Can you tell me if this trip makes sense- Piedmont and Italian Riveria
 

We have been back from our honeymoon only 2 months and already are trying to figure out when we can return to Italy. Our plan is June 2008. 10 days on more of a budget this time compared to our honeymoon flying in and out of Milan.
Here is our rough itinerary:
Fly into Milan pick up rental car and drive to Acqui Terme ( we would have a car this entire trip)

On this trip we would like to include-
Acqui Terme, Genoa, Portofino and other towns, Lerici, Pisa and Lucca.

Just writing this and knowing we have 10 days not including travel days to and from it seems like a lot. Again this is a rough plan and we doing our research. If anyone has any suggestions or recommendations we'd love to hear from you.

Thanks,
Robyn

I know what you mean about planning your next vacation to Italy soon after you return! Your next trip sounds wonderful and they are two of our favorite places in Italy!

We were in Italy this past June for 3 weeks and started out 5 nights in Acqui Terme and then 4 nights in Lerici.

We LOVED Acqui Terme!! You must look into staying at Baur B&B there. (www.baurbb.com). It is a wonderful bed & breakfast with fabulous hosts, incredible breakfasts, wonderful beds - everything is perfect.

In Lerici we stayed at Hotel Florida which was a nice location, good breakfast and helpful staff. Although I must admit the rooms were a bit "plain Jane". It is located right across from the beach and a nice 5 min. walk along the beach sidewalk to get to the center of town. While there we went to the Cinque Terre and Portovenere by boat, Carrara and the marble quarries (very interesting), Sarzana a cute inland town, and spent a day lazing on a private beach.

We did not go to Genoa, Portofino nor Pisa, but I believe they are doable. I think it would be easy to stop in Genoa on your drive down from Acqui Terme. We did stop in Lucca on our way to Tuscany from Lerici.

Here is a link to my trip report if you are looking for more details: http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34830020

Honeymoon, it makes eminent sense to me, 10 days in Piedmont and Liguria, instead of rushing all over Italy, will give you an insiders feel for one of Italy's nicest regions. Acqui Terme is a good location for touring both, or you might want to split up your trip into part Piedmont and part Ligurian Riviera, especially if you want to go down to Lucca and Pisa which are in Tuscany, maybe Porto Venere or La Spezia would be a good base, although I favour Levanto on the west side of Cinque Terre.

Cadogan Guides has a great book on the "Italian Riveira and Piemonte" with good information and worth picking up.

I agree with Tim. Split the time and have 2 base locations---I prefer levanto or Portovenere for the coast.

I'm on the split your time bandwagon. My BF and I went to Italy for 12 days this past September and we spent time in Lucca, with a day trip to Pisa, from there went to Levanto for a few days on the coast, from there to Nizza Monferrato (with a side trip to Acqui Terme) for a four days in Piemonte and finished up witha few days on Lago Maggiore. We loves everything, but Levanto and Piemonte were my favorites! I can't wait to go back either!!!

I agree with Tim, Bob and the others who say that splitting your time would be the way to go. Two locations, one in this area and one in the beach area, from which you can explore. For example, you could stay Lerici or Portovènere, which would enable you to explore the Versilia area (including Carrara which I think is cool) as well as Pisa and Lucca, if desired. You could have a transition day driving up the coast and visit Genoa, Portofino or Camogli. Then you can come over the mountains in to Piemonte. The travel time from PV or Lerici to Acqui Terme is approx. 2.5 hours in total, so splitting it up with a stop off somewhere is altogether doable.

Once in Acqui, there are endless possibilities to explore (many having to do with food and wine!!)

A note: alot of our guests who did a split Liguria/Piemonte vacation this past season had a comment. Many wished they had gone to the beach first and did Piemonte second. I think the reason for this is that the Piemonte part of the vacation is relaxing, green, serene, and the Ligurian part is more active (with traffic, night life, etc). So maybe it is an idea to arrange it that way. JGG, what do you think, I know you went on to explore other areas after Liguria, but for a two stop vacation, do you think it is a valid point? I think people felt it would be great to get back on the plane home in the completely relaxed state which Piemonte can give you.

Anyway, those are my thoughts. Enjoy your planning...

thank you for all the responses

Yes we would chose two locations and split our time between them and take day trips to explore.

For our honeymoon we were in Italy the first two weeks of October. While we had the most perfect weather we did not get to see fields of sunflowers. For this next trip would May or June be the best time to experience another season.

Thanks,
Robyn

Bella - interesting question. Coming from the West Coast landing in Milan and then driving 1.5 hours to Acqui Terme we were so grateful for the wonderful reception we received at Baur B&B and the quiet, calm, serene surroundings of Piemonte.

I specifically recall when we arrived in Lerici my first thought was that it was so much more loud and busy. Once we settled in, of course, we discovered Lerici to be a very charming town. The beaches can get pretty crowded during the day and I think we arrived at the height of that!!

So, I guess the decision would be do you want the more relaxing vacation first? Of course, we spent an extremely relaxing day at Eco de Mare a private beach located between Lerici and Tellaro.