North - south itinerary - too ambitious?

You’re going to rent a car on arrival day after a night of no sleep in an area and car you’re not familiar with? The drive from the airport to Bolzano to takes five hours. Sitting for five hours will put you to sleep.
Is Aufkirchen in IT? It sounds German to me.

Sorry, I didn't include where we sleep! We will be sleeping in Milan on the night of Day 1 and picking up the rental the next morning! (will edit post to include this if I can!) (We are also a military family from Canada so we are quite adept at fairly high level functioning on less than ideal sleep!). The airbnb we booked for nights of Day 2 & 3 is in Aufkirchen, Trentino-Alto Adige, Italy.

Hi Lorraine!
This is confusing:
Day 8 Train to Naples, Transfer to Praiano (airbnb)
Day 9 Relax in Positano / Boat Tour to Capri?
Day 10 Explore Amalfi & Ravello / Relax in Positano (beach/spa day)
Day 11 Check out of Praiano Airbnb, then train to Rome

It sounds like you're staying in Positano and not Praiano as you have set aside big chunks of 2 different days for that one. ???? If you want to explore Capri, you need to give it a day, If you want to do Amalfi + Ravello, that's a day as well. I'm not sure where you'd fit Positano in but IMHO, if you had to leave one location out of a tight schedule, Positano would be the one. You don't realistically have time for a spa/beach day at that one and try to do Amalfi+ Ravello the same day, especially if having to navigate the region's mobbed high-season transport system.

So one important question? What month/year is this trip planned for?

Sorry I am new to this forum! I have edited my first post to include April (next month yikes!) as our travel time and where we are sleeping! These are the things we need to know re: your suggestions for our time on the Amalfi. Thank you! We have booked a nice place in Praiano that has a great ocean view and may very well cook there and just relax and take in the view for a day. We chose there so as to not be in the midst of Positano or Ravello but perhaps it is all the same in terms of busy-ness?!

I was confused as well.

Just FYI- Praiano does not have a ferry and is not walking distance to Positano.
You will need a bus to get to any other towns on the coast.

Depending on when in April some ferries s may not be running yet.

Thank you re: the note about ferries - will look into that and will determine if it is a "must do" for anyone. We did know that a bus would be required if we wanted to go to any of the other places along the coast, although my son and daughter are crazy walkers! (My son just finished the Camino de Santiago!) I may choose to just sip wine on the patio!

hey hey lorrainedough9
is this your first trip to italy? traveling next month yikes. you know it is jubilee 2025 with millions expected, many in rome but many want to see other big cities like you. this is high season with the jubilee, spring break, easter and you don't want long lines and "tourist traps". good luck. all the places you plan to be will have many tourists, something you will need to deal with. spending many hours in a car and trains without spending time to breathe the italian air, sit at outside cafe with chacuterie tray & wine, people watch
i'm always amazed when travelers have itineraries like this, afraid they are gonna miss something with traveling the whole country in 2 weeks. it's your vacation.
you could drive to one of the lakes near milan (como, garda, maggiore) and see the gorgeous views and mountains)
just reading your itinerary made me dizzy. like others have said, my own opinion would be to change some places if it's not too late. do you have prior approval for early check in to milan hotel? usually 2-4pm and check put is 10-11am
did you get you IDP (CAA.com/IDP) mandatory in italy for all drivers? read up on it and also rules, laws, signage, speeds, parking, gas prices, for both italy and germany. do you need a sticker to drive in germany and cross over border from italy.
is there a drop off fee to return car to verona? a long drive to verona then a train to florence WOW
Kathy and ChristineH always give great info and suggestions of the places you are planning to visit. early for the amalfi coast for some things, if reading other posts from many, they are wanting to do the same as you so yes there will be crowds.
don't know what plans are for you in florence or rome, if hoping to see the most popular attractions/activities you need to reserve online which many are time/date stamped and many are sold out for months and months. good luck & happy planning
aloha

The Dolomites need more time than 2 nights (1 day.) I would recommend either finding a way to add more nights there, or eliminating the Dolomites from your itinerary.

All of your feedback is helping to confirm my feeling that it was too ambitious! CK, I think if we remove something it will be the Amalfi Coast as it is more on "kids'" list than my husband and I. They have much more time to return if they wish! I think I would rather add time in the Dolomites than head south. We can cancel our airbnb no problem.
Princess Pupule - totally agree re: amount spent travelling and we did know about the Jubilee, but this was the only time where we could all go (it was a spontaneous decision made in mid-Feb to join my son at the end of his travels). We need to return to Rome at the end as that is where our return flights are from. Yes we have the IDP and have done research and that is why we aren't keeping the car beyond Verona! Not staying in a hotel but the place we are staying does permit us early check in so we're good there as we thought that part through!

I don’t know anything about Aufkirchen but I recommend considering Ortisei as a base for the Dolomites. There are numerous awesome hikes you can do right from that town.

I have not yet been to Dolomites but have researched it since going this summer. My impression is April is not a good time to be there. It is not ski season but not hiking season.

Yes. Most of the lifts will not be running in April.

With your time allotment, I would not go further north than Milan or further south than Rome. The magic of Italy reveals itself when the bus tourists leave and the locals come out in the evenings.

I would agree with dropping Amalfi coast, I have been traveling for 20 years to Europe, went to Amalfi Coast 2 years ago, and was so disappointed. Would never go back. The Dolomites are beautiful, very German feel, but may be cold. I agree with suggestions for Lake Region. Are you a hiking family? In a more recent post than yours, tonight I detailed ideas for the Lake Maggiore and surrounding areas that might be of interest. Have fun!

Like Susan, we went to Amalfi Coast two years ago, and were also very disappointed. The congestion and poor roads and public transportation made moving around stressful and time- consuming. There is no shoulder season- it will be packed in April. It's a victim of its Instagram success. Definitely not relaxing . And the whole place is a major tourist trap.

Instead of the Amalfi Coast, add the days to Tuscany, perhaps, or Rome.

You are too early for the Dolomites. Lifts and roads will not be open. Why not go to Venice or Lake Como instead? It will be easier to find lodging in Venice, and it's so magical!

A suggestion would be to write your itinerary in terms of nights, not days .

Keep us posted as your trip evolves, and have a great time!

WAY TOO MUCH, slow down and don't waste so much time and money traveling between places.

Also,
1)Why skip Venice?
2)Need way more time in Rome.