Hi,
I will be traveling with a friend in September to Northern Italy for 15 nights. Would love some advice on a trip itin. We will be flying from JFK to Milan the night of 9/5 and arriving in Milan around Noon on 9/6. The plan is to hop on a high speed train and get to Venice in the late afternoon/early evening. Would then spend 3 nights in Venice (2 full days). After Venice, would take a train to Verona and spend 3-4 nights. I am open to stay elsewhere, but my initial plan was to use Verona as a base and do day trips to other Veneto towns/cities. I have not completed a ton of research on the Veneto, so if you have suggestion on where to stay, towns to visit, or things to do, I am all ears. Would like to spend 1 day exploring Verona, 1 day in Padua, and likely a day in Vicenza. After the Veneto, we will take a train from Verona to Bolzano. This is really where i need advice. Once in Bolzano, I am struggling with where to stay/things to do. My friend and I are both mid 30's, active, and are very interested in hiking but also like staying in cities/towns that have restaurants or perhaps other things to do at night. We will have 4-6 nights to spend in the Dolomite region. I would be fine staying all in one place and doing day trips. I think Ortisei sounds nice. I have also heard Cortina is nice as well. Would also be open to splitting our time between two places. We want to see as much of the natural beauty as we can. So please let me know where you suggest staying and how best to spend time. Also, my preference is to not have a car, but i am open to renting a car for our time in the region and driving around - if you think that is the best way to explore. After the Dolomite region, we would train back through Milan and up to the Lake district (lake como?), likely spending 2-3 days in the lake district before going back to Milan for our last night. We fly home from Milan on the 21st of Sept. Here is a rough outline. Also, i am more the willing to change the order, modes of travel, locations, etc., if you suggest a better way. When we are in cities, we like to site see a bit (museums, churches, art, etc.) but also just like sitting on a plaza drinking wine. it’ll be a mix of site seeing and relaxing/eating.
I should note that i prefer to change hotels as infrequently as possible but i am open to staying in additional places, but would need 2 nights minimum per place
9/5: Overnight flight JFK to Milan
9/6: Train to Venice
9/7: Venice
9/8: Venice
9/9: Train to Verona
9/10: Verona
9/11: Verona
9/12: Dolomites (exact location TBD)
9/13: Dolomites (exact location TBD)
9/14: Dolomites (exact location TBD)
9/15: Dolomites (exact location TBD)
9/16: Dolomites (exact location TBD)
9/17: Lake Como
9/18: Lake Como
9/19: Lake Como
9/20: Milan
9/21: Depart at noon for JFK
Any advice, feedback, etc. is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance