6 Week Retirement Trip - Woohoo!
 

I have finally joined the Happily Retired Club and am planning what will probably be my last trip to bella Italia. Therefore, I'm going for as long as I possibly can - 6 weeks. No big rush, visiting some new places inspired by others' TRs and returning to some favorites. Combo of driving and trains, probably flying in to Bologna and out of Milan. First week of the trip I will be joined by life-long BF who wants to join the Bologna/Piedmonte part. Unfortunately she is limited to 1 week due to abandoning her non-traveling husband in order to come with me to celebrate.

Looking for input from the Fodorites on possible improvement in the order of itinerary, transportation modes, suggested highlights to visit. Not afraid to drive solo, have done it several times before including Sicily in 2013. No desire to drive in larger cities for the reasons we all know. I am interested in everything! History, ancient sites, architecture, art, scenery, food and wine. Love to mix cities with countryside. Intend to travel more slowly than ever before. Originally planned to travel south to north for crowd and weather factors, but switching to Bologna first to accommodate BFF. Would love to hear your best recommendations for a splurge restaurant in each area and special lodging.

Here is the rough draft. Suggestions welcome!

April 15 Arrive Bologna, perhaps train to Asti, pick up car (depending)
April 16 Piedmonte, stay La Morra (per Maitaitom's rec), Alba, other?
April 17 Piedmonte
April 18 - 23 Bologna, possible day trips to Ravenna, Padua, Modena or Parma, food tour in Bologna a definite
April 23 friend leaves from Bologna, I take high speed train to Rome
April 23 - 30 Roma!
April 30 Orvieto (return to favorite), wander and enjoy
May 1 train to Foligno, pick up car, Spello (return to favorite) - check holiday impact on rental pick up
May 1 - 13 allow 12 days to see parts of Umbria & Le Marche. Previously visited: Civita di Bagnoreggio, Todi, Deruta, Assisi, Gubbio. Would like to visit Norcia (Piano Grande), Arrezzo, Urbino, Ascoli Picenzo, Sinaluniga.....
May 14 return car, train & bus to Fiesole, no desire to stay IN Florence
May 15 Fiesole to visit a couple places in Florence I missed on first trip back in 1996!
May 16 - 20 train to Santa Margherita Ligure (return to favorite), also considering Rapallo or Camogli. Already visited Cinque Terre and Pisa in 2000.
May 21 - 23 Lago di Orta, previously visited Maggiore and Como.
May 24, 25, 26 add time to existing, or? So many options!
May 27 fly out of Milan

Wanted to include the Dolomiti as I have always wanted to return in the summer! Doesn't seem to fit well geographically or weather-wise. Would want this to be at the end of the trip, but even so, maybe too early and still mud season.

Question: Do I need a car for Lago di Orta? Wouldn't think so, but I know trains are not great between the lakes. Buses instead? Assume ferries run around the lake. I know it's very small.

Thanks in advance for your input! The draft itinerary is not my first choice given the switch to Bologna and Piedmonte first, but may still work given the time I have.

I'm no help with this part of Italy, but congratulations, Dayle! :star: :) :tu: :wine: :yay:

I have lots of thoughts...but I'm nursing a cold, so just some random ideas here:

Is Bologna a return visit? Have you been to Ravenna? Ravenna is quite remarkable, so if you can go, I doubt you would regret it.

About three years ago I took a trip with friends and family that had us driving from Rome, stopping in Orvieto, on to Spello for several nights and sightseeing in Umbria there, driving across the Piano Grande to Ascoli Piceno, where we stayed several days, doing day trips around there and a bit into Abruzzo. By the way, Abruzzo is wonderful, the Gran Sasso marvelous. [Don't trust me on a route that makes the most sense. I'm terrible at logistics like that when I'm not looking at a map.]

In Bologna I've stayed twice at Hotel Corona d'Oro and like it, but maybe you want a bigger splurge? Rooms are uneven, so ask for a room on a higher floor facing the street.

I stayed in Camogli two years ago and splurged at Hotel Cenobio dei Dogi, which was really lovely and comfortable and relaxing.

There is a lot to see in Arezzo. I stayed in a modest B & B, so a save not a splurge.

Since you're allowing yourself a good bit of time in Umbria, I would suggest a day or two on/around Lago Trasimeno. It doesn't get much press around here, but has quite a few treasures.

