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Lisbon to Rome - travel the coast or island hop?

Lisbon to Rome - travel the coast or island hop?

Old Jan 27th, 2014, 09:45 AM
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Lisbon to Rome - travel the coast or island hop?

Hi everyone,

My husband and I are planning a trip to Europe beginning the middle of March and ending mid-April. We'll be landing in Lisbon, Portugal and then flying out of Rome, Italy. I know March/April can be quite cool still, so we're hoping to make the best of the weather by starting in the south (ish) of Portugal where the temperature will hopefully be mild and finishing in Italy where we hope it will have warmed up a bit by April. We are trying to travel through four countries in a month, but we don't want a crazy fast-paced trip or a strict schedule. This is our belated honeymoon trip, so while we want to do and see as much as possible, a little romance and a few lazy days are also important.

We'd love some thoughts on the best way to travel from the French Riviera to Rome. So far we are planning on spending few days in Lisbon and the surrounding area, then travelling to Madrid followed by Barcelona. This part of the plan is pretty well set, but what would be good itinerary for the rest of the way? We'd love to see the beautiful coasts of France and Italy, but are also interested in visiting Corsica and Sardinia. Given our travel time and budget, I don't think we can do both.

So, here are a couple very rough itineraries we're considering:

A) From Barcelona, head to Marseille then to Cannes or Nice. Spend some time exploring Cinque Terre and make our way down to Rome.

B) From Barcelona, head Marseille and/or Nice and from there take a ferry over to Sardinia or Corsica (hopefully we'd have time to do both islands) and then ferry back to Rome to spend our last couple of days there.

We are not totally married to visiting Marseille, either -- if there are other places in that area that are more worth a visit, I would love to hear about them (Aix-en-Provence, Toulon?). Keep in mind we will be traveling this area in late March to early April, so we're open to adapting our plans to best suit the weather

Thanks for your help!!

Monica
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Old Jan 27th, 2014, 10:04 AM
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Are you planning to drive or take the train? If driving, that's a lot of driving in a month and you would need to see if a lease was possible in order to avoid a big drop off fee (dropping in another country).
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Old Jan 27th, 2014, 10:13 AM
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there are also ferries from Barcelona to Livorno Italy or somewhere near Genoa and from those ports you can take ferries to Corsica and then between Corsica and Sardinia and then to Civitavvechia, I believe, near Rome.

I've been to both Corsica and Sardinia and to me i liked Corsica better - more varied and older towns though both islands are very developed along the coasts for seaside/beach visits. You can take trains around both islands.

Again are you going by train or car or plane or what - makes a difference in folks responses.
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Old Jan 27th, 2014, 10:14 AM
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Picking up a Renault lease in Lisbon will cost $280 extra, and returning it in Rome will cost another $280 extra. This might be more expensive than the cross-border drop-off fee for a rental, and the month lease itself might also be more expensive than the rental.
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Old Jan 27th, 2014, 10:28 AM
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Much as I love Madrid I might suggest seeing if you can include Seville, Cordoba and Granada then dash up to Barcelona and a sprint across Southern France (Cannes/Nice/Marseille are all very nice but not at the same level as say Avignon/Arles/Nimes or indeed Genoa and the CT)

After Genoa/CT I'd trip over to Florence, Siena and then Rome.

Corsica looks the better bet if you must Island hop but only if you have done the whole Tuscany thing already
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Old Jan 27th, 2014, 10:32 AM
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On this trip, are you interested in only seeing and experiencing landscape and countryside as you drive along, and not seeing or visiting historic places, quaint villages or beautiful cathedrals? In that case, are you looking for advice only on the most scenic routes? It can be a bit gloomy and rainy still in March as you drive into Northern Italy. Sometimes you are lucky and late winter, early spring is mild. Other times, not so pleasant and the landscape is still a little bare.
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Old Jan 27th, 2014, 11:49 AM
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You will need 5 days each for a somewhat decent visit of Lisbon and the wider surroundings and Madrid and surroundings, plus a couple of days for Barcelona. If you want to visit Florence - Rome - Naples and surroundings too, you will have no time for Provence, Corsica or Sardinia.
A low cost flight or a ferry ride from Barcelöna to Pisa/Livorno or Rome/Civitavecchia might therefore be the better choice.

BTW: The Barcelona - Civitavecchia (Rome) ferry doesn't stop in Sardinia until May.
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Old Jan 27th, 2014, 12:01 PM
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I have been to Sardinia and Corsica many times.

Sardinia, more so, but both are definitely summer destinations and are quieter out of season. I find Sardinia pretty depressing before May and after October.
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Old Jan 27th, 2014, 12:16 PM
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Thanks for all of the quick responses, everyone! Very helpful

As for how we will be traveling, we are still deciding that but so far have been looking at the trains, or maybe driving. Still trying to figure out if we'll get value with a Global Eurail pass. We're not opposed to one or two short flights if they are the better option.

We are definitely interested in visiting historic places, quaint villages and the like -- especially as we know we'll be traveling during the rainy months and can't count on nice weather and outdoor activities. At this point our plans are very flexible. If we can see beautiful places, enjoy some local culture and eat good food, we will be very happy!

Initially we thought we should keep as far south as possible in each country, in the hopes of finding decent weather, but maybe we should be focusing more on Spain/Portugal? I'd hate to leave out France and Italy completely though, as I'm not sure when we'll get to return to Europe.

Once again, all of your advice is very appreciated!!
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Old Jan 27th, 2014, 12:19 PM
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The coast of Sardegna is mostly seaside resorts, so of course it's a bit gloomy in the off season. However, the interior is beautiful and has very interesting archaeological sites. There are flights from Rome to various places in Sardinia.

I would be more worried about the Cinque Terre at that time of year.
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Old Jan 27th, 2014, 12:25 PM
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In place of the Cinque Terre, include the Costa Brava north of Barcelona, and waterfront Collioure, France north of the Costa Brava.
In Italy consider Santa Margherota Ligure which may be nicer than the CT at that time of year. Or, head south for better, warmer weather. Have you considered Sicily?
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