Milan to Rome: 8 Days in Italy for Under $1,200

Updated April 2026 | 5 min read

The Trip at a Glance

I did Italy once before, in May 2022 — Rome and Naples, slow and deliberate. September 2024 was different. Eight days, five cities, one Formula 1 race, and a final tally of $1,189. Not budget-backpacker cheap, but real hotels and real restaurants, not hostels and grocery store dinners.

The route: fly into Milan, two days at Monza for the Grand Prix qualifying and race, drive to Florence for two nights, take the train to Cinque Terre for the day, drive south through Orvieto, then three nights in Rome before flying home. It sounds like a lot. It moved fast. It was worth it.

Milan: Arrive, Recover, Shop

I landed Friday, August 30 and stayed at the Moxy Milan Linate Airport — functional, clean, exactly what you want when you arrive in the late afternoon with a long weekend ahead. It’s a ten-minute drive from the terminal and has no pretensions about being anything other than a transit hotel.

That evening I did a quick run through Milan’s vintage shopping corridor. The city’s secondhand market is concentrated around Porta Ticinese and the Navigli canals — think dense racks of 80s Italian sportswear, deadstock denim, and the occasional Moncler piece that someone priced correctly. I didn’t buy anything I couldn’t carry, which took discipline.

Before dinner I went up to the La Rinascente rooftop bar, which sits on top of the department store in Piazza del Duomo with a direct sightline to the cathedral’s spires. It’s touristy. It’s also genuinely spectacular. A Campari spritz up there cost about what you’d expect, and I don’t regret a euro of it.

Monza: Two Days at the Grand Prix

Saturday was qualifying. Sunday was the race. If you’ve never been to Formula 1 at Monza, the short version is that it’s one of the fastest circuits in the world, the tifosi are unlike any sports crowd I’ve encountered, and the energy from Friday practice through Sunday podium is relentless.

I’ve written a full guide to the Monza Grand Prix — logistics, tickets, what to pack, where to stand — in a separate post: Monza Grand Prix: The Complete Travel Guide for First-Timers. Everything you need is there.

What I’ll say here: build at least two days into the schedule. Qualifying on Saturday is not optional. The race on Sunday is the main event, but qualifying is where you see the raw speed without strategy clouding it.

Florence: Two Nights, Maximum Coverage

Monday morning I picked up the rental car and drove to Florence — about two hours on the A1. I stayed at the AC Hotel Firenze for two nights. Good location, modern rooms, solid breakfast. It’s not a boutique property with frescoed ceilings, but it’s well-positioned for covering the city on foot.

Monday afternoon I went to the Medici Chapels (book ahead — the queue without a reservation is punishing) and then spent the rest of the afternoon between Boboli Gardens and the Bardini Garden. Bardini is quieter than Boboli and has a terrace view over the Arno that most visitors skip entirely. Go there first, while the light is still high.

Tuesday I was at Santa Maria Novella station at 7:30am for the Cinque Terre day trip — details in the Florence post below. I was back in the city by early evening.

Wednesday morning I had Florence until about 3pm, then loaded the car and drove south. I stopped in Orvieto for ninety minutes — the cathedral facade alone justifies the detour, and there’s a wine bar on the main square where I had a glass of Orvieto Classico before getting back on the road. Three hours later I was in Rome.

Rome: Three Nights, Second Visit

I stayed at the Le Meridien Visconti Rome for three nights. The hotel is near the Vatican, comfortable, and a reliable base for Trastevere and the centro storico. My 2022 Rome trip covered the obvious monuments — Colosseum, Pantheon, Vatican — so this time I went slower.

Dinners rotated through the Roman pasta canon: Da Enzo al 29 in Trastevere for cacio e pepe, Checco Er Carettiere for carbonara. The neighborhood is worth the walk regardless of where you eat. One afternoon I went to Villa Farnesina — frescoes by Raphael and Peruzzi in a 16th-century villa, almost always uncrowded, a 10-minute walk from Trastevere’s main square. It’s the kind of thing that doesn’t show up on anyone’s top-ten list and absolutely should.

For the full Rome itinerary from my 2022 trip, including the Pantheon, Colosseum, and where I ate: Rome in 4 Days.

The Budget

Total trip cost: $1,189. That includes flights, hotels, Monza tickets, car rental, trains, and food. It does not include vintage shopping in Milan, which I’m choosing not to think about as a line item.

September is shoulder season in most of Italy. Florence and Rome are still busy — they’re always busy — but noticeably less than July and August. Hotel rates reflect that. The Monza race weekend is its own pricing universe, but everything else in the trip was priced reasonably.

What to Book in Advance

• Monza Grand Prix tickets (months ahead, especially grandstand)
• Medici Chapels, Florence (timed entry)
• Cinque Terre day trip from Florence — a guided group tour handles the train logistics and tells you which villages to prioritize: Cinque Terre Day Trip from Florence (Viator)
• Villa Farnesina, Rome (small capacity, book online)

Would I Do This Route Again?

Yes, with one adjustment: I’d add a third night in Florence. Two nights is survivable but tight, especially with a full-day excursion eating one of them. The Uffizi alone could take a day, and I didn’t get there at all. That’s unfinished business.

For anyone comparing this trip to doing Italy in May: I’ve written a direct comparison — crowds, weather, pricing, what each season gets right — in What I’d Do Differently: Italy September vs May.Book Tours and Activities

• Rome to Milan Train Tour
• Florence Day Trip

Find Flights to Rome

Book Tours: GetYourGuide guided tours in Milan, Florence, and Rome | GetYourGuide skip-the-line Vatican and Colosseum tickets

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