HanBan

My boyfriend and I are attending a wedding in Torino the last weekend of April. We will arrive somewhere in Italy (not planned yet) the Sunday before the wedding, and will need to be in Torino sometime that Thursday, meaning we have about 3-4 days to visit somewhere before the wedding. Then we will travel somewhere after the wedding Sunday to Friday (flying out Saturday) so about 5 days after.

He has been all over Italy already and doesn't want to go too crazy seeing a lot of places. I haven't been yet so I want to go everywhere!

We both would enjoy city visits to see the 'major' sites (Rome, Florence, or Venice) and visits to beautiful natural scenery. So considering the time of year (late April), our time constraints, and trying to balance seeing the sites with some relaxation, can you suggest some locations/itineraries for us?

P.S. he really enjoyed the Amalfi coast and would be interested in going back there.

annhig

HanBan

I am big believer in taking the opportunity to explore places roundabout the place that you HAVE to be. so the obvious area for you and your BF to aim at would be Piedmonte, places like Alba and Courmayer.

That said, as a newbie to Italy, you want to see somewhere that everyone has heard of, so I would suggest flying into Venice, spending the first part of your holiday there, then going to Turin for the wedding, and afterwards, touring Piedemonte a little.

that way you both get a little of what you want.

as for the Amalfi, yes of course you COULD go there, but perhaps it won't be so hot in April.

bvlenci

I wouldn't plan on visiting the Amalfi coast in April. I like Annhig's idea, or, as an alternative, you could visit Venice the week before the wedding, or split that week between Venice and Milan, or Venice and Florence. Then after the wedding, you could spend the rest of your time in Rome. If your boyfriend has seen Venice and doesn't care to spend more time there, I would still spend at least one night there, and then maybe spend the rest of the week in some place he hasn't seen, but within easy striking distance of Venice and Torino.

I also like the idea of visiting some places in Piemonte. There are some beautiful palaces, castles, and hunting lodges in the area, which was once the home territory of the Savoy family, the royal family of Italy from its unification to the end of World War II. If you rent a car for this part of your trip, you could make a nice tour of the area in the week before the wedding.

Get tickets flying into Venice and home from Rome to avoid backtracking.

vincenzo32951

If your boyfriend has seem Venice and doesn't want to go back, I'd dump him.

dfourh

You have your arrival day (sometimes a bit blearifying) then three solid days before heading to Turin Thursday. If you arrive Venice and spend three nights there to get your bearings and see a lot, then you might want to consider spending Wednesday somewhere on the path to Turin - - maybe Bologna, Verona, or Milan.

jamikins

I would highly recommend bologna over Milan...we didn't like Milan at all, just doesn't have the charm of other places and we found it very pricey. Bologna has great food and is an interesting place for a stopover to Torino.

mama_mia

If the wedding is the last weekend in April (April 26) and you are thinking of visiting Amalfi after the wedding, I think weather wise Amalfi would be lovely for sightseeing (not swimming). Of course, there are no guarantees as far as rain goes, but temperature wise it should be nice and the ferries will be operating. You would run into the May 1 holiday while there, which might make it busy. Also, you would probably want to fly to Naples from Turin and then out of Naples--not sure that would be the best use of limited time.

HanBan

Thank you all for your advice!

We have been looking at flights and it is much cheaper and shorter flight to do roundtrip to/from Milan (rather than an open jaw). So we were thinking about this plan:

Fly into Milan, train to Lake Como area and explore this area for 3-4 days before wedding.
After wedding, 5 days in Florence with possible day trips elsewhere.
Train back to Milan and fly out.

Do you have any suggestions for places to visit/things to do in Lake Como area? Any nice hikes nearby?

How many days do we need to tour the sites in Florence and then are there any nice day trips from Florence? I have heard Siena is nice.

We are trying to avoid renting a car (we both don't drive manual and have noticed the automatic cars are very expensive)

Related to suggestions you've already made:
can we explore the Piemonte area without a car? i.e. can we take a train to Alba and see the nice scenery on foot?

yorkshire

On a short visit to Alba, it is fine to not have a car. Yes, you will be limited, but there are hiking trails in the vicinity (we planned to hike but had nonstop rain).