Hello everyone! A group of probably 6 or 8 of us are going to take a 30 day tour of Europe starting in Oberammergau and Fussen Germany and then will work our way from Milan and the Italian Lake area to Venice, Florence, Rome and ending with a week long Villa stay in Positano on the Amalfi Coast. I am trying to figure out a way to not do alot of "hotel hopping" and am not really interested in renting a car either. We'd prefer to stick to local transporation if at all possible. While we will have a few stays in Germany and a stay in the Lake Maggiore area, once we begin the Venice, Florence, Rome portion of the trip - does anyone know if staying in a Tuscan villa would be a central location for us to do several day trips into these areas via train, bus, etc? (Even a one night stay somewhere would be ok as long as I know I can come back to my "home away from home"). This will be my very first trip to the area so any comments, experiences, etc would be great appreciated. Thanks so much!
Posted by
Portlandia
3313 posts
It would be tough to do those three cities as day trips from a single point. And if you're not renting a car, your "Tuscan villa" will likely have to be in a larger town with train connections. One suggestion would be to spend several nights in Venice. It's much more enjoyable staying overnight there because the days are very crowded with day trippers. Then I'd choose between Florence and Rome for another hotel stay and do a couple of day trips to the other by train.
Posted by
Elk Grove, CA, USA
6898 posts
A couple of points. First, I agree with Doug about a larger city with a good train station for a base of operations. Chiusi is a suggstion or perhaps an agritourismo with good access to the train station.
Second, a rental car to get around Tuscany, drive to Venice and to drive to Rome and Positano could be a plus. For central Tuscany, you can easily drive to Assisi, Montepulciano, Siena, San Gimignano and Volterra. Don't drive in Florence. Too many of the dreaded Zona Traffico Limitatos. BIG EXPENSIVE TICKETS!. In Venice there is a giant parking lot if you care to pay your daily rental rate while the car sits there. In Rome, there are a few large parking lots. See http://www.mercuriusrelocations.com/guide/id184.html for a list of Rome parking garages. For Positano, you may want to be sure that your hotel has a parking lot. Parking could be a bit tight and expensive there.
Posted by
OP
Chattanooga
11 posts
Doug, Larry, & Kent - your advice is MUCH appreciated and I will definitely take it. I want this trip to be life changing and memorable and I want to learn all I can from people who have traveled to this region. Thanks for your time and effort to answer my questions and post your suggestions and ideas.