Hi! My husband and I are planning a trip in July or August for our 10th anniversary. Originally we were only planning on going to Austria but I really would like to add Switzerland and North Italy if possible. We can go for 10 days-2 weeks. Any suggestions on where to start? I saw that there are really affordable flights to Milan. Our interests would be art, especially statues, for my husband, and I would like to go hiking, see the Alps, and I can't wait to drink coffee on some cute cobble road somewhere. This is our first real trip so this whole process is a bit overwhelming. I don't want to over extend ourselves but I also want to take advantage of all we can. I'm really at the beginning so any help with where to fly into/out of, where to stay, how to travel from one area to another, and any other suggestions from you seasoned travelers will be greatly appreciated!
Posted by
Forest Grove, OR
11744 posts
That is a lot of territory to cover in 2 weeks. First, I would urge you to go for a full two weeks to make the most of the investment in flights.
It is fairly easy to do the Italian Dolomites along with Austria or Switzerland by flying into Milan, and with two weeks, normally I would suggest you pick two of the three countries, not all three. But I think there is a way you can get a touch of each.
From Milan, assuming you arrive before noon, immediately take a train to Bolzano then transfer via bus or taxi to the Val Gardena, stay 4 nights. For lots more info, search the Forum for “Ortisei” or “Val Gardena.”
Back to Bolzano by bus or taxi, take the train to Innsbruck. Very easy transfer. Stay maybe 3 nights.
Editing to add you might have 13 nights total? You can certainly spend a night in Milan on arrival to enjoy some excellent art museums and the fabulous duomo.
Then take the train to Pontresina, Switzerland, a bit of a long train day, but a beautiful trip. This is another lovely area for hiking well-served by little trains that take you to trails or lifts. Stay 4 nights. We were there for a week last fall and loved it!
Train to Zurich for one night before flying home from there. It is a long trip to back track to Milan and false economy if you are looking at airfares since you have to include the cost of the transfer.
You can look at routes using www.rome2rio.com or on Google Maps.
Posted by
OP
8 posts
Thank you so much! That really helps. Would you recommend buying train tickets once we are there or should that be done well in advance? And is it better to do a separate train ticket for each leg of the journey rather than the passes?
Posted by
Forest Grove, OR
11744 posts
The only pass to consider would be the Val Gardena Card and possibly a Swiss Half Fare card. The only way to figure out of a Swiss HFC will work for you is to look up all of the trains you would take in Switzerland, add up the full fares, and calculate the discount if you buy and use an HFC.
In Pontresina, the lodgings include a pass for the lifts in the area. You can buy a card at the TI that is loaded with Francs and use it for bus and local trains that shuttle you to the mountain lifts. You can buy Milan to Bolzano in advance up to 120 days for a big discount. I cannot remember how far in advance I bought Bolzano to Innsbruck, but I believe I did get a big discount. Innsbruck to Pontresina included Swiss and Austrian trains, segments purchased separately. We went Innsbruck to Sargans (border station) on an advance purchase ticket then used our Swiss Pass for Sargans to Pontresina. You rarely need to advance purchase train tickets in Switzerland, just use you pass and/or pay-as-you go. If you have a tight transfer it is nice to have purchased the segment in advance so you aren’t pondering a ticket machine while your train pulls away. But there’s always another train in an hour.