Suggestions - 1st Italy Trip for Three Weeks - Solo

Any adult can rent a little 40 HP motorboat in Lake Como. Rates are pretty standard in Varenna and Bellagio. They go plenty fast at full throttle but are small enough to feel you're in control, and there's no current on the lake, just the occasional ferry wake. We took one for 3 hours, stopped at a restaurant for lunch reservations. This was one of the best memories of the trip -- Como is jaw-droppingly beautiful. We stayed at Hotel Il Perlo Panorama in the hills above Bellagio, and literally camped on the patio and gaped at the views for hours and hours as the waiter refilled our spritzes. The hotel's popular with cyclists, very reasonable, will pick you up or ride you down into town for a few Euros anytime you need it.

Get a car for a countryside driving day (or two) and return it at night so you don't have to worry about parking. Chianti wine country is lovely driving scenery if you can't make it down to Rick's suggested loop in Val d'Orcia around Montepulciano.

Absolutely advise you to put Volterra on your list, and do the walking tour Rick recommends. The town is beautiful and fascinating, and Annie was our favorite tour of the whole two weeks with superb stories and suprising details about the Etruscans who first settled the town, then the Romans, and even a poignant WWII story.

I should've said also -- October in Piedmont is white truffle season. That's beautiful wine hill country too, and also the ultimate truffle. And the barolo wine they make there might change your mind on drinking... ;)

Black truffles are in season now, and they are nothing to sneeze at either. Either one shaved over homemade pasta with butter is a big difference from having truffle oil or truffle flavor powder on french fries.

If you want countryside and "views"you cannot beat the South Tirol (Dolomites). The area is just north of Verona on the way to the Brenner pass.

https://www.suedtirol.info/en

A day trip from Verona that we really enjoyed was going west to Lake Garda either by local bus or train.

https://www.visitgarda.com/en/garda_lake/

Hi Christy, I’ve been to Italy six times - two of those as solo trips. I will post a link here to my two trip reports of the solo trips. The one in 2018 went to Verona. My recent one returning went at a faster pace than what you’re wanting, but i went to places that could be day trips from Bologna or Modena, and I also returned to Venice. Starting out, Stresa on both trips is at the lake west of Lake Como.

The first one also lists some things I did differently because it was a solo trip that might be helpful, also.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/solo-trip-to-italy-2018

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/trip-report-please-do-not-comment-until-i-change-the-title-filling-in-the-report-thanks

I will be going to Florence and other locations in September, and we’re planning to do a Florence City Bike Tour. It’s about four hours going to see sites, etc.

I can’t help you with places to visit, I have only been to Italy once eons ago, but just wanted to say that like you, I would absolutely schedule a visit to Modena for that restaurant!

Thank you for your suggestions. I really appreciate it. Since I won't be going to Rome, do any of you have an opinion on what airport to fly into?

Thanks again!
Christy

Christy, for flights check from your home airport to IT on www.scanner.com; refine search on Google flights.

Airports depends on the ultimate itinerary, but I always check all of them, "multi city" (in your case: Milan--both, Florence and Pisa, Genoa, Bologna, and Venice). It can be preferable to change planes once (preferably in Germany--avoid London and Amsterdam) and fly into a smaller airport sometimes.

I am so open in my itinerary at this point, So I guess I will just see where I can get a one-stop flight.I just know that some airports are better to travel into and that's kind of what I was looking for. I can make my itinerary based on that. Thanks so much!

Hi Christy, from your itinerary, if you’re flying from the US, you might want to fly into Venice and out of Milan. Flying out of Venice isn’t as handy because flights back to the US usually leave early from Venice, and the airport is on the mainland vs. the islands.

Christy, with your desire to slow down and do day trips from bases, I suggest you eliminate Lake Como and the Cinque Terre, save them for another trip. I think you might like this itinerary. It will save you a lot on transportation times. Substituting Lake Garda. Keeping your transportation to a minimum.

https://www.italythisway.com/places/peschiera-del-garda.php

Fly into Venice (VCE). Out of Bologna. (BLQ)

3-4 N Venice allows for a day trip.

4 N Peschiera del Garda. 19 minutes by train to Verona.

3 N Siena allows for 1-2 day trips.

4 N Florence. 2day trips possible.

4 N Bologna. 2 day trips.

Fly out of Bologna.

Agree with valadephia, try to transfer in Germany.

I like Gerri's suggested itinerary but with a few tweaks:
- Fewer nights in Venice, it can be lonely there for a solo traveler. Get a 3-day pass for the Vaporetto and use it like a hop-on/hop-off tour of the islands. Go out to Murano to see the glass shops, Certosa is a marine preserve with a little hotel and restaurant you can walk through the park, sunbathe, and see the feral cats and goats. Just let the Vaporetto driver know you want to get off there and then when you want to get back on you turn the beacon on while waiting on the dock and they will stop to pick you up.

• More time in Florence. You can easily take day trips from Florence either on a guided tour or solo using the train. I took a guided all-day trip that went to San Gimignano and Siena with a stop for lunch at a winery. The new Duomo museum in Florence is great!

Thank you mandyk01a. I appreciate that advice and am making adjustments.