Can anyone tell me the best route from Linz, Austria, to Florence? We'll be traveling the end of May. Also, what kind of traffic to expect on a Sunday. I hear it will take a little over 8 hrs, is that true. Thanks.

Try www.cwlease.com, the routeplanner lets you put in both cites and get a trip tic by road, with the kilos and time on each road, the exact exit you need. It will let you choose the shortest, fastest or cheapest routes. There are others including euroshell, but I like cw the best.

Try www.cwlease.com They have a route planner that you put in the cities of choice and they will provide a trip tic in miles or kilometers. You can choose the fastest, shortest or cheapest routes. They provide a detailed list of each road, the duration and the time for each and the exact exits you need to take. There are others, such as euroshell but I like cw the best.

You have 3 routes that, on "normal" days are just about a toss up (5 1/2 hours nonstop hard driving): <BR> <BR>Lienz-Sillian-Bressanone-Bolzano-Verona-Firenze <BR>Lienz-Sillian-Cortina-Conegliano-Venezia-Firenze <BR>Lienz-Plökenpass-Monte Croce-Tolmezzo-Venezia-Firenze <BR> <BR>The first route is somewhat longer but you'll drive more on Autostrade. On a Sunday, in May, there might be slow traffic from Sillian to Bressanone. Taking the second route, you may find traffic problems in the Sillian-Cortina piece. Taking either the 2nd or 3rd route you may find slow traffic from Venice to Bologna. If you start early in Lienz, though, traffic problems should be minimized ... <BR>Leaving Lienz around 9am I would choose the 1st one. Starting after 1pm I would probably choose the 3rd route. In between I guess it's a toss up. If you're not terribly unlucky, you should be able to do it confortably in less than 6 1/2 hours driving. <BR>Paulo <BR>

Paulo, I've noticed your Italia answers on this forum are so great. You must live in Italy! Since we all love Italy so much, I'm curious, where do you live?

No, Dayle, I live in sunny Brazil . More specifically, in São José dos Campos, distant 80km from São Paulo, where I hold a professor positio in an Engineering School (Aeronautics). <BR> <BR>I have been travelling to Italy since I was 11 years old (and that was a long time ago &lt;g&gt. When I was a graduate student in the US I spent all my summers (4 in a row) there. After geting married and a 6-year interval, we went to Europe 8 times (with and without the girls). Excluding last year (Greece & Turkey), our "home base" has been set in Brunico, in the South Tyrol, where I have close relatives. Although my days in Italy should add up to 2 years, I really only know a few parts of it. Every new trip to Europe we visit unseen cities in neighboring countries, but regarding Italy we just go back to the same cities we've been before and a few new ones. <BR>