northern italy trip
 

Hi all. Don't see too much about N Italy travel so hoping for some suggestions. DH and I have one way tickets to Milan next May. Have been to Milan before so we want to explore the lakes, the Piedmont and maybe add in Slovenia, Switzerland or Austria. We would be willing to hike, but they can't be too steep as husband as some heart issues.

We can rent a car but would love to train or bus it when possible. Not sure of itinerary but 3 weeks is max. Would love some suggestions and where to fly home from.
Thanks all.

In Italy, you can explore quite a bit by train, but many areas like the Piedmont are better toured mostly be car. Trains are great for traveling from big city to big city and often big town to big town, but the small towns in between don't always have train service. In Italy, most urban/suburban bus timetables are geared to the needs of commuters and students and don't usually work well for sightseeing.

Where you fly home from depends on the rest of your itinerary. IMO, you could easily spend 10 days or more in the Lakes area and the Piedmont, and you could have a wonderful 3 weeks in Northern Italy alone... transit to Emilia-Romagna and/or the Veneto and/or the South Tyrol would not eat up much time. You only mention having been to Milan. Have you visited other cities/areas in Italy?

Depending on where you live, flights to your home airport from some cities might require one or two connections, so you might want to investigate your options on that issue.

Read some guidebooks (paper, online, YouTube videos, etc.), study maps and train timetables (bahn.de/en can help). As you prioritize your destinations, plot out the itinerary day by day, night by night, listing what you'd do/see in each place, what days/hours things are open, whether entry reservations are required, and the time you'd spend traveling to the next destination. Decide how much time you're willing to spend moving around as opposed to seeing the sights. I like to have some unplanned blocks of time here and there to allow for the unexpected/laundry/whatever.

There is level hiking in lots of places, but you should also check for altitude. Personally, I wouldn't want to be far from emergency responders.

https://www.komoot.com/discover/worl...distance=32.19

We were in Piemonte for 4 nights in 2018. It is a wonderful area to explore. Check out Chapters Ten to Fourteen of below Trip Report (lots of photos, places to see and restaurants to dine)

https://travelswithmaitaitom.com/italy-2018/

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...cbdb62eb9.jpeg

There is a new cycle way from Turin to Venice, if you take it gentle that might be a good way to use 3 weeks

I just read the full report and it was so helpful. Not sure how I missed it as I love your reports. Thanks