Northern Italy

Stay 1-2 nights in Milan , long enough to see The Last Supper and the Duomo. Then stay on Lake Como, not as a day trip.
There is more to the Veneto than Padua. Have you visited Vicenza, Bassano de Grappa and Asolo? Or the Dolomites? We went from Nice to the Piedmonte to Dolomites to Lake Garda to Bologna on one of our trips in Northern Italy.

Verona is fairly close of Venice and can be done by day trip. It is a nice place so an overnight is not a bad idea

You have Lake Garda close by too. Bologna, Parma, Modena might fit your visit for ER food and drink.

Bill,

Unless you want to see specific sites in Milan (ie: Last Supper), you might consider skipping that and spending about two nights in Varenna (Lago di Como) and about three or four nights in Stresa (Lago Maggiore). From Stresa you could take day trips to Locarno (Switzerland) via the scenic Cento Valli Railway, and then return in the evening by boat. You could also take a day trip to Lago d'Orta (Orta San Giulio).

I haven't been to Bergamo or Piacenza so not sure what sites there is to see there.

How were you planning to "hop over" to Budapest? I'm not sure there are any direct flights from Venice to Budapest, but you may be able to find a direct flight from Treviso to Budapest with RyanAir (although that's not an option I'd probably use).

Bill, just a few thoughts for you: (1) if you really want to explore Italian food, you might think about a few nights in Bologna, maybe take a food tour. Easy day trips to Parma for more food, and Ravenna for its amazing Medieval mosaics, spread over several sites in Ravenna itself, and nearby, a real highlight of Italy in my view. (2) if you can avoid staying in Mestre, I would; if you look soon, you can find reasonably priced places in Venice itself, people on this forum can recommend some. The best part of visiting Venice is being out in the early morning and the evening, when the cruisers and daytrippers are no longer out and about. The islands in the lagoon make a great day trip from Venice, especially Burano and close by rural Torcello, the birthplace of Venice with its very old church complex. (3) there are lots of scenic nature spots to choose from, the various lakes and the Dolomites. (4) I also would not spend much time in Milano, maybe a day for the Duomo and The Last Supper (which looks exactly like all the pictures of it, only much larger; you can’t get close enough to appreciate the brush strokes, at least I couldn’t.)

I agree with Ken. Milan doesn't really do anything for me, while the lakes are absolutely stunning.

Milano has lots to see and do, but it will shrink to fit the time you have. Two nights can do it. Or, base at Lake Como or Maggiore and take one long daytrip to Milano.

I love Ferrara, but that may work better from Bologna (as will Ravenna) on your future trip.

Bergamo is also a relaxing town for a couple of nights.

I would throw Bologna into the mix.

•Three nights in Milan - with day to Bergamo
•Two nights on Lake Como
•Four nights in Verona - with days to Mantova & Vicenza
•Four nights in Bologna - with days to Parma+Modena & Ravenna or Ferrara
•Three nights in Venice

Larry said everything that I would, only better. Listen to him, he knows of what he speaks.

Thanks for all your suggestions!! I am planning on visiting Bologna and Emilia Romagna in 2019, so I'll leave those suggestions until then. And I would really like to have at least a week there, which I don't have enough time for this trip. I'll keep looking into the possibilities of where to stay in the Milan/Lakes area. I'm really more of a city person than a country person for a variety of reasons. I most likely will break down and spend the extra money on lodging in Venice, instead of in Mestre, I'll have to just keep my eyes open for a good deal.

As a city person, you may like Milan more than some others do (I like it a lot). Do look at Rick's chapter on it in his Italy book, to see if it appeals to you.

I agree that a day trip to Lake Como isn't nearly as nice as at least one overnight. Personally I really liked Varenna and really didn't like Bellagio, but of course everyone has different responses.

For history and architecture, consider spending a couple days in Trento. The Castle is worth at least half a day, food is excellent, buildings with exterior frescoed walls are unique and you could even add in a day trip to Bolzano. Trento has good connections between both Verona and Venice, so it could be a stopping place for a couple days between those two cities.
Milan is very interesting but requires effort to get beyond the Duomo and Last Supper. There is a mapped guide to old churches (including one with Roman columns on its Piazza) and the Sforza Castle contains both historical information and stonework/sculptures.

Ohhhh, Chani, you flatterer, you!

I've decided to do 4 nights in Venice, 4 nights in Verona, and 8 nights in Milan, mainly just because it's such a good travel hub. I'm adding day trips to Torino and Genova, which I hadn't even thought about until I read other posts on here. Thanks for all your help!!

Bill, You may want to spend some of your Milan nights in Torino and Genoa. Both are very interesting cities (especially Torino). It would be nice to not have to travel so much and enjoy other places at night. Also, my experience was that Milan is quite expensive and hectic.

The great thing about travelling to northern Italy is that you have so many great cities to visit, all within easy reach of one another, all with a different feel, and all offering a different experience. However, I think it’s really best to spend a night or two in order to get under the skin of the place.
If Genoa appeals, then stay for two 2 nights.
If Turin appeals, then stay for two 2 nights.

I would agree that Torino and Genova are worth a couple of nights each. Even with fast trains, travel time will eat into a daytrip.

8 nights in Milan? Wasted time . Maybe 2 ...take a train to Florence

8 nights in Milan:

2 days to see sights in Milan (if I see everything on the first day, I'll add another day trip)
Day trips to:
Varenna
Bergamo
Cremona
Piacenza
Torino
Genova

I really hate moving every two days or so when travelling. It makes me feel unsettled. If I can't spend 3-4 nights somewhere, I have no interest in moving again. I've been to Florence many times, so no need to head there. I'm going to Bologna for a week in 2019. I'm using this trip to Italy to see northern Italy and visit places that I'm interested in, but don't necessarily feel like I'd want to spend my 3-4 nights minimum there. If on my day trips I fall in love with one of the cities, I can always come back in the future for a longer stay!!

Next trip, whether it be next May or afterwards (life, ya know!), after staying put this March in Rome for 6 nights and Sorrento 5 nights, will revert back to the traverse-the-European-spine-by-rail tack. Did it Paris to Salerno in 2015 and really dug it.

We will start with 3 nights in Amsterdam, train to St. Goar, Germany, in the middle Rhine valley with all those castles for 2 nights, an overnight stop in Nuremberg, then 2 nights at Hall in Tirol (Austria) in the Alps, finally finishing by basing in Verona for 4 nights. No more than 5 hours on the road in any given day, we'll secure hotels or B&B's within walking distance of the station, and the DB and Trenitalia schedules show late morning departures, mid-to-late afternoon arrivals. All places we've never been before. And...I absolutely cannot do Europe without stepping foot in the homeland!

Saw that besides Brescia, Vicenza, and Venice as daytrip possibilities from Verona, Bologna is less than an hour away as well. That's why I think Verona is a great base.

Some may say 5 destinations in 12 nights is too much, but we've done it before, we pack light and frankly I groove on the efficiency of the European train system. Take a picnic to go, plenty of water, something to read or listen to, and with no stress watch the world go by.