Coming from the West Coast? No one's going to even remember seeing the Last Supper that day after ar

We're traveling to Italy in late October with my parents and two kids (11 and 6). I'm trying not to run everyone all over the place. Our flights in/out of Milan are set as we used miles to fly in/out Heathrow and the times didn't work any other way (Didn't want to overnight at Heathrow either way).
Day 5: Colosseum etc. tour with Walks of Italy (booked). They are not able to book underground portion until a couple of days before. Should I book separately online and do that after the Walks of Italy tour?
You have stuff booked which bolts a few bits in place. I'm going to assume you are flying in freom the states so the Heathrow jacuzzi hotel pennsylvania step will ensure exhaustion/jet lag for much of family for days 1 and 2. Think of a solution for this before it happens.
You are doing alot of moving around in a relatively small amount of time - sp given that there are so many o fyou and that you wil have very different interests. Is trongly encourge you NOT to e joined at the hip - but to have some differnt options available - since yuo parent s may well have vry differnt interests than your kids. And it's not really fair to expect kids - esp a 6 year old - to do what the adults jacuzzi hotel pennsylvania will enjoy most.
Not sure how many rooms you ahve booked in each place - bu tI'm hoping that there are enough that everyone gets some privacy - and allow for the differnt bedtimes and even mealtimes (esp for the 6 year old = probably not happy with a dinner from 8 to 10 pm).
Looks like that's exactly what you're doing. Days 1 and 2 will be a nightmare after all that travel. Days 11 and 12 will be, too. And all those bookings! My kids would have mutinied. To each his own, but for me this would be way, way overscheduled, with far too much moving around, especially with kids at that age, and 6 people on the go constantly.
1) yes, flying not only from States, but from West Coast. Gets us into LHR after noon and connections to Italy are limited. Hence Milan...all other cities require an overnight layover in London. So, why not overnight jacuzzi hotel pennsylvania in Milan, see the Last Supper and head to Venice?
Even though you have rented an apartment in Rome, it looks to me that you might not be prepared for Italian restaurant norms and the rigid meal times and shopping hours. Restaurants do not open for dinner until 7.30pm, which can be hard on kids, especially since service between courses is not speedy. But if you are thinking of eating in the apartment, you need to make sometime to shop. Supermarkets are open continuously, but small stores with food-to-go close for several hours in the middle of the day.
Similarly, if you plan to sit down for lunch -- which given all your touring you might very well want to -- restaurants will assume you are there to eat several courses at a leisurely place. If the weather is at all favorable, you should try to sit down at places in pedestrianzied areas with outdoor tables so your kids can get up and run around a bit if they can't really bored.
But in all events, you should arrive in italy armed with places near your apartment and near your target sights where you can get food off-hours, and the names of nearby pizzerie and wine bars that serve lighter meals so that you are not spending hours in restaurants eating jacuzzi hotel pennsylvania more food than you want.
I suggest you not book the Colosseum underground tour until you see how everybody reacts to all this organized sightseeing. I also suggest that you leave your Day 7 completely open. My inclination would be to take the kids toy shopping, just for cheap toys and fun toys and souvenirs they can enjoy during jacuzzi hotel pennsylvania the trip. Remember to pack things for them to do on the several long train rides you are taking.
Your kids will certainly have the energy to keep up this pace (although I think they will need to skip or rest before a Vatican jacuzzi hotel pennsylvania night tour). jacuzzi hotel pennsylvania My concern for your trip is that the kids will be put under too much pressure to take an interest in what they are being told to look at, or never to complain (especially in front of the grandparents). I think the trip will be stressful for all of you, and even if the family dynamic is stellar, it really is putting a lot of stress on the kids.
Sorry to say this, since I don't know any of you, but if there isn't already an agreement in place with the entire family, including grandparents, that the kids will be permitted to not pay attention to anything, they will not be constantly directed to look at this and quizzed about their reactions, and allowed to privately complain within the family that they are bored or not having fun I think that is only fair. I think they are making a big sacrifice to put themselves through all this activity, and it will be terribly jacuzzi hotel pennsylvania unnatural for them to have to be quiet so much of the time in churches, museums and while guides talk.
