I am planning a few days in Bologna with side trips to Parma, Modena and Ravenna and also a few days in the Veneto (I want to visit Verona, Padua, Vicenza, Bassano del Grappa). Since I will be leaving from Varenna which option would you suggest:

1. Take train to Bologna (rent car) and base for a few days and then head up for base in Veneto. After a few days in Veneto off to Venice and drop car off.

2. Rent car in Como and drive to Bologna.

3. Go first to Veneto by train or car and then Bologna and then Venice.

If you are only planning to use Milan as a landing and departure point, please at least plan to see the Last Supper while there.

Would you suggest Bassano del Grappa as a base to see several of the towns and if so can you suggest a hotel?
Thank you.

Bobthenavigator
You had suggested Bassano Del Grappa as a base. Do you recommend Villa Brocchi Colonna or can you suggest another place? Thanks.

We just did a similar trip this Spring. Wonderful and tons to see. You really don't need a car in Bologna and u can take the train to the destinations you mentioned. I would pick the car up when leaving Bologna and drive to Bassano. You can visit Asolo from there and if you're interested in Palladian Villas there are a couple u can see with an easy drive from Bassano. Lots of interesting little villages to visit. We found the area to be incredibly destination rich and constantly had to make decisions as to what to see and visit, cutting out so much such that we're going back Spring '09. Bologona is fantastic and Ravenna incredible. We spent most of a day getting there seeing the mosaics and training back to Bologna. Our itn was as follows arrive VCE and spent 5 days Venice (2nd trip to Venice). Then took the train to Bologna and spent 3 days there with 1 day in Ravenna. Picked up a car and drove to the Vicenza area. Then to Bassano for 2 nights and back to Vicenza (had a mess up on a reservation). Drove leisurely thru the mountains to Bellagio for 3 nights and home from MXP. This was actually a pretty hectic schedule.

I have not stayed here but a client loved it.
www.ca-sette.it

If I choose to stay in Bologna for two nights coming from Bassano Del Grappa what itinerary woiuld you suggest? I plan to go to Venice for 3 days after Bologna.
Thanks again.

What happened to your plan to visit Parma and Ravenna from Bologna? Both are fantastic destinations.

The food market streets in Bologna will keep you occupied for a whole morning in Bologna.

Don't miss the Teatro Anatomico in the Palazzo Archiginnasio, or d'Arca's unique "Pieta" in the church S.Maria della Vita -- and of course the Piazza Maggiore.

If you only have 2 nights (is that just 1.5 days?) in Bologna that doesn't give u much time to see Bologna and do a side trip. As stated Bologna is at least a full day. That said, the mosaics in Ravenna are just beautiful and I wouldn't miss Ravenna.

We stayed at the Ca'Sette in Bassano del Grappa. Great hotel. Very newly renovated (or turned into a hotel at all) with large rooms, nice modern furnishings, nice restaurant, oddly shaped but nice bathrooms, good breakfasts (but bad coffee). On outskirts of town so getting out of town is easy, but means you pretty much need to drive to get into town. We walked one night, but wouldn't want to do it all the time. About a mile or so. I'd stay there again.

I am almost finished setting up my itinerary however, I have had to make some changes.

Sept 10 Flying out from JFK and arriving the next morning at Malpensa airport.
Sept. 11-14 Four nights @ Hotel Du Lac in Varenna
Sept. 15-17 Three nights @ Villa Brocchi Colonna in Bassano Del Grappa
Sept. 18-20 Three nights @ Hotel ai Mori d'Oriente in Venice
Questions:(1) Should I rent a car in Como and drive to Bassano Del Grappa and then drop it off near Venice or take a train from Varenna to Verona and rent from there?
(2) I have 3 days left for my trip Sept. 21-23 before I leave from Malpensa on the morning of the 24th. I am not sure how I should plan these days. I could take the train from Venice and spend 2 days in Bologna and then train to Milan for my last day. If I do this I would hope to see both The Last Supper and Duomo and get up early for the Malpensa Express to the airport. Another option is not to go to Bologna and go directly to Milan from Venice for the 3 days.
Any suggestions? Perhaps another option?
I had thought to extend my 3 days in Bassano to 4 however, the cost in changing my hotel in Venice became too costly.

