bordelons

We are flying into Venice and out of Rome for a 12 day celebration of our 25th anniversary with our 3 children. We have not been before and we want to eat and drink our way through the country. We are thinking about staying in Venice 2-3 nights, Bologna 2-3 nights, Florence 2-3 nights and the balance in Rome. BUT - there are only so many churches and museums that we want to see. We realy like to pack a picnic lunch (with some adult beverages) and just take off on back roads. We want to avoid tourist traps. Any input would be appreciated. This is one of our dream trips so we want it to be SPECAIL!

PRLCH

What time of the year?

nytraveler

Doing 4 cities in 12 days will have you spending too much time traveling and not enough seeing anything in any city - esp if you really want to see some countryside too - which it sounds like you do.

I would simplify to 2 cities and several days spent in a small town - so you can see countryside, do a picnic - perhaps stay in a nice agriturismo with a pool and bikes you can borrow for a couple of picnics in nearby beauty spots.

Jean

"... just take off on back roads." That would require renting a car, so what city are you willing to sacrifice a day to do this? And are you or your husband going to be the designated driver, because you do NOT want to drink and drive in Italy.

bordelons

PRLCH, we are going in Dec. - we have to wait for them to get out of school (LSU students),

Jean - I thought my post sounded a little funny - in regars to the drinking and driving! Sorry, there will be a designated driver - don't want to spend years in prison!

Jean

Some may disagree, but in December I'd just stick to cities and drop the idea of roaming back roads. It won't be picnic weather anywhere.

I'd probably just book three hotels in 12 days, as you're going to lose a half day each time you move from town to town. Since you're not terribly interested in museums and churches, you should read some guidebooks to help you figure out where and how you should divide your time. For example, Florence is my favorite city in Italy and I can't get enough of the place, but you might have a more enjoyable time somewhere else. I'd certainly give the most time to Rome because of the huge number of fascinating things to see.

zeppole

I agree with Jean. December is not the time be planning a driving vacation in Italy, or dreaming of picnics.

If there are only so many churches and museums you can see, consider extending your time in Bologna and seeing Firenze strictly as a day trip from there. From a base in Bologna, visit Parma and Modena and Mantova -- 3 of Italy's greatest and most unusual food capitals -- and partake in cooking classes, cheese factory tours, balsamic vinegar tastings, and high end long lunches (you can go down to Imola by train and blow the bank on San Domenico).

You can sneak in a bit of culture walking under the protection of the porticoes in Ferrara (which also has great food) and visiting the unusual small museums in Bologna, which has 36 kilometers of porticoes to keep wet weather off you, plus fab shopping and opera. I couldn't resist a day trip to Ravenna -- check it out with Google.

So I recommend 2-3 nights Venice, 6 nights Bologna and the balance in Rome.

zeppole

By the way, you can see everything I mentioned by train. Don't rent a car.

Here's a nice apartment in Bologn (I've never stayed there, but it's a great location):

http://vacation-rentals.travel.latim...F0aW1lcw%3D%3D

zeppole

http://www.deliciousitaly.com/tour.p...3&regione_id=5

PRLCH

We sound a bit like you - love wandering the countryside, rather than big cities, BUT ..... Last year we visited Italy in December / early January, but decided to stick to the cities due to the winter weather. Not much to do in the countryside if it is raining, whereas in a city you can always take in a museum or do some shopping. We also gave the car hire a miss (most unusual for us!) and used the trains. My husband was keen to drive, but I was worried about the unpredictability of the weather, and the impact that may have on driving.

Definately we did NOT have "picnic" weather. Weather in Rome and Amalfi Coast around Christmas and New Year was really quite warm, but the wind on the Amalfi did not make it great picnic weather. In Florence and Venice we had snow and rain, so definately not picnic weather (more like hot chocolate weather!)

Many people advise against winter travel. We really enjoyed the lesser crowds etc, but you need to plan around the weather. Personally, if you are not a big city person, I would recommend Florence. A great city to walk, and a nice base to get out into the countryside from. We did side trips from Florence to Pisa (a really enjoyable day), and took the bus into the hills around Florence up to Fiesole a couple of times.

Have fun planning, and let us know what you decide.