lost. Google maps works okay there, so download it just in case but as long as you can find your way back to the main waterway you'll be fine. Go to Libreria Acqua Alta - flooded bookstore.

In terms of Rome yes it is much bigger. I've been a few times so tried to do a few slightly different things the most recent visit but if you're only there for 3 days I would do the big things like the colosseum, trevi fountain etc - they're famous for a reason!

Again there are absolutely loads of different colosseum tours you could go on - just google - but if you just wanted to go yourself the official site is here warning it is incredibly slow to load. You can choose between just wandering around yourself or a guided tour (I'd do the second). A ticket to the colosseum also covers the forum which is right next door. Honestly you could spend most of a day just in those two places. You absolutely need to book before going or you'll be in a huge queue, if there are even any tickets left.

There are the normal pink bus/red bus sightseeing tours in rome that are in every major city - tbh they all seem to go to the same spots so I'd just go for the cheapest. I think they're cheaper if you book online but can do so on the day. I wouldn't book it for the same day you do the colosseum because its usually a 24 hr ticket - or maybe get it for the evening so you can do a bit one day and a bit the next but also spend some time at the first and last site.

I haven't been on one but a few people have recommended some food/wine tours. Other than that it depends what you like to see - more interested in the roman stuff, medieval stuff, religious stuff, museums, cats, shopping, art????

Oh and the one thing to bear in mind is that there are very very few public toilets in either venice or rome, and the ones that are there you usually have to pay for - usually 1euro50. Even in places like mcdonalds you have to scan your receipt, and there's usually only like 1 or 2 cubicles in a really busy restaurant. It will be very hot and busy so I'd factor in lots of coffee/aperol spritzer breaks and use the loo then.

oh and don't bother taking much cash, it's like here pretty much everything is contactless, even the toilets.

If you haven't booked your hotel for Venice, stay in Padova and go in by train. Padova is a wonderful university town with 100 times fewer tourists, and hotels are much cheaper.

If you go to Burano, go to Torcello as well if - you change ferry at Burano. It’s like stepping back in time

You don't need a tour for Murano/Burano although you might prefer to. They have an open top boat tour (same company as the bus) that goes to both plus another island (can't recall off the top of my head but there's a beach there too). We booked on the day and found that quite good value for money, although I'm sure we visited the third island on the second day. With your timings, might be difficult to squeeze everything in if you're also exploring Venice. I imagine there will maybe be taxi boats too but not sure.

Rome is one of my favourite places. If you have time, an evening food tour of Trastevere was amazing. Rome has lots of tourist traps but on the tour we visited several off the beaten track restaurants, bars and cafes and tasted so many amazing foods, wines and even olive oil. I tell everyone to go if they can fit it in.

Vatican is amazing but it will take up the best part of a day to see it all. If you're inclined, you can book tickets for the pope's papal audience through some churches and from recollection, they don't cost anything.

Burano is about 45 - 60 mins on the ferry from memory, could be a bit longer. No booking required but do check timings as they're not that frequent.

Get the "che bataeo" app in Venice for the waterbuses, Google maps is useless in Venice.

I eas in Venice last month and it's a dump with terrible food. Stay somewhere else and go for a day trip. Burano and Murano and not worth it. Rome is magnificent.

Every restaurant we went to in Venice asked for cash - they hated people paying by card cos some of it got lost in taxes!

Rome is wonderful and I think the best way to see everything is to walk although it will be hot at the beginning of July.
Book your colleseum tickets with the official website
https://ticketing.colosseo.it/en/ - it gets extremely crowded so go as early in the morning as possible. Attic and Underground tickets are harder to get but great to get away from the crowds.
The official tickets include access to the Forum and Palatine Hill.

thanks for some really helpful comments..
I guess I’d like to see some art in Rome @latetothefisting, while teenage DD will probably like cats and shopping (though I’m not adverse to a bit of shopping too)
and we’re staying in Travestere @Justgoingforaweeliedownso will have a look at food tours…although DD can be, shall we say, quite picky…
but yes, definitely planning plenty of stops for water, gelato and perhaps a cheeky spritz 😁

Gosh, where do you live that Venice is a dump? 😆

I’d recommend the tour of the Domus Aurea (Nero’s golden palace) https://colosseo.it/en/area/the-domus-aurea/
It’s one of the things you need to book well in advance.

If you're planning to go to the Vatican you need to book a tour well in advance - we went on one of the evening tours - quite a lot less crowded.

I'd do one or the other, not both. There's just too much to see and do and you risk just being herded around the top 3 overcrowded sites if you rush it.

For Venice my single biggest tip is to avoid St Marks square and the roads immediately around. 90% of tourists stick there and it gets unpleasantly busy.

St Giorgio Maggiore and Scala Contarini both give you a wonderful view and shouldn't be crowded.

For Rome try to get tickets to the Galleria Borghese - and do the Forum rather than the Coliseum.

Oh - and Torre Argentina - cat sanctuary and where Julius Caesar was assassinated.

Don't avoid St Marks square! It's breathtaking. But agree re crowds. You need to go very early in the morning or pretty late at night (depending on whether you prefer waking up or staying up late). My favourite time there is about 10pm. The cruiseship day trippers have left, tacky merchandise stalls packed up, but the live musicians are still playing in the bars. You can wander around and don't need to sit for a (pretty expensive) drink. Grab an ice cream (recommend Grom or Gallanetto) and walk around all the central bits which are too busy by day

Don’t do the open top bus tour in Rome! They stop for ages at the station. Rome is small enough that you can walk. Most of the touristy bits are pedestrianised streets too.

I’d start note than two days in Venice. There’s lots to see. Soak up the atmosphere too!

And go to the Forum in Rome. Wonderful!

This thread is crazy. Venice is a dump, doesn’t take card payments, stay in Padua, avoid St Mark’s Square 🤣

Don’t listen to any of the above and you’ll be grand.

No need for a tour of Murano and Burano. Personally with 2 days I wouldn’t bother with both, maybe just Murano. Get the 2 days vaporetto pass and use it everywhere. Be sure to wander round Arsenale and Santa Croce for a different vibe and cheaper spritz and ciccetti.

No wonder no one ever learns anything about places they go if the advice is '2 days is more than enough for Venice'

Ive been for several long weekends over the years in Venice and its never enough and theres still something new each time I visit. And I want to go again, its a fabulous place

We were in Rome for a week and stayed in Trastevere, you dont need 'food tours', explore, every little nook and cranny, go down dark dingy streets and see what you find.

I loved Venice, not been to Rome so cannot comment.
2 days should be enough if you plan carefully. we stayed in the Hilton garden inn in mestre and took the bus into Venice each day. €3 per journey and the bus ran every 10 mins. tickets can be bought at the hotel.
enter Venice and spend a couple of hours wandering about, there are great cafes and bars to get snacks and aperol spritz! Take a vaporetto to murano - it’s a lovely place, we popped into the church of Santa Maria e san donato and if you like art you will be blown away by the beautiful mosaic floor.
I think that if you’re there you should try and get to burano but it’s a bit further out, about 30 mins in the vaporetto but in my opinion totally worth it. It’s picture postcard pretty. We had a lovely lunch here too.
Google places you think you might like to go - doges palace/st marks basilica - both very very busy. We went up the bell tower in st marks square and got a great view of the square so may be worth a visit if you want a view from the top.