OP

I read a posting here that says it is an 8 hour drive from La Spezia to Venice. Is this true? That seems awfully long to me. I think the train is 6-8 hours. I need some good advice on distance and best routes. Thanks.

Diane

Sounds almost optimistic to me. The fastest route will be on the Autostrada(s) and you will go through some pretty boring scenery once you get over the mountains east of Florence (unless you plan to leave the Autostrada for interim destinations). You might consider stopping somewhere between to break up your trip. Most obvious would be Florence and maybe Mantua or Verona. Not knowing your full itinerary, those are the best suggestions I can make.

Diane

www.initaly.com has some very good transportation links where you can check routes via the Autostrada system (as well as tolls). I believe that was where I also downloaded a cool chart of distances/times between cities, both in kilometers and in miles. We just got back from a trip where we put over 1500 miles on our rental car and found the driving (outside cities) to be very easy.

OP

Thanks Diane. <BR>I checked the Michelin website and they indicate it's 328 km and that it takes 3 1/2 hours. They recommend a route via Parma, Mantova, Verona and into Venezia. We don't plan on making any stops except for gas and food. <BR>Do I read you correctly that you think it takes more than 8 hours?

sue

We drove from Monterrossa (cinque terre) to Venice and it takes longer than 31/2 hours. But, it took us 45 minutes just to get to the autostrata from Monterrossa. La Spezia might cut some of the time off. We went via Florence which, is not far, and then onto Verona. We stayed overnight in Verona. By chance it was the opening night of the opera. We easily found a hotel and got tickets to "Norma". It was held in Verona's colosseum. What a fabulous experience. Opening night everyone is given a candle to light and the whole colosseum is lite during the oveture with candle light. Verona is a wonderful town to explore. The next day was an easy drive to Venice. I do not remember how long, but about 60 to 90 minutes.

Diane

If you can swing it, a stop in Verona is really worthwhile. The coloseum is amazing, and sitting on that marble is surprisingly comfortable -- who would have thought! We were there about two weeks before we got to Rome, and it helped to have been through the one in Verona, to visualize what it must have been like. Even better than watching Gladiator!

rlk

OP: <BR> <BR>I've taken the train from La Spezia to Venice and it took about 6 1/2 hours --- I doubt that a drive would take that long. Don't have a map handy, but guessing that if you opted for most expeditious route you could easily get to Venice under 5 hours, probably less.

liz

OP - try www.mapquest.com It gives a time of 4 hours and 20 minutes for travel. Have fun! <BR> <BR>

OP

Thank everyone. <BR>Sue and Diane: We're stopping by Verona on our way back to Milan after Venice. I appreciate the recommendations for Verona, we plan to stay the night,however we're having difficulty finding a place to stay that has availability. And Sue, actually we are coming from Monterosso (used La Spezia because it's bigger) so it's good to know ahead of time that that part will be slow. <BR>Liz: I thought mapquest was only for the US. I'll check it out--thanks.

Lexma90

Without looking at a map, given the Michelin information, I would say it would take longer than 3 1/2 hours, because of the time it will take you to get to the autostrada from the Cinqueterre. But I would NOT think it's 8 hours - maybe 4 1/2 or so.

Deborah

I stayed in Livorno (just north of Cinque Terre) and drove to Florence and then on to Venice. Total driving time (excluding time getting into and out of Florence) was a little over five hours. <BR> <BR>Deborah