late May/early June Itinerary advice

Leave Milan pronto, heading for Florence. Two days there. One day in Siena. Train to Rome. 3 days there.Train to the CT. 2 days there. Back to Milan and fly home. Have fun!

Because of your flight plans, I would put in a plug for the beautiful region of the Veneto, specifically, Verona, Vicenza (architecture), Padova, and Venice. I'd give a day each to Vicenza and Padova and two to Venice. Verona is the least interesting, but could share a day with one of the others. These cities can all be reached easily by train from Milan and from each other. They are drenched in art and history. The food in the Veneto is great, especially seafood. Caveat #1: You do realize, don't you, that much of the art in Italy is religious. Caveat #2: Many people will recommend the Cinque Terre. There's no art or architecture of interest there, nor anything of historical importance. Not much shopping, either.

I'd suggest keeping it simple:

Train from Milan directly to:

Verona (2 nights);

Florence (2 nights);

Rome (4 nights);

Milan (1 night for return flight--depending on flight time.)

Art and church are closely intertwined in this country that's so historically religious it has a Pope in the middle, so you're going to have to go into some churches to see some cool art (e.g. the Pieta in St. Peter's). I'm assuming you just mean that you wouldn't have any religious or spiritual need to go into any particular church. Fair enough.

For 9 days, I think you need to pick three cities MAX. Assuming you're locked into Milan, I suggest train from there to Florence for more art than you can shake a stick at. Three nights there. Then two nights in Siena (for a change of pace), then on to Rome for four nights. Then express train back to Milan the day before you depart.

Have a great time!

I agree with Steve; fly into Milan and out of Rome so that you maximize your time and don't back-track. I have used miles many times and done this. In Sept, we used miles on American Airlines and flew into Rome and out of Milan.

That said, my recommendation is to fly into Milan, spend 2 days in Lake Como, work your way south towards Rome by way of 2-3 days in Tuscany and then 4-5 days in Rome. This itinerary would allow for a variety of scenery and experiences.

Lake Como is really beautiful & relaxing; might be good to recover from jet-lag in Lake Como (as opposed to the hectic pace required for Rome). It's only an hour by train from Milan. Stay in Varenna & spend 2 days taking the boat to various towns in the mid-lake region (Bellagio, Menaggio, etc.) Avoid the town of Como itself. We stayed in a great hotel in Varenna and our room overlooked the lake; the views and scenery were breathtaking. Varenna is the easiest to access by train.

After Lake Como, head to Tuscany. I would suggest only a few days in Tuscany because most of Tuscany is not easily accessible via public transportation, with the exception of a few towns. Florence is a must and is train accessible. Another suggestion is Siena (train accessible). San Gimignano is also nice & I believe it's bus accessible. You could stay in Florence as your base for Tuscany and then do day-trips to Siena and San Gimignano.

I would definitely visit Orvieto (in Umbria). It's train accessible and only 1 hour outside Rome; you could do Orvieto as a day-trip from Rome or stop there on the way from Tuscany for the day & then proceed to Rome in the late afternoon/evening. I loved Orvieto; the fascade of the cathedral is beautiful & it's an interesting town to explore. We also enjoyed the underground tour there.

I would devote your remaining 4-5 days to Rome. There's a lot to do in Rome & even 5 days doesn't do it justice but you'll see a fair amount in that time! Happy travels!

Hi, and thank you to all for your thoughtful replies. I see lots of wonderful suggestions. Choices, choices! I just ordered the RS Italy 2010 online, can't wait for it to arrive.

I should have specified that we've already acquired our tickets in/out of Milan. An inconvenience yes, but that goes with the territory on a redemption flight. We do wish to spend 1 day in Milan as we would like to see La Scala, the Duomo and The Last Supper since we'll be there.

It does seem as if Florence/Tuscany is an ideal choice as it is on the way to Rome, while Venice looks to be fairly far away. How much time should we plan to stay in Florence? Is 2 days enough or should we plan for 3? If 2 is enough, which Tuscan town is the best for our extra day: Siena, Lucca, Orvieto, Pisa, or Assisi? I was a little skeptical about the area because all the guidebooks I've seen thusfar suggest 1-2 week itineraries and I wasn't sure if it was possible to do much in 2-3 days.

