Help! Can't decide where to go in Italy.
 

Planning trip to Europe with family, adults and teenagers. We will be going to Germany and Italy. I just am torn as to where to go in Italy. Thoughts are Lake Como, Florence, Cinque Terre or Tuscany. I would love to go to Amalfi coast but I think it is too far. Which area would be best suited for teens. Would love to stay in an area where you could walk around at night with restaurants and a little night life for the older teens. Maybe a beach day somewhere. Any suggestions for an itinerary for about 5 days?

Lake Como has its pluses and minuses, including smog. I'd skip Como with the diverse crowd you have.

Did you forget Venice, or is that not an option?

Call up a google map and start looking at distances. Do you want to spend all of your time traveling?

Do you have a car or... how are you traveling? Where are you flying out of? Take these things into consideration before you try to choose which is better.

You only have 5 days for the Italy portion? Does that include the day it will take to get from Germany and the day you'll leave Italy? (In other words, do you really only have 3 full days?)

Is this in high season summer?

Other than "a little night life," what exactly are you interested in seeing/doing? You've listed 4 places that are very different from each other, so it's hard to know what you really want to do.

And how many people altogether?

Problem is I want to do it all lol. We have 5 days for Italy not counting travel. We would like to see the must see sights, beautiful scenery, eat great food and drink great wine, but also have something that will amuse the kids aged 15 - 21. So some nightlife would be good and a beach day. We can rent a car if that is the best way to go. Can anyone suggest an area to stay that would be a good base to do day trips? Thanks for your help.

Where and how will you be arriving in Italy from Germany? Having that information might help to offer suggestions. What is your plan after your stay in Italy, returning home or off to another country, that might make a difference in where to stay in Italy to avoid extra traveling? Deborah

One place I would recommend for a family with teens is Levanto, often considered the 'sixth' Cinque Terre town. Levanto is a little bigger with a better beach than the CT towns. However it is only a 5 minute train ride (or hour hike) from the CT town of Monterosso. There are mant restaurants and clubs, even a small casino, and the scenery is breathtaking. You could do 2-3 nights here, and 2-3 nights in a beautiful Tuscan Hill town like Montepulciano which has enough activity to keep everyone interested for a few days. Of course transportation would be an issue - a car would be a necessity to do something like this, and you would want to fly home from Florence, Pisa or Genoa.

You haven't mentioned how many people. Moving around a group of, say, 6 is more difficult (and more expensive) than just 4. Does the 21 y.o. adult get any input?

There are sights, scenery, great food and wine in all of the places you mention, so you still haven't narrowed your focus. I suggest you peruse a print guidebook or Fodor's online guide (click on "Destinations" at the top of this page).

If it were my trip and this trip were in high season summer, I wouldn't go to a seaside town for a day. Too much traffic, too crowded for me, but, then, I live at the beach in Southern California so I wouldn't be looking for a "beach day" on my vacation.

I love posts like this---they tell us nothing and expect intelligent answers. Tell us more:

1. How many of you?
2. Will you already have a car?
3. Where do you go next?
4. Where do you depart Europe.
5. When?
6. Have you traveled Italy before?

Help us to help you !

Thanks for the suggestion of Levanto. I will check that out. There are 10 of us. We can rent a car which I already stated. This would be our last stop. Everything is still open as flights haven't been booked yet. I have already been to Venice and Rome. Loved Rome, Venice was beautiful, but wasn't impressed with food, crowds and wouldn't have much to do at night. I did not give many details because we are still open to work out the logistics. I was just looking for suggestions and locations that might fill the criteria of having enough to keep 6 teens/young adults happy as well as 4 adults. I can work out the logistics of getting around, just need help in deciding on where to go because I just can't make up my mind.

If you decide on Florence and the surroundings, my 18 year old daughter and her friend spent 3 days and nights going from museums to clubs. It seems that the best club was outside the city but a short taxi drive away. In 3 days they were ready to leave, though.

My best idea would be the area of Nice, France. Beach, museums, and nightlife for the teens, but this is one of the few times I would recommend the French Riviera over anything in Italy.

Already have been to Nice so trying to spend some time in Italy. Trying to decide if we should rent a car or rely on trains. We are coming from Munich and leaving from Bologna. Also what town would be a good base to see Florence, Tuscany and a beach on the coast

With 10 people you will need 3 cars or 2 vans.
Coming from Germany---leaving from Bologna---I would limit your group to 2 destinations. Pick 2 of 3---Venice, the Dolomites, or Lake Garda.

We stayed in Lerici which is not far from the CT. Great little town and did have some semblance of night life. (If you're really looking for teen/young adult night life then Trastevere and Campo de Fiori areas in Rome would be a good place).

From Lerici we did a daytrip to visit the CT, and also visited Carrara ( a must after reading The Agony and the Ecstasy) where the marble is from. I think you could also go to Pisa but we didn't. You still haven't mentioned what month you are going. We were there in June. The public beaches in Lerici were fairly crowded, but we found a great private beach called Eco de Mare between Lerici and Tellaro(had to pay for it - but sooo worth it!)

Here is a link to my trip report with a lot more details and pictures: http://www.fromhometoroam.com/2012/0...-coast-lerici/

My teenage sons loved Venice last summer. We stayed in an apartment, and they enjoyed walking through the maze of streets (and finding the shortcuts used by locals), hopping on and off the water bus, and even the museums. We also took the boat to Burano and San Giorgio Maggiore, so there was a lot of time on the water which we all enjoyed. If you click on my name, you should see a link to my trip report with more details. Have a wonderful time.

I suggest Santa Margarita Liguria as a good base. Great size town, lots to see and do in surrounding areas. You can all take the train down the coast etc for a day trip if you don't want to drive.

I loved Lake Como (stayed in Varenna) but think this would be too 'quiet' for the young adults.

Schnauzer