Rome and Florence in 7 Days: Itinerary and Train Transfer
Rome and Florence are one of the most popular pairs in Italy, and they suit a week well: a big, layered capital and a compact, walkable art city, connected by a fast train. The trip works best when you decide the split of nights and the transfer day first, and then plan each city on its own terms. This is how to do it.
In short: Split a week as about four nights in Rome and three in Florence, treat the roughly 90-minute high-speed train as a half-day, and keep one open afternoon in each city.
Decide how to split the nights
A common split for seven days is four nights in Rome and three in Florence, or the reverse. Rome is larger and has more to see, so it usually gets the extra night. Florence is compact, and three nights are enough for the city plus one day trip. Whichever way you go, avoid more than two bases in a week: each change of hotel costs half a day.
If your flights allow it, an open-jaw ticket, arriving in one city and leaving from the other, saves you from going back. Compare that option with a return to the first city before you book.
Plan the transfer day
The high-speed train between the two cities takes about an hour and a half, and runs frequently. Book a seat in advance for the time you prefer, check the exact schedule on the operator’s official site and remember that the city stations are in the center, so the journey is genuinely door to door in a few hours.
Treat the transfer as a half-day, not as a free hour. You check out, travel, check in and often want a walk to get your bearings, so keep the rest of the day light. Choose a hotel in Florence close to the station or the historic center, and check when you can check in if you arrive early.
Pack so that the few things you need on the transfer day are in one bag, and the rest stays organized for the hotel.
Rome: the first four days
Use the first days for the big sights in the order that suits your flight: ancient Rome, the Vatican and the historic center. The 3 days in Rome itinerary lays out a walkable plan by neighborhood. With a fourth day, add a slow morning in Trastevere or a garden, a museum you booked in advance, or a half-day trip outside the center.
Florence: three days and a day trip
Florence is small enough to see mostly on foot. Start with the Duomo area, the cathedral, the baptistery and the bell tower, then walk to the Piazza della Signoria and the Uffizi Gallery. The Uffizi works on timed entries, so book it in advance from the official site, and check what the ticket includes.
Cross the Ponte Vecchio to the Oltrarno side for quieter streets, craft workshops and restaurants, and go up to Piazzale Michelangelo in the late afternoon for the view over the city. For a day trip, consider Siena, Pisa or the countryside around the city. Choose one, not all three.
Keep both cities unrushed
The typical mistake on a two-city week is treating each day as a race. Aim for one or two main things per day, keep one open afternoon in each city, and leave the day after a long transfer light. If you are unsure about a day, read it through in order and remove one stop. For more on this kind of trip, see how to plan a multi-city trip.
Build the trip in one place
A trip like this is a good match for MyTrip Builder: add each city as its own hotel frame with its own dates, put the transfer in as a record with a start time, and add the stops for each day. The app calculates walking distances and times between consecutive stops, shows a summary per hotel and for the whole trip, and lets you move a stop to another day when the plan changes. You can also use the Trip Wizard to set up the flights, hotels and airport transfers in a few steps.
Frequently asked questions
How many days should I spend in Rome and Florence?
Seven days is a comfortable split for both: about four in Rome and three in Florence, with a day trip from Florence if you have the energy. With fewer days, focus on the highlights and skip the day trip.
How do I get from Rome to Florence?
The high-speed train is the usual choice, about an hour and a half between the city centers. Book a seat in advance and check the schedule on the official operator’s site.
Should I fly into Rome and out of Florence?
If your airline allows an open-jaw ticket, it saves you the return trip. Compare it with a return to the first city before you book, and check the airport options and transfer times.
Which city should I visit first?
It depends on your flights. Many travelers start in Rome and end in Florence, but the reverse works just as well. Choose the order that gives you the most comfortable arrival and departure days.