maxima

If you have a long flight to Milan, you should stay in Milan the first night. Jet lag can kill a short vacation, and Lake Como is not that far from Milan.

Although your father has a wish list, you need to know in advance, and be realistic, how much he can do in a day, and how much he can do 9 days in a row. If you are not sure, then you should spend at least 2 days with him before you finalize your itinerary, doing the type of activities you plan to do on your trip, such as walking and standing , sight seeing of any kind, and see how you do. He may be fine, but he may need more time to do these things. I know from experience that its not always easy to travel with older parents, and that it is easier on everyone if you can stay in the same accommodation for at least 2-3 nights.

For your accommodations, consider whether your father will be more comfortable with an elevator rather than stairs. I would also recommend that he have room with a stall shower instead of a tub/shower. While the shower may be small, bathtubs in Europe are often higher than what he may be used to, and it can be difficult getting in and out of a high tub.

charnees

I may have missed this in the posts here, but do be aware that you cannot drive into the historic centers of many towns without a permit. Some hotels may be able to supply one, but be careful where you drive. The areas off-limits are known as ZTLs (Zone of Traffic Limitation) and violations can cost hundreds of dollars.

Also, some towns have such narrow and twisting streets that getting stuck or lost is a possibility. Parking is very difficult and expensive.

My husband is 80 and I am 77 and in good health, and can walk pretty far. But after a few days of sight-seeing and walking around we had to take a day off and just rest. I would advise you to cut out the number of towns you visit. You cannot drive through most of those towns and stop just anywhere, even with a permit, so a lot of it has to be done on foot.

HappyTrvlr

@kybourbon:It isn't an advertisement. Just a suggestion for a reasonably priced local driver whom we have used several times, who is very dependable,and emails confirmations, etc. I wish I had found him earlier in my travels and was only trying to help this poster who is traveling with an elderly father.It is an easy way to travel to Lake Como from MXP and he is less expensive thatn other drivers I found on the internet for Lake Como.

nochblad

Personally I prefer to rent as I think this gives greater flexibility.

Most posters to date have suggested going first to Como/Lake Como but I would suggest otherwise.

Consider driving south from Malpensa to join the A4 to take you to Chivasso. Then south to Ottone and then on to Cinqueterre. This route avoids hitting Milan traffic immediately which for the uninitiated can be fairly horrendous. Additionally the exertions of Cinqueterre for your father come early in the trip - even if he does not do the walks the up and down of the various towns can be tiring in themselves.

Then on to Lucca which should be your stop. Pisa is frankly worth only a half day if that.

Returning north there are two options. Return the car immediately to Malpensa and use public transport/driver to take you to mid-lake Como and back or drive to Lake Como. By this stage you will be better used to Italian driving and can affront the ring road of Milan.

Keeping the car will enable you greater flexibility to visit places and restaurants so that your dad fully enjoys the trip and you do not feel constrained by his tiredness after the tour which would be perfectly understandable.

Mimar

BTW, you might want to check on the condition of the path between the towns in the Cinque Terre. There was a rock slide in September, injuring 4 Australian tourists. At the time they closed the whole path. This after the towns worked feverishly to recover from a big storm last winter which caused mud slides along the coast, virtually destroying one town. That storm also caused closure of part of the trail.

Jpete

Thanks again for all the posts. You have all given us excellent suggestions. Now we have a better idea for our planning. We have decided to rent a car for part of the trip, bus for part and possible a train.

Happy Holidays to all and thanks again!!!