Flying into Milan and out of Bologna - itinerary suggestions for not a rushed trip , please.

What time of the year? I will assume summer.
3 nights in Varenna, maybe 4.
Same length of time at Cinque Terre.
One day in Bologna is enough for me, unless you use it as a base for day trips (Ferrara, Ravenna, etc.)

I think with 2 weeks at your disposal I would try to squeeze in some mountains (Dolomites?). In that case having a car would make it easier from Varenna to the Dolomites via the Stelvio Pass (you can rent in Lecco, if you want). Alternatively you could also consider a swing by Verona and Venice, if you haven't been.

I agree that we need to know when you plan to travel.

Do you plan to do a lot of hiking in the Cinque Terre? Five nights seems quite a long time to me.

Our 5-week Italy trip in Sept/Oct this year included a week in Bologna (including food tour out into Emilia-Romana), and almost a week in Cinque Terre, based in Riomaggiore. Cinque Terre was the least enjoyable part of the trip, and now don’t see it as any future priority. We want to go back to Bologna the next trip, for more time there.

Do you want lots of time on rocky Cinque Terre beaches? Or hiking, as noted above? Many of the trails were closed while we were there, damaged by storms and rockslides.

You don’t want a rushed trip, but I’d suggest taking a day or two off the Cinque Terre and adding it to Bologna.

I made an edit here. Please avoid use of all caps as it is akin to shouting.

These suggestions are incredible. thank you ! looks like i need find a town on the Riviera for a home base perhaps La Spezia for 4 nights only then to Bologna for 5 nights with a couple day trips ? i really appreciate this assistance. I don't think staying in C.T is a thing for us as we are not hikers . We are foodies .
We are going April 22nd - May 7th.

We are going April 22nd - May 7th.

Two national holydays in one shot! Check the trains' schedules using any Sunday in 2022 before March

https://www.bolognawelcome.com/en

The official tourism office for Bologna can arrange plenty of tours to surrounding attractions or on its home turf. A walking tour that includes a visit to one of the unique seige towers is a special experience. The food is -- no surprise -- great. And the inner city streets are mostly all collanaded; that is, covered by arches, protecting from both sun and rain.
https://www.shutterstock.com/search/bologna+colonnade

The airport is an easy shuttle bus ride from the heart of the city. Although crowded, it offers some good connections.

I don't necessary think CT is all about hiking. In fact, when we were there most trails were closed. We did love the very short hike around Manarola above the vineyards. For a less touristy experience, I would recommend staying in Manarola or Riamoggiore. We really enjoyed Trattoria Billy's in Manarola. We stayed at Aria di Mare in Manorola and had great views over Manarola and the ocean.

My favorite memory of the CT is the food, young white wines and the sound of the water splashing against the shoreline. Following are suggestions on places to visit outside the CT and I don’t believe spending five nights is excessive either. Following are places that are accessible by direct train or ferry from Vernazza.
Levanto – 15-minutes
Sestri Levante – 45-minutes
Santa Margherita Ligure-Portofino – 1h 15m
Porto Venere – ferry 1h 15m
Pisa – 1h 45m
Lucca – 2h

I wonder whether Pisa or Luca would make a good location for a few days? On our recent trip, La Spezia was a crowded, chaotic city that we had to navigate n our way to/from the Riomaggiore stay. Clearly, it’s a place where lots of Italians live, and maybe some tourists stay there for access to the area, but it didn’t really appear to be a welcoming place for a base along the coast.

Santa Margherita Ligure and Camogli are both wonderful places to stay on the Italian Riviera. Portovenere is another good choice. You can day trip to the Cinque Terre from them and return to a lovely town with good choices of hotels and restaurants.

If you are staying in Bologna for that long, I would consider day trips to Ferrara, Modena, Padova, Vicenza, and Ravena. All very easy by train and they are beautiful cities. Personally, I enjoyed Emilia-Romagna much more than Cinque Terre.

Foodies! Our favorite restaurant in Italy is Da Danilo in Modena. We were there last week on a day trip from Florence and it was terrific. In Parma the place to choose is La Forchetta; "Duchessa di Parma" the signature dish. Also at the little gelateria behind the Duomo the nuns fashion cones in the shape of a rose. Not a big CT fan but occasionally will run down to Monterosso for lunch at Miky. Of Course Bologna has all kinds of options for fine dining.

You will love the towns in Liguria. Do not stay in La Spezia. You would be disappointed in La Spezia. It would be good to stay in a town on the water. We enjoyed staying in Monterossa al Mare at Hotel La Spiaggia which was an easy walk from the regional train station. You can reserve a room with a sea view and a balcony. Tripadvisor.com and Booking.com have great pictures. Monterossa is a wonderful base for seeing the Cinque Terre towns as well as the towns recommended by Mary Pat and Suki.