mallory_22

stepsbeyond--I am definitely going to Lucca. I will make a very short trip to Pisa in the morning then head to Lucca for the remainder of the day. I thought about renting a bike and taking a trip around the walls of the city. Since they do concerts every night, I'll stick around for it. What would opera be without Puccini, anyway?!?!

ellenem--You might be quite right about adding both nights to Bologna. I'm still weighing my options.

Does anyone know what a day trip to Verona from Bologna might be like???

mallory_22

tuscanlifeedit--Thanks for the info on San Gimignano. I know it is overrun with tourists, but there's a reason why everyone wants to visit! I, like you, believe there is always a way to escape, even in the most touristy of places.

I lived in NYC for two years while I finished school, and probably only did about 2 typical tourist things. Now that I look back on it, I really regret that. Those iconic things that are filled with beauty and history should be enjoyed by everyone. Even if that means putting up with hordes of people. I think the trick is to find a good balance of tourist and non-tourist sights and activities.

stepsbeyond

mallory,

The train connections from Bologna to Verona are very good. But: If you are looking to day trip out of Bologna, Ravenna has world-class stunning unique incomparable art -- there are not enough adjectives -- compared to Verona, which has great beauty and charm and a Roman arena (but you'll see that in Rome, yes). The charm of a small, well preserved city you will feel in Luccca, so while I greatly enjoy Verona, I suggest you head to Ravenna if you feel you have time to daytrip out of Bologna. (Or, if you get bored in Venice or hate it -- which can happen! -- daytrip to Verona from there.

Be aware that in Italy, someplaces are overrun with tourists because they have more successfully marketed themselves to tourists and tour bus group companies than other places. San Gimignano has beautiful artifacts -- please don't be like other tourists and fail to look inside the churches at the incomparable frescoes (the Gozzoli's too, which are not in the duomo!). But San Gimignano is just one of hundreds upon HUNDREDS of beautiful Italian hilltowns with great art. Most of the rest of them are empty because Rick Steves or some other lazy travel writer never went there. That's all.

Are you craving a taste of the famously beautiful Tuscan landscape in Spring? Is that a very important part of this trip for you? If so, you might forego San Gigmignano (where the landscape is not drop-dead gorgeous) in favor of dedicating an extra night to Rome SOLELY for the purpose of taking a daytrip to Montepulciano on a nice day.

Take the train from Roma Termini to Chiusi. Take the public bus to Montepulciano (It's a scenic bus ride for the latter half). Gawk as long as you like -- but I would try to head back toward Rome in time to make a stopover in Orvieto before sunset if that's possible (in Spring, that's harder than Summer). Get off the train in Orvieto and run to see the facade of the cathedral. Hang out for awhile, and visit the chruch interior if you can (including the frescoes) and then take a later train back to Rome. Just eat on the run all day. Pack power bars and fruit as a fall back.

If you are an early riser, you can do that day trip in reverse: Go to Orvieto first thing in the morning. Have a coffee facing the cathedral. Catch the train to Chiusi and the bus to Montepulciano. Come back to Rome when you feel like it.

stepsbeyond

Gozzoli in San Gimignano (and New York)

http://www.wga.hu/frames-e.html?/htm...gna/index.html

http://www.museobenozzogozzoli.it/bi...Gimignano.html

Lexma90

On San Gimignano, if you could swing an overnight stay there, it's a wonderful place after the tourists have gone. In addition to the artsy things already mentioned, there's a walk all the way around the city walls that provides wonderfully scenic views, and doesn't get many tourists. And the tourists mainly stay on the main "streets" of San Gimignano, anyway. By the time you get on the side streets, you'll mostly see locals.

I don't know if you're still thinking about Volterra - it might be more difficult to get to than San G. Volterra has a very good Etruscan museum, as well as interesting remains of a Roman theater on the north edge of town (just outside the city walls). So between Volterra and San G., it just depends on what kind of wonderful things you want to see.

