Northern Italy

Vicenza is nice. The historic district has a small-town vibe that is very different from what you'd find in Milan. Padua is just a bit farther and is very worthwhile. It has more to see and I think it would be a better overnight stop than Vicenza for most travelers. If you wish to see the Scrovegni Chapel in Padua, be aware that a timed ticket is required. I haven't been to Verona, but many folks speak highly of it. I believe you will find it more touristy than Vicenza and Padua, however.

Bolzano has a very pretty historic district and several interesting museums, the most important (for most people) being the one housing the Ice Man. This area of Italy is German-speaking, and you'll find both the architecture and food different from what you encounter to the south. It will make a nice contrast with the cities along the Milan-Venice rail line. Warning about hotels in Bolzano: many of the moderately priced places have no air-conditioning. They claim they don't need it, but the town is down in a valley and it can get very hot in summer (upper 80s, at least). You should be sure all your lodgings have a/c except those at altitude.

Over near Milan is the atmospheric hill town of Bergamo. It isn't on the main rail line between Milan and Venice, however.

Edited to add:

Use ViaMichelin.com to check on your driving routes and get (somewhat optimistic) time estimates. Especially scenic roads are marked in green.

I like to use the Deutsche Bahn website for researching train schedules. To check fares, you'll need to go to the TrenItalia site. The latter insists on the Italian spelling of all place names.

Oops--I should also have mentioned Lake Garda as a possibility.

Bergamo is a short train ride fromMilano, but you might have to go back to Milano to go further east by fast train.

Ferrara might be another good stop.

There are other small walled cities nearby - Este or Montagnana, for example - but Padova would be at the top of my list.

Bassano del Grappa is charming, set on the Brenta River with it's Palladian bridge, mountain views. WWII history of the Alpini, elite mountain corps. WWI Memorial.

1. Arrive Milan (2 or 3 nights)
2. Milan
3. To Bergamo ... overnight / day trip from Milan
4. Train to Vicenza (4 nights)
5. Day to Padova
6. Vicenza
7. Day to Verona
8. Pick up hire car. Drive to Dolomites.

"Bassano del Grappa is charming, set on the Brenta River with it's Palladian bridge, mountain views. WWII history of the Alpini, elite mountain corps. WWI Memorial."

FYI, they are renovating the bridge right now so it can't be enjoyed as much as usual. Town is still gorgeous but the renovations are definitely taking away from the beauty.

"Arrive Milan (2 or 3 nights)
Milan
To Bergamo ... overnight / day trip from Milan
Train to Vicenza (4 nights)
Day to Padova
Vicenza
Day to Verona
Pick up hire car. Drive to Dolomites."

As much as I love this city, 4 days in Vicenza is probably too many. Unless you just want to spend the time relaxing and enjoying la dolce vita of course, Centro Vicenza is good for that.

I agree with Rik. I really do suggest Padua rather than Vicenza as a base in that area.

Bassano del Grappa is pretty enough, but there's really not a lot to do. Vicenza, Padova, Verona all offer more, although Bassano is definitely "off the beaten."

My mother was born in the Veneto in a small town 25 minutes or so from Vicenza, so I have been going to this area all of my life. I do like Bassano del Grappa and I feel it is a cute and quaint town. It is a nice place to have lunch and walk around a few of the shops, but I agree that it isn't like a city with tons of sights to see.

If you have a car, I would also recommend a trip up to Asiago (where the cheese is from) as there is hiking up there and again, a cute village to pass some time wandering around.

Not too far from Bassano is the walled town of Cittadella to the south. Also not too far East is Asolo, which is again a quaint little village.

Thank you all for your kind information, So we can see more of the outdoors we have now decided to stay overnight in Milan and get the train to Bolzano the next day ( what is the best way to get tickets / or train pass as we have to have a return trip from Bolzano) We would stay overnight in the Bolzano area as we would be relying on transport we would then like to stay some where in the South Tyirol for five days? we hope to hire a car here too and travel towards Carnia, Fruilli, hopefully the scenic road - does this have a name and what villages do we go through? Does this sound doable and what areas in these regions are not to be missed? many thanks.

