What Now? (Our third summer in Italy)

How about the north/northeast? Among the places you might include (not suggesting you necessarily cram all of these in):

Trieste
Venice
Treviso
Udine
Padua
Vicenza
Verona
Dolomites (escape the heat!)
one of the lakes
Bologna and surrounding food cities (Parma, Modena)
Ravenna

Or you might consider about 3 weeks in that part of Italy and a week to see part of Slovenia, maybe Ljubljana and the Julian Alps.

You have obviously developed an addiction to Italy, which is actually more common than people might think, and for which there is no cure.

In my opinion you have the right approach to travel, in the sense that in each trip you focus on a reasonably limited geographical area approximately the size of a small New England state like Massachusetts. Each Italian region has a lot to offer to the visitor to keep them busy for multiple weeks, so that is a good thing. That approach also saves a lot of ground transportation money, because you move only for short distances.

To continue on that same pattern, I suggest you divide Italy into its regions or macro regions.
I will start with NORTHERN ITALY

TRIVENETO (the North East): this macro region comprises 3 administrative regions (Veneto, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Trentino Alto Adige). This area includes cities like Venice, Padua, Verona, Vicenza, Udine, Trieste, to name a few. It also includes mountain areas like the Dolomites, lakes like lake Garda, Roman ruins like Aquileia, and much more. This macroregion alone will keep you busy for a month.

The NORTH WEST: LOMBARDY, PIEMONTE AND VAL D’AOSTA: this area is the north west of Italy. This macro region comprises 3 administrative regions (Piedmont, Val d’Aosta, Lombardy). Turin and Milan are the most famous cities, but there are others. Bergamo, Pavia, are all famous gems. This area is famous for the Alpine landscapes of Val d’Aosta and Northern Lombardy, the lakes (Lake Como, Lake Maggiore, lake Orta, lake Como, Lake Iseo, Lake Garda) as well as the wine producing region in Piedmont of Langhe and Monferrato. Some people include Liguria (the Italian Riviera) in this macro region. Primarily for historical reasons, since Liguria (Genoa is the Regional Capital) was part of the kingdom of Savoy based in Turin in Piedmont. You have touched only the eastern edge of Liguria (the Cinque Terre.
This macro region will also keep you busy for a month and more.

EMILIA ROMAGNA and MARCHE. This macro region comprises 2 administrative regions: Emilia Romagna (which is actually two regions merged into one, Emilia and Romagna) and the Marche.
I placed this macroregion together for historic reasons. Romagna and the Marche were both part of the Papal State. Since both are on the same side of the Apennine Mountains they are also logistically easier to travel to. Both have a lot to offer to the visitor and can easily keep you busy for a month.

Once you decide, we can give you more details and reference resources.

Sicily! (Second choice, northern Italy)

THE SOUTH AND SICILY
Sicily alone has so much to offer that 2 weeks are hardly enough. If you add Calabria, across the Strait of Messina, you can have you busy month scheduled for you. Maratea, which is actually in Basilicata, but virtually in Calabria, would be a nice addition.
The Campania Region (Naples, Amalfi, Capri, Pompeii, etc) has a lot to offer too. Many people combine this area with Sicily (2 weeks each) since the two are well connected by plane, ferries, and even trains (although it’s a long train journey).

The UMBRIA. LATIUM (the region of Rome) and SARDINIA (the island). I combine these administrative regions, although not exactly similar, for the same reason why the Italian Armed Forces Command combines them (the Italian Ministry of Defense puts them both in the same military region). For logistical reasons. Sardinia is far to the west of the Italian peninsula, but the easiest way to reach it is from Latium. Either by plane from Rome or by ferry from Civitavecchia. Sardinia is most famous for its beaches (by far the best in the whole Mediterranean). Latium is famous for Rome and it’s Roman history.
I’ve also added Umbria to this macro region, although some like to add it to a Tuscan trip. Umbria has a lot of beautiful towns to visit (Orvieto, Assisi, Gubbio, just to name a few). The region is easily accessible from Rome, that is why I generally like to couple it from Latium rather than Tuscany. Historically it was part of the Papal,State, so it belongs with Rome more than with the Granduchy of Tuscany. Umbria also is under the jurisdiction of the US Consulate in Rome, rather than the US Consulate in Florence. The military region of the Italian Ministry of Defense puts Umbria under the military command of Rome, rather than Florence, which is anotherr reason why Umbria sgphould be coupled with Latium rather than Tuscany.

I think I covered the top macro regions of Italy (I left out Tuscany and the southeast, since you went there already).

Many thanks Roberto, acraven and Janet. The forum comes to the rescue yet again!

We’d considered the lakes and dolomites and we thought it would be a great shift from the south. Our Italian teacher (in MIlan) did say we might be a bit bored spending 3 weeks only in that area, so adding in the Veneto area could expand this nicely. Would love to see the dolomites!

In regards to the south, we’ve never seen the Amalfi, and are compelled to visit, however several fellow travelers have warned of its over saturation with tourists. (A friends mentioning Positano had more Americans in it than Italians). I wonder if its possible to avoid this while still seeing the sites.

Sicily and Sardinia are compelling for the same reasons as above. Beaches, sites, etc. We’d honeymooned in Sardinia 15 years ago, and I’ve heard its changed some, perhaps even being a little more travel friendly than before. Sicily we'd wanted to do last year, but swapped for Puglia.

For accommodations, as with most, we adore the agriturismi. While there were some standouts in the south, our experience was the north had more to offer in regards to these types of accommodations. Many Masserias lacked the warm family feel. Given the range of regions, any particularly better suited for the farm stay?

And again, Grazie!

I loved Sicily. It's been explained to me that foreigners go to Sicily in summer, Italians go to Sardinia. Splitting your time between the two could be a great trip, lots of beautiful sandy beaches, history, and nature.