Due to the recent flooding my girl firend & I had to shift our planned vacation in Oct 2002. We are just starting our planning and searching. Neither of us has been to Switzerland or Italy and would love some insight from everyone who has travelled in these countries.<BR><BR>Hard facts<BR>We are flying in and out of Milan.<BR>We like the outdoors and arts<BR>Plan to drive out of Milan day of arrival<BR>We will have a car for the entire trip<BR>I have Hotel pts - so we are thinking about spending some nights in larger cities and using pts for a room - driving out of a town is not a problem<BR><BR>Given that our planning is only a couple of days old, this is what we have come up with at a high level<BR>- hike in Switzerland (3-4 days)<BR>- ruins tours in Rome (4 days), <BR>- sight seeing in Venice(2 days) <BR>- end the trip in Milan (1-2 days).<BR><BR>Tell us some of your favorite places and make suggestions. We both hate to reinvent the wheel by missing a great out of the way place and learning about it upon our return. Would you change our high level itinerary?<BR><BR>We appreciate any insight you can offer

I forgot to add we arrive Oct 4th and depart Oct 20th. This will give us several days to play

Think about the Ticino region. It's an easy trip from Milan. I would stay near Locarno. You would really enjoy Bellinzona and there are wonderful hikes in the Centovalli Area. If you are interested I can give you more specific information.

Grasshopper - we would love to have more information.

Personally, I would spend more time in Venice--it's really special. While hiking is Switzerland is beautiful, if you love art and architecture, Venice has more to offer.

Your destinations are great. I think I would change what appears to be the order of visits to your various spots. After landing in Milan, I would suggest you head directly for Rome, possibly stopping somewhere like Orvieto for a night on the way. Four days in Rome sounds about right for a start. Then head for Venice, but extend your stay there to at least 3 nights. From Venice, drive west and north into the areas of Switzerland around St. Moritz and the Engadine for about 3 days of hiking. Then return to Milan to depart.

Mark, I emailed some specifics to you.

Grasshopper - I checked my e-mail and I didn't have anything from you. ????