We are traveling to Italy for 2 weeks in May. We are big food and wine people. My husband loves museums, while I love more outdoor activities and adventure.
Here is our itinerary. We have already booked the car, most reservations and all hotels. I would love recommendations on packing, tips for traveling in Italy, budget tips or places to stop or see in-between cities.

Day 1: Arrive at MXP at 9am. Drive to Parmense Parma to check into our hotel Antica Corta Pallavicina Relais. We will be doing a tavern tour here and then dinner at the restaurant.
Day 2: Leave Parma drive to Florence. We are staying at the Best Western Hotel River in Florence. We will be here for 3 days. Day 1, when we arrive mid-day, we will be doing the Duomo, Bell Tower & Catherdral. We will be dining at Antica Trattoria "da Tito" dal 1913. With any downtime or inbetween time in Florence, we will be seeing: Shopping at San Lorzeno Market, Palazzo Vecchio or Piazza della Signoria
Day 3: Wine Tour Day with Tuscan Wine Tours. Dinner reservations at L'Osteria di Giovanni.
Day 4: Bargello, Academy & Uffizi galleries- all tickets purchased with times mapped out for each as below:

10:00 Bargello National Museum (Recommend Time Spent: 2 Hours)
12:00 Orsanmichele & Lunch
1:30 Galleria dell’Accademia (Recommend Time Spent: 1 ½ Hours)
3:00 Snack Time
3:30 Uffizi Gallery (Recommend Time Spent: 3 Hours)
6:30 Return to Hotel - Freshen Up & Get Ready
7:30 Leave for dinner, walk through Ponte Vecchio or Plazzos
8:30 Dinner at Enoteca Pitti Gola e Cantina
Day 5: Leave Florence and Drive to Rome. We are staying at an apartment rental in Rome. Day 1 we will be exploring Campo de’ Fiori and all over Trastevere. No plans for dinner- explore.
Day 6: Rome. Caeaser Shuffle from Rick Steves – Capitoline Hill, Imperail Forums, Colosseum, Roman Forum, Palatine Hill & the pantheon. No plans for dinner- explore around Piazza Navona.
Day 7: Rome. St Peter’s and then the Vatican Museums. Pizzarium for lunch. Castel Sant’Angelo and then walk around and explore in the afternoon. Dinner reservations of Ad Hoc. We booked Ad Hoc because the white truffle tasting menu was 120 Euros, since it has rose to 190 euros. For this price we can go to La Pergola for dinner (without wine). We are unsure if we should do Ad Hoc with the black truffle tasting menu and wines at 120 Euros or do La Pergola for 190 Euros plus drinks

Day 8: Drive to Siena. We are staying at Agriturismo Il Castagno. We plan on doing Lunch & Wine Tasting at Castello di Fonterutoli first, then checking in and relaxing. Dinner at agriturismo.

Day 9: Siena. We bought the Opi Pass to visit the Baptistry, Duomo, Cathedral, Crypt and Library. We made reservations for lunch at Antica Osteria da Divo and dinner at Antica Osteria da Divo.

Day 10: Bologna. Staying at Starhotels Excelsior. I made a food walking tour. Here are the places, in order of distance from hotel, we are thinking of walking too. We may skip some, and add along the way, but these seem to be the top of the top.
Walking Tour:
Gelateria Galliera 49
Ristorante Donatello
Enoteca Italiana
Banco Del Vino
PizzArtist
Piazza Maggiore
Pescheria Del Pavaglione
Osteria del Sole
Salumeria Simoni S.R.L
Tamburini
Paolo Atti & Figli
Godot wine bar & restaurant
Rue de la fromagerie & rouge
La Sorbetteria Castiglione
Majani

Day 11: Drive from Bologna to Venice. Originally we wanted to stop in the Euganean Hills for wine tastings along the way, but they are mostly closed on Sunday. Ideas? We are staying at the Hilton Milano Stucky. Dinner reservations for Restaurante Riveria.

Day 12: Get lost in Venice. Only reservation is for St. Mark’s Basilica.
Day 13: Get lost in Venice again.
Day 14: Drive from Venice to Milan, we fly out the next morning. We are thinking of stooping either at Lake Garda or Lake Como to spend the day. Any recommendations? Something not to far off the highway but a good place for sightseeing, romance and good food/wine.

Instead of driving, use trains. You will be paying for car hire and parking for many days when the car is sitting unused.

White truffles are not in season in May, so they'd be preserved in some way, or would have lost much of their "bouquet". I wouldn't pay a price like that for white truffles in May.

I think day 4 with 3 museums is a killer, and is too closely scheduled. What if you like the first museum and want to spend more than the 2 recommended hours?
But with tickets already bought, not sure what your options are. Personally, I would try to move one museum on your first day in Florence, and mix museums with other sites on the 2 days (actually 1 1/2) that you will spend there.