Sounds wonderful. A couple of comments - I'm not sure why you're flying into Bologna if you're heading straight off to Piedmont as that doesn't make logistical sense. Better to link Piedmont with Liguria and lake Orta I think, or fly into somewhere further north and west. Lake Orta is accessible by public transport, although some is infrequent and some (e.g. from Stresa) is seasonal.

Thank you everyone for your good wishes!

Yes, have visited Venice twice before and being an ambitious sightseer, was able to see 99% of what I wanted. Just missed Torcello. I could spend many more days just wandering this fascinating city, but.....so many wonderful places to visit in Italy! I understand Torino is wonderful and the Film Museum would be of great interest. We will see if I can fit it on this trip. Thanks thursdaysd!

Leely2, when did you visit the Piano Grande? From what I understand my trip might be a little early to catch wildflowers, but I would think it will still be nice spring green in early May! Trying to decide if I want to approach the Le Marche and Umbria part as almost a road trip with leisurely driving and lodging stops along the way. I travel light. Looks like the main road between Ascoli Piceno and north to Senigallia, is the coastal route which I have heard is not very scenic. Has anyone driven inland through the mountains on the smaller roads? I would probably want to spend at least a couple days in Urbino and Arezzo. Need to do more research.

Yes, flying in to Blogona and heading to Piedmonte is really not working given my friend's 8 night limitation. Too far to go for a short visit. I have proposed 3 new options:
1. stay in Bologna the entire time and do more day trips. I see that even Vicenza is easy by train.
2. head straight to Padua for 4 nights and also visit Vicenza from there, then back to Bologna for 4 nts. Friend heads home and I may stay another day depending on what we do together.
3. head straight to Florence for 2 nights to see a couple main sites, return to Bologna for the rest of the part with my friend.

Then I would put Piedmont after Liguria and before Lago di Orta which makes much better flow.

Should I keep the car for Orta?

It's a work in progress :) Trying to work around friend's limitations as she flies out of a smaller airline market city. Very pricey for her to fly open jaw.

Thanks for your suggestions. Please do keep them coming! I have always planned my trips with the Fodorites' excellent help. Grazie mille!

Thank you for this reminder StCirg. Lago Trasimeno has always been on my radar. I'll see if it fits. Maybe I'm planning too much time for Norcia to Ascoli Piceno and up to Urbino to Arezzo.

I think that any of those three options would be great but my least preferred would be the one which stays in Florence - you've been there before and it's only a short train ride from Bologna so it doesn't seem worth changing hotels. For the second option, Mantova or Vicenza itself would both be lovely as well. Just depends on which has the greatest appeal. Bologna is so well situated for day trips that that would be no hardship either and it would be relaxing to stay in one place.

I don't think you've allowed too much time for the Umbria/Marche portion of your trip. I always seem to give advice to people who have allowed too little time for this area and necessarily miss most of its treasures.

I suggest starting with Norcia, and then going to Ascoli Piceno. You can stop at the Piano Grande en route. There will be little to no flowering at this time of year, but it's an impressive sight anyway. You might also want to stop in Acquasanta Terme, which is a thermal spa of natural sulphur springs on the river Tronto. There was considerable earthquake damage to this town, but the spa is open again. You can go to the indoor pool for a swim, entrance €48. There is also an outdoor pool, which is free, but I don't know if it's open in April. The town is attractive and in a scenic spot.

Ascoli Piceno deserves at least a day. The central Piazza del Popolo is one of the most beautiful in Italy. There is an old-fashioned traditional bar, the Caffè Meletti, on the piazza, which you should definitely visit. There are also medieval towers, like those in San Gimignano, but not as numerous.

On your way north, you might want to visit Offida, where they have a long lace-making tradition. There is a museum of lace-making, where they usually have someone demonstrating the art. There is also a very unusual medieval church/fortress on the edge of a cliff. Another possibility, if the weather is warm and dry, would be to take a walk in the Gola del Infernaccio, a very scenic mountain gorge. I don't know if you'd have time for both, so choose based on your interests and the weather.

Heading further north in the interior (avoiding the autostrada along the coast) there is much beautiful scenery and many tiny towns. The next stop I would suggest is Urbisaglia, and the Abbey of Chiaravalle di Fiastra. Urbisalglia has some interesting Roman ruins, but the main interest for me is the beautiful Romanesque Cistercian abbey, which is adjacent to a nature reserve. Parts of the abbey date to the 5th century, built with stones from Roman Urbisaglia, but most of it dates to medieval times. They have a shop where you can buy all sorts of products made by the monks.

