5 Week Italy Home Base

We spent four weeks in Venice, because that is where we wanted to be. The only side trips we did, apart from visiting outlying islands, were to Padua (day trip) and Ravenna/Or into ( one night in each). But Venice isn't right for everyone.

For you, of the places you mention, I would suggest Bologna. It is well situated for nice daytrips---Ravenna, Orvieto, Verona come to mind.

Thanks Lola!

My favorite Home bases are as follows:
1). Arezzo - interesting Tuscan town with good train and bus connections to cities such as Florence, Assisi, Anghiari, etc. Arezzo itself has very interesting historical museums covering Etruscan period on through the Medici and beyond. Art in Arezzo is appealing without the overpowering volume in some other Italian cities. Good Tuscan food at moderate prices. Downside is that the hills in Arezzo may provide too much of a workout if pushing a stroller and the city does not rely on tourism for its economy so there are not a lot of shops catering to tourists. (I count that as a plus)
2) Ferrara - wonderful location within day trip distance of Venice, Padua, and Ravenna. Rich cultural history with the Este reign and the size of the town is quite manageable. Food is excellent with many recipes dating back hundreds of years. Also, good art museums and historical sites.
3). Parma - this city has it all. The best parma ham and parmigiano reggiano cheese you will ever taste! The duomo and Baptistry (especially the Baptistry) are spectacular and the art museum is filled with treasures. From Parma it is a quick trip to Bologna, or to Modena for the Ferrari museum for a change of pace.

I really prefer staying in some of the less "touristed" (is that a word) regions and venturing from home base to other destinations. The one great thing about Italy, though, is that it's hard to go wrong, regardless of what you choose.

I would not recommend Venice with a toddler because of all the bridges and the hideous crowds. A stroller is pretty much useless because of all the stairs and many of the main routes through the city are like marching in lock-step for much of the day.

Verona may be another option for you. It's a delightful city and it's only about an hour or so to Milan and/or Venice by train.

When dealing with cities without the overwhelming tourist possibilities of (for example) London or Paris, I tend to think 4 or 5 weeks is quite a long to stay put in one place. Perhaps your Barcelona and Budapest breaks will be sufficient change, but if it were up to me, I'd probably choose two Italian bases. It might be nice to combine tge relatively large Bologns eith a Smaller but well-connected city. I'm assuming thus will not be a cold-weather trip. I don't like the idea of a small town if I'm going to want to be indoors. Not enough museums.

Acraven - great call. We initially kicked around the idea of multiple bases in different countries, but never the same region. The transition (for example) from Treviso to Bologna is a 2 hour train, making the base transition pretty easy - just an afternoon, and it would open up a host of new day trip options.

Thank you!

Every other year I book a 2 BR apartment about 15 miles south of Florence in a small hill town. For two months. I always lease a car from AutoEurope.. I am free to drive everywhere and am very comfortable with Italian roads. The train station is 15 minute away. From there I can go anywhere. Be back in Sept-Oct this year And before Ken pipes in ..yes I have a IDL and am aware of ZTL's ...been there