shonamclain

I'm new to the site and have searched around and am amazed at the amount of information on this site.

My fiance and I are planning a 2 week honeymoon in July and will be flying in and out of Milan and don't want to rent a car. We have both been to all of the major cities in Italy before and just want something more relaxing and romantic for our honeymoon without all the museums and running around.

We want to spend 6 nights in the Lake Como region (possibly with day trips....he wants to see Switzerland), take a train and then spend 6 nights in the Cinque Terre region.

What do you think of the itinerary? Should we spend less nights in Cinque Terre and spend a couple nights in Switzerland or elsewhere instead? Could you recommend a hotel in the Cinque Terre region that would be a good base for us?

Thanks so much!
Shona

eurotraveller

I highly recommend Cinque Terre but I don't think you need 6 nights. It is one of my favorite places in Europe! Sorry I don't remember the name of the place we stayed.

Switzerland is one of my favorite countries. Where would you go in Switzerland? If you want romance and a bit of adventure you could go up to a town above Interlaken and stay right in the middle of the alps. It is breathtakingly beautiful up there but if it isn't clear you might not see the mountains.

benderbabe

I suppose it depends how in depth you want to explore these regions. We were in that area in September, but unfortunately missed Lake Como, as going to the F1 Grand Prix was more important to us and we were pressed for time.

We spent only 2 days on the Ligurian Coast and only 1 of these days at the Cinque Terre towns.

The towns are very tourist-y and we found them all to look very similar after awhile, so 1 day was enough for us, but if you want to sunbake on a couple beaches there (yes, 2 or 3 of the towns DO have beaches, despite popular belief that they don't).

We stayed in Portovenere, and I would have happily just explored that town and not bothered with the Cinque Terre...it was similar to the 5 towns, but not as overrun with tourists, had nice beaches, beautiful cobbled streets, colorful houses, a castle on the point.

The main thing that makes Portovenere a good place to make as your base is that boats run to the Cinque Terre from there, and it is a MUCH nicer way to see the 5 towns than the train!

We stayed at the Hotel Royal Sporting, which was sort of the country version of a luxury hotel. Room was simple, but view was great, with a nice balcony.

The Hotel Splendido is regarded as THE best hotel in this town, and is closer to the boats, but not as quaint and a LOT more expensive...to the point that although my husband and I usually stay in luxury hotels, we could not afford this one!

Don't let anyone talk you into staying in La Spezia proper. There are a lot of hotels there, but they are DISGUSTING and the place is like an industrial port town. YUCK! We were so glad to drive right past and not have to stop there!

I have also heard good things about Lerici, which is over the other side of La Spezia and also has boat service, and Levanto, which is over the other side of the Cinque Terre.

If you're not renting a car, I suppose the whole thing becomes more difficult. We had a car and were glad we did.

In any case, if you want to relax, 4 to 6 days in this region is probably good.

I will post some links shortly for you.

benderbabe

Some useful links:

Info on the region of Liguria:

http://www.5terre.com/FrameSet.php?L...File=index.php


Link to the Royal Sporting Hotel in Portovenere:

http://www.royalsporting.com/


Sorry, it was the Grand Hotel in Portovenere that is supposed to be really nice (and looked it), not the Splendido..I think the Splendido is in Portofino. Anyway, here's a link to the Grand in Portovenere:

http://www.theluxuryhotels.info/show...true&.html


Here's a link to our travel log for this trip. You will find days 4 & 5 the most interesting. Just click on 'Details' for each:

http://www.flightbiz.com/travel/trav...europe2003.htm

Which reminds me, I would definitely suggest that you go to see "The Last Supper" when you are in Milan. I'm not into museums, but it was absolutely breathtaking and worth the trip. You MUST pre-book for it. There are many sites online where you can prebook, but I would probably suggest calling them direct...it was cheaper and seemingly more reliable. Here's an online booking link too:

http://selectitaly.com/museums.php?p...eadb1cab8d1783

Finally, here's the link to the boat line that runs to the Cinque Terre...it's extremely hard to locate in a search! Sorry, it's in Italian, but if you click on "departures" you will get a pretty good idea. Don't worry about booking ahead of time, you literally go down to the dock 15 minutes before departure the day you want to leave, and buy your ticket...

http://www.navigazionegolfodeipoeti..../index-eng.htm

Hope that info is of some use. Have fun!

bobthenavigator

Without a car, I would plan on 4 destinations if you plan to include Milan. Lake Como for sure, take your pick of the 3 villages in the mid-lake area, Lugano for 3 days, and the rest in the CT. It is hard to access Portovenere without a car so I would stay in Monterosso at either the Porta Roca[4 star] or Hotel Pasquale[3 star]. I would spend your last 2 nites in Milan. Good luck & best wishes.

Cheeky_Monkey

If you are flying into Malepensa, bit the bullet and rent a car and head for the Lake District. Lake Como is great. Plan to have lunch at the Villa de Este, for certain. Another option would be to go to Lago de Torre to the Puccini Festival which is held outdoors beside the lake and estate of Puccini where he is buried. All very romantic. Good luck!

benderbabe

I'd agree. I think a car is a definite must in this region....even in Liguria.