Verona - we visited it on the way to somewhere else, so I don't know what it's like as a day trip from Bologna. BTW, I love Bologna too - I told my husband, the last time we visited, that I must have lived in Bologna in a past life. (So now it's the family joke.) Carefully compare the attractions of Verona to those of Ravenna - I would choose Ravennna in a heartbeat over Verona. Ravenna is absolutely full of mosaics that date back to the early days of Christianity (500-600s). St. Mark's (in Venice) are similar, but not as old.

St. Cecilia's oratorio in Bologna is beautiful; there's a Raphael in their museum, as well. Santa Stefano is an amazing complex of churches, one built on top of the other, with the oldest structure the remains of a temple to Isis.

If you're energetic, in addition to be being young, consider a morning visit to Piazzale Michelangelo. I'm a runner, and on our most recent trip, I ran up to Piazzale Michelangelo one morning just after the sun rose. It was beautiful, and few other people were up there. It's really not very far.

Enjoy!

mallory_22

stepsbeyond--I am loving your idea to daytrip to Montepulciano from Rome. I wasn't sure if the country would have a lot of Spring color that early? In my reading, the town really appealed to me and I was hoping to make it happen on this trip.

Here is my main problem I've been dealing with: I will be in Rome on Easter weekend. I'm fine with the crowds and, honestly, I just assumed there would be large crowds regardless of the holiday. But since this is my first time to Rome, I'm having to strategically plan my days there to be able to do all of the things I want to do. So I just don't know how smart it would be to add another day in Rome to do that day trip to Orvieto/Montepulciano. Not to mention I was also considering a loooooooong, exhausting day trip to Pompeii from Rome.

<This is about the point that I want to scream in frustration that I rescheduled my trip at Easter time...and that I don't have enough time to do all of these wonderful things. C'est la vie!!!!>

On the bright side, you guys are really selling me on Ravenna! And all of your tips and ideas are making this process a lot easier for me!

dodo5000

We took a day trip to Assisi and loved it. You could also go up to Lake Como and take a boat ride.

mallory_22

lexma90--Thanks for the input! I had originally wanted to try for Volterra instead of San Gim because I thought it would be a great Medieval town to visit without all of the Rick Steves zombies. I do realize it might be difficult to get to...about 2 1/2 hours with a bus change.

Your run to Piazzale Michelangelo sounds lovely. I have done early morning outings in different cities and they are always great. This one I might just have to try!

stepsbeyond

The impact that Easter is going to have on your trip is that trains are going to be very crowded, and some museums in Rome and elsewhere are going to be closed Easter and Easter Monday. Plan accordingly.

That said, chruches will be decked out in their very finest, and apart from the immediate area of the Vatican, Rome will not be crowded. You can head into the jewish quarter to find eats if things seem shut up in other parts of town.

As tempting as it is to fling yourself at Pompeii, you can have an equally eye-opening experience of a fantastically preserved antique Roman town by going to Ostia Antica, just an hour outside of Rome by public transport. Because you are a woman traveling alone, I highly recommend that you always keep in sight of other tourists while visiting the site -- not hard to do -- or join a walking tour. There are some parts of Ostia Antica that abut public roads but are labyrinthine. It is easy to get lost there. So don't just meander.

I think Rick Steves deserves (almost) all the abuse that is heaped upon him, but some of his zombies have mastered independent, low-carbon, cheap travel, including how to get to Montepulciano plus Orvieto as a fun day trip

http://www.ricksteves.com/graffiti/h...fm?topic=10083

Just note that if you attempt this trip on Easter Monday, you need to pay attention to whether buses and trains are running on a holiday schedule. (They certainly will be on Easter).

Glad you are getting sold on Ravenna. If you end up having to give it a miss, do see the mosaics in the Bapistery in Firenze and the church of Santa Maria in Rome to get a sense of the sweep of artistic variety that Italy houses.

