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Itinerary help, 2 adults, 2 teens

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We are in the beginning stages of planning a trip to Italy in late May/early June 2020. Two parents, two teen boys (18 & 15). Arrive midday on a Saturday, depart on a Monday morning (8 full days, plus afternoon/evening of arrival day). My husband and sons have never been to Europe. I took a "check everything off the list with one flight across the Atlantic" European group tour with my parents when I was 16 (30 years ago), and saw a bunch of famous stuff (including quick days through Venice, Florence, Pisa, & Rome), but didn't really experience any place... hence I have decided that for this trip we will focus one just one country.
What we like to do / want to see (in no particular order except the first):
-The Ferrari, Lamborghini, and Pagani museums (all in the Modena area) - This is a must do for the boys!
-historical sights (with someone/something to tell us what we are seeing)
-some art (but probably not more than one or two museums though)
-areas of Christian/Biblical significance
-Eating good meals (& gelato!)
-visting a farm or winery (wine, balsamic, parmesan, etc.)
-getting to ride on at least one train
-safe, clean lodging, but not typical American Best Western/Holiday Inn, something more unique to Italy
-exploring streets & neighborhoods, shops, markets
-hiking or bicycle rental to explore an area
-we are recreational water people, so we'd like to be at the shore (coastal or lake) or on the water at some point.

My preliminary idea is:
Saturday - arrive in Rome, get settled at lodging, dinner, walking around in area of lodging
Sunday - Rome
Monday- Rome
Tuesday - morning train to Bologna, half day (morning) food tour in Bologna, rent a car in Bologna, drive to the Lamborghini museum (between Bologna & Modena), and then check-in at an Agriturismo near Modena.
Weds - Pagani museum, Enza Ferrari museum, and Ferrari museum (Maranello). Perhaps also a farm/winery in the area. Night at Agriturismo.
Thursday. - Drive to Riva at Lake Garda
Friday - Hiking/Biking in Lake Garda area
Saturday - water activities (windsurfing/boat rental) at Lake Garda, or perhaps a guided canyoning trip
Sunday - somehow get to Milan (Will we want car at Lake Garda? Can we get from Riva to Milan with public transportation reasonable quick, or should we drive?), explore central Milan, night at hotel in Milan
Monday - flight home

What do you think? Is this too much? Are we wasting too much time traveling from place to place? I chose the driving from Modena area to Riva because my hope is that we could freely explore a little, but is this a waste of time? Are the more popular lakes better choices than Lake Garda for activities/hiking?
We also would love to visit Sardinia, but that just seems like too much travel with also seeing things on the mainland.

I will take no offense to anyone's criticism or opinions, maybe this idea of a itinerary is way off, so please let me know honestly what you would change.

Thanks a bunch!!

Posted by
400 posts

You may be doing "too much" but it seems your automobile museum visits are all from one hub. So if you only have 3 hotels, you may be fine.

My wife and I took our teenage sons who were on the high school soccer team. We visited every shoe store and Football store. :-)

I thought I'd comment on "areas of Christian / Biblical interest"
If you are Roman Catholic, there are more sites of "Christian interest"
As a Protestant, I'd say the most interesting ones (besides St. Peter's Basilica in Rome) (and ones I took my sons to and then discussed the theological issues of) were:

Scala Sancta - the steps Martin Luther 'crawled up' and then wondered if it was of any value
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scala_Sancta

Mamertine Prison - where Paul was imprisoned
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mamertine_Prison

Just for the uniqueness of things - The Capuchin Crypt - where the monk's (3,700) bones are displayed
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capuchin_Crypt

If you are Roman Catholic, I'd think you'd still find these all of interest.

Posted by
6713 posts

It's pretty hard not to be in eyesight of a church anywhere in Rome, and many contain great art and/or architecture. I'd suggest the Pantheon, which started as a Roman temple and is architecturally fascinating, and San Clemente, where you can descend to a Mithraic temple in the foundations. The RS Rome guidebook describes a walk along one of the major streets from church to church. There's also the Baths of Diocletian, part of which Michelangelo redesigned as a church.

I don't know the geography of Bologna-Modena-Riva, but if you're able to do this trip with just three hotels you're probably not overdoing it, especially as a high-energy family. I take it that you're flying "open jaw" out of Milan? Good idea!

Posted by
8027 posts

Doesn’t seem that you’re cramming in too much in your 9 days, but Sardinia’s probably not a good fit for this trip. Ferries take some time, and although flights themselves can be fast, airport check-in and security requirements can use up a lot of time. Despite several trips to France and/or Italy, we haven’t yet made it to Corsica or Sardinia.

Last fall, a bit off-season, I had 3 nights in Bologna and 3 nights in Parma, with a day trip to Modena. This was food tourism, not sports cars. I took a couple of group tours, which afforded access to Parma Ham, balsamic vinegar, and cheese production facilities.

In Rome, be sure to visit the Basilica di San Clemente, not far from the Colosseum. The old church with an ornate ceiling and wonderful frescoes is built on top of an older church, which itself was built atop bits of Ancient Rome. Pay to descend the stairs to the parts below, to the older church and on to archeological remains of ancient streets, a pagan temple, and an elaborate house.

Posted by
400 posts

I haven't been in any catacombs but they should be fun and informative.
i hope to see some next year.

Posted by
2 posts

Thank you for each of your replies! I appreciate the specifics on places to visit in Rome.
I will certainly be tweaking our plans over the next several months, but it’s nice to get confirmation that I’m not totally off base with what I have planned at this point.
Thanks again for the replies!

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