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Need advice on final 6 nights of 3 week family trip.

Need advice on final 6 nights of 3 week family trip.

Old Jan 7th, 2013, 09:01 PM
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Need advice on final 6 nights of 3 week family trip.

I have been honored with planning a 3 week trip to Italy for my sister and her family. ( She hates planning I love it and have been to Italy a few times.) My DH and I are joining as is another sis, her family and maybe our Mom. That would make 11 of us when all are present. ( Not everyone staying all 3 weeks.) There will be 4 children sis #1 kids are 11&15, sis #2 kids are 10 & 12. We are flying into Naples, ( brother-in-law tracing family roots.) We are immediately heading to house we have rented for a week just outside Sorrento. Day trips from there, Pompei,Capri,Positano etc. We are then heading to Rome for 4 nights. From there we travel to Lucca for 5 nights. I know this isn't standard place to base ourselves for Tuscany but I was trying to show them a variety of places to stay as the experience so different . From there we can do hill towns, Florence etc. This is now where I am stuck. Sis # 2 will leave from Pisa, so we are down to 7.... My nephew big car kid and really wants to see Ferrari factory. They want to see a lake ( thinking Garda.) My sis wants to see Verona. They are good leaving out of Venice or Milan. Clearly I don't like to move too much but now find we have much ground to cover.
Is it too crazy to do Bologna 2 nights, Verona 2 nights, Venice 2 nights. Or Verona 4 nights, do lakes, Ferrara as day trips. End in Venice for 2 nights?..
Open to all thoughts and advice.... Thank you
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Old Jan 7th, 2013, 10:35 PM
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We loved using Verona as a base.
You might not be aware that only Ferrari owners are allowed to tour the factory, but you can visit the Ferrari Museum in Modena. It is a 2 hour drive from Verona, though.

Two, two and two is not going to be an enjoyable experience, too rushed, especially with a number of people in your party.
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Old Jan 8th, 2013, 03:10 AM
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I think what might be fun is Pescheria del Garda on Lago di Garda, which is 30 minutes from Verona by train. In addition to sightseeing the lake by boat and visiting Verona, you can also go to Gardaland, which is a popular amusement park.

I would let the nephew and whichever adult is interested go off to Modena/Maranello for 1 night on their own. It really won't be all that expensive to find a place there for one night. Read up on how to do the factory tour.

Then I would spend 2 or 3 nights in Venice before leaving.

Another possibility would be 4 nights in Bologna, and then the car-crazed nephew could see the Ferrari factory as a day trip. I would book a pasting making class for everybody, and do a day trip to Ferrara to see the castle and bike around. You could squeeze in seeing the mosaics in Ravenna as part of a day at the beach (not a great beach, but the kids will like the swim). Then from Bologna, I would head up to Stresa on Lago Maggiore for 2 nights. You can take a day going around the islands of the Lake, and take the cable car up to the mountains for a view and hike. There is a bus that goes to Malpensa airport from Stresa, even quite early in the morning. Just make sure you have your hotel book it for you in advance.

I think Lucca is a great choice for people traveling with kids in Tuscany.
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Old Jan 8th, 2013, 03:37 AM
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Is it too crazy to do Bologna 2 nights, Verona 2 nights, Venice 2 nights. Or Verona 4 nights, do lakes, Ferrara as day trips. End in Venice for 2 nights?.>>

yes; moving numbers of people around has been described as being like herding cats, and IME families are worse.

taking into a/c the other places you will already have been the suggestion of Lake Garda is IMO a good one, followed by a few days in Venice prior to flying home. anyone who wants to go to the Ferrari factory could dip out for a night or so.

I think that would work better for the kids than staying in another city. There is also a water park on Lake Garda near Gardaland which the kids would love. IME kids prefer staying longer in fewer places, and if they are happy, everyone else should be happy too.
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Old Jan 8th, 2013, 04:37 AM
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Verona is wonderful and you could actually do everything you mention with Verona as a base. It's true that Venice is magical at night, that Bologna is a great city to spend several days in, and that staying on the lake would be relaxing but you can't have everything perfect and staying in Verona the whole six nights would make it possible to do all those things. Yes there would be some backtracking on the day trips, but when you factor in the time you'd save not changing hotels and 'herding' everyone around you will probably end up with just as much sight seeing time in the end.

I have based in Verona and Padua (different trips) and also done trips where I stayed in Venice and in Bologna. In your situation I would base in Verona. From there the lake would be an easy day trip, Venice is an hour on the train and trains are very frequent and run late into the evening. Bologna would be a longish day trip, either by car or train but certainly doable.
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Old Jan 8th, 2013, 06:38 AM
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Thank you everyone this all quite helpful I did find full day car tour I can send boys off on. May leave them for a night and catch up in Verona. It seems no town is the same unless you stay there. Since all these towns are so close we won't loose much travel time changing hotels. Would 3 Verona, 3 Venice be crazy.
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Old Jan 8th, 2013, 11:37 AM
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IMO the suggestion to base yourselves on Lake Garda for a few days followed by Venice is the best one. The beauty of the lake is that because of the excellent boat service, everyone can do their own thing, and the kids will appreciate the chance to do some kids' type activities for a few days, before more culture in Venice.

you can as easily day trip to Verona from Lake Garda as you can day trip to the Lake from Verona, and you have the advantage of the boats for getting around the lake for other day trips.

it would be completely different to anything else you'd have done, rather than a city following another city.
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Old Jan 8th, 2013, 07:48 PM
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Thank you annhig you are probably right. Seems like the best plan. Any particular towns on Garda you suggest?
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Old Jan 9th, 2013, 12:03 AM
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I'll suggest the town of Peschiera del Garda because it has the easiest connections to the train station and lots of family accommodation because the amusement park is so close by. If you don't want to go to the amusement park, there are bikes you can rent and paddle boats, or take a boat trip to Bardolino for ice cream, or Sirmione (it will be quite crowded) for more castles. Unfortunately, the most scenic part of Lago di Garda is the far north, which requires a long-ish hydrofoil trip, but you might think it worth the trip.

But I don't think Verona itself is a bad choice. It's got a super piazza, a Roman arena and a great castle, and lots of lively window-shopping, and it is simpler in terms of train logistics. It might make a nice contrast to Lucca, which is so low-key it really not a "city." A lot of people say that their kids much preferred the cities in Italy to the non-cities the adults thought they would prefer. The cities are quite safe, the center of Verona is largely pedestrianized, and there are street performers, etc. So the kids enjoy the urban scene at night, which usually is off limits to them where they come from.

If you are going during summer, the opera in Verona, outdoors in the Roman arena, would be quite an experience for everyone. Only the nose-bleed seats are cheap (and bring your own cushions.)
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Old Jan 9th, 2013, 08:08 AM
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kmh - we stayed in Garda itself which has the advantage of being both on the lake, and of being a town with things going on, shops, restaurants, etc. there is a good bus service as well as being its being one of the major harbours on the lake, so if you wanted to get to the northern end of the lake, you can get one of the express boats, and you're that much closer. it isn't as close to the train station as Peschiera del Garda [nor to the water or amusement park] but you can get there on the bus.

OTOH, it doesn't have all the many attractions of Verona which GA has mentioned.

difficult choice, but given you will have already stayed in a city, and you are going to be ending your trip in Venice, i think I'd opt for the lake.
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