Heading north again, there are many stopovers I could recommend. San Severino Marche, with another beautiful piazza, is a beautiful place, with a lower town and an upper town. The cathedral in the upper town is worth a visit. We once had a very nice meal in a restaurant near the cathedral. I can't remember the name, and it was about ten years ago, so my experience may no longer be valid. Caldarola has a very nice castle, which unfortunately was damaged by the earthquake and has still not reopened. Camerino, a little jewel of a walled hill town, was also seriously damaged, and most of the center is off limits.

There are two excellent restaurants in the vicinity of Camerino. One is Pappafò, in a beautiful hillside setting just outside of Camerino. It is open for business and also has rooms. We've eaten there several times, but, as we have a summer house nearby, we've never stayed in the rooms. This is my favorite restaurant in the area. The other restaurant is in the valley below Camerino, near the town on Castelraimondo. It's called the Borgo Lanciano, in a complex that was once the service quarters of the nearby Castello di Lanciano. This is a popular spot for weddings, with their own little chapel, and the restaurant is excellent. It's a bit more formal than Pappafò. There is also a spa on the grounds, where I have sometimes enjoyed a shiatsu massage. They also have rooms for guests, in a lovely cloister-like setting.

The Castello di Lanciano is just across the road from the spa complex, but it's also closed because of earthquake damage. This and the castle in Caldarola, are privately owned, and the owners probably are short of funds for repairs. In this area, castles are thick on the ground and most are privately owned.

Very near Camerino is a tiny jewel of a town called Pioraco, where three rivers come together. This town dates from Roman times, and there is a little Roman bridge in the town, much repaired over the centuries. I have mentioned many places where you might want to stop for a few hours heading north from Urbisaglia/Fiastra, and you really would have to pick and choose, I think, unless you spend a night or two in the area.

The next destination I would recommend is Fabriano, which was one of the earliest European centers of papermaking. The old paper mill is now a museum, where they give a very interesting tour, also available in English. I would call ahead to let them know if you want an English tour, so that they'll be sure to have a suitable guide on hand. (In the summer, they almost always have an English-speaking guide.) They have a great gift shop featuring hand-made paper, but also all sorts of artisanal items related to paper, such as leather pencil cases and agendas. (They also have a shop at Fiumicino airport, and maybe also at Malpensa.)

Near Fabriano, the caverns of Frasassi are worth a visit if you have any interest in exploring caverns. They have English tours, but if you can't make one of them, they'll give you a headset which explains what you're seeing in English. The caverns are located in a scenic mountain gorge along the Sentino river. In the nearby town of San Vittore Terme, another thermal spa town, there is a lovely little Romanesque church, which is now a speleological museum. Your ticket to the caverns includes entrance to this museum, but the main interest here is the church itself. There's also a good restaurant called La Scaletta. The parking lot for the caverns is very near the center of San Vittore Terme. From the parking lot, there is a shuttle to take you to the cavern entrance. You could walk back to the parking lot, making a slight detour to visit San Vittore Terme. If you go on the weekend, I would reserve a ticket to the caverns. On weekdays in April it shouldn't be necessary. In the summer, I would avoid weekends altogether if possible, because sometimes the tour groups are scheduled too close together, leading to bottlenecks.

Fabriano is also near another remarkable medieval monastery called Fonte Avellana. This is in a beautiful spot on the slopes of Mount Catria. There are several hiking trails that pass through the grounds of the monastery. There are regular guided tours of the monastery; they are usually in Italian, but they will give you a script in English which enables you to follow along.

From Fabriano, with a possible detour for a visit to Fonte Avellana, I would head east towards the coast. We're getting close to Urbino! I would make a brief stop in Pergola, to see the Museum of the Bronzi Dorati, which are a nearly unique collection of life-sized ancient Roman gilded bronze statues that were discovered nearby. After Pergola, I recommend a stop in Corinaldo, one of the best-preserved walled medieval towns in this part of Italy. There is an excellent restaurant in Corinaldo called the Nova Taberna, located on its central stairway. In the immediate vicinity there is an archaeological site called Suasa, which is very interesting. Its opening hours in April would probably be limited. There is also a paleo Christian church in Corinaldo, where you can get a tour if you call ahead. The tourist office can help you with this. This most interesting thing in Corinaldo is to explore the medieval streets and the 14th century wall. There is a hotel in an ex-monastery built into the wall, but there are also several B&Bs in the town.

