Looking for suggestions on where to go and what to do if we have a car and time for 5 days with Milan as a start point. Thanks.

Get out of Milan as soon as you can and head directly to Rome. Don't know how far it is by car but it is only a few hours by train. From Rome go to Florence or Venice. Not much doing in Milan.

My suggestion... <BR> <BR>See the Duomo, Galleria, and Last Supper in Milan. <BR> <BR>Drive to Florence. See Michaelangelo's David, Ufizzi, etc. <BR> <BR>Drive to Rome. Wander aimlessly (anywhere you turn, you'll run into something worth seeing). <BR> <BR>Drive back. <BR> <BR>Venice is a bit out of the way and Rome is definitely the highlight. That's why I would suggest Florence...

Per Sabrina, get out of Milan as soon as you can. Other than the Duomo, Galleria and the Last Supper, there are not many other reasons to be in the city. There's better shopping on Rodeo Drive or 5th Avenue. <BR>Choices (in addition to those mentioned: <BR>1) The lakes <BR>2) Tuscany <BR>3) The Mediterranean coast, including Cinqe Terre <BR>

Come on gang, the poor girl only has 5 <BR>days--she will do well to see 2 places <BR>in that time and should not drive <BR>more than 3 hours. You have 2 feasible <BR>choices Aileen: Include Lake Como in both scenarios and then take your pick <BR>of the Ligurian coast[Cinque terre]or <BR>Venice. One is 3 hours south the other <BR>3 hours east. Venice is by far the more <BR>expensive and is better accessed by train since you have to ditch your car.

Could you clarify some points, Aileen? <BR>a) have you been to any of the big 3 (Venice, Florence and Rome)? <BR>b) how many of you are travelling together? <BR>c) do you have to return to Milan after the 5 days? <BR>d) is the car free, i.e., would you save some $ if you don't use the car during these 5 days? <BR> <BR>There are quite a few nice day trips you may do by car out of Milan. To name a few, you may consider (times refer to round trip, driving on Autostrade): <BR>Portofino Penninsula - 3:30 hr <BR>Varenna (Lake Como) - 2:30 hr <BR>Certosa di Pavia-Piacenza-Parma - 4:00 hr <BR>Verona - 3:30 hr <BR> <BR>Now to your specific question. You may combine above possibilities adding up to your 5 days and eventually exploring further (either to Vicenza, Padua, the Dolomiti or down the Riviera del Levante into Tuscany - or up to Lake Como into Switzerland). <BR> <BR>If you're considering to visit any 2 of the big 3, IMO a car doesn't make sense. If you add up tolls, gas and garage costs, plus the "cost" associated to the driving in divided tollways, it doesn't pay. The train is much more convenient. <BR> <BR>If you consider visiting only one of the big 3 by car, I would spend at least one night on the road, possibly two: <BR> <BR>Venice - you may visit Verona/Lake Garda, Vicenza, Padua and/or even some of the Dolomiti <BR> <BR>Florence - you may spend a day in Portofino Penninsula (or in the Cinque terre so popular among Americans) and/or some of Tuscany (Pisa, Lucca, San G., Siena, etc) <BR> <BR>Rome - the Riviera, some of Tuscany or some of Umbria. <BR> <BR>Paulo <BR> <BR>

I fully agree with Bob the Navigator. You don't have nearly enough time to do all the things suggested. You don't indicate if you have seen other parts of Italy before or if you have to fly out of Milan. If the latter, then I wouldn't go as far as Rome and back--would use too much time. Florence is incredible and you could use most of your time there. The Lake country (Maggiore, Como) is wonderful but I'm not sure how it is this time of year (you don't say when you are going). Same for Portofino and the Cinque Terre (with Santa Marguerita Ligure a great place to stay). Depends how much you want to rush or how much you want to enjoy seeing things in a more relaxing way. I think you need to provide more details to get better responses. Good luck.

Thanks for the replies! We will have arrived from Rome to Milan by plane in mid November and will have 5 days to see whatever we can. I agree that it may not be the best time for the lake area and from what you say, I think we will skip Milan other than the meeting that we came for. Venice and Florence sound interesting. So you think that we should forget the car and travel by train? Any suggestions for accommodations and great food in either of the 2 cities?