3 days to spend before tour starts in Venice

A car sounds like a heck of a liability for where you want to go. You can't drive anywhere in the center of those cities without getting some very expensive postcards from Italy a year from now. Parking is expensive and highway tolls aren't cheap. Try the train, fast, reliable and cheap (mostly)

If you've not been to Venice, you can easily spend three days there and not see it all. If you have, perhaps a day trip out to Murano and Burano. For Verona, just take the train. Easy Peasy

Does your tour leave Venice After 3 days? If so, why not just stay in Venice, get over jet lag and enjoy Venice. Venice is not large, but you can easily fill 3 days with a lot of fun stuff or relaxation. Tours, by land or water, are quite exhausting.

My wife and I spent a week in Bologna last Fall before cruising back to the US from Venice. We rented an apartment. Bologna could be a great choice for your three days ... an interesting university city known for its portico covered streets and awesome food, it's also a convenient rail hub for day tripping. We trained to Ravenna one day (wonderful!), and Ferrara another. Both were fast, inexpensive and convenient by rail. We joined a fabulous food tour another day. BTW, you really don't need a car if you base out of Bologna. The trains to Ravenna, Ferrara, Parma, and Venice are all direct.

My wife does a terrifice photo tour of our trips. You might enjoy seeing Bologna. If it interests you, she also did one for Ravenna, Ferrara, and our food tour.

https://graciamc.wordpress.com/2015/02/02/a-week-in-bologna-italy/

I would like to put my two cents in and suggest you spend the three days before the tour in Venice! Venice is an amazing city like no other and there is so much to see and do there, you would be blown away by the magic of Venice. You won't need a car, you just walk around and take boats as buses and you never have to worry about crossing the streets! You can visit the small islands as someone suggested, take in the beauty of the city, go to the museums, walk the narrow streets, shop, go to the churches, marvel at the cityscape! You can see the palaces, see if there is a concert or opera or anything playing at night! Go to the top of the bell tower, walk around and see the canals. You will not be bored! Read the RS guide book on Venice, watch YouTube free videos on Venice and the small islands, look at the RS scrapbooks that show the tours that go to Venice. Get over your jet lag in Venice and spend the time getting to know Venice. If you spend the time in a car for the three days, you have to check in and out of hotels, drive around where you have never been and get back to Venice in time to meet with the tour. It is of course up to you, but Venice has a lot to offer and in the time the tour takes you around Venice, you will not see all that there is to see and only scratch the surface of Venice. Have a wonderful safe trip. Whatever you decide, it will be a great experience.

Since you are going on a tour in Venice, you can try out other areas. Bologna is an amazing place to visit. You can check out towers of Bologna, Piazza maggiore, fountain of the Neptune..etc. One place that I recommend to eat at is Trattoria Anna Maria. It serves the best tortellini in brodo in Bologno for more than 20 years. The decoration of the restaurant is amazing too and their food reminds you of the food your mama makes. Also, Bonappetour also has an amazing selection of local foods that you book to have dinner with a local Bolognese. It is a great way to meet locals, make friends and learn their culture and traditions.

After time in Tuscany in 2012 I spent a night in each of Ferrara, Padua, Vicenza, Verona, Mantua before I had to fly from Milan. All of these places are worth a stop and are all very close by cheap and frequent train services - no need for a car.

Thanks to all for the great recommendations...it seems the train would be easiest and probably quickest transport. We have a tour that starts in Venice for a few days and then moves on to Florence, etc. As mentioned, Bologna and Verona are an easy daytrip away.

Perhaps base your self in Padua for those 3 day, from where its an easy transfer to Venice for the start of your tour. You will have 2 full days - one to Verona and one to Bologna.

djp_syd - Padua sounds like a good base! We would like to take cooking class in Bologna or Parma and we wouldn't have to travel too far from the area. I'll take a look around. Thanks.

Make sure you book in to see the Scrovegni Chapel in Padua - it's wonderful.
http://www.cappelladegliscrovegni.it/index.php/en/