Austria or Switzerland that is the question. planing to go to northern Italy and want to get an idea of how much time one needs to see enough to be satisfied and which country to tie in with northern Italy. Any suggestions would be appreciated Thank You
Pat
Posted by
Park Ridge, IL
524 posts
Pat It's really key for you to buy Rick Steves' Italy guidebook and check the library for his books on Austria / Switzerland. This will give you some idea of what Northern Italy and these countries have to offer. Once you have done that, we can be more helpful if you let us know what interests you. Museums, history, art, soft adventure, foodie, culture, nature, etc. Also, how many days were you thinking of for your trip? Bobbie
Posted by
Seattle, WA
17450 posts
Are you interested in hiking, and what part of northern Italy do you wish to visit? Switzerland combines well with Lake Como, going either the Gotthard Pass route from Zurich or Luzern to Como ( town) and on to Milan. Or you can take the Bernina Express route as far as Tirano and go straight to Varenna. Austria is better if you wish to visit the Dolomites and/ or Venice, as a main train route goes from Innsbruck south to Bolzano, gateway to the Dolomites, and Verona, transfer point to Venice. Or you can continue on the same line to Bologna and Firenze.
Posted by
Seattle, WA
17450 posts
A few additional thoughts. If your main focus is Italy, with a few days exploring cultural sights and alpine scenery, you could consider flying into Zurich, which is a very easy airport to navigate. Lots os carriers fly in there and prices are usually good. You can take the train right from the Zurich airport directly to downtown Zurich and on to Luzern if you like. Luzern is a beautiful small city on a lake, surrounded by mountains you can ascend by train or cable car. Engleberg and Mt. Titlis are a short ride away. Or you could go to one of the high mountain villages innthe Bernese Oberland to really be "in" the Alps. From Luzern you can connect at Arth-Goldau to the train that runs between Zurich and Milan, with stops at Lugano and Como. Lots of options. For example, at Como you can catch a ferry to other towns on the lake, such as Varenna or Bellagio. Or continue to Milan to take a train to Varenna, or to head to Verona or Venice. I am focusing on this route as there are often discounted tickets for the trip offered by the Swiss rail site, rail.ch.