Are you sure you can get tickets to see the Last Supper in September?

If all you want to do in Milano is see the duomo and the da Vinci, you don't need more than 2 hours in the city to do both, and picking a hotel near the Last Supper puts you in a good position to take the Xpress train to Malpensa.

I don't see the point of paying those high Milano hotel prices if you are only burning to see two things.

You don't seem to have a lot of enthusism for Bologna. It keeps dropping out of your trip. There are lots of places reachable by train as you swing back toward Malpensa -- Verona, Mantova, Ferrara, even Parma.

Lot of water in Mantova! Surrounded on three sides by lakes. Lots of walking. Markets. History. Grand art and architecture. Food.

http://goitaly.about.com/od/moreital.../p/montova.htm

http://www.galenfrysinger.com/mantova.htm

http://www.cntraveller.com/Guides/Italy/Mantua/

My thanks go out to Zeppole for motivating me to make a decision about Bologna. It is now the last piece of the puzzle and so we will be going to Bologna from Venice.
I booked the Hotel Internazionale and now just need to book our last night near Malpensa. I am looking at First Hotel for that reservation. Now I can start looking seriously at all the places we want to visit and where to eat. Thanks so much to everyone who guided me on this journey!

allyboy,

I just found this new viamichelin article on Bassano del Grappa

http://www.viamichelin.co.uk/viamich...12c57e/125195/

Enjoy Bologna! Be sure to get to the anatomical theater and S.Maria della Vita.

Happy travels to you and your wife.

Now that you have settled on Bologna I will add another vote for a side trip to Ravenna to see the spectacular mosaics there.

I will definitely make it over to Ravenna! Thanks so much for the suggestion. Now how about some good suggestions for restaurants in Bologna? Also since I won't have a car in Bologna how difficult will it be to get to Ravenna by train?

No problem getting a train to Ravenna. Bologna is the best train hub in Italy.

The hard part will be getting a hotel room. Book one as soon as you can.

Hi AB,

I spent quite a bit of time in Bologna area last year. I ate at these restaurants, all highly recommended:

Diana in via dell'Independenza Via Indipendenza, 24
Bologna 40121 Italy
+39 51 23 1302

Ristorante Franco Rossi ( little more expensive but worth it)Via Goito, 3
Bologna 40126 Italy
+39 51 23 8818

Trattoria Bentivoglio in via Mascarella 4/B

While also in this area I recommend a visit to Dozza - a town in the hills above Bologna. While there visit the Enoteca Rocca Sforzesca and taste the wines there. It is the centre for all wines of Emila-Romagna.

WE also spent some time in Parma - a lovely town. Here we ate at Al Tramezzo.

Also ate at this restaurant in Imola -Ristorante San Domenico
Via G. Sacchi
Imola (BO) Italia
Tel. 0039-0542-29000 - Fax 0039-0542-39000
e-mail: [email protected]

These are just some suggestions: when you stay in Bologna there are lists of all the restaurants in the hotels and information centres. You will easily find great food everywhere. Among other things food is what they do in Bologna. I could easily spend a week there.

I second the recommendation to visit Dozza if you have time. Cute little town. They have an art contest every other year and the winner paints his/her mural on the walls of the houses, so you see murals painted all over the town.
But if you have an extra day in that area, dont miss Ravenna. If you're driving at that point you could do a detour and check out Dozza on the way to Ravenna.

I do have one more question regarding my last night. I will be coming from Bologna and can't decide whether to go directly to Malpensa and stay at a nearby hotel or go into Milan and find a hotel there. If I do go into Milan perhaps I might be able to get tickets for The Last Supper and see The Duomo. Our flight leaves the next morning @ 10:30. Any suggestions out there?