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N. Italy Options for 3-4 days in October 2019

My Itinerary

Your suggestions on FB and for my trip back in September were so helpful! So, I'm back for more.

I already have my plans for Rome, Sorrento, Amalfi, Capri, and Florence/Tuscany and am thankful for the suggestions from the community for those. But I need help with N. Italy. I will immediately say that I am weary of Milan and Venice. Neither have I considered because I want to find somewhere less crowded. There are other reasons I haven't considered Venice or Milan but for now I would like N. Italy suggestions. I've considered Verona, Garda, Turin, Mantua, Padua, and Bormia. I would love to see the Dolomites and the lakes as well as the snow-capped peaks further north. Any suggestions? I would prefer the town easily accessible by rail but finding a driver wouldn't be too difficult. I like the idea of seeing different looking towns. Not sure how else to word it but I know S. Italy, like Amalfi, has a distinctly different look than the alpine towns in the north. I have 3 nights: leave Florence on 10/11 and heading back to Rome on 10/14 for my flight out on 10/15.

Let me know what some of your favorites are, festivals, and cultural sites. And thank you so much in advance!

Posted by
11055 posts

You only have three nights? And you want to see the Dolomites? Three nights would be perfect. Stay in Ortisei.
Or, visit Lake Como, stay in Bellagio and take ferries all over the lake.
If you visit the Dolomites you can drive there and back via Lake Garda. Consider staying in Malcesine on the lakefront. You could also stop in Verona after Lake Garda.

Posted by
13 posts

My concern is the limited train service. I don't want to drive. I'm not entirely comfortable with it. I was thinking about Lugano Switzerland which is accessible by train via Milan. I would like to consider Como and travelling the lake so perhaps there is an easy way to get there from a larger city? I could do a version of Uber or something but I'm not sure where to look for that.

Posted by
248 posts

The city of Como has regular train service from the larger cities such as Milan and others, as do some of the popular destinations at mid-Lake (these are much better sleeping destinations than the city of Como itself).

Posted by
7129 posts

If you want to go to the Dolomites, there’s several trains from Firenze to Bolzano, and an hourly bus over to Ortesei. Considering that you wouldn’t reach that charming village until mid afternoon, I think you should just plan to spend your two full days there enjoying the Alpine culture. There’s lots of beauty there. There’s plenty of options for trains leaving Bolzano heading to Rome.