Do you absolutely have to spend two days in Venice?
You could go see Pompeii out of Rome. It’s a long day, but doable, I once did it. (Bring your own water!) But with the 9 days you appear to have allotted to Rome, you could actually spend a couple days in Sorrento if you wanted, and visit Pompeii from there. (There is also Herculaneum.)
I don’t want to diss Naples, I’ve been there and it has the archeological museum with Pompeii artifacts, and good pizza, too, but a lot of young people enjoy Sorrento.
With 10 days in Italy it would be a shame to miss Florence, but I would not stick around there too long. Your trip, IMHO, needs some smaller towns mixed in.
Is there a compelling reason you want 11 days in Amsterdam?

The two days in Venice will be the day I arrive and the next day I will be going on a cruise for two weeks, so really have to stay there – the two weeks cruise is not listed in my itinerary. I’m in the Netherlands for 11 days as my family are there. I’ll be with my mother during that time and seeing all around the Netherlands but unsure or where they are taking us, so unfortunately I’m pretty much stuck there till she goes back home.
Sorrento sounds good I didn’t think of that previously. I’ve never been overseas before so thought I’d base myself in the big cities and do day trips – this might not work . I suppose I’m trying to fit so much in, but I want to see all these countries as I may not get a chance to go back. Thanks for your help!

1. 2 days in Venice is about right — actually a little tight since hooking up with your cruise is probably going to kill the better part of one. Venice is a doable one-day visit, but I think 2 is a lot better.
2. Base cities and day trips is a travel style I really like. I have visited Pompeii and Herculaneum as a day trip from Rome. It’s a long day, but very “doable.” Pompeii will be scorchingly hot and crammed with tourists. Herculeaneum is less crowded. You can probably find my “how to do it as a day trip” by using “pompeii” in the search box on this site. If not, post back and I’ll try to recreate…
3. for your 9 days, I’d do 4 in Rome (with a day trip to Pompeii — add more time if you want to take more day trips) and 2 in Florence. You could visit another area like Cinque Terre or rural Tuscany, add a day for day trips from Florence (Pisa??) or pick a spot for a short visit between Venice and Florence. While I don’t care for Milan, it’s worth a day and it’s a good base for some day trips since it’s such a big transportation hub.

Would it be feasible / suggestible to do something like the following? (it actually worked out to be 11 days if I included the last travel day back to Venice)

Day1: arrive Cinque Terre
Day 2: Cinque Terre
Day 3: depart Cinque Terre – Travel by train to Pisa then continue to Rome
Day 4: Rome – possible day trip to Pompeii
Day 5: Rome – Vatican
Day 6: Rome
Day 7: Rome
Day 8: Rome – Possible day trip
Day 9: Depart Rome to Florence
Day 10: Florence
Day 11: Travel from Florence to Venice – airport back to AUS (remembering Venice has
already be covered at the start of my Europe trip – It was to hard to include the cruise on my itinerary as I have several days at sea only)

I think this looks good. I would put the day trip to Pompeii a little later in your stay. I wouldn’t do it the day after arriving in Rome. Getting to Rome could be a little hectic. They’ll be getting to the train station, a stopover in Pisa which means dealing with luggage storage, finding and getting to your lodging, getting acquainted with your new neighborhood. A day trip to Pompeii is definitely tiring and hectic. Just the “main site” (there are something like 9 sites) at Pompeii is huge and crawling with tourists. The Circumvesuvius rail line is a commuter train. It’s pretty much like a city subway at rush hour any time of day, so you’ll probably be strap hanging for 45 minutes each way, too.

THANKS SO MUCH FOR YOUR HELP!!
I am having trouble finding to do it yourself Pompeii / Herculeaneum in the forum history. I will put it later in my trip. I’ll be so excited to be in Rome anyway, I’ll want to see everything first!
Is there a Train pass that would cover my trip or should buy city to city tickets?
Thanks again

1. If you’re just talking about the Italian portion of your trip I would not get a railpass. While a pass might save a little money, I doubt it will be worth it. Italian trains are relatively cheap, but reservations, not covered by the railpass, can be expensive. IMO it’s easier not to use a railpass in Italy. Many Italian trains require reservations. It’s quick and easy to buy a ticket (which includes the reservation if it’s required) from the automated kiosks with no waiting in line. Buying “just a reservation” to use with your railpass almost always requires waiting in line in Italy, sometimes a very long line. While you can avoid trains that require reservations by taking slightly slower regional and local trains, most of the trains at “peak times” require reservations. The fastest trains between Rome and Naples take 1 hour 10 minutes. Most of the ones that don’t require reservations take 2 to 2 1/2 hours.

If you will be traveling by train in other countries, then a railpass may be a good idea. Avoid lines by buying your reservations for Italian trains all at once or even before you get to Italy.

2. Rome to Pompeii/Herculeaneum as a day trip: Take an early morning train from Rome Termini to Napoli Centrale — buy a round trip with a return in the evening. When you arrive in Naples, go immediately downstairs to the the local station for the commuter trains. You’ll see signs for the Circumvesuviana line. Buy a round-trip ticket to Pompeii Scavi (ruins) which is on the “sorrento line” I think. The other line (to Salerno?) has a stop for “Pompeii” but that station is not near the ruins. I may have have turned around Salerno and Sorrento — just make sure you take the line that goes to Pompeii Scavi and Ercolano. The Pompeii Scavi station is right across the street from the main entrance to the largest section of ruins. We bought a guidebook from one of the street vendors in Pompeii — it was a total waste as it did not mesh with the posted numbers and signs. If you want information (actually just wandering around is interesting) rent an audio tour or buy an official guidebook inside.

On your way back to Naples stop off at Ercolano (Herculeaneum) The ruins there are a 5 to 10 minute walk — just go straight down the street when you leave the station. The site is less crowded and in some ways more interesting than Pompeii. You can buy a ticket that covers both (plus a bunch of other Pompeii ruins) in Pompeii.

If you can find someplace near the station you might even be able to catch a pizza in Naples on your way back — otherwise there are several eating options (McDonalds if all else fails) in the station.

3) General travel tips for Italy: Be sure to save your train and subway ticket in Italy for the entire trip — until you are out of the train station. They find folks who don’t buy tickets with random checks of people getting off the train or going through the turnstiles to leave the commuter or subway station. Also, if you take EurostarItalia trains, 2nd class is perfectly acceptable. 1st class is 1 1/2 times the cost, plus the reservations are more expensive — I would not spring for the extra cost of 1st class on EurstarItalia.

You absolutely should find a pizza place close to the train station in Naples, and it’s definitely worth it. The pizza I had in Naples was the best I’ve ever had- in fact, we made a day trip to Naples JUST to eat pizza. (And added the Archeological Museum, which is also fantastic).

I also wouldn’t get a railpass for Italy, the tickets are pretty cheap and like oldlady said, the kiosks are very user-friendly and fast- no need to wait in lines!