Hi. I'm planning Italy trip Number 5 for Mom and I, and it looks like we are covering the 'legwarmer' of Italy. We hope to fly into Rome, take the train to Sorrento, spend Night 1 in Sorrento then pick up rental car and drive into the mountains near Benevento to the village where my grandmother was born. We found it once before, it is smack dab in the middle of nowhere, so we will hope to spend Night 2 in Tivoli, and do Villas Adrianno and D'Este the next day. Then north to Orvieto for Night 3, Perugia, Montepulciano and into Florence for Night 4.

Here is the dilemma: Do we head north via Parma and Piacenza, or west via Pisa/the coast for the drive north? We want to finish in Milan for Night 7 (leaving from Malpensa) via Bellagio at Lake Como. We've done Florence on each previous trip, love it, but only need an evening there. Mom is 65, and hiking the Cinque Terre is not our thing, but either a drive along the coast or through beautiful countryside is definitely our thing. Should we spend the night near Parma or Piacenza or push through to Bellagio and take Nights 5 and 6 there?

All previous trips have been great, we drive everywhere (did the Costiera Amalfitana!) speak the language enough to avoid an international incident. I know we won't be able to do Milan justice but we are more interested in little towns than fashion central. Any thoughts?? You guys have always been a great resource.
Thanks
Laura

You don't say when you are taking this trip. If it is summer, and your driving times include the weekends, I would avoid the coast.

Personally, I am having trouble figuring out your itinerary. You are going to Orvieto for a night, and then the following morning you are planning to see Perugia and Montepulciano -- and then drive into Firenze with your car?

Additionally you want to see Parma and the lakes?

If you just want to drive around Italy, what difference does it make where you go?

Why are you driving into Florence if you do not want to spend time there?

You're planning way too much for only 7 days/nights. Also I agree 200% with the other posters that driving into Florence is a nightmare, and especially if you plan to spend only one night there. Why?

As to your specific question, the drive up the coast is far more pleasant than the drive through the center, that is through Palma. If you go along the coast, you will be driving through the Italian riviera (Liguria) and up through Genoa and on to Milan.

Ok, we are going in late March, so beach traffic shouldn't be a problem. I've driven in Florence before, so that doesn't bother me, and we'd like to spend the night in Florence because we'd like to have dinner in our favorite, though often visited, city at our favorite restaurant. Plus, since we've seen the sights, we can linger at places we haven't seen en route and just enjoy a passegiata along the Arno after dinner.

Nessundorma, some of our best memories are 'driving around' the countryside, stopping in little villages, etc. Yes, we are covering some ground but my mother's health has a precarious future, so I would like us to see what we can while we can. That is why I am trying to evaluate where to go for the best take, rather than "what difference does it make where you go?"

Will you share with us your favorite restaurant in Florence?

Laura,

I too have greatly enjoyed driving around Italy, but I wasn't trying to get to half a dozen famous destinations in a week, so I had time to stop in little villages and I didn't really care much where I went. By contrast, sounds like you will be doing the equivalent of the Monza.

It is so hard to predict what kind of weather you will get for March that you might do better to just leave it up in the air as to whether it makes sense to drive to Montepulciano, the coast or Lago di Como. If you get a week of rain, you might find that staying longer in Perugia or Firenze makes sense, or perhaps visiting Milano.

Re: the restaurant, it is nothing magnificent, there are two actually: Mama Gina's and Il Cammillo, virtually side by side on Lungarno or Borgo san Jacopo, one or two steets in on the Oltrarno. Mama Gina's was the scene of two great meals, our first in Florence in 97 and dinner with my sisters on their first trip to Italy in 01. Homey food, like a ribollita that made it to the RSVP column of Bon Appetit and a pasta e fagioli my sister still dreams about. Honestly, we remember laughing as much as eating. Il Camillo was recently profiled on Joan Cusack's new travel program. Love Joan but hated the program. Loved the restaurant though.

Re the drive: I wasn't sure if the coastal highway actually gave a view of the coast or if it was too far inland. Too hard to tell from my atlas. I'm not looking for the cliff's edge of Positano, did that in '04, butt muscles have yet to unclench. Sorry for that visual. It sounds like the more scenic option vs. Parma. And Nessun, my objective is to line up possibilities then play it by ear as to whether we stop and stroll or drive through as Mom's comfort level dictates. I appreciate your comments about the weather - we've hit warmer weather in March in 01 & 04 than April in 05, but it's a crap shoot. Still, it's consistantly nicer than the NH I (eagerly)leave behind. Thanks for your suggestions.

I can't comment on what the views are like along the secondary roads near the Cinque Terra but I can say that on A12 there's no view of the sea. We have driven the countryside around Parma (that's close to where my grandmother was born) and I thought it very picturesque, some lovely hills and valleys. Road S62 south of Parma is part of the Via Francigena, the trail pilgrims travelled from Canterbury through France to Rome. Kind of an historic Appalachian trail. I read one article that the current Italian prime minister included its preservation as part of his platform. As for small towns, Cassio has some fascinating rock outcroppings and Berceto looked quite charming as we drove through - didn't have time then to stop.

Given a choice between cities, I'd go back to Parma before returning to Pisa. The former just seemed to have greater diversity - as well a gelateria that could have been the best we visited during our two trips to Italy.

Thank you, Laura. I know both of those places. I remember a great porcini first course at Cammilo a few years ago. Did not see the Cusack Florence show, though..I will have to try to catch the rerun.

Thank you toni, that is EXACTLY the kind of insight I have come to expect on this forum. And Ekscrunchy, the much better program to catch is the new Nat Geographic Atlas series, the first episode was Italy, narrated by Isabella Rosselini, wonderful. Ciao e grazie per tutto l'informazione.