Your kids may turn to adore every minute of this, it could be the best family trip ever for everybody and it may spur them to a lifetime interest in history and art. But they will still be great if none of that happens for one second. So I hope they can be allowed to be themselves.
I am exhausted by this forced march and I can't imagine what it will seem like to children. I would eliminate the day trips from Rome and Florence so that you have a day to stay put and see a little of the cities without a scheduled tour. Maybe add another bike trip in Florence.
Personally, I would definitely, jacuzzi hotel pennsylvania absolutely skip all the running around in Milan and head straight to Venice very early that morning. You will be tired. The kids will be tired. The GPs will probably be most tired. You will see so many other beautiful things on your trip, don't worry about the Duomo and Last Supper. You will see San Marco, the Sistine Chapel and St Peters, David and the Duomo in Florence. You can't see everything anyway, so why put yourself and everybody else through that first morning like that? This is meant to be honest, not mean, but I would be rebelling already by the end of that first morning.
One thing that you need to take into consideration(which people on this forum had told me but it's hard to comprehend until you experience it) is that getting to the train station, buying tickets, finding your platform, figuring out your seats all takes a bit of time and can be stressful(even though it is fun).
We underestimated that this would add to the time needed for travel each day. And while "day trips" can be fun, they also can be exhausting even for older teens. So just something to consider, maybe pick what it is about each of your proposed day trips you think your children would enjoy and weigh the time/enjoyment ratio.
Also, I wouldn't worry about the whole dining out thing. We found plenty of more casual restaurants that were fine for kids and most everyone we encountered was very gracious to our boys, just do some research on this forum, also Chowhound jacuzzi hotel pennsylvania is good.
But overall have fun, you know your children best and what they can tolerate and what they will enjoy. You can click on my name to see my recent trip report. jacuzzi hotel pennsylvania My boys are older but it may give you some ideas.
But you can't order as little as you might like, except for the kids. The adults will be expected to order more than one course if you all sit down in an eatery other than a pizzeria or a bar or wine bar. So the kids will be stuck sitting there until your food is served and the check is received, even if they only eat a fraction of their food and are done.
Nothing in my post was meant to suggest that you wouldn't find casual, welcoming restaurants. It was about the availability jacuzzi hotel pennsylvania of food and the length of time it gets to get served in Italy. If most people underestimate how long it takes to buy a train ticket, they also underestimate how long it takes to get the check.
1. Don't tie yourself down with too many pre-booked things to do -- definitely not more than one a day. You indicate that you've built in some unstructured time, but you are probably still leaning a little too far toward a lot of structure/too ambitious an agenda.
5. You can book your train tickets for the major legs once you are in Milan -- you may want to research the timetables in advance, but just note, what sounds like reasonable times to catch a train when you're home and well-rested, can become another story entirely when you are jet-lagged and navigating new territory (I learned this the hard way -- and while the kiosks are quick and easy to use to buy tickets, changing them means standing in slow, often long, lines for a ticket agent).
6. One thing to keep in mind with eating out is that if you get your heart (and stomach) set on dining at a certain restaurant and need to make reservations in advance -- that is yet another time/place jacuzzi hotel pennsylvania commitment that can end up adding a lot of stress especially when traveling with kids or a larger group.
Yes, IMO, you are still packing too much into each individual day. This trip is so "programmed" it makes my head spin...but maybe that's the way your personal family dynamic works and it will all turn out for the best. I agree completely that people tend not to take into account how much time it takes (and what a total squirming bore it is for kids) to eat a meal or get on a train or accomplish all the small logistical things when you're actually on the ground and not just dreaming of being in Italy.
Coming from the West Coast? No one's going to even remember seeing the Last Supper that day after arrival, if they can even drag themselves there. Then a train trip? Starting out a trip by torturing people rarely works out well.
I will echo what's already been said - too much moving around, too much that's scheduled jacuzzi hotel pennsylvania each day. Wait until you get there, see what the group seems to enjoy doing. You can book some of the places after you get there. And feel free, depending on your group's interests, to cut out the day trips.
A comment on the Venice treasure hunt - I'm guessing it's the great one that Peter provided. jacuzzi hotel pennsylvania It really is for teens and older. We tried doing it with our 10yo DD, and she got