Background: We fly into Geneva April 19 and out of Vienna June 10 and plan to spent about 39 days of the trip in Italy and about 12 days in Austria (this post will focus solely on the Italy portion).
We love Italy and have previously spent good amounts of time in Venice, Cinque Terre, Florence, Tuscany, Umbria, Rome, Amalfi Coast, and Sicily, so don't plan to hit any of those areas this time. This time we would like to focus on the parts of northern Italy that we haven't seen yet -- specifically Milan, the Lakes, the Dolomites, as well as Padua and Verona. Husband and I will be flying into Geneva April 19 and plan to begin our trip by taking a train to Milan. We've previously spent two trips to Switzerland hiking in the Alps over several weeks (which we loved), and would like to spend the bulk of this trip in the Dolomites, so that's the primary area where we are looking for advice. We prefer slow, independent travel and tend to enjoy villages more than big cities. Our tentative plan as of now:
- 5 nights Milan (Duomo, Galleria, La Scala, Basilica, Last Supper, Brera, Sforza Castle)
- Train to Varenna for 8 nights exploring Lake Como
- Train to Verona for 5 nights (Roman ruins, Castelvecchio, Basilica, etc. -- and possible daytrip/stop in Vicenza for Olympic Theater)
- Train to Padua for 5 nights (Basilica, Scrovegni Chapel, Markets, Palazzo della Ragione, Baptistry, Botanic Garden)
- Train to Bolzano or elsewhere -- rent car & explore Dolomites for about 17 nights hiking etc.
We've just purchased the Ciccerone book for recommendations on day hikes but haven't familiarized ourselves very much with the area yet and are unsure which villages would be the best for basing ourselves and taking daytrips. Thanks in advance for any suggestions/recommendations.