We are traveling from Parma to Cinque Terre. Currently, staying 2 nights in Parma and 3 nights in Vernazza.
Should we change to 1 night in Parma and 4 nights in Vernazza?
Want to hike and enjoy the 4 villages and take a boat ride along the coast.
Before Parma, we are 3 nights by Lake Garda.
Following will be in Florence 3 nights, Bologna 1 night, Comacchio 1 night and finally 2 nights in Venice.
Any thoughts on this itinerary are appreciated.
Ciao.
Stan
3 nights should plenty for the CT but yes, when is this trip and have you made reservations?
Since you asked. Parma is a wonderful city with world class landmarks and a sophisticated vibe - 2 nights will be quite suitable. Three nights is plenty for Vernazza as it's quite small and crowded much of the day. Unless you're a dedicated hiker accustomed to steep hills, I'd say even 2 nights would satisfy. Also Comacchio is a small place that's not mentioned frequently - I don't remember a lot of travel services.
Thanks for the replies. We land in Venice on Sept 15 and will fly home on Sept 30. We will travel by car on the entire trip except for Cinque Terre. We will drive from Venice to Sirmione to Parma (via Modena). Then to La Spezia where we'll take a train to Vernazza. After Cinque Terre, we go to Florence for 3 nights stopping at Pisa along the way. Then, back to Venice stopping for 1 night in Bologna and Comacchio.
No specific reason for Bologna. Comacchio was recommended by my Italian partner as an interesting town with a specialty in eel. Looking for places to break up the drive.
I'm also wondering if 2 nights in Venice is sufficient. We've never been there before. Maybe we should have planned a longer trip :-)
My Italian partner also recommended Lake Garda as a nice place to spend time and visit wine area in Franciacorta.
For Cinque Terre, we're staying 3 nights and contemplating a 4th night so spend time hiking and spending time in all 4 villages. Vernazza will be our home base while in the area as we hike and use the train to move to the other villages.
I've made most of our hotel reservations and made them all refundable so that I can adjust later.
I would recommend 3 nights in Venice. It is lovely and unique and early morning and evening is beautiful in Venice. Also 3 nights in Vernazza would be plenty for that area to hike and take a boat ride. The regional train easily takes you to the villages in the Cinque terre. Maybe you can adjust your other nights. This sounds like a wonderful trip.
I don't like 1 night stays, I prefer at least 2. And the Cinque Terre get old after a full day, so 2 nights in Vernazza would be sufficient for me.
Really appreciate the input.
I may reconsider 3 nights in Cinque Terre. It looks wonderful and Rick recommends it:-) But, I don't like the idea of large crowds and long hikes in the heat. We're currently booked to stay 3 nights in Vernazza. I could add a 2nd night to Bologna based on an earlier reply or a night in Ferrara.
I plan to remove the night in Comacchio and extend Venice to 3 nights.
We will be traveling by car the entire trip except for Cinque Terre.
Interesting about Lake Garda. I reserved a room in Sirmione on the peninsula. It looks beautiful. I'm looking into Iseo, but it would add more miles to a route that is already pushing our comfort zone for driving.
So many considerations.
