chaka8

Hi,

We will be travelling to Northern Italy for 7 days 5 nights in July with two kids (3 and 7). Landing in Milan and renting a car. On the one hand I don’t want to do too much driving, on the other I of course want to get to see as much as possible…..

My planned itinerary looks like this –
Day 1 – Milan (sleep in Milan)
Day 2 – Lake Como and driving a bit north (sleep at Teglio near the Swiss border)
Day 3 – drive to the Dolomites (sleep for two nights in the Ortisei area, explore the Dolomites)
Day 5 – Drive south (sleep at Mestre near Venice)
Day 6 – Visit Venice (sleep near Verona)
Day 7 – visit Verona (fly out of Milan at 11pm).

It looks to me that we would be driving no more than about 2 hours a day, which seems manageable.

Would like to hear if you think that this is a good plan and any suggestions about changes/kids attractions along the rout.

Thanks!
EA

zoecat

This sounds like a lot of driving and not a lot of seeing (unless looking out the car window counts as seeing). You are trying to do way too much.

With the amount of time you have, I suggest you narrow it down to 2 places to base and explore and enjoy. Because your trip is in the possibly very hot month of July, I suggest you stick with Lake Como and the Dolomites. Venice and Verona will be hot and humid.

Is your trip THIS July?

bobthenavigator

I agree--pick two.
I would do Como and the Dolomites and enjoy yourself.

Jean

"It looks to me that we would be driving no more than about 2 hours a day, which seems manageable."

Not exactly. You need to re-check the estimated driving times between these points. Some are short (Mestre-Verona, Verona-Malpensa) if there are no traffic problems/delays, but others are much longer.

Try maps.google.com or viamichelin.com.

chaka8

Thanks for the comments!
Yes, this July, in two weeks...
I agree that its more driving than I would like, but the thing is that to get from Milan to the Dolomites I have to drive east in any case....and to get back I have to drive back west. So Venice and Verona are basically on the way....
Assuming that I may never be back, isn't Venice a must see???
In addition, my son is into history more than scenery...
Maybe I can skip Venice and Verona and stay two nights at Lake Grada?
Thanks!!

chaka8

I used google.maps to check
Milat-Teglio (via lake como) 2.5 hours
Teglio to Ortisei - 3 hours
Ortisei to Mestre 2 h 45min.
Mestre - Verona 1 hour
Verona to Milan 2 hours 20 min

For the long drives, I have a whole day, stopping along the way for attractions and to rest.

If I skip Venice that will save me maybe 2 hours total of driving....

bobthenavigator

OK, include Venice and drop the Dolomites.
It is more than driving---I suggest 2 hotels.

cmeyer54

Just as an FYI - the traffic around Lake Como is extremely difficult - it took us around 4 hours to get from Milan to Bellaggio and that was in the fall. It also took nearly a full day to drive the Dolomite road from Cortina to Bolzano. Its mostly 2 lanes and if you hit traffic, trucks, bicyclists, etc. everyone slows waaaay down. We did a similar loop from Venice to Cortina to Bolzano to Garda/Como to Milan to Verona and back to Venice...we took 17 days to really see the areas. I would suggest doing just Milan and Como/Garda if possible. There are some beautiful smaller lakes, caves, small villages with plenty of history in those two areas. The children might also get a kick out of walking on the roof at the Duomo in Milan.

socaltraveler

I would drop the Dolomites and add the time to Venice. I would also stay in Venice. Drop car at Venice, drop Verona,, take train back to Milan.

chaka8

Great, thanks for all the advice!

SusannahT

I agree with socaltraveler, especially if your son enjoys history.

Lexma90

I agree that it would be difficult, mentally/emotionally, to be that (relatively) close to Venice and not visit. But your trip is only two weeks away!

I would also suggest two or so sites; in addition to travel time, you have 2 younger kids that you'll need to pack up and get out for every stay. One-night stays with kids are not a lot of fun.

If you're willing to live with the heat, and want to visit Venice, consider then the Dolomites and Venice. If you can, at this late date, consider staying IN Venice, rather than Mestre. You can park your rental car in the big parking garage in Piazzale Roma - just make sure you take everything with you; I've heard there are theft issues in that garage. Also, in visiting Venice with a 3 and 7yo, keep in mind all of the canals and the bridge. If I was traveling there with kids that age, I would consider a back carrier for the 3yo, so as not to have to worry constantly a kid falling in a canal.