June/July 2026 Trip for a wedding in Verona - Itinerary suggestions

Consider arriving Milan instead of Venice if the goal is to get to Lake Garda.
When in Verona in August, we were told to take the bus as the best way to get to Bardolino for a day trip. It was a great option.
I wouldn't stay in Positano on July 8-9. I love Positano, but it's small and crowded and the beach is not great.

Consider a private car and driver to take you on a day on the Amalfi Coast to include a stop in Positano and Ravello, a lovely place to have a delicious lunch with a view.
For a day trip to Capri, stay in Sorrento, it's closer and there's a hydrofoil. At least that's what I have been told for my trip in July 2026 when I will be going to Capri.
I love the pace and ambitiousness of the trip, I'm a fan of that type of schedule.

Did you verify all of the transit the AI suggested? I would definitely do that, but otherwise you’ve already said you want to move fast so not sure what could be added.
You say with family but don’t say how many or ages, so take that and the heat into account. Good luck!

Julie - thank you for your comments. The trip from Milan to Lake Garda is 2hrs 12 minutes and the trip from Verona is 1hr 30 minutes.
If not staying in Positano, where would you suggest we stay? Naples and do the day trips or Sorrento? Thanks again!

Valadelphia - Our adult daughters and their significant others are traveling from NY. We know the heat may be unbearable and wish the wedding was in October! Oh well, it will still be a great trip. I have researched on my own the trains, buses, etc., but have not verified it to what ChatGPT said. I always plan every detail of our trips and am a bit OCD on transportation times/costs, etc. But yes, very good advice to verify. Thank you!

Hi Laura, a couple of comments regardless of itinerary.

I love traveling in Italy and do numerous 1-2 night stops. But that is traveling solo or having just one person with me. How many people are traveling with you? You will only be moving as fast as your slowest person. I can be very nimble transferring on trains, arriving early, etc. - things that disappear if it is a group.

The other comment is that I suggest you have one buffer arrival day. It’s easiest if everyone stays overnight at your arrival city. Then if transportation hiccups occur (my September flight from CDG to Milan was cancelled as we were standing in line to board), it will be a lot easier on everyone.

Itinerary:
I am sad to see Venice is just a landing spot! Oh, I love Venice! For ease as mentioned above, how about flying to Venice, stay there for two nights to have the chance to love it, and then it’s an easy train ride over to Verona. That would make logistics easy & hopefully everyone ready to enjoy the wedding. : )

You’re going in hot months with lots of tourists in the locations you’ve chosen. Any chance you’re open to a less busy city? I’ve stayed in 49 cities in Italy and won’t go into possible suggestions unless that’s something that would be appealing to you.

Since it is a group, then I just have to concur--moving a lot of people can take time, and unless you are all cut from the same cloth in terms of being early risers, timely, organized, etc. (can you tell I am not, lol), then I would have pretty serious trepidation about this plan. It can only take one thing going wrong for a domino effect, so I am not saying this to imply that you don't know your group well enough to plan accordingly, but we've all fell victim to wishful thinking. It could not even be the fault of someone being late, it could just be the vagaries of public transportation!

I would consider staying in Sorrento, going there from Pompeii on July 7. The night of July 6 in Naples should be enough, unless you have specific things you want to see there. Then on the 8th do a day trip to the AC, including Positano, and Ravello. Return to Sorrento as a good starting point for the day trip to Capri. Back to Naples on July 10.
Food for thought on the AC: I like to shop ceramics, and go to a limoncello place. We had a wonderful wine tasting and lunch in August, that our driver knew about. A driver means no parking issues, and they worry about the traffic and the lesser known spots. But it's an expensive option. I think it's worth it.
One more thing, about July 7, Pompeii experience can be what you want it to be, and doesn't require a full day, in my opinion. Pompeii is a fantastic site. But for us, it wasn't a full day. Last year we had a day with a driver, 8 hours from Naples to AC to Pompeii and back to Naples. We went to Pompeii for an hour and a half. Could we have spent more time there, yes. Do we feel like we didn't see enough, no. I guess my point is that it cold be done on July 10 on the way to Naples on the way home. Then you have more options between Rome and Sorrento.

It looks like a wonderful trip. I do have one cautionary bit of advice. My daughter (US citizen) married my now son-in-law (Italian citizen) in Villa Lagarino near Trento some years ago. This was an actual wedding with immigration consequences in a Catholic Church. The bureaucratic paperwork for this was immensely time-consuming, complicated and expensive. It involved cooperation between the US, Italy, the EU and the Roman Catholic Chirch.
I don’t know if the actual wedding is your responsibility -or- if what is actually planned is an event at a beautiful venue overseen by an officiant. Just a heads-up, if you’re doing the whole church wedding thing you should have already started.

Jean - thank you for your input. All 6 of us have seen Venice and made the decision to not go back. We want to see Lake Garda and Limone Village so that is set in stone. We are open to suggestions for the rest of the trip after Verona - as we like non-touristy places as well.

Viladelphia - yes we are ALL cut from the same cloth and have and will travel well together! :-)

dpoweron - thank you for your concern. It's my niece's wedding. She works for a wedding planning company that has taken care of everything. She is one lucky bride!

hey hey Laura
your adventure sounds good and very rushed but it's your vacation. with your 1-2 days at different stops, know that check-in to hotels are 3-4pm and check-out 10-11am. planning all your activities, where will you keep you luggage or drag along?
never did a ChatGPT but have heard good and bad about it, it's your decision.
you're aware of the HEAT, busy high season. all the places you mention is tourist central!! i've been to bardolino on lake garda which is gorgeous with lake & mountain views, many small villages, sirmione is very busy with daytrippers on bus & private bus tours
even though times/train schedules are listed you can't always rely if an issue occurs, get tickets to activities/attraction from own website since many are time/date stamped.
reserve any transportation needed in naples. sorrento, capri, positano with buses/trains jammed, traffic so bad
pack light or give yourself and others a day to wash and breathe the italian air while have lunch near laundromat. i have brought small bottle of laundry soap and have handwashed in sink and hang to dry while out.good luck and have a great vacation with your gang
aloha

princess pupule - Yes, we have done a trip just like this in the past all planned a head of time, train tickets and monument tickets purchased prior to the trip. Chatgpt was not planning my trip. I just entered the places and lenght of time and it created my itinerary from what I wanted, so nothing bad about that. It's like a typing assistant!. :-) As I mentioned in my original post, I wish my niece's wedding was in October when it's cooler because this time of year is very hot, but I don't have control over that. Despite the heat, it will be an amazing trip. We did 14 days last time out of a carry-on bag so we could travel easier to each place. Thank goodness for rolling my clothes and using packing cubes!