We could then spend 4 nights in Rome, which is enough for a first visit (I plan to go back again and combine Rome with the Naples/Sorrento area at another date), and then head back up to Milan before our flight home.

Yes, I do understand that Italy is a very religious country and many of its treasures are religious in nature. I am a Buddhist, so really I was just trying to indicate that I do not have a strong spiritual motivation to visit any particular church, apart for aesthetic purposes. I hope that doesn't offend anyone!

Thank you again,
Kerry

Hi Kerry. I would say that 2 days is enough to see the major sights in Florence. As for which town in Tuscany to visit, I would rule out Pisa & Lucca. The only thing really to see in Pisa is the leaning tower & the church. I'm sure you'll get varying opinions on Lucca, but hubby & I enjoyed Lucca the least of all of Tuscan towns we visited. From the options that you listed, I guess I would vote for Orvieto. Haven't been to Assisi so I can't weigh in on it. I appreciate your point of view on the religious artifacts/churches. I enjoy briefly peeking inside churches & maybe seeing the major pieces of art (i.e. Pieta in St. Peter's), but I won't spend a lot of time in churches or looking at religious art; just a personal preference.

The reason I liked Orvieto so much is because there's more to do than just see the Duomo. I'm really into photography, so I loved walking through all the back streets in Orvieto taking pictures, window-shopping, etc. There are a lot of neat ceramic stores there. The underground tour was also interesting and you can also walk down into St. Patrick's Well. You can also climb to the top of the Torre del Moro and enjoy the views from the top. We loved the facade of the Duomo & when the sun hits the facade, it's beautiful.

Siena would be my second choice though I found Siena to be much more crowded and less quaint than Orvieto.

You can definitely get a little taste of Tuscany in 2-3 days. On my first trip to Italy, I spent 3 days in Florence (one of which we day-tripped to Siena & San Gimignano). Even though I only had 3 days in Tuscany, I was glad to have seen what I did and it inspired me to return and see more on my 2nd trip.

You'll have a great time wherever you end up going in Italy! It's an incredible place.

Thanks so much again. Unfortunately, I cannot change my FF ticket -- the reason is because my ticket is on British Airways. From Rome they fly to Gatwick, but my flight to Denver leaves from Heathrow. I am not very keen on hoofing it between Gatwick and Heathrow with luggage...

Bearing in mind the itinerary suggestions above, does this itinerary sound reasonable? I don't want to rush around Italy - I know I will go back at some point, hopefully a few times!

May 28 - fly overnight from the U.S.

May 29 - arrive in Milan at 6:30pm, overnight in Milan

May 30 - AM express train to Rome (4 hours), overnight in Rome

May 31 - Rome

June 1 - Rome

June 2 - Rome

June 3 - Rome

June 4 - AM train to Orvieto (1 hour), overnight in Orvieto

June 5 - AM train to Florence (1 hour), overnight Florence

June 6 - Florence

June 7 - AM train to Milan (2.5 hours), overnight in Milan

June 8 - fly home

I am using BA miles, not AA miles. BA does not let you fly on a partner airline when they have mileage tickets available.

In any case, I don't mind going in and out of Milan as there are a few things I want to see there and I don't mind train rides. The express train from Milan to Rome is either 3.5 or 4 hours which we'd take the morning after we arrive. Since we'll likely be jet lagged anyway, I think this isn't a waste of our time as we can sleep on the train?

I guess at this point, I plan to leave things as they are with my ticket and work around it - with our last day being spent in Milan as I want to see The Last Supper and La Scala. I know that its only 2 - 2.5 hours from Florence to Milan, I guess I don't think that is a huge loss - we get up early anyway, so by the time we get to Milan on our last day, that is just in time for everything to open.

Am I missing something essential?

Is this itinerary too heavy on Rome or does this look okay?

Thanks.

Kerry, I think that your revised itinerary looks good! We all have our favorite Italian cities...I'd look at spending one less night in Rome and adding it to Orvieto.