If you stay in Corinaldo, you might want to take a quick drive to Senigallia, on the Adriatic Coast, where one of Italy's top restaurants, the three-Michelin-starred Uliassi, is located. It's expensive, but worth the price. Another starred restaurant there is Madonnina del Pescatore, but I prefer Uliassi (and it has more stars!) There are also some excellent non-starred restaurants in Senigallia. One of my favorites is Raggiazzurro, on the seaside.

Moving north from Corinaldo, you should stop for an hour or two in Mondavio, where there is a medieval fortress, designed by the same medieval military architect who designed the walls of Corinaldo. There's a little museum inside the fortress, which is very interesting. On the top floor, there is a museum of medieval armaments, and a great view over the surrounding countryside. There are two other possible stops: One is Fratte Rosa, a center of artisanal ceramic laboratories. The traditional ceramics of this area have a deep eggplant glaze, often just on the inside of the vessel with splashes on the outside. I like the style very much, but they also make ceramics of other styles. The other possible stop before reaching Urbino is the Gola del Furlo, in antother mountain gorge, where there is a tunnel carved in the rock over 2000 years ago. Until very recently, the modern road still passed through that tunnel, but a landslide closed part of the road beyond the tunnel. However, it may be open again. If not, you can park your car and walk through the tunnel. Just beyond the town of Furlo, the ancient abbey church of San Vincenzo al Furlo, always open and unattended, is very interesting. There's a little park adjacent to the church, where you can see some ancient Roman flood control works. There's also a little bar where you can get a snack.

Finally, you'll reach Urbino, where there is a lot to see, both in the city and in the vicinity. I think it's easy to find information on Urbino, but if you have any questions, I'll try to help.

Arezzo is an easy train ride from Florence, but you could also visit it after Urbino. The route by car between Urbino and Arezzo is scenic and there are several nice stopping points.

I haven't given a lot of restaurant advice, but, sincerely, it's hard to find a disappointing meal in this area, known among Italians for its excellent traditional cuisine. Some of the tradional specialities:

Passatelli, a fat noodle made from bread crumbs and cheese, often served in a meat broth, but also with other dressings.
Vincisgrassi, the marchigiano version of lasagne, and better, in my opinion.
Brodetto, a fish stew, which you can find in many restaurants along the coast.
Meat dishes and sauces based on wild boar (cinghiale).
Rabbit (coniglio) in potacchio, a method of cooking meat in which the meat (or fish) is slowly braised with wine, herbs (including wild fennel) and a little tomato.

Some wines of Le Marche:
Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi, or also "di Matelica"
Lacrima di Morro d'Alba (a wine found only in a very small area, made from a grape found only in this area).
Rosso Piceno
Rosso del Conero

Congratulations, Dayle! I'm so excited that you chose Bella Italia as your first retirement trip. The two TRs below cover some of the towns you plan to visit. Spoleto was such a favorite because of our hotel and meals there. We did go to the lake StC mentioned (from Perugia) but it was in March and the Lace Museum I wanted to see wasn't yet open for the season. We took trains or buses but needed a car for some of the towns mentioned in the Perugia TR.

https://www.fodors.com/community/europe/turin-spoleto-bologna-and-bellagio-tr-947180/

fodors.com/community/europe/perugia-and-rome-by-train-and-bus-769131/

Enjoy and please report back asap!

Most of the places I've mentioned are intended as short stops along your route north. If you want advice on where to spend a few nights, I would recommend:

Ascoli Piceno or vicinity
Vicinity of Camerino, where I've mentioned two places that have accomodations
Fabriano or vicinity
Corinaldo or vicinity.
Urbino

PS, Dayle, the second TR was the one where we tried to meet up with you but we couldn't find the resto Cul de Sac and ended up at Rust.

Oh my goodness! Grazie mille bvlenci and TDudette! You have exactly captured what I had in mind for this part of my trip. It sounds like I can do a sort of road trip with lots of interesting stops, great scenery and beautiful small towns to stay over. As the itinerary is evolving, it looks like I will be in Le Marche and Umbria early May so that may help with English tours and opening hours a bit. You have provided so much detail I can't think of questions at the moment, but I will be coming back with many I am certain!