Go for the car!

jam10

Does anyone know info about Finale Ligure. I want to go there for my honeymoon in Sept to do some rock climbing and mtn biking, but we also want to relax and see some wine country. Should we go north to Asti region or to Tuscany?

zulkoski

without a car, what is the best way to get to portovenere? we will be heading there from Florence via train at the end of may and from their heading to Venice.

RufusTFirefly

You really, really, really have to want to relax and do nothing to spend 6 nights in Cinque Terre. An awfully expensive way to chill out.

bobthenavigator

Train to La Spzia--local bus to Portovenere is about :15

annabelle2

2 questions:
-are you 100% set on not renting a car?
-does your husband want to go to Switzerland mainly because he loves spectacular mountains?

The reason I ask is because you might consider a couple of days in the Dolomites as an option: fantastic scenery and hiking. I love the Swiss alps but my mountain-nut husband was thrilled with our time in the Dolomites. Castlerotto was a good base.

The catch for you is the car: easier, in my experience there, to drive than be dependent on bus schedules to the small towns.

Re: Cinque Terre -- Levanto is a town just a few minutes by train from the first Cinque Terre town. It has a nice beachfront, a variety of lodging and eating options, and may be less crazy than the Cinque Terre in July.

shonamclain

Wow...thanks so much for all the advice! We have re-thought the 6 nights in CT and have made some changes:
2 nights in Bellagio (Belvedere)
4 nights in Verenna (Milano)
2 nights.....not sure...looking into Turino where we'd rent a car to see Valle d'Aosta or Dolomites or Bernina Express to Switzerland
4 nights Santa Margherita (Fasce)
last night in Milan

I can't wait to go

bobthenavigator

Sorry, I just do not understand your strategy. You are still spending 6 nites on Como but now you are changing hotels which are :15 apart. And, you wanted to see the CT but now you are staying an hour north of there in a 2 star hotel that is 4 blocks from the water. Can you clarify your intent?

shonamclain

Bob

We picked the Hotel Fasce (doesn't matter to us that it's 2 stars) based on all the positive reviews found on this board.

The location of SML was also recommended numerous times on the board as a better alternative to staying in one of the 5 towns.

The Varenna/Bellagio hotel change we may change but both towns were recommended... we may rethink that.

Our intent is to have a relaxing time in an area we haven't been. We have already traveled extensively in the south, Sicily Florence, andVenice and don't need to cram in a lot of museums etc. We just want nice scenery and relax after our wedding.

Hagan

We had a fabulous trip in September to Varenna and also to Lauterbrunnen in Switzerland, all by train. (We started our trip in Paris, and trained to Switzerland first).
I hope you reconsider and just stay in one place on Lake Como, either Varenna or Bellagio, as they are literally only 15 minutes apart by ferry and so easy to access.
We stayed at the Silberhorn in Lauterbrunnen, just 20 minutes north of Interlaken and in the heart of the Alps. We had breathtaking views from our balcony, fabulous meals, and would highly recommend it. And SO easy to
access by train. Get a Swiss Pass and just ride through the country, it's a magnificent and relaxing experience.

The train ride from Lauterbrunnen to Lake Como was fabulous also, just a wonderful part of the trip. We were extremely happy to just hop on trains and not have to worry about driving, as we had done that 2 years prior in central Italy. We needed a car for that area, but trains should do you just fine where you plan to go. Relax and enjoy!!!!!!

Huitres

I would agree with the other posters, 6 days in the CT is a bit too long, unless you truly want to get away from it all and stay in a low-key, mellow place. Although, in July, there will lots of other tourists (German, English, Australian, and American) so be prepared. They all love the CT. IMO, I would explore more towns in the northern region, and then have 2 days in the CT. Switzerland is very nice too, but perhaps you will want to just concentrate on staying in Italy this trip?

Benderbabe, La Spezia is not "disgusting" - in fact, it has become one of the more pretty port towns along the Italian coast. Have you walked down the wide pedestrian promenade Corso Cavour? Strolled along the palm-lined marina where the boats are docked? I was pleasantly surprised with La Spezia and found it to be quite a friendly place - not to mention home to its famous food item "la farinata". While the accommodations in the neighboring CT towns might be preferred, there are some very lovely properties located above the hills overlooking the Golfe di Poeti, Lerici, etc.

bobthenavigator

Shonamclain, I have spent considerable time in both locations on several trips. Pick one hotel at Lake Como, and then decide if you really want the CT or not. Santa Margherita is lovely, but is an hour from the CT. And, I suggest the Hotel Jolanda in SML as a better option than the Fasce. Good luck--it will be hard to go wrong.

lbt

Hagan:
My husband and I are also going to Switzerland/Lake Como this Sept. Will be staying first in Murren or Wengen and then taking a train to Lake Como area. You've already done the train ride. Can you tell me which trains you took? It seems there's no direct train service and we'll need to make at least four changes/connections. I'm very much interested in how you scheduld this trip since you say your trip was very pleasant. Thanks!

lbt

shonamclain

Thanks for all the info!

Yes we definitely do want to spend a day in the CT...and an hour daytrip from SML sounds great to us. From what I understand there are a couple of other towns like Portofino or Rapallo we could also visit during our 3 1/2 days in SML.