Hi! I think I accidentally deleted my first topic. Sorry! My fiancee and I are eloping to Florence Italy beginning of September and staying two weeks. We have the blessing ceremony already planned. We want to travel up to the Northern part after and maybe even take a day trip of stay 2 nights in either Switzerland or Austria. So many beautiful places having a hard time on deciding what to do! Any suggestions would much appreciated!
Sincerely
Jo Ellen
There are uncountable great destinations in northern Italy. The stretch between Venice and Verona (both very worthwhile, of course) includes Padua (spectacular chapel and large historic area) and the smaller, more laid-back Vicenza (Palladian architecture). Once in that area you're not far from the lovely lakes. The Dolomites (train to Bolzano, then bus up into the mountains) are beautiful and especially great if you like outdoor activities. That area (the Alto Adige/Sud Tirol) is culturally Austrian, so it's a bit like visiting a foreign country.
If you'd be interested in a large city with an expansive historic district but not a lot of foreign tourists, Bologna fills the bill. A bonus is that it is a fabulous transportation hub from which you can take convenient day-trips to a lot of wonderful cities. Ravenna may be my favorite small city ever--fabulous Byzantine mosaics, charming architecture, unbelievably few tourists given its attractions. Other folks here really like Ferrara, and there are many other places within reach.
Close enough to Florence for side-trips are Siena, Lucca, San Gimignano, and Volterra. The first two are easily reached by public transportation; the second two might be a bit more of a challenge, but I think it can be done. You might like to rent a car for a day or two (or take a van tour) in order to see some of the smaller Tuscan villages that are not so efficiently reached by bus or train.
Tell us about what sort of experiences you want to have during your honeymoon, and you'll get some more-specific suggestions. Wineries? Art museums? Car museums? Fabulous churches?
With a couple of weeks at hand, I think I'd try to include at least a day or two along one of the lakes, just for the sake of variety. Although you certainly could pop over to Austria or Switzerland, I'd be inclined not to spend the time to do that on this trip, given the vast number of great options closer to hand in Italy itself.
No wineries. Found a bridge in Switzerland that just open and is the world's longest suspension bridge, or saw there is a amazing observatory I you can look through on certain nights in Milan. Or the Egypt museum in Turin! Do love also beautiful churches. Saw north of Verona up near or in the mountains there a beautiful gardens. Also my fiancee said he always wanted to go to Innsbruck, Austria. But I don't know if that should be for another trip!
I agree with the previous info that there's many beautiful places in Italy. We took the following as part of a Swtizerland/Italy trip that ended in Rome:
Florence-to-Stresa. It's 3 hours by train. Stresa is lovely, and we enjoyed taking the small ferry boat over to Isola Bella - beautiful gardens, and Isola Pescatori, a fishing village.
Stresa-to-Wengen Switzerland. It's 3 hours by train. We stopped in Spiez briefly for lunch and walked down to the lake. We were really glad to return to Wengen/Lauterbrunnen to hike in this amazing area.
We flew into Zurich to head to Wengen.
Since you mentioned Turin: I haven't been there, but folks who have visited the city say it is a really great, under-touristed destination. Sounds like my kind of place. By all accounts it is considerably more interesting than Milan, though the latter has The Last Supper and the Duomo.
The Borromean Islands accessible from Stresa are nice. Otherwise, you may need to scratch around a bit to find really exceptional gardens. I went to a number of (low-cost) Italian botanical gardens in 2015 and found them "meh", though many of the visits were during very hot summer weather when it's not so easy to keep gardens looking great. I suspect that your best bet is privately-operated rather than government-funded gardens.
Another vote for Torino. Or Lago Maggiore.
When you say you are eloping and having a blessing ceremony, are you also intending to get legally married in Italy? If so, make sure you check with the governmental authorities in both Italy and your home country. If you are US citizens, here's your page
https://travel.state.gov/content/passports/en/abroad/events-and-records/marriage.html
Among the pieces of info: "If you get married abroad and need to know if your marriage will be recognized in the United States and what documentation may be needed, contact the office of the Attorney General of your state of residence in the United States."
Congrats! You are on your way to a great trip!
I would not spend the money to go to Switzerland or Austria unless you can give it at least 3 nights and then only go to one location. Travel time is longer than you can imagine. What is it you think you want to do or see in those countries?
We are having a judge do it legal in the states before we leave.
We have decide to stay in Italy instead of going to Switzerland or Austria this time. Will go there another time!
Probably will do the lakes and Turin and maybe up to Valle Aosta.
Jo Ellen,
There are an almost unlimited number of places in Europe that would be a good fit for that situation. With two weeks, you have enough time to cover several different cities. Does your two weeks include your two travel days?
One option you might consider is.....
This time frame assumes two travel days. This allows enough time in each location to enjoy at a leisurely pace without rushing about.
Congratulations!
Congratulations! What a great way to celebrate getting married! My trip is in May 18 and when I thought I was going to travel from Venice and fly home from Milan, I looked at a few places to visit for a few days before leaving for home. Out of all the areas I looked at, Bergamo really called my name! It's gorgeous!! Please check it out...maybe you'll find it beautiful as I did! Happy travels!
I was just in Torino and found it to be wonderful - very tourist friendly without being “touristy.” The Savoy princes left no parts of their castles undecorated and in addition to the castles and the Egyptian museum there is a fascinating museum of the Risorgimento and the National Museum of the Automobile. I found the city so interesting that I extended my stay by two more days.
