For a 3-week spring trip to northern, central, and southern Italy, e.g., the 3-week Itinerary in the Rick Steves Guide book, is it better to travel north to south, south to north, or it doesn't make a lot of difference? Dates are flexible, but I'm looking at 3 weeks or maybe 4 weeks in the period from April 15 to May 20.
I'm assuming a south to north direction of travel may provide slightly better weather.
One of the big factors is often flights for both arrival and departure. For example, if you are departing to the US/North America, it’s better to arrive into Venice and then depart out of Rome or Naples. The logistics of early morning departures in Venice being a factor. Other factors could also include if there are particular events or festivals you may want to attend during your visit. During our visits in that timeframe, I found some difference between Northern and Southern weather, but it was generally comfortable and mostly dry.
Safe travels!
Heat would be a factor to me so I would go south to north.
Keep in mind that Rick's printed itineraries often cover more territory quicker than you might enjoy. Feel free to leave some of the points out and extend your time at others.
Sure it’s a nice rule of thumb about warmth to go from south to north, though it could vary on specifics for your list of priorities. I would not follow a book itinerary without aligning it to my interests.
I'll echo Pam's advice. Rick's 21 day touring plan is doable but your'e gonna need a vacation when you get home. Less is more and you're just gonna need down days for your energy level and to catch up on laundry.
I'd travel South to North for the weather reason with the caveat that Easter may disrupt your plans.
Easter is April 5
Italian holidays are April 25 and May 1
I would design my own 3 week itinerary
The RS itinerary is very fast paced
The entire contents of the guidebook is somewhat impossible to cover in just 3 weeks, so 4 weeks is the minimum to try to do so.
The guiding factor should be the flights.
The main international airports are:
Milan-Malpensa in the north (2nd largest intercontinental with flights to North America)
Venice in the north (intercontinental with flights to North America, but some are seasonal in summer only)
Bologna and Florence in the Central/Northern (both have only intra-Europe flights)
Rome in the center (largest intercontinental in Italy)
Naples in the south (mostly intra-Europe but there are very limited intercontinental flights to North America but they are seasonal therefore likely not necessarily available in Apr/May)
Since flights to North America depart in the morning, it is necessary to be close to the airport the night before the flight.
Venice and Milan Malpensa airports are rather far from the city center (1 hour), therefore I generally prefer not to depart from Venice or Milan, because it requires a very early wake up, unless you stay at an airport hotel on the last night. The airports of Naples, and Florence are within 20 min from the city center. The Rome airport is about 30-35 min from the city center.
In terms of weather, heat will not be an issue anywhere in April, for May it depends as it varies from year to year, but generally not much of a big issue as temperatures should be no more than mid/high 70s..
However the average temperature differences are not significant in the major cities you will visit. The average high/low temperatures for Mid-May in Venice, Florence, Rome, Naples are:
VCE: 71/57
FLR: 75/54
ROM: 74/54
NAP: 74/58
In mid April deduct 8-9 degrees from the above.
If you go to the Dolomites, temperatures will vary greatly depending on altitude. Snow is still a possibility in April and even May, at higher altitudes.
Traveler2015 - Thanks! I'll check flights. I am looking at Rome and Milan for airports.
Pam, Valdelphia, Chris, ChristineH - Thanks! I agree about not following the book itinerary. It looks exhausting! I'm using the itinerary as a starting point. I don't know if it's possible, but ideally I'd like to sleep in a location for a week, with day trips to see the sights for 5 days/week and leave 2 days/week to take it easy.
Thank you, Roberto!
The information about staying close to airport for morning flight to the US is very helpful. I'll research flights first.
When I mentioned weather, I should have been more specific. While I don't love moving around in high heat, my concern is that the northern locations might be cool in April. As you note, the Dolomites may have snow in April and May. The Rick Steves itinerary starts with Lake Como, followed by the Dolomites. I think the weather in both places would likely be better in May. As much as I'd like to hike in the Dolomites, I don't plan to go there this trip. I'm keeping Lake Como as a possibility at this point in my planning.
If you are not going to the Dolomites, the weather should be the least of your concerns.
There isn't a lot of difference between north and Rome in mid spring. So wherever you are in April, the temperatures will be similar.
Even lake Como, although surrounded by mountains will not be much different than Milan or Venice. The altitude of the lake is just 150-200 ft above the altitude of Milan. The lake is not at high altitude at all.
Actually I'd rather be in Naples in May, as you might get a chance to have some beach weather while you are on the Amalfi Coast. In April the water is way too cold, even if the weather might be nice.
Thanks, Roberto! Much appreciated!
