Retired and want to move to Northern Italy for 3-6 months in 2025

Hello smulvey9, and welcome to the fourm!

I'll just hop in here and first make sure you are aware of the limitations of tourist visas and lengths of stays. Unless you have a specific visa or have some kind of access to Italian/EU citizenship you are limited to a stay of 90 out of any 180 days a year and 180 total in any year.

Assuming you have US citizenship, no special access to EU stays and don't apply for a visa to live in Italy as a retired person you can go for 90 days (including travel days in the Schengen/EU area) leave for 90 and come back for another 90 but that is the absolute maximum time you spend without violating immigration laws. The penalties for this are severe. Also if you are in Italy for 183 days of a year you are considered a tax resident of Italy and are expected to pay Italian taxes.

Hope that helps,
=Tod

All regions of Italy have plenty of hiking trails. If you like mountains trails Italy is mostly mountains from north (Alps) to the center and south (Apennines). There are plenty of hiking trails in the islands too.. Just Google TREKKING or HIKING ITALY and there will be hundreds if not thousands of suggested trails. You can even specify a region, like Lombardia, Piemonte, Tuscany, etc.

You can stay 90 days in Schengen and 90 days outside Schengen (like UK and Ireland, or Albania or Serbia).

Thank you all for your information! As you can tell I have barely started my research and was assuming we had 6 months! Three months would be fine in Italy then move to another location! I will check it all out! Appreciate your responses! You can tell I'm new to all this!

just to summarize - for when you get around to specifics - it isn't 3 months in Schengen, it is precisely 90 days, and arrival and departure days count. Good advice is to plan for the unexpected and plan to leave a few days before 90 in case of illness, accident, flight changes, strikes, etc., all of which aren't acceptable excuses.

Roberto is right, of course, much of Italy is rural and trails exist everywhere I have looked into it. I think the questions you need to answer are what is your priority of living the Italian lifestyle versus walking/hiking and what are your transportation preferences?

This first question is about whether you want to live in a village, town or city environment which gives you more lifestyle options but probably means travelling for more walking/trekking options. You can live in places that give you instant access to trails but these will be much more remote and will mean travelling into town for provisions and interactions.

These questions feed into the transportation options. If you're living rurally a car is probably going to be required to get into town unless you can arrange a place close enough to walk into a town to get a bus/train. If you choose a town you'll need to be sure there is transportation to walking areas. Renting a car for 90 days seems much too expensive to consider unless maybe you can find some leasing option so transportation is key.

The last complication I'll throw at you is maybe you want to consider two or three places over the course of your 90 days. This might allow you to see several different areas or stay somewhere with enough trails to keep you entertained for a month but maybe not three. Also there are some interesting through hikes over days that you might look into also.

Here are some suggestions based purely on places I've happened to look at and have heard about:
- Bagni di Lucca is a loose affiliation of little villages in the hills around Lucca. You can get to one of the bigger towns via train but then the scattered villages are around there,
- The hillsides between Lucca and the coast are rolling hills and I know a family that settled there because the trails are right outside their doorstep from their rural house.
- Umbria is green and has many trails but you would need to pick area.
https://www.bootsnall.com/articles/hiking-italys-green-heart-5-great-trails-in-umbria.html
https://www.komoot.com/guide/1845/hiking-in-umbria
- Malcesine is a pretty lake town with a cable car up to Mount Baldo which would be a nice mix of beautiful town and hiking opportunities for a while if not 90 days. It can also be expensive since the lakes are heavily touristed so it might make a nice shorter stay.
I would love to hike the full Trail of the Gods on the Amalfi Coast https://fullsuitcase.com/path-of-the-gods-hike-amalfi-coast/ but not just the small famous section by the coast.

Anyway - just food for thought from someone else who is hoping to eventually have enough time to hike in Italy, good luck!
=Tod

What time of year? It makes a big difference....

Three months would be fine in Italy then move to another location!

Be sure to acquaint yourself with the Schengen zone countries.

https://www.schengenvisainfo.com/schengen-area/

You not only have to leave Italy on the 90th day, you need to not be in a Schengen country on day 91.

Just as an FYI but I would try to base myself near a good hospital or doctors. I don't know how old you are but stuff happens and remote areas are not well served by medical staff.

Thank you, Heather, for this observation! Yes, we plan to not be too remote. Ideally near a larger city! Still thinking and planning!

I love Trentino dearly and I can see myself living there in the near future, so I really get you.

The first thing to consider is whether you prefer the side that feels more Italian or the one that's more Austrian - Trento vs Bolzano.

I personally love Bolzano, in particular Brixen. I also can't wait to visit Vipiteno. They are small, charming, with gorgeous views, and right beneath the mountains. Both have a train station.

If you want to take a peak at how Brixen looks at the end of Summer, I have written a post about it on my blog - Italy with an Italian.

If you prefer the Italian side, Rovereto is a good one, and just 15 minutes by train from Trento.

I hope this helps.

Thank you, Alessia, for your thoughtful comments. We will definitely research Bolzano and Trento areas as possibilities for spending a few months. I’ll check out your blog, too! Thanks!

Thank you, miuccia, for your thoughts on our 3 months stay! I greatly appreciate hearing from everyone! I've learned that 90 days is the limit of one's stay for EU countries. However, I briefly saw, but did not have time to go sleuthing on this subject, that this CAN be extended. Not sure if that is true or not. To be determined with more research. We will check out the area of areas you recommend, too.

The 90 day rule is for SCHENGEN countries not EU members
There are several EU members that are not Schengen
Ireland, Croatia and others
UK not either now

Be sure you are clear on that

Croatia is within the Schengen zone now.

I'd take a targeted approach to this: Open Google Maps, and then pick a radius around every airport/main city (there are really not that many). Search each one that come up on the train line (you can zoom in and see the tracks). Green areas are parks.
I would think something in Liguria would be the most accessible without a car.

I briefly saw, but did not have time to go sleuthing on this subject, that this CAN be extended. Not sure if that is true or not

The 90 day Schengen rule gets attention on a fairly regular basis here and other than an appropriate visa, there has never been presented a way to lawfully 'extend' a stay beyond the 90 days.
Beware the snake oil salesmen and purveyors of pixie dust.

However, I briefly saw, but did not have time to go sleuthing on this subject, that this CAN be extended.

If you are talking about staying in one area, then your most realistic option would be to obtain a long stay visa, usually 6-12 months. It is an involved process, but for a retiree, with ample funds, much more likely than a younger person looking to work.

There are pros and cons, more attention paid to your income, medical coverage, need to settle on a residence before hand. Also in most cases, being resident means tax implications in most countries, as well as the US. All something that demands investigation. Many times, keeping within 90 days is just so much easier, you could also look into stays for a period of time in Non-Schengen countries, they seem to get fewer every year, but Ireland and the UK are still at the top of the list, as well as some Balkan countries.

Thank you ALL! ChristineH, jphbucks, valadelphia, joe32F and Paul!! All great tips and comments. Much appreciation! We are far from professional bikers at 69! Fit, yes! But not near professional! LOL! But ebiking on roads is more our speed! Mountain bike days are over! We are doing a 6-day bike trip this Sept in Puglia to see this area for the 1st time. And to evaluate it. Last year we biked in Portugal but have narrowed this adventure to Italy! We are looking for a place where we can do a hike or two each week and a bike ride or two each week while we relax and explore the other days! I prefer the green trees to arid and dry granite mountains. We will continue to investigate our 6 month dream stay vs a 90 month mandatory stay. And most importantly.... we will beware of the snake oil salesmen and purveyors of pixie dust! Thank you for this tip, Joe!