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Should I stop at Orvieto and/or Bergamo?

Posted by (Southeast US) on

First, thanks to everyone who contributes to this forum. I ran across it while looking for a tour company to take me to Italy, and it emboldened me to plan my own trip. I've spent several months lurking on this board, reading travel guides, and planning. Here's the resulting itinerary for May 2015:

Arrive Rome 7:30 AM on May 3

Siena for 4 nights

Florence for 3 nights

Lecco for 3 nights

Venice for 3 nights

----easyJet flight to Naples----

Nocelle (just outside Positano) for 4 nights

Rome for 3 nights

Let me anticipate comments: Yes, I'm aware of open jaw flights -- the itinerary is arranged this way for a reason. Plus the airline geek in me is excited about flying on easyJet! Lecco???? Good hiking + inexpensive mountainside B&B with amazing views (E35/night for single) + multiple complaints by Americans on tripadvisor about staff in Lecco establishments not speaking English + a major setting in Alessandro Manzoni's "I Promessi Sposi" = A back door??????

Now the Question: My friend who is going with me has been told by one of her friends, "You HAVE to see Orvieto and Bergamo," and she now wants to at least stop at these places. What are the thoughts of the members of the forum about stopping for a few hours in Orvieto for some sight seeing and lunch on the way to Siena? We arrive in Rome (from Atlanta) at 7:30 am. We could train to Orvieto, see at least some sights, eat lunch, catch the bus/train to Chiusi, and then transfer there to a train bound for Siena. Likewise, Bergamo is on the way to Venice. We could hop off the train for 6-8 hours for some sight seeing and lunch, and then head on to Venice. Thoughts?

Posted by
7737 posts

I've been to both Orvieto and Bergamo. Loved Orvieto. Enjoyed Bergamo. Orvieto is the more beautiful, but I'm sure you would enjoy both since English speaking tourists are esp. rare in Bergamo.

Posted by
3648 posts

Órvieto is worth a whole day; while, imo, 4 days is lot for Siena. Why not spend that first night in Orvieto and continue on to Siena the next morning?

Posted by
4099 posts

Thanks for the thoughts. I think we'll hit Orvieto on the way to Siena and Bergamo on the way to Venice.

George, will definitely consider the restaurant.

Rosalyn, thanks for your thoughts, but (1) I'm trying to avoid one-night stays and (2) we need 3 full days in Siena to cover the places we want to see there at a leisurely pace (one for Chianti region, one for southern Tuscany, and one for Siena itself).

Posted by
15 posts

I recently spent 21 days in Italy and Orvieto was my favorite place and the Ripa Medici B&B was my favorite to stay. I'm going back next year. I've never been to Bergamo.

Keep in mind that depending on what time you arrive in Orvieto, many of the stores and restaurants could be closed for the afternoon "siesta" (can't remember the Italian term). This happened to me. Caffe' Montanucci is one of the few restaurants open through the "siesta" period and I highly recommend it.

Another thing to keep in mind if you're going into the "old" Orvieto where the duomo and all the "action" is located - you have to take the funicular from the train station up to the "old town" and then either wait (possibly 30 mins.) on the shuttle bus to take you to the town square or walk with your luggage uphill to "old town" - about 15 min. walk. There is a place where you can store your luggage but it's about 300 yards from the train station. If you only have a couple of hours to spend I don't think it would be worth it to stop here. It could take 1 - 2 hours getting to the "old town" and back to the train station. Also, if you're not interested in going into the "old town" Orvieto is not worth the stop, in my humble opinion. On the other hand, if you have 4 -5 hours, it's definitely worth the stop. The "old town" is magical.

My 2 cents!

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