fmullin

My wife & I are taking our 1st trip to Italy in late October. We haven't been there since the mid 80s. We are going to spend 3 days in Paris & the remaining 9 in Italy.
We have tentatively plotted out an itinerary that goes something like this: 2 days in Venice; train to Bologna - 1 night; pick up a car drive to Santa Margherita Ligure via Parma;3 nights with day trips to Cinque Terra, Lucca, etc. & ending up in Florence for 3 nights.
Any hotel, restaurant & day trip recommendations would be most appreciated.

luvtotravel

I'm happy to share with you my journals and photos from three trips to Italy. I have hotel and restaurant recommendations noted.

One day trip I recommend highly is Burano from Venice. It's about 45 minutes by boat. Lovely island, traffic free. The houses are painted bright colors. Note this is BURANO, not MURANO.

www.travelswithdiane.homestead.com/Italy.html

luvtotravel

Okay, I just reread your post. You're trying to cover a lot of territory in a short amount of time. Is it eight nights or nine nights? Two days (one night) in Venice seems short, even though you won't be dealing with jetlag. Three nights in Santa Margherita should be fine, but not if it includes Cinque Terre and Lucca, etc. Three nights in Florence sounds adequate, but it's the stops before that seem whirlwind-like.

May I suggest:
Venice, 3 nights
Northern Tuscany (countryside), 3 nights
Florence, 3 nights

Save Cinque Terre for another visit when you can do it justice.

lambs2

Just returned from two weeks in the Mediterranean. Started and ended our trip in Venice. If you are looing for a very nice Bed & Breakfast at a reasonable cost (around 155-175 euros per night) I recommend the Palazzo Guardi They have a website you can google and will respond to you in English. They also send excellent directions via email after you book. This charming hotel in the Dorsoduro section and is only about a 10 minute walk via the Accademia Bridge to St. Mark's Square, or you can catch a vaporetta to go on the grand Canal in either direction from the AccademiaBridge or around the other way from the Zattere landing close to the hotel. A great little restaurant located on a small canal near the hotel is the Taverna San Travesso. It does not open until 7 pm and reservations are suggested. They have a great tourist menu, but I enjoyed ala carte items like their special pizza (about 8.5 Euros) and yummy Bellinis (only 3 euros!) Not to be missed: the Secret Intineraries Tour of the Doges Palace. The hotel will make reservsations for you if you ask! Allow a couple hours beyond the tour to see the rest of the palace (included in the cost of the SI tour).

Dayle

Hi fmulin,

If you want to do this itinerary, I would recommend that you see Lucca on the way to Florence. Much more practical.

Buon viaggio!

jabez

Will you train to venice?
If so, you will spend most of that day traveling. That gives you one day (Oct. has shorter days)in Venice.
Your route to SM will take a lot of traveling. Why not rent a car in Venice or train to Milan and rent one there?
Please rethink this part of your trip.I recommend an extra day at Venice.
Do