Family of 5 Trip 7 days northern Italy

On your previous trips, did you move this much? I know all 20 somethings are not the same, but I can't imagine moving three around that much. Two destinations would be my max even without a group--not counting the last night.
What does the family prefer--mountains or lake?
Are you flying out of Malpensa or Linate?

Hello Momo2000, and welcome to the forum!

My initial thought is I never try to stay somewhere for only one night unless it is for logistical purposes like flying out the next day. To get to Varenna you will need to hook through Milan, head to Varrena for one night and then head back to Milan the next day. I can't see this being any kind of the relaxed lake experience that you would be looking for. Always keep in mind that two nights somewhere is only one full day uninterrupted by travel.

Verona and Bolzano are very different trips so I think you need to decide what you want to see. Lake Garda is very close (15 minutes) but train from Verona but the train only provides access to the lowest sections of the lake and they are as touristy busy as you think they are. To visit the northern sections of the lake - like Malcesine - you will need to take a bus or some other kind of non-train transportation.

I love Venice and always vote for more time there but you schedule is very tight so you will need to some hard decisions about what are your "must sees". Also you don't give any indication of where you're flying from but if your flight is long MXP is a hour outside the city already and then another 2+ hour train trip rolling directly off the train seems like it could be a lot. If your flight is shorter and you know how you like to travel this may be fine for you, but don't underestimate jetlag.

Hope that helps,
=Tod

HelloMomo2000
Your current plan is way too much travelling IMHO for only 7 nights, including your last night in Milano.
Just a rough look shows: Milan-Venice=2.5 hrs, Venice-Bolzano 2 hrs 45 m, Bolzano-Varenna around 7 hours, and back to Milan, 1 hour. You will spend way too much time on trains.
One option would be:
Milano-Verona, and visit Lago di Garda, as you said. You can easily visit Venice from there. BTW, there are interesting towns around Verona, i.e. Vicenza. Sirmione and Desenzano are interesting towns on Lake Garda. BTW...your family might like Gabrielle D'Annunzio's unusual battleship built into the mountainside around Lake Garda, as well as his quirky house. Weird.
Or: from Milan, go up to Como, stay 2-3 days, and visit towns hear Milano.....Bergamo, Brescia for example.
Or: As you mentioned, Milano to Venice for 2 nights, up to Bolzano 3 n, back to Milan. Sightsee in Milan, and then be there for your AM flight.
Over the years, we've found less travelling between = more enjoyable time.
Go with the promise that you will be back to Italy again!

March is a great time to visit Venice ( probably our favorite at this point, after a number of visits). But not so good for Lake Como or Lago di Garda. And the Dolomites will be under snow in March, at least they hope to be. I don’t think it is worth the trip up to Bolzano for a daytrip into the snow of the Dolomites. Contrary to popular belief, you cannot really see the Dolomites from Bolzano.

Your plan of 3 nights in Venice and 3 in Verona, with a daytrip to Lago di Garda ( I would recommend Sirmione, assuming the ferries are running from Peschiera) sounds much better to me. Or consider 3 nights Venice and 3 nights Bologna.

For Venice, with a group of 5, you will want an apartment. I highly recommend renting an apartment from a reputable local agency rather than AirBnB, which has a lot of potential pitfalls, including not being able to find the place. We “rescued” tourists who could not follow the Google map directions to their Air BnB on two occasions, both during our most recent visit in March 2023. I did not try to aid a third couple because the wife was in tears and the husband screaming at her.

We have had great experiences with Venice Red House and Views on Venice. Oth will provide an agen to meet you at the nearest vaporetto or water taxi*** dock and walk you to the apartment to show you around and hand over the keys. And they are available during your visit if you need anything. *** With 5 people, you might as well take a water taxi from the taxi stand in front of the train station, instead of standing line to buy vaporetto tix and wrestling yourselves and your luggage through the crowd onto the boat.

https://veniceredhouse.com/

https://www.viewsonvenice.com/

Here are a couple df Red House offerings in the Dorsoduro neighborhood we like a lot:

https://veniceredhouse.com/apartments-in-venice/mansarda-magritte-apartment/

https://veniceredhouse.com/apartments-in-venice/casa-golena-apartment/

The first (Mansarda Magritte is a nice budget option with 2 bedrooms and a sofa bed in the loft for. 5th person, but only one bathroom.

A better option would be Casa Golena, with 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, and a nice little balcony with canal views. Note however that it is on the 3d floor with no lift.

And of course there are many more available, all over Venice.

This is a place I can recommend for the night before your flight, rather than staying in Milan. Osteria della Pista is in a small village just 10 minutes from Malpensa, and they provide a free shuttle in both directions. So you can take the Malpensa Express train to the airport the evening before and they will pick you up, then return you to the airport ( either terminal) the following morning ( be sure and check on the shuttle times if your flight is really early). The rooms are nice and modern and the in-house restaurant is excellent, as well as very attractive.

https://osteriadellapista.com/?lang=en

@valadephia When we went to Firenze we were only there one night before I shattered my ankle and had to go to the hospital. We flew out two days later back home so there was not much of a trip. @hiredman we are flying into MXP but it’s a direct flight so I don’t mind a two hour train ride to Verona. @jadam I believe based on recommendations we have decided to travel from Milan to Verona and visit Sirmione while there then travel to Venice for 3 nights. @Lola You’re recommendations are GREAT!!! Thank you (and everyone else!) for the recommendations!!! The apartment in Venice as well as hotel before flight home look perfect for our family!

