Background: I currently live outside of Frankfurt, Germany and we return to the States in Spring 2019. My wife is set on taking a trip to Nove, Italy to stock up on pottery and this must happen before Christmas as some of it will be gifts for friends and family visiting in December. There is no talking her out of this. Trust me, I have tried. What I have convinced her of is to at least make a nice sized trip of it, as I can't stomach driving 9 hours just for pottery and turning back around! However, I am struggling to put together an itinerary that really excites us and I welcome any and all suggestions. The only caveat is that I would really like to avoid driving in the snow. This trip will take place in the 19-24 November time frame. Here is what I have so far:
Day 1: 6 hour drive to Innsbruck, arrive around 2 PM. Take in the Christmas Market, stay the night in town and head out the next morning. We have never been to Innsbruck, will this be enough time or should we stay 2 nights? If we added a night what else would you suggest to see/do?
Day 2: 3 hour drive to Nove. Shop in the afternoon. Head toward Venice in the evening to stay 2 nights in that area.
Day 3: Venice (Tentative); My wife and I have both been to Venice on 3 different occasions, but my 6 1/2 year old son has never been and he has been begging to go before we leave. We figure this would be the best time to knock that out as it is not far from Nove. In this area we have also been to Verona, Vicenza and Padua. What are we missing that we must see in this region? We plan to play this one by ear due to the flooding at this time of year. We have experienced this once before and it was not fun. We will likely stay in Mestre rather than Venice proper to play it safe.
Day 4: Start heading back North. I would like to break up the drive and stay overnight somewhere. I had Bolzano in mind, but with the Christmas market starting on that Friday prices are outrageous. Is this market unique in any way and worth the price and crowds or will it feel like the many others we have been to in Germany? If not Bolzano, where do you suggest to stay the night on the way back to Frankfurt? I am open to anywhere along the route except Garmisch as I have been there a few times already.
Thank you for reading this long post and providing advice/feedback! Happy travels!