Munich to Northern Italy

Eurail Pass is a no-no. Way cheaper to buy separate tickets. By family, any under 15?
You can get as far as Florence for 49 euro per person if everyone is traveling as an adult and you buy 90 days ahead (the maximum) nonrefundable tickets. Florence to Cinque Terra is by regional train. That is a full days journey. Back to Milan thru Genoa by IC train and you can again get discount nonrefundable tickets.
Alternate might be to do Lake Garda, Verona then Milan. Less travel time and a bit less money. Or just go straight to Milan, then up to Varenna on Lake Como for those last few days.

That's really helpful. What do you think about including Genova in the trip?

Genova is the Italian name for Genoa. As Sam noted, if you go to Cinque Terre you will pass through Genoa on your way from Cinque Terre to Milan and could break your trip there if you like.

We visited Genoa last June on our way from Nice, France to Venice. We spent 2 nights in this old beautiful town and decided that we will be back again on our next trip to Cinque Terre.
I never knew that Genoa's old town was inscribed on the World Heritage list by UNESCO
We were very impressed by old town and the history. Also if you have kids, you can visit the Aquarium of Genoa, -largest in Italy and second largest in Europe. I used airbnb to book our amazing apartment in the heart of old town, it was in old 13th century building fully remodeled, and less then $70 per night. We had a great and surprising experience in Genoa.

The most direct (fastest and cheapest) route from Munich to Milan goes south through Austria, via Bolzano ( gateway to the Dolomites) to Verona! where you change trains to head to Milan. You can get really cheap tickets in advance for the Munich to Verona leg on bahn.de ( or Munich to Bolzano if you want to stop there and visit the Dolomites). Buy the Italian portions ( Bolzano to Verona if you do that, and Verona to Milan, in advance on Trenitalia for good fares.

You could spend time in the Dolomites, Verona, and even visit Venice without going far out of your way.

What Lola says sounds good to me. I have been on this route several times, in both directions. Starting in Munich, you could take part of your last day there to travel and stay overnight in Garmish or Mittenwald. Very scenic by train. Then continue south to Innsbruck, Hall in Tirol, Bolzano or other sudtirolean towns, ending in Verona. From there, there is so much to see either east or west, I would not venture as far south as the CT, given time constraints.

Here is a link to a page with a map of the major towns east/west of Verona, on the major train route from Milan to Venice. Lots to see, and Como does not look to be too far. I have stayed overnight in Innsbruck, Bolzano, Padua, and Venice at one time or another and used the train to get to each location. Vicenza, Verona, Milan, and Como call to me too - that is for the future. Now you have me thinking!

http://goitaly.about.com/od/suggesteditineraries/l/bl_milan-venice-itinerary.htm.

I am not a good source re Eurail passes as I have never purchased one. Try the man in seat 61's website for lots of good pricing info - and all things train travel.

Enjoy, Debbie

axmst,

I also agree with Lola's suggestion. The easiest and most efficient route from Munich to Italy is via the Brenner Pass, a trip I always enjoy. Depending on your destination in Italy, there's often a change at Verona Porta Nuova station.

With 4-5 days, there are lots of possibilities. Although I usually enthusiastically recommend the Cinque Terre, in this case neither that or Genoa would be good fits in term of transportation times. With that time frame, you might split your time between two locations. Some possibilities.....

• Verona - this would be a good first stop as it's the easiest one to reach from Munich in terms of travel time (about 5 hours). While there you could have a look at the Roman Amphitheatre and other sights, or perhaps take a day trip to Gardaland (depending on the age of your family). Depending on when your trip is, you may be there during Opera season, so hotels may be a bit "scarce or pricey". Opera performances are held in the Ampitheatre and last time I was there, they were doing dress rehearsals for Aida.
• Lake Como - Varenna (mid-lake, on the east shore) is a big favourite with many here, but it may be a bit "quiet" for children.
• Stresa - on Lake Maggiore, another very nice town and this would be a good location for your second stop. While there you could tour the beautiful Borromeo islands or take the Mt. Mottarone Cable Car for some fantastic views. You could also take a day trip to Locarno (CH) on the scenic Cento Valli Railway, returning in the early evening by boat. One other benefit of Stresa is that it's an easy hop to MXP for your return flight (however that would depend on how early your flight is).

Just to add my two cents...have you ever been to Venice? It's also northern Italy, and if you could choose between Cinque Terre (ho-hum) or Venice (wow!) go for Venice. It's an easy train ride from Venice to Milan.

Don't be duped into buy Eurail Passes. Point to point is MUCH less expensive.

Lastly, Air Dolomiti flies direct from Munich to Venice. I know you said you didn't want to fly, but Air Dolomiti is a top-notch airline. You'll feel like you've stepped back in time about 20 years because even though it has affordable fares you'll STILL get clean planes, nice flight attendants and in-flight snacks and refreshments.

These are all fantastic suggestions! Thank you so much to everyone replying!

Now that we are more sure of our itinerary I wanted to post another query. We have decided to go Munich to Bolzano to Venice to Milan. In looking at train ticket prices it seems this would cost (3 adults one child) $970 for individual tickets but an Interrail Pass for 5 days travel over 10 days would only be $912. It seems this may make more sense but maybe I'm missing something...?

I think your ticket estimate is high. Is it for 1st class or 2nd? Just using the full-fare estimates on Rick’s Train Travel Time & cost Map, Munich to Bolzano to Venice to Milan would cost no more than $140 per adult in 2nd class; some kid discounts or advance-purchase discounts would be possible.

The Eurail Select Pass (1st class for 4 countries) costs $390 per adult, a bit less for youths 12-25, and under 12 free; that's obviously overkill for your relatively short travel route. If you are a resident of Europe (and have been for at least the past 6 months), then you are eligible for InterRail passes, which are priced differently.