Jennie, a rail pass isn't the way to go here. Your round-trip tickets from Milan to Bolzano will be relatively inexpensive, especially if purchased early. The travel time ranges from right at 3 hours (if you travel only on relatively fast trains) to just over 4 hours (if all the trains are regionals, but this isn't common; most itineraries are mixed). There are bargain fares on the fast-train leg(s) if you buy early, but those are non-changeable/non-refundable tickets, so be absolutely sure of your timing before buying.

You will be traveling from Milano Centrale to Bolzano Bozen (that's the German form of the city's name) with one transfer, I think in Verona. It appears that the ticket prices mostly range from €22 to €45 per person, one way. If your children are youngish, their tickets might be cheaper, or perhaps someone else knows about family deals on Trenitalia.

You can check schedules and buy tickets on the Trenitalia website. If you have difficulty purchasing there, you can use trainline.eu instead. Some other websites may not display all the travel options (especially not the less expensive ones), and some may add substantial fees.

You won't be able to buy the train tickets until sometime in 2018. In the meantime, I suggest investigating the car rental. Bolzano is large enough that I think you'll have multiple options there, but check to be sure. I've never rented in Europe, but others have had good things to say about AutoEurope, Kemwel, and Gemut.

Don't forget that the Iceman is housed in a museum in Bolzano. The city also has a very, very pretty old town.

Since you expect to spend a night in Bolzano: Be aware that it can be extremely hot there in mid-summer, unlike the towns actually up in the Dolomites. It can be unpleasant without air conditioning. Since you'll be booking early and won't have access to a reliable weather forecast, I urge you to spring for air conditioned lodgings. It's extremely unlikely a/c will be necessary up in the mountains, which is a good thing because it's probably not available!

I stayed at the Parkhotel Laurin in Bolzano--above my usual standard but air conditioned. The breakfast was very good; the Austrian influence means you get cheeses, meats, etc., in addition to bread products. The hotel is conveniently located relatively close to the train station and on the way to the historic center. As with Bressanone, Bolzano has some otherwise perfectly fine hotel options that are not air conditioned, so be careful in making your selection.

The Val Gardena (Ortisei, Santa Cristina) is beautiful, but so are other valleys in the area. If you don't get responses from multiple experienced travelers to the area on this thread, you might start another one with a title like "Five-Day Dolomite/Friuli Route by Car?" There are folks here who've described lovely drives in that area, and such a title should attract their attention.

Because driving times through the mountains are not especially fast, I suspect you'll need to stay in at least two different towns if you want to range widely in the Dolomites and in Friuli.

Edited to add: You can find estimated driving times on ViaMichelin.com . Especially scenic roads are marked in green.

Also, I noticed that if you zoom way in on Google Maps, you can see where the mountain lifts are located. There are some great walks at the top of many if not all of those lifts, so if you choose a town with multiple lift options, you should have lots of very good walks to choose from.

It's worth making a trip to the tourist office in Bolzano to pick up its booklet with all the local transportation schedules. Lifts are included.

Another vote for the Val Gardena. We stayed five nights this year and returning for eight nights next summer. Go to the website valgardena.it. Tons of great information.

I would echo the recommendation for Ortesei/St Ulrich up in the Val Gardena. We have been to that area and stayed many times over the past 25 years. We keep going back because the mountains in that area are just stunning! I was just there in early September and stayed at Uhrerhof Deur on the recommendation of several people on this forum. HIGHLY RECOMMEND! It's a beautiful inn in a small hamlet about 8 minutes above Ortesei. Family owned, about 17 rooms, with spectacular views and beautiful accommodations. Get 1/2 board so you can have dinner there as well as breakfast. The dinners there were some of the best I've ever eaten in an inn in Europe! Definitely take a day and ride the gondola up to the Seiser Alm, the largest mountain meadow in Europe. It's surrounded by dramatic peaks and there are some lovely mountain huts to stop for lunch...the Rauchhutte is my favorite.

Thank you so much for your valued information Anita and Richard especially the information regarding where to visit especially Val Gardena area. Thank you Acraven for the train and the suggestions regarding air conditioning and places to stay. I will take up your suggestion of writing another thread for the Dolomite/Friuli route.