[kscarrol]

We did this last summer. Florence is fabulous but SO crowded, even in early May when we went. Definitely pay for the cut the line tours at major attractions, well worth the money. We spent two nights in Vernazza and loved it! Frankly the morning and evenings after the cruise folks are on their ships was the best time to be there. We booked a VRBO and had a great time. If you stay, buy the day pas for the train so you can hop between all five towns. For phones we used Orange and got a 30 day eSIM with unlimited data/calls. Easy to install and use.

Like the UK I recently saw Italy is introducing a fee for visitors that you have to pay ahead of time.

Edit: As I’m sure you know, there is a lot of walking so be prepared for that, particularly the 3 year old.