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Northern Italy in April- Thoughts on itinerary?

Posted by (Northern California) on

My girlfriend and I are planning on April trip to Italy. (March 30- April 24ish). We'll focus on the northern half of Italy, and save Rome south for another trip.

Here are the key places we'd like to stay, and a rough cut at time in each.

  • Venice. (3-4 days)
  • Florence. (3-4)
  • Tuscany- Agriturismo + day trips to Sienna, etc (5-7)
  • Orvieto & Avila. (3)
  • Lucca + Pisa (2-3)
  • Cinque Terre. (3)

I'd really appreciate advice on time allotment, routing-- or other great places we could fit in without pressing too hard (it's my first time in Europe)

Trip will begin with flight into Venice. It looks like there are a couple ways to proceed from there...

1) "Clockwise" as above, ending in CT
2) "Counterclockwise" ending in Florence or Orvieto

After Italy we head to Madrid for 3-4 weeks in Spain.

Thanks again!

Posted by
7737 posts

FWIW, April could be pretty dreary in a lot of those locations, esp. Cinque Terre. Expect a good bit of rain. I don't suppose you could switch Spain and Italy, could you?

Posted by
16566 posts

Venice is good
Florence. 2 days are for florence, take a day trip to Lucca from Florence and also a day trip to Siena from Florence. So you need 4 days there.
Move to the Agriturismo, but limit your stay there to visit the small towns and country side. You will need a car for this portion.
Visit Pisa for a couple of hours while you drive from your agriturismo on the way to the Cinque Terre. Return the car at La Spezia, near the Cinque Terre.
Are you visiting Rome at all?
If yes, after Cinque Terre go to Rome via train and visit Orvieto from there as a day trip via train. Then after Rome fly to Spain from Rome.
If not going to Rome at all, visit Orvieto by car from your agriturismo near Siena on a day trip (no more than 2 hrs from Siena). Then after cinque Terre taka a plane from Pisa to Spain.

Posted by
15806 posts

If Venice is the first stop after your long flight, plan on 3 full days. It takes either a lot of time or a lot of money to get from the airport to historic Venice. It is a great place to start. On your first day, just take it easy, absorb the atmosphere, eat gelato and drink hot coffee.

After Venice, I suggest you stop for 1-2 nights in Verona, so you have a full day of sightseeing there, it's a charming town with lots of sights (see the Verona Card website for details).

Then Florence . . . maybe. If you love Renaissance art and architecture, you need at least 3 days to enjoy it. If not, a day trip from Siena by bus will allow you to see all the highlights. Siena is another charming town. Use either as a base for day trips to Lucca and San Gimignano. These medieval town centers have strict no-car policies and fines are hundreds of euros. Before you drive in any of the towns, learn about the ins and outs of driving in Italy. After that, with a few days in an agriturismo with a rental car, you can explore the Tuscan villages and wineries. Pisa is worth half a day.

Before you make any plans for the Cinque Terre, find out if the trails are even open. The last posts I read here indicated that they haven't been repaired yet, so even if the weather's good, it may not be worth going. I think you should drop it from your plan.

Your last weekend in Italy is Easter. I don't really know if that will have any impact on your itinerary.

Where do you leave Italy for Madrid? Your route through the Boot should end there.

Posted by
1054 posts

I would fly into Venice and see Venice. Then train to the Cinque Terre and relax there after seeing Venice sights. Easy train ride from the CT to Pisa and you can explore Lucca. After that head to florence and see the sights and museums. Then relax in Siena and Wine country. Then take the train to Orvieto and stay there. You aren't that far from Rome and you can go from Orveito to Rome for your next leg to Spain.

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