nschlatt

We will be in Italy September 2-15 and would like to do some hiking in the Lakes region, quick stop in Venice and then Rome and the Amalfi Coast. We can fly into either Milan, Venice or Rome. Any suggestions for an itinerary that might include some wine tasting and a visit to an agriturismo or olive/mozzarella/prosciutto tour? We would drop Venice if need be... I know it's alot to cover but we are hearty souls who don't mind the hopping around.

annhig

hi nschlatt,

well, I wouldn't drop venice, but I would drop milan, as it is the outlier on this trip.

you could fly into Venice, pick up a car, drive down into Tuscany and do your wine/cheese tasting, then drop the car at a convenient station, get a train to Naples and thence to the amalfi, ending in Rome. you could also fit the Lakes [specifically Lake Garda] into this itinerary but you are beginning to take on too much with that.

it's still a bit busy for 14 days, but with "open-jaw" flights [into one place, out of another, often called "multi -city" on airline websites] it's certainly do-able.

dwdvagamundo

Concur with annhig on dropping Milano. You're doing way too much. Everyone says they want a quick stop in Venice, but when they get there, they want to spend more time.

If I were planning this, I'd do either Lakes/Venice/Tuscany and Rome or else Tuscany, Roma and Amalfi Coast. Either of those has way more than enough to keep you occupied for two weeks, particularly if you're going to hike.

jgg

I believe they meant Milan just as a place to fly into not to actually stay in. I am assuming you are thinking fly into Milan and head up to the Lakes Region, which is a good idea. However, I do agree with the others that you don't have enough time to do all that you listed. Trying to fit in Lakes and the Amalfi Coast is tough because they are so far flung from each other, even with Rome in the middle, so I would definitely cut out Venice if you really want to do that. I would recommend either Lakes/Venice/Rome or Venice/Rome/Amalfi (which is actually what we're doing next month for our 4th trip to Italy).

If it was possible to stop in/near Bologna on your way from Venice or Lakes to Rome we did a FABULOUS food tour with Italian Days Food Experieces (http://www.italiandays.it/) while we were staying in Bologna. Aleessandro was fantastic!! We visited a parmesan cheese factory, proscuitto factory, a traditional balsamico acteia, and had a fabulous lunch at a winery/vineyard. Might make for a long day, so perhaps one night in the region on the way between the north and Rome would be best. But if this is a priority, this was a fantastic food experience!

Here is a link to my trip report which incl our day with Alessandro along with a lot of pics. It was on Day 3: http://www.fromhometoroam.com/2012/08/bologna-2010/

nschlatt

Thanks everyone for your input. I know it's alot. Yes, we did mean we would just fly into Milan and out of Rome, and try to fit the rest in somehow! And I know that Bologna is probably the place to go for the food tours, but that seems out of the way for the rest of what we are trying to do. We can skip all of Tuscany as we've done that. Is the Lakes/wine for 4 days, Venice for 2, Rome for 4, Amalfi/Capri for 4 possible? Or are we dreaming with all the transfers and travel in between? Just found out the Venice Film Festival will be during this time as well...may impact our decision if it's too crowded/expensive.

annhig

nsclatt - that itinerary would be fine but for the time that it takes to get between places.

as you aren't that keen on Venice, i suggest that you leave it for this time, and concentrate on your other destinations.

jgg's suggestion above for a foodie day looks like an excellent one, and it should fit in with your itinerary.

My only reservation is that the amalfi is quite a long way to go for only 4 days, but if you were to redistribute your days so as to give the 2 extra ones to the amalfi, it ought to be doable.