Milan to Nice to Portovenere car or train better?
 

We are flying into Milan. We arrive at 4:45 pm and plan on picking up a car and meeting friends in Nice that evening. We will need a car in Nice for 5 days. After that we will head for Portovenere as a base for the Cinque Terre- then onto Tuscany and back to Milan. It looks like the drive is about 31/2 hrs to Nice, not sure if a train would be better and then rent car in Nice? I was wondering what the drive is like between these two cities?
I've thought about renting a car in Milan and keeping it throughout the trip but, I've read that the tunnels around Genoa are awful and the drive in the CT is not good? (I looked at dropping car in Nice, but the charge was as much as keeping the car the entire trip).I checked the train schedule and it looks like it can take 9 hrs to get from Nice to La Spezia (the train didn't go to Portovenere). A car would be quicker. Is there a bus to Portovenere from LaSpezia? Has anyone done this route or have any suggestions for me?
Thanks so much.

I think taking the train from Milan to Nice and renting a car there would be your best bet, especially if for some reason you decided not to return the car in Italy--you'd be hit with a huge fee in that case. You can just turn the car in in Nice and pick up another rental in Italy.

Trains are most convenient. I am doing that similar routing in 2 weeks, except going to Monaco, then back to the Cinque Terre. Have you considered using the train while in Nice too? Public transportation is great and there are busses and trains to take you where you need to go. From Monaco back to the Cinque Terre, the train ride is 5 hours long, but along the beautiful Mediterranean coastline so I can't complain! You don't need a car in the CT as you can take the local train from town to town, or the 5Terre boats, or walk!

From La Spezia, you can take a local taxi from the train station out to Portovenere, or take a bus there. I've done both. The taxi ride will run you about 20 euros (La Spezia to Portovenere) vs 2 euros bus.

Why take a train into Milano Centrale just to wait on the next train to Nice. Malpensa is 30 miles west of Milan---you will already be in Genoa by then with a car. I have done that route---lots of tunnels from Genoa to Nice, but you can do that leg in 2 hours.

Thanks for the advice. Sounds like we'd be wasting alot of time waiting for trains out of Milan. Are the tunnels as dangerous as I've heard? Can you give me an idea how long the drive is from Nice to Portovenere? Another option would be to drop the car in Genoa and train to Riomaggiore, then bus? to Portovenere but, if the driving isn't difficult in this area a car would be simpler. Thanks for your help.

No, not dangerous just a pain because they block the view. From Nice to Portovenere is about 4 hours. I would drive all the way, but the option is to drop the car in La Spezia--local busses run hourly and take :15. You will love Portovenere---we have 3 times.

I need advice. I am flying into Milan [Malpensa] then traveling on to Nice, then on to Cannes to the film festival. I will be taking a train, car rental is not an option. The trenitalia web site is not user friendly and a bit confusing. I hear there are 3 trains a day? I arrive in the morning and don't want to waste a lot of time and want to ensure I arrive at the right station to take the right train. Also, once in Nice, is it easy to get to Cannes? Via train, bus, taxi? Any advice would be appreciated. Tx!