Kerry, I personally think your itinerary looks good. I don't think you're spending too much time in Rome but that's just my opinion. I spent 5 days in Rome in Sept (my first time in Rome) & I wanted an additional few days to see some things that I didn't have time for. I personally felt that 1 day in Orvieto was enough but I can see why Sharon suggested you add a night in Orvieto. It is an interesting little town. Wait until you get RS 2010 book & read the section on Rome, put together a list of all the sights you wish to see and then figure out how many days you need there (or post your list on this forum & everyone can help you decide).

My suggestion though if you do cut a day from Rome would be to add it to Florence and then take a day trip from Florence to Siena...that way you get to see another Tuscan town. It's up to you though.

Thanks for everyone's feedback! So helpful. Due to the snow, I still don't have my R.S. guidebook, but hopefully on Monday...

My mom has weighed in and now we're looking at something like this. Too ambitious? If so, where to cut?

May 28 - fly overnight

May 29 - arrive Milan evening, spend night in Milan

May 30 - train to Florence, overnight Florence

May 31 - Florence

June 1 - train to Rome, overnight Rome

June 2 - Rome (National holiday, will anything be open??)

June 3 - Rome

June 4 - Rome

June 5- train to CT, overnight CT

June 6- CT

June 7 - train back to Milan, overnight Milan

June 8 - fly home

THANK YOU!!

Steve - the thing is we don't arrive until 7pm at night in Milan on our first night. It takes an hour plus to get out of the airport into the area near the train station (because yes, we got stuck with Milpensa) and we'll be dragging big time from being stapled to the BA herd class seats (I travel a lot, this I can always count on).

It doesn't seem very practical to turn around from Milan and spend another 2-3 hours on a train and arrive someplace else at 11 or 12 at night. I was thinking this way we could wake up refreshed, see a little of Milan in the morning and then head off to the train so we're not rushed.

That said, if this itinerary is too rushed, I am willing to cut out Florence and save it for another time. I have only 10 days in Italy this go around, so I want to have a pleasant experience.

Hi Kerry:

I saw the reports on all your snow...yee gads!

Your plans look great. I do not think you will regret the time in Rome. There is SO much to see and do. Yesterday, Rick Steves was on a local radio talk show and somebody called in with a query about Rome. Rick replied that it is a city where you can just "be there". If interested, you can listen/download/podcast, the segment...it is kgo 810 (am) a San Francisco station. His segment was 10 to 11 a.m. and offered so much information!

When you receive your book, it will offer copious amounts of information.

Hope you stay warm Kerry!

Thank you Jan! I will do that.

(BTW, I am from San Francisco and I think you guys sent your weather to us, ha ha)

Kerry,

The last Itinerary that you posted looks good. The only point I was wondering about, was when you were planning to see the Last Supper (reservations required) and La Scala? You could perhaps see one sight the day after you arrive (before heading to Florence - the Hotel should be willing to store your luggage for a few hours), and the other the day before you depart?

You've planned your rail trips well, as they're all reasonably short. For the trip from Rome to the C.T., there's a direct train from Termini to La Spezia with a travel time of about 4 hours (reservations compulsory). It's actually quite a pleasant trip, partially inland and partially along the coast. From La Spezia you can board the local train to whichever of the five villages you choose to stay in. You'll probably find that after touring Rome, a few days in the C.T. will be most welcome!

Happy travels!

That's a good idea about splitting up Milan sights, thanks!

Hi Kerry

Didnt really like your first itinerary but did like the second. Though I am not big on Milan. So depending on when your flight is out the next day I may just stay another night in CT and get out in the Am unless you have an early flight. Otherwise great choices.

Since you want to see the CT, I would put them at the start of your trip, rather than at the end. They'll be a great place to recover from jet lag and get ready for the big cities on your itinerary. So I suggest Milan - CT - Florence - Rome - Milan.

... "Unfortunately, I cannot change my FF ticket -- the reason is because my ticket is on British Airways. From Rome they fly to Gatwick, but my flight to Denver leaves from Heathrow. I am not very keen on hoofing it between Gatwick and Heathrow with luggage"...

Just to clarify - British Airways DOES fly from Rome to Heathrow. We just did it both ways in May\June and a family member has been doing it twice a year for several years, most recently one month ago.

All I can tell you is that when I was doing my redemption flight, they did not have an option to Rome from Heathrow - it is from Gatwick or City of London.