Zerlina

Public transport runs on a reduced schedule on Easter Sunday *and* Monday; both are official public holidays. I'd avoid the hassle and stay in Rome, where almost everything is open.

The Vatican Museums are closed both days (they're closed every Sunday except the last Sunday of every month), but all the state and city museums are open on Sunday. In the past, many have also been open on Monday, the day they are normally closed. The special Monday opening is generally announced a few weeks in advance.

The mosaics in Rome most similar to those in Ravenna are in the chapel of San Zeno in Santa Prassede, but mosaics are not lacking in Rome: Sant'Agnese fuori le Mura, the adjacent Santa Costanza (among the earliest Christian mosaics anywhere), Santa Pudenziana, San Marco...

mallory_22

zerlina--Good to know that there will be museums open Sunday and Monday. I'm fairly positive that I'll be able to fit everything in, I just need to make sure to plan it all efficiently. But traveling on that Monday is NOT something I want to do. I'm mostly just worried about seeing The Vatican Museums...I heard the following Tuesday after Easter is a nightmare, so that really only leaves me Wednesday to get it done.

mallory_22

Just checked: the Colosseum will be open Easter Sunday and Monday, and the Borghese Gallery will be open Easter Sunday and closed Monday as it always is. Hooray!

Would you guys recommend either of the following options?

1. Taking a daytrip from Florence to Montepulciano(it's a 2hr bus ride with a change in Chiusi) I would daytrip from Rome, but I'm trying to avoid an extra day in Rome on Easter weekend.

2. Heading to Montepulciano from Florence, spending the night, then going to Rome from there

None of my options at this point are ideal. Just the lesser of the evils. Your input is appreciated!

ellenem

Do you need to visit Montepulciano in particular? If you are looking for an easy hilltown option, Orvieto may be a good choice for you. It is on the direct train line between Florence and Rome.

mallory_22

No particular reason for going to Montepulciano...just good wine, good food, and pretty things! I think you are right about Orvieto being a better option, though. I will make a day of it on my way to Rome if I get bored in Florence.

Here is what I have settled on:
3 nights-Venice
2 nights-Bologna
6 nights-Florence(day trips to Pisa/Lucca, Siena)
5 nights-Rome

I think this sounds like a nice first trip to Italy, no? And the beauty is, if I decide to stay an extra night somewhere or do something spontaneous, I can! Thank you so much to everyone for your help!!! I'll definitely be doing a trip report, and I'm sure I'll have about 2 million+ more questions before it gets here.

stepsbeyond

My feeling about the hilltowns of the val d'Orcia, including Montepulciano, is that, fetching and fascinating as they are, they are less the draw than the unique farm landscape that surrounds them, both in le Crete Sinese and the val d'Orcia. And although you are spared watching other posters come in to scream at me for telling you the truth, the tourist impact on those towns has corrupted their food and wine.

I know you are not made of money, but you might investigate what it would cost, as either a day trip from Firenze or Rome, to have a driver pick up at either the train station in Arezzo or Cortona, or the train station in Chiusi, and drive you through a loop of the countryside, and return you to a train station, perhaps in Buonconvento if you want to make your way back to Firenze. I have no idea what the cost would be. It might be prohibitively expensive. But it might be that taking the money you would otherwise spend on lunch, or an expensive daytrip to Pompeii, or making some economy somewhere else, it's not so much of a splurge.

Also, if on your travels, you should strike up a conversation with a nice middle aged couple who are next driving from Firenze to Montepuliciano, try to get a one way ride and make your back!

Some Tuscan towns reachable by public transport that might appeal to you as much as Orvieto are Cortona and Panzano. They have their downsides and upsides, but you good check them out. But the cathedral in Orvieto is one of the region's most stunning architectural accomplishments. Just one think you can't possibly be impressed by one more mind-boggling cathedral, Orvieto knocks your socks off.