Thinking about a good rental car pick up location. I was going to do Foligno and the Spello, but it is further north if I'm heading to Ascoli Piceno. Trying to figure out when to stay in my favorite, beautiful Spello for a couple nights. I was thinking first before starting the rest of the driving to Le Marche and other parts of Umbria. Any input? Maybe drop the car in Arezzo? Not too big of a city ofr easy drop off?

We have had two days of non-stop torrential rain and wind here in Utah and we even got our first snow down to about 8,500 ft.! Not just a dusting either. I think I will have plenty to do researching details this winter! Now it's sunny - yay - and time to take the Pugs for a walk.

Once again, grazie mille!

Also, I was just on line before I saw your posts and was looking at Ascoli Piceno. The piazza is gorgeous! Definitely want to stay there.

Fantastic! Good for you. I hope to see your TR!

bvlenci, you make me want to jump on a plane to Italy right now! I spent a few days in Urbino last year and would absolutely love to see more of the area.

dayle, there are tours of the Palladian villas from Vicenza, not sure about other towns. I haven't done a canal tour (ran out of time) but we visited several villas within the town centre by foot.

bvlenci's recs are spot on. I dined at Uliassi this June and it was just wonderful. Other excellent restaurants I enjoyed in Senigallia were Sepia by Niko and Nana Piccolo Bistrot. Both in the moderate price range with creative, high-quality cooking.

In Ascoli I stayed at Albergo Sant'Emidio, moderately priced but stylish enough and very comfortable. We parked in a parking garage a few blocks away. Driving in and out of Ascoli was not difficult.

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...fb30049395.jpg
Amuse bouche at Uliassi
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...8bbc5cff9b.jpg
"Rimini Festa" aka calamari at Uliassi

The fact that there are two Michelin-starred restaurants in a smallish town (about 40,000 inhabitants) raises the standard for the others. There are several other excellent restaurants there. We also like La Baldigara, il Conte Marzi, and la Trattoria Rimante. Rimante specializes in meat rather than seafood. For a reasonably priced restaurant with pizza and vegetarian options, Saladino is a good choice. (We've only eaten there once, but I put it in my database.)

There are plenty of other good restaurants in near y towns. In fact, it's hard to go wrong around here.

I totally agree with you on Spello! I visited back in 2005 and fell in love! Il Mulino was excellent and everyone should get gelato or wine, or both, at the bar. Such a view. A little piece of heaven....

Congratulations on your retirement, Dayle, and what a wonderful trip you are planning! I hope - know!! - you will have a wonderful time.

I am easing into retirement and hope to get there by next year and am also planning - well, contemplating at this stage - a long trip to Italy. I would like to rent an apt. in perhaps 2 locations in northern and central Italy and do day trips from there, finishing off in my beloved Sicily. We'll see.

I love all of the suggestions from Bvlenci and others for the area you're planning, which I'm not that familiar with. It sounds wonderful. I look forward to hearing further about your plans and eventually your trip report.

It's been quite a while since I've dined at Madonnina dei Pescatori, so I can't say much except that I found them a bit pretentious.

We once walked into Uliassi on a whim when we were taking a walk on the beach. (It was our anniversary.) That was off season (late October) and it was back when they had only two stars.

Uliassi is expensive, but not outrageously so. You could count on each course costing about €50, I think.

​​​​​You can download their menu on their web page.

Thank you panecott! Your plan for a trip sounds great. I do wish I could get back to Sicily too, but my 2013 trip was a "one and only". I did what for me was a long trip and was able to see all my top priority sites so have to be happy with the great memories!

Thank you again bvlenci. I spent some time yesterday mapping out your Le Marche recommendations, which all sounded interesting. Not really too much driving if I spend 1 night in some places and 2 in others. It would make a very nice loop!

So i'm at the point in planning where I need to figure out nights on the Le Marche road trip portion. Thanks to bvlenci and Leely2 for their input on specific places, restaurants! Please give me your opinion about number of nights needed in each of the towns/areas considering stops along the way and if I'm on track.

