5 weeks in Italy

Good time for Rome and Venice. Hope it's 5 nights Venice with 4 full days to experience her. Tuscany is a big place? Where in particular are you staying? With 5 weeks you could stay 4 or 5 nights in each of two places in Tuscany since it is quite diverse. You'll most likely want a car in Tuscany, but will not need one elsewhere. Another big highlight for most of us is the Amalfi Coast, and then there's the Dolomites, other small towns in the Veneto (Verona, Vicenza Padua). You could extend your stay in Venice and daytrip to Padua. It would help to know what you like to do, where your focus is: Art? History? Hiking? Wine? You'll get better input from the helpline if you can provide more detail. Also, you should read Rick Steves' Italy guidebook if you have not already. And you'll need to make some reservations for lodging soon. September is still very busy. Consider renting apartments, especially in Rome for such a ling stay. It will cost less than most hotels and give you some stretching out space, the ability to have a meal in, or at least keep breakfast items and water available. We spent 4 weeks in Italy last December, before we relocated. Our itinerary was - Venice, 6 nights - Spello in Umbria, 5 nights - Sorrento, 7 nights
- Rome, 9 nights (over Christmas) We daytripped to Padua from Venice, to Assisi, Perugia, Spoleto from Spello, and Naples, Pompeii, Ercolano, and Amalfi town from Sorrento. It was a well-paced trip for us, combining art, nature, history, wine, hiking, and some unstructured time for just wandering.

I'd suggest a day or two in Ravenna. It's a short/easy train ride from Venice (or it could be a stop of the way from Tuscany to Venice). From the 5th to 8th C it served, sequentially, a capital of the western empire, then the Visigoths, and then an important Byzantine center. So, there are lovely early churches (both Arian and orthodox) with stunning mosaics. If you go, I suggest you also visit the Basilica of Sant'Apollinare in Classe; it's quiet, fewer tourists, and really lovely eary mosaics. Sant'Apollinare is a few km from Ravenna; there's a bus, or it's an easy bike ride or an extended walk. And there are bikes for rent (and lots of local folks get aruond that way, so it's safer than in some other places).

Kid,
This may help http://www.slowtrav.com/italy/tuscany/hs_planning.htm

Thanks for the advice, I like to hike, bicycle,am in great shape so I am into any advice that I can use these two hobbies to increase my experiance in Italy.I also like old buildings(churches mostly) and some art, but no bar scene. I like to interact with people Thinking about taking a cooking class in Tuscany any suggestions?I like gardens, farming experiancing the outdoors as much as possible. I will wake up early or stay out late for that perfect experiance or to photograph a special scene.On where to stay in the area I have listed any suggestions or in the area you may suggest. Any advice to increase my experiance would be appreciated Thanks The Kid

There's great hiking in the Dolomites, Tuscany, Umbria and the Sorrentine Peninsula. Hiking the "Path of the Gods" outside of Positano is one of my "list" items for the next few months. We used a book called Walking and Eating in Tuscany and Umbria for a few adventures. See their website here: http://walkingandeating.com/. Stayed in Montacino in Tuscany and enjoyed a hike to the Abbey of Sant'Antimo. In Sorrento you can even hook up with locals for hiking. see http://www.giovis.com/sentdei.htm and http://www.freeramblers.com/. Can't help you on biking, but there should be references in Rick Steves books, as well as Lonely Planet. I know there are both guided and unguided bike tours all over Italy.

Lucky you - 5 weeks in Italy! As usual with site, we assume you have bought, or will buy, Rick Steves' Italy guide. The possibilities are endless. With an interest in farming you should look at the possibility of staying at an agriturismo. Some offer cooking classes - have a look at Rick's Italy guidebook for suggestions of agriturismi near some of the main towns in Tuscany. Somewhere a bit off the usual tourist area is the Gargano Peninsula - you would definitely need a car here and the roads along the cliffs are as twisty as the Amalfi Coast. There are various parks and forests offering hiking and also some wonderful beaches. You will need to go on line to get info as Rick's book doesn't cover this area. Of course there is the Cinque Terra.......

You might consider spending some time in Puglia (near the heel of the boot). We're spending October there ... not biking, but I've been reading lots about it. And our dentist is taking his second bike tour there in September. It's an amazingly beautiful area ... check out Trani, Alberobello, Locorotondo, Matera, Ostuni, Lecce, Otranto, in addition to the previously-mentioned Gargano Peninsula.

Kid, Especially as you'll be staying in the Florence area and renting a car, are you aware of the usual potentially expensive "caveats" regarding car rental in Italy? If not post another note for further information. Cheers!

If you want to hike, the Dolomites, the Gargano, the Cinque Terre and the many small Alpine valleys in Aosta are superb destinations for that. Usually I give the opposite advice, but in your case, you should seriously consider expanding your geographic range. If you are really fond on old buildings and the likes, I'd recommend you to spend one of those 5 weeks in Sicilia island (go there by plane). You can mix some hikes in the Etna with some rural sightseeing.

Five weeks means you do not need to rush and should be able to see alot (though not all) of the things you want to see in Italy. I recommend spending a couple of nights in Capri, the Amalfi Coast, and Pompeii. These are very special places.

Awesome trip! I am nearing the end of our 23 day trip and wish I could add 12 more days! We spent four in Rome, a week in Tuscany, four in CT, 2 in Verona, and 4 in Venice. I would have liked to have seen lake como/Dolomites. Also we heard good things about umbria and Amallfie. My aunt loved Sicily and after the wine i had last night, I am convinced! CT lives up to the hype-a little piece of heaven- especially in the early fall when all us poor suckers have to go. Have an amazing trip! The food, the people, the history...amazing stuff!

There is a lovely b&b outside of San Gimingnano. You can also experience cooking lessons there. Great little place. Wonderful owners and lots of fun. Cooking class was awesome. Great wine, too. Fulvio and Katia will take good care of you. We used Il Vicario as our base and visited San Gim. Siena, Pienza and Montacino. We are repeat visitors and love the place. You can also check out their reviews on Trip Advisor.
I would also recommend Sicily. Lovely.