I'm going to Italy for two and a half weeks in November. The first ten days I'm going to be part of a tour visiting Milan, Venice, Florence and Rome. The rest of the time I'm going to be travelling on my own. Any suggestions on some interesting cities to visit?

<BR>I am not the most experienced traveler in Italy but it seems to me that you can from Milan see the Cinque Terre towns, and go to Stresa as an access way to the Borromean Islands. <BR> <BR>Como is accessible from Milan too on a day trip as is Lugano and Locarno in Switzerland. I cannot attest to the beauty of the places just that they can be seen on a day trip via train from Milano Centrale.

Where to begin? There are so many! <BR> <BR>I suggest the following places in Northern and Central Italy: <BR> <BR>Ravenna (near Bologna) and Siena (south of Florence). Rave reviews for both. Almost any small city in Umbria. Maybe take a skip on Perugia, which is swollen and urbanized. Don't miss Assisi even though the Giotto frescoes are off limits. The views are heavenly - literally! I enjoyed Spoleto, and Have yearned to visit Orvieto, Todi, and Gubbio as well! <BR> <BR>If you have a chance while in Venice, do not miss the lace-making island of Burano. Serious eye candy!

The first half of your trip, the tour, is going to be rushed and busy. You're going to be unpacking and packing every <BR>couple of days, and, let's face it, you're not going to see that much of each of the four cities, especially when you factor in transportation time. <BR>So, for the remaining 10 days, you could pick and area that you have not seen at all, like the Lakes, or the Amalfi Coast,or Naples and Pompei, or the Riviera, or the South. Or you could stay north and even get into Switzerland. <BR>I don't know which scenic areas are not seen at their best in November re: weather. <BR>Alternatively, you could go back to one of the four cities you already briefly visited, explore it thouroughly, and take a few day trips or overnighters to neighboring towns. For example, from <BR>Florence you can visit Siena, Pisa,Lucca.San Gimignano and many other places in Tuscany. Siena is certainly worth a day or two. In Florence you can have the time to go into all the museums and historic buildings you didn't have time for,and you won't be fighting the summer and early fall crowds. From Venice (my favorite) you can explore the Veneto, take an all-day barge trip along the Brenta canal to look at the palazzi designed by Palladio. You can explore every fascinating nook and cranny of Venice, and still have the luxury of whiling away time at a cafe. I highly recommend visiting the lagoon islands of Murano (glass), Burano (lace, and picturesque buildings), and Torcello (beautiful 7th century church, wild and deserted-looking landscape). I have not been to Rome, but I certainly am sure that it offers many more sights to see than what you previously would have had time for. <BR>What a wonderful luxury, 2 1/2 weeks in Italy! Enjoy it.

From your description, assume your tour ends in and you will fly out of Rome. I would recommend spending the rest of your time in the Rome and Naples area - there's more than enough there to fill the rest of your time. Or if you want to do something unusual, take the train from Rome to Bari via Pescari, ferry across to Dubrovnik for a couple of days, and return through Naples. <BR>

Jeff, <BR> <BR>Try Orvietto. It is about an hour train ride from Rome. After two to three days of the hustle and bustle of Rome, this little hillside town is a great respite. It is famous for the following: 1. Etruscan tombs 2. Hand painted ceramics 3. Magnificent cathedral and 4. Orvietto Classico wine. Just stroll the piazza, walk along the narrow streets, visit the Etruscan Museum and the cathedral and also eat at the Trattoria Etruscana and try the wild boar pasta. You can't go wrong and you can then jump back on the train and get excited again in Rome.