Day 1: drive Spello to Norcia to Ascoli Piceno
Day 2: visit Ascoli Piceno, stay 2nd night, is there enough for 2 nights, 1.5 days?
Day 3: drive Offida maybe (lace museum), & fort, visit Urbisaglia, Abbey Chiaravalle di Fiastra, drive to Camerino area stay maybe Pappafo - 2 nights
Day 4: visit San Severino (cathedral), Pioraco, stay Pappafo 2nd night
Day 5: drive to Fabriano & stay, visit paper museum & tour, monastery Fonte Avellana
Day 6: drive to Corinaldo & stay, visit Pergola enroute (Bronzi Dorati)
Day 7: Corinaldo area sightseeing, lunch Senigallia?, stay 2nd night in Corinaldo area
Day 8: drive to Urbino, Palazzo Ducale, other sightseeing in city
Day 9: drive to Arezzo, drop car, sightseeing, do I need 2 nights?
Day 10: train to Fiesole

Debating on 2 nights in Corinaldo to dine at Ulissi in Senigallia on second day. Might prefer lunch? Really not sure if I would feel comfortable dining solo at restaurant of this type. Sometimes I run in to attitude as a solo diner.

I need to check the map again to see if I have the above in the logical driving order for the sightseeing. Do I have too much time planned for the sites, or not enough?

Thanks in advance for helping me figure out this region of Italy that will be completely new to me! I will reserve lodging in advance.

Dayle, I had lunch at Uliassi solo this summer. I don't know what your comfort level is at this type of place, especially for long meals, but they are very gracious people. I have a pretty stressful job, so when I get into that kind of environment, with fine food, gracious service, and a tranquil atmosphere I really do unwind--which is otherwise difficult for me!

Look at Civitella del Tronto in Abruzzo for a visit from Ascoli Piceno; it is close, but to the south. We also stopped at an abbey nearby that day but of course I will need to look up the name. We stayed several nights in Ascoli but daytripped from there (including to Offida, which is very atmospheric). An intrepid sightseer could see the town's sights in one day. [Arezzo has much more to see in town, as a comparison. What are your interests? I stayed three nights but two would have worked.]

Your itinerary might be a bit too much hopping around for me, but it really depends on your preference.

Hi Dayle,
Congrats!
A lesser-known splurge lodging in that area is the Abbazia S.Pietro in valle. Great views, hiking, breakfast plus the abbey itself with its historical art. Reasonable prices.
Have you tried Cafe Properzio in Spello? Great wine and food.
Nearby Trevi, Bevagna and Montefalco are all interesting.
To what degree has Norcia re-opened after the quakes? I am just curious. Likewise, a drive to see the sunrise at Castelluccio would be worth crossing an ocean for, especially if there would be a thermal inversion filling the valley with morning mist.
I'd give Lago di Orta some time.
Tante belle cose.

I am done. The end.

Dayle, your itinerary looks good to me. Most of your stays are two nights, with reasonable day trips, so I don't consider it too rushed. We did a similar trip in Tuscany last summer with another couple, and enjoyed it very much.

The only slight modificato I'd suggest is to stop at Fonte Avellana on your way from Fabriano to the Corinaldo area. It's practically on the way. For a day trip while staying in Fabriano, I would consider the Caverns of Frasassi and San Vittore Terme, unless you're averse to underground excursions. It's even an easy trip by train from Fabriano; the station is Genga. The train stop is right at the parking lot where you catch the shuttle to the Caverns.

Another good stop en route to Corinaldo is Pergola, where you can visit the useum of the Bronzi Dorati (gilded bronze status). You might even be able to see both on the same day, as the museum is small and can be seen in half an hour.

You needn't worry about attitude at Uliassi. They are very gracious. The time we went there on a whim, without a reservation, we were dressed for a walk on the beach, not lunch in a famous restaurant. We were treated with great hospitality. Uliassi himself came out of the kitchen to ask if we were enjoying our meal.

Thank you zebec, Leely and bvlenci. I checked google maps and most of these drives are fairly short. The drive between Urbino and Arezzo seems to be the longest. I considered dropping the car in Urbino, but I remembered you said it was a nice scenic drive bvlenci so I will stick with the plan to drop in Arezzo.

​The Pergola stop for the bronzes is a definite as is the Palazzo Ducale in Urbino. Art, sculpture and history along with historical architecture are probably most interesting to me. I enjoy seeing unique or very impressive churches, but lets face it, Italy has millions of them so I do hit church overload at some point.

I hate backtracking too much so I dont mind moving along on a driving part of my trip. Are the places really close enough together that I should pick just one or two for lodging?