As long as you're fine with the train ride after the flight then I'm not worried. I fly from the west coast and connect through (usually) London and after landing I am done doing anything until I get some sleep.

Verona is a great, chic, pretty, mostly pedestrian city with tons of shopping and a cafe culture vibe. It sits in the bend of the Adige river and It has an intact Roman arena and Theater - both still in use for events - with numerous bridges for photos and several old Roman gates marking the old city. The old core are medieval buildings with some covered in faded 17th century murals.

There is a very interesting museum that mixes ancient and modern art in a Palazzo just of Piazza Bra - Palazzo Maffei Casa Museo. Keep going up to rooftop outlook over Piazza Erbe.

Also just off Piazza Erbe is Al Grottino - Osteria e Sbecoleria a great hole in the wall place for drinks, wine and amazing cicchetti. Also with great wine, beer and cicchetti is Caffè Monte Baldo a couple of blocks from there. On the same block is the very hip, very tiny Archivo cocktail bar.

I very much recommend staying inside the old city center or the upper part of the Veronetta across the river and pedestrian bridge based on the old Roman bridge.

Have a great trip!
=Tod

Hello! My family of three will be visiting Italy in mid-March 25 for six nights. We plan to fly into Venice and stay there for three nights. On Day 4, we will take a train to Verona for a half-day visit before continuing to Milan, where we’ll stay for the remaining three nights. Depending on the weather, we may spend both Day 5 and Day 6 in Milan or use one day to exploring Varenna and Bellagio. I feel that staying in just two locations during the trip will make it more relaxing.

@hiredman, it will be a long day but we would rather travel on to our destination that evening and try to push through jet lag. Thanks so much for the Verona suggestions! Any suggestions for a tour within Verona maybe for history or just to see the sites?

@feiliao we plan to start in Verona and work our way over to Venice. Hope you have a great trip!!

You might like a tour of the Roman arena in Verona. You can visit on your own, but a tour would be more educational.

https://www.visitverona.it/en/poi/arena-amphitheatre

Link to the3 official website from above site:

https://museomaffeiano.comune.verona.it/nqcontent.cfm?a_id=69387

For your daytrip to Lago di Garda, I suggest heading to Sirmione, and prioritize the Grottoes of Catullus:

https://lakegardatravel.net/grottoes-of-catullus-sirmione/

https://visitsirmione.com/en/what-to-see/art-and-monuments/grottoes-of-catullus/

I don’t think you need a guide for the Grottoes; they give you a nice brochure and we have always enjoyed just wandering around,, taking our time to take photos and enjoy the views. Expolore the Visit Sirmione website for more things to see and do, such as the castle.

https://visitsirmione.com/en/what-to-see/art-and-monuments/

On one of our visits, we really enjoyed lunch at Tavernetta Maria Callas. The restaurant is on a side street a block off the main pedestrian pathway, so much quieter. But probably in March the crowds won’t be an issue like they were in September for us.

https://www.tavernettamariacallas.it/

@Lola we definitely will want to see the coliseum and more ancient Roman architecture! The grottos at Sirmione also look like something we will want to try to see while there also! What is the best way to get to Sirmione from Verona for a day trip? Train or bus as I have seen both options listed. I very much appreciate your tips! When we went a couple of years ago to Florence, we also were scheduled to go to Rome and Pompeii and of course weren’t able to make it due to my broken ankle so this would be lovely to visit this trip to see some Roman history!

We have only reached Sirmione by ferry from Desenzano, which is a stop on the train line between Verona and Milan. There are also ferries to Sirmione from Peschiera, another train stop, but they are less frequent. Either one would work for your trip. Travel by train from Verona Porta Nuova to Peschiera del Garda is 14 minutes; to Desenzano is 19 minutes by fast Freccerossa train, or 21 minutes by regional train. Ticket for the Regionale are cheaper but the difference isn’t great. You could mix and match, going one way via Peschiera and the other via Desenzano. From the Desenzano train station, it is an easy 1-km walk to. The ferry dock, downhill on the way and uphill on the way back. I don’t know about Peschiera as we have never been there.

Here is the current ferry schedule for Lago di Garda, valid through the end of March:

https://www.navigazionelaghi.it/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Orario-Battelli-Web-invernale-2024-2025-20.09-1.pdf

Maybe you could depart Verona early for Peschiera in time to catch the 9:00 ferry to Sirmione. Or stay on the train to Desenzano and have more ferry options. For the return, the 17:51 ferry from Sirmione will take you to Peschiera, and there are frequent trains from there to Verona.

Lots of ways to do this, and if you want to go one way by bus that is also an option. We have not ridden the bus in that area, but apparently there is direct service between Verona and Sirmione, taking 55 minutes.

You will want a nice day to do this (cloudy is OK but not raining),but the last time we were in this area in March (2023) we had nothing but good weather.

While I am here I want to make sure you know about visiting the rooftop terrace at Fondaco dei Tedeschi in Venice. This is the only “must” I personally have for Venice. Visits are free but reservations are mandatory. They are released exactly 21 days in advance of your date, sometime shortly after midnight in Italy. Depending where you live, this may be afternoon of the previous date in your time zone, so check on that and be ready to book at the correct time. The reservations go quickly for the most desirable times (late afternoon), even in March. You can book up to 5 people on one reservation.

https://www.dfs.com/en/venice/service/rooftop-terrace

I have no inside information on this, but it was reported recently on this forum that the Fondaco dei Tedeschi is soon to close, so the rooftop terrace will not be available at least in the immediate future. I see that the website lists entry times (all full) only through December 21.