Honeymoon itinerary tips for 50 somethings

You have 13 nights ...

Arrive Milan (1N)
Train to Venice (3N)
Train to Florence (2N)
Train to Rome (3N)
Fly to Sofia (2N)
Fly to Milan. To Lake Como (2N)
Depart Milan

Congratulations! You will lose at least a full day in transit to /from Bulgaria. Take a look at Rome2Rio.com for flight options to get there. Based on flying into/out of Sofia, you can get direct flights from Milan to Sofia and a return to either Bologna or Venice Treviso. I am not sure which dates work best for you, but I would suggest going to Bulgaria on Wednesday. Something like this will work but there are many variations depending on what you want to see and do.

Monday - Arrive Milan, sleep Milan
Tuesday - Milan
Wednesday - Fly to Bulgaria
Thursday, Friday - Bulgaria
Saturday - AM fly to Bologna, sleep in Bologna
Sunday- Tuesday - Explore Bologna and the region (Parma, Ravenna, etc.)
Wednesday - AM train to Venice, afternoon in Venice
Thursday, Friday - Venice
Saturday - AM train to Milan
Sunday - fly home

For a place more romantic than Milan and without the hustle and bustle of the city, take the train up to Lake Como, less than an hour away, to the Varenna-Escino stop. Walk down to the water, and take the ferry to Bellagio. Everything will be starting to bloom, but it will still be a quiet time to visit. Spend a few nights. Bellissima!

Where in Bulgaria does your friend live? If not in Sofia, you'll need extra time. Buses and (limited) trains in Bulgaria do not move fast.

yes, we are going to Sophia.

Thanks for the responses!

See the cathedral and the Last Supper in Milan and the fashion district, La Scalia opera house,and da Vinci statues museums etc.

Then book it for the most romantic city in the world, Venice. Go for evening walks every evening and stop for a drink in St. Marks square. You will never forget it.

The Last Supper requires a ticket purchased in advance. Check now and cross your fingers.

Thanks for your ideas!
We've narrowed it down (we think) to

Monday-arrive in Milan (until Weds AM)- Suggestions for a day trip on Tuesday from Milan ?

Wednesday - Venice until Friday - again suggestions for restaurants,shops etc are welcome-

Friday -Sunday Bulgaria

Sunday- Rome for 2 days (Sunday,Monday)

Tues- Florence 2 days (Tues,weds)

Thursday night/Friday back to Milan to visit with son
Sunday -back home

thats a rough idea at this point

ideas,suggestions,recommendations?

Bergamo Italy is a beautiful city and a short train ride from Milan (approx. 25 miles). We spent 5 days in Milan and this was a nice day trip out of the city. Lovely old buildings/churches and we had a nice alfresco lunch and just walked around. Also Lucca is a nice city but not sure how easy it is to get to from Milan.

The non-stop from Venice to Sofia on Friday actually flies from the Treviso airport; just wanted to be sure you had noticed that.

You're going to have considerably less than 2 full days in Rome by the time you get settled in there, but I don't see any way to fix that unless you drop Florence. Which I would do, frankly, because I don't like two-night stops, especially a series of two-night stops.

I agree you have too many stops. You have only 1 1/2 days in Venice. Even if you have one more day don't worry about where to eat and shop--just wander around canals especially out of the crowded areas, that is romantic in Venice. I would skip Florence.

Boston is not that far from Italy. Assume you can go again.

Interesting response just above. I'd skip Venice, it's the worlds largest tourist trap. I'd add days in Florence, it's really beautiful. That's just my opinion and different people like different things.

We are making our plans ,thanks to all of you!

Question/recommendations for places to stay in Venice and Florence, and Rome too! I'd like to be located close to where the sights are etc since its hard for me to get around. I'd like it , so that where ever we are staying I could go back to our room and I could take a few breaks through out our day. (if needed and if possible)

Thanks!!!

It is hard to recommend hotels without knowing your budget goals, but I will suggest one that addresses your concerns about getting around ( you mentioned that is hard for you so I assume some limitations on mobility?)

We stay in apartments in Venice, it on our last visit we were joined by my brother-in-law and his wife, who wanted a nice hotel with easy access and an elevator. They chose Ca' Sagredo, right on the Grand Canal across from the Rialto Market.

http://www.casagredohotel.com

The hotel is an easy level walk from the Ca' d'Oro vaporetto stop, from which you can take a boat to the San Marco area. There is also a traghetto stop there---the little boats that ferry passengers directly across the Grand Canal to Rialto Market. The in-house restaurant is good---we dined there on the terrace one night. And it does have an elevator, which can be hard to find in Venice. You are just around the corner from the main shopping street, Strada Nuova, which is mostly bridge-free for easy walking.

Another hotel, recommended by someone here, and also in the RS Venice guide, is Al Ponte Antico, which has rooms with views of the Rialto Bridge. However, there is no mention of an elevator---which generally means there is none.

It would make more sense to pay for your friend to fly to you in Milan or Rome.

we have an Itinerary !! (yay)

Monday arrive in Milan (2 nights)
Weds am to Venice (2 nights)
Friday afternoon to Bulgaria (2 nights)
Sunday afternoon -Rome (3 nights)
Weds -Florence for (2-3 nights)
Saturday back to Milan
Sunday fly back to Boston

its a bit brief in every city but we are packing light and want to do a quick over view of those cities with plans to be back another time