WHERE TO GO FROM VENICE

Agreed with first response.

Some questions...

Do you have one week in addition to the amount of time you want to spend in Venice?

Is that 7 full days, or does that count the day you fly in/out?

...what kinds of things are you interested in... besides, shop, eat, and 'interesting things'?

Making a few assumptions... that you have 7 full usable days...

Day 1: Arrive Venice. Night in Venice.

Day 2: Venice, train to Rome in afternoon.

Day 3-4: Rome

Day 5: Rome, morning train to Florence. Night in Florence.

Day 6: Florence, evening train to Venice.

Day 7: Venice.

Day 8: Fly out. Very sad. :( .
.
.

You can visit www.trenitalia.com to work out trip length and costs.

The three rail rides necessary for this itinerary are:

Venice-Rome, runs about hourly, takes 3h 45m, 73 Euro for the fast one.
Rome-Florence, fast one at least hourly, 1h 30m, 44 Euro for the fast one (slow ones on this route are 4hours or more in some cases, but very cheap).
Florence-Venice, hourly, about 2h, 42 Euro (some slower, cheaper also available).

Carol - As usual Steve nailed it - Venice to Rome - Doesn't get any better and very to do.

Ciao, Greg

On the way to Rome, if you want a small, quaint hilltown experience, then stop in Orvieto (accessible by train). See the Duomo, shop the ceramic stores in the piazza, eat at a restaurant where the locals hang and don't forget to buy a bottle of Orvieto Classico. To top it off, spend the night. This town is 1 hr. outside of Rome. Have fun.

Thank you. I should have been clearer, we're only interested northern Italy locations.( We've been fortunate to have traveled Rome thru Naples in 2007) We have 7 full days. Florence and Orvieto sound nice. However taking the train to Milan for a base, then day trips to Lake Como & C. T. seem like a great idea. Any
suggestions about these choices?

hi carol
we will be in venice for 1 week in october and got a suggestion from a friend to go to lake garda, about 2 hour train ride from venice, past verona. really excited, never been there; rented a room for the night in the town of bardolino right on the lake.others towns around the lake and you can take ferries to them. may be worth looking up. happy travels.

Thank you, that's a great idea !!!

All the Northern Italy guidebooks agree on the following towns to see: Padua, Verona, Vicenza, Bassano del Grappa. Some add Trieste, Portogruaro, Treviso. All are accessible by train from Venice.

We are spending ten days in the region this summer and will cover these + 3 days in Venice, adjusting as desired. Sorry, don't have real-life experience to share yet, but this itinerary feels doable and interesting to us. We are not going to push to see Umbria, Tuscany and Rome on this trip. I don't think we're even going to head to the lakes or the Alps. We are staying in one place outside Venice and doing day trips, mostly by train, so I've checked the distances and it all works out comfortably.

We have also enjoyed the villages of Lake Garda from Riva del Garda on the north end to Sirmione (very lovely) in the south and villages on the east side of the lake--Torre del Benaco, Garda, Bardolino and Lazise. Verona and Padova are also very nice as is the untouristy town of Mantova (Mantua). We also enjoyed visiting Vallegio sul Mincio and Borghetto near Mantova known for their tortellini. Buon Viaggio!

Bologna or Verona would be good choices to include.

Also Vicenza and/or the Dolomites would be worthwhile places in the immediate area.

A little further out Sienna or Assisi would be good choices too.

I'm leaving out all the great little places that don't have as many things to do and aren't as easy to get to by train but are part of what makes Italy special.