We will have about 3.5 weeks to spend in Northern Italy at the end of May 2023. We have been to Venice, Florence, Siena, and Pisa. Definitely planning on seeing Cinque Terra, Milan (briefly), Lake Como. What other places would you include?
Posted by
415 posts
Bergamo is a nice place to spend a day or two. It's about an hour from Milan and Lake Como by train
Posted by
california
292 posts
Head over to the coast..Santa Margherita. Love it there..small walkable town..walk to Portofino..great seafood...nice shops..train station to take you to Camogli..
Posted by
5109 posts
What kind of stuff do you like to do? Do you want to stick to train or will you rent a car for a portion?
If the latter, the Piedmont is lovely, we paired a brief stay in Asti and Alba (by train, but when I return it will be with car), then headed to the Camogli area.
If you prefer train travel, the coast of Liguria and the cities of Emilia-Romagna are good choices.
Posted by
Boston
1805 posts
Torino, Alba, Pavia, Piacenza, Parma, Modena, Verona, Padua, and forget Cinque Terre.
Posted by
Oberpfalz, Germany
1398 posts
Val Gardena Südtiroler Dolomiten. Wild flowers should be blooming.
Posted by
306 posts
I could spend a week in Lucca using it as a base for the surrounding areas.
Posted by
Pittsburgh, PA, USA
2818 posts
The Dolomites are heaven on earth to me. We stayed in Ortisei and loved it.
Posted by
OP
Orlando, FL
139 posts
Thanks so much! We are history, art, and culture lovers. All of our travel is strictly by train and bus when no train is available.
Why the suggestion that we should skip Cinque Terra?
Thanks again!
Posted by
Minnesota, Wisconsin & Italy
104 posts
Take a look at visiting South Tyrol, specifically Merano and Val Venosta. Both are very accessible by train and utterly breathtaking. Plus, you will get the opportunity to enjoy a unique blend of Italian and Austrian culture and cuisine. Both dance here hand in hand.
Posted by
Boston
1805 posts
You can have an enjoyable trip to Cinque Terre if you plan well and have realistic expectations. However it's very crowded and the original villages are very hard to imagine, though their natural settings are beautiful. If you want to see Ligurian seaside towns, I would recommend looking to Camogli, Santa Margarita, Portovenere, Lerici, or tiny Tellaro instead.
Posted by
Southwest Florida
905 posts
Bergamo, Lake Garda, Lake Maggiore. Turin, as well.
Posted by
Idaho, USA
7895 posts
In June, I went to these northern cities and recommend all of them:
Stresa - skip if you choose Lake Como
Cremona - Stradavarius museum & short concerts on weekends
Parma - my favorite cathedral interior in Italy, great food
Bergamo, especially the upper Citta Alta
Mantova - Gonzaga dynasty with lots of historical art items
I’ve also enjoyed Verona, Ravenna, Torino, Padova, Lucca. I’m not sure of the weather in May, but the Dolomites are stunning! We stayed at Caselrotto with a RS tour and Moena on our own.
Further down on the list for enjoyment: Vicenza, Bologna, Ferrara
These two trip reports cover most of those mentioned.
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/solo-trip-to-italy-2018