In case you are not aware, your Florence hotel is right at the edge of the ZTL zone. http://www.florence-on-line.com/imag...iving-map.html. A wrong turn into the ZTL area will get you breathtaking fines. Here is a current thread from someone who has probably wandered into the Florence ZTL http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...r-90-euros.cfm. Florence is not the only city with ZTL.

White truffles not in season in may and the black ones around are not the best / worth that money. Also ad hoc is a very mediocre restaurant that could never be compared to la pergola. One might not like the style of dining at la pergola, but there are many very good places in rome where you can spend your 240 euros for a much more satisfying dinner (without truffles, which, as said, are not available [white] or not as good [black] in may).

Your day 4 looks like sensory overload to me: three major museums in one day? I couldn't take it all in.

I think the OP is aware that Ad Hoc is offering a black truffle menu in May, not a white truffle one. I actually don't like the taste of black truffles, and doubt I would want the formality of La Pergola for Rome, so I would give some serious consideration to what vinoroma has said. Also, I think you are probably leaving it too much up to chance in Rome that you will find good food without more planning. For one, I suggest you put Armando al Pantheon on your agenda, for which you will need to make a reservation.

As for your food walking tour, what you really want to do is visit a very tight 4-square block area that is just off the piazza Maggiore (to the left of the cathedral as you face it). This is the historic food market "quadrilatero" and is has most of the shops you have mentioned plus it has Osteria del Sole. The thing to do is to browsing among all the shops and pick up enough food to eat for lunch and take it to Osteria del Sole. Buying a glass of wine from the bar there entitles you to sit down and eat the food you bought for lunch. Other than that, Osteria del Sole does not serve food itself. So if you don't want a picnic lunch, you need to go to a restaurant. Da Gianni is in the market quarter and has a very enjoyable menu. But you need a reservation. If you think you would prefer to eat outside, than Bistrot 18 has nice simple dishes and good pastas.

While you are in the area of the markets in Bologna I can highly recommend that you visit the church of Santa Maria della Vita and go to its right chapel to look at the unique terracotta statues. The church closes at noon.

I would also recommend that while you are in the center that you stop by the Anatomical Theater in Bologna. It closes at 1pm.

Majani is not near the "quadrilatero". Look it up a map to see where it is. If you want to visit it then you should do it first (it is a beautiful shop) because it closes fairly early for lunch and doesn't reopen until 4pm.

If it were my day, then I would do it this way.

Have a light breakast and take a taxi to Majani.
Walk from Majani to Zanarini cafe, have an espresso, then visit the Anatomical theatre.
Visit the piazza Maggiore.
Begin to explore the historic markets. Take your time. Don't buy until you have looked at many places.
Make sure to visit the Santa Maria delle Grazie on via Claveture before noon.
Continue exploring the markets. If you see beautiful fruit, buy a little for your trip to Venice.
Have lunch.
After lunch, walk to the Church of Santa Stefano. Enjoy the surroundings, including the piazza and the interior of the "seven churches".
Go find a gelato.
Walk to Terzi on via Oberdan for a coffee.
Stroll through the Jewish quarter and then go to some wine bars.

If you have had a big lunch you might not want dinner.

Personally I am not a big gelato fan, and I don't think it mixes well with fresh pasta, especially pasta that come with cheese. The best thing to eat in Bologna is fresh pasta, and sometimes if people eat a lot of gelato they lose their appetite for enjoying pasta in Bologna. If you are only going to have one or two meals in Bologna you should think a little bit about what specialties you are going to eat and make sure you don't overeat. Cheese is very rich and filling in Bologna -- richer than you have experienced elsewhere. It is fine to just go grazing in Bologna, but if you also want to eat in restaurants, then don't kill your appetite grazing.

I meant to add that I concur with the advice to get rid of the car and start using trains the minute you get to Florence. In fact, I would even take a train to Fidenza from Milan and get a taxi from there to Polesine Parmense. The next day, have the taxi take you back to Fidenza and take the train to Florence.

You really are buying a lot of hassle having the car to drive along exactly the same byways the train does. You will be seeing the trains right next to you. You might as well be sitting on the train relaxing and skipping the parking fees and the serious risk of traffic violation penalties in Florence, Rome and Bologna, all of which have ZTLs near where your lodgings are.

I'm exhausted just reading this - more like the D Day invasion than a vacation.

While we often do road trips - we do it with most days in the countryside or small villages - and never drive more than about 4 hours in a day - leaving time to visit 1 or 2 small towns or serendipitous sights. Based on your itinerary I too would probably go with train versus car.

Apart from Day 4 (which others have already noted) I don't see this as a particularly busy schedule or one that is overplanned. Their present plan has them driving less than 4 hours per day not more. Don't understand why repeating the same snide remark in a whole variety of threads would be considered witty or helpful. More like a broken record.