Thanks for the reassurance on Uliassi. It would be a splurge for me. I am not necessarily looking for splurge lodging on this trip. My apt in Rome for 8 nts is not cheap but in a great location so that's my splurge. I like the look of Paffupo (sp?) For the Camerino area, bvlenci. I still need to check your lodging recs Leely thanks for mentioning them. Hope the cold is better!

I was originally planning two nights each for Urbino and Arezzo, but now Im running out of time! 42 days is still not enough. Decisions decisions.

​ Now Im torn between allowing time for return to some favorites and allowing more time for Piemonte, Orta and other!

Urbino to Arezzo is about two hours, maybe a little longer. I would take the slighty longer, more scenic route that passes through Sant'Angelo in Vado. There are some curvy roads. but there is little traffic. If you take this route, Sansepolcro is a good stop. There are some works of native son Piero della Francesca in the civic museum there. You can see other works of his in Arezzo, especially the fresco cycle, "The Legend of the True Cross" in the Church of San Francesco.

The route that passes through Furlo and Gubbio is even longer, but the roads have fewer curves. Furlo and Gubbio are both good places to stop for a while.

The Gola del Furlo is a beautiful spot, but you have to take the old road that passes through the almost-2000-year-old tunnel. You'd have to put the town of Furlo as an intermediate stop in Google Maps, otherwise the modern road will take you through a tunnel where you'll miss it all. This road, by the way, is part of the ancient Via Flaminia, which in Roman times carried travelers from Rome to Ariminum (modern Rimini), where they could embark for eastern ports. There's an even earlier, pre-Roman (Etruscan) tunnel alongside the more recent ancient Roman tunnel. The Etruscan tunnel is rarely open for visits, but you can see it behind the gate. You can see the impressions left by the wheels of ancient Roman carts in the original road bed of the Etruscan tunnel, but I don't remember if they're visibile from the gate. I had the good fortune to be there once when an employee of the park was there and let me enter the older tunnel.

The final battle in which Hannibal's forces were defeated took place near the Gola del Furlo, although the exact spot is uncertain.

Gubbio is worth several hours, and is a good place to stop for lunch. If you have time, and if there are no clouds, you could take the cable car to the top of the mountain where the Basilica of Sant'Ubaldo is found.

The original tunnel on the Via Flaminia? How cool!! Your timing to see the Etruscan cave was so lucky. I love it when things like that happen. I will definitely drive that route!

I have visited Gubbio before and really liked it. Except for the church bells that rang all night every 15 minutes. I had 2 nights planned and left after the first torturous, sleepless night. Amazing views from the piazza in front of (if I remember correctly) the Ducal Palace. I did ride the gondola in 2005, the same year Fodorite Maitaitom and friends named it "The Bucket of Bolts". I didn't think it was that bad and I've ridden all kinds of unusual ski lifts, but this one was the most unique by far.

I am so impressed with your knowledge of Italy, bvlenci. How many years have you lived in Italy?

Thanks for the interesting details.

Where in Piemonte are you thinking of going? I have spent very little time in the countryside there, but loved Torino.

I drove to the Gola del Furlo as a day trip from Urbino this summer to do some hiking and sightseeing. Very easy to get there, everything is well sign-posted. There is a little TI and you can take a flat, easy walk along the river through the tunnel and to see the other sites. As it was summer, I also went swimming in the river at one of the little beaches.
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With respect to your Italian Riveria portion, we just returned from Italy, and spent 6 nights in Rapallo as our base for the area and absolutely loved it. Beautiful town. We walked to SML and Portofino one day and did other day trips. I recently posted a trip report (here: https://www.fodors.com/community/eur...-como-1671865/). I know you said you were returning to SML which was a favorite, but you did also mention Rapallo as a possibility so wanted to chime in. Congrats and enjoy!

Leely, thanks for the pics! It looks beautiful and I will definitely try to make time for that walk by the river. Those ancient tunnels are so amazing. Impressive to think that they are still in existence.

A - appreciate the input on Rapallo. We stayed in SML years ago and loved it. Did day trips to Cinque Terre and hiked 4 out of 5. Portofino was a relaxing day with a long wine filled lunch at the tiny marina. Great people and boat watching! Trying to decide between Camogli, Rapallo and SML again. Do you have any restaurant recommendations for Rapallo? What did you especially like about it?

Grazie!