Week in Italy trip - Spring

[fourstardan]

I'm looking at a Spring Week in Italy at the end of April, it's usually Riviera but we've done this the last few years now so fancy a change.

Flights from Bournemouth are available to Venice which is always nice as its local but its awkward times (9pm out 7pm back), it's more flexible from LGW.

Thoughts on;

Option 1

-Fly into Venice
-Stay in Venice for a night/two
-Train to Florence and stay in Florence in rental
-Get Train to Rome for a day trip
-Day trip to Pisa

OR

-Fly into Florence from LGW get car and base in rental in Florence
-Day trip to all of the above but driving and maybe Train into Rome as it's 4 hours and hell for driving I've heard

OR

Fly into Rome and stay outside of the Rome's M25 with train trips into the city and day trips out (if we have any energy) to Florence/Pisa and skip Venice, probably warmer as well slightly?

Additional Questions;

-Are there any other spots available to visit within the week from these locations? I'd love to go see Pompei/Vesuvius tbh but thats 3 hours from Rome is it worth while and dodgy ?
-Am I mad wanting to see this much in a week?
-Are there any theme park/zoo/kid haven options in these cities?

Thanks in advance

[heisthegaffer]

Lake garda has plenty to offer inc Gardaland theme park.

Has cable cars, Sermione old town plus paddle boarding and speed boating, all very reasonably priced. Great, good value places to eat too.

We went last year and are itching to go back. You'd need a car really to get around.

[RayDonovan]

The Lakes are nice (not just Garda / Como), but I would potentially avoid in Spring as the weather can be iffy.

We preferred Florence over Rome, slightly less hectic..

[heisthegaffer]

RayDonovan said:

The Lakes are nice (not just Garda / Como), but I would potentially avoid in Spring as the weather can be iffy.

We preferred Florence over Rome, slightly less hectic..

To be fair we went in July so no idea of weather in spring.

[ettore]

I think you’re packing in a bit too much for a week - too much travelling and you’ll be skimming everything.

It’s quite a good time to visit Venice as it’s not overly hectic, but perhaps one other stop.

Lakes are lovely but as we’re PH, you could train to Bologna (best food) which is a great city in its own right but, more importantly, you can hire a car and you have Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati, Paganini, Ducati et al , plus foodie trips to be had.

Florence would also be good and Pisa is easy from there but, again, better hiring a car and getting out into Tuscany proper (Siena, Montelcino etc etc)

[Louis Balfour]

ettore said:

Florence would also be good and Pisa is easy from there but, again, better hiring a car and getting out into Tuscany proper (Siena, Montelcino etc etc)

Just be careful of ZTLs, or low-emission zones in towns. Residents are exempt, hire cars aren't generally. It's easy to go in and out of them accidentally. You will then get multiple charges from the hire company for providing your details to the authorities, followed by a multa or fine per contravention.

I am not an advocate for train travel in the UK, in Italy I am. It's cheap, clean and efficient.

[Huzzah]

Lucca is doable as a day trip from Florence either by car or train.

Lucca's worth more than a day IMO though. With only a week, I'd want to do less traveling, keeping my sightseeing local.

[fourstardan]

Louis Balfour said:

Just be careful of ZTLs, or low-emission zones in towns. Residents are exempt, hire cars aren't generally. It's easy to go in and out of them accidentally. You will then get multiple charges from the hire company for providing your details to the authorities, followed by a multa or fine per contravention.

I am not an advocate for train travel in the UK, in Italy I am. It's cheap, clean and efficient.

We got a parking fine in Sardinia for confusing signs...lessons will be learnt!

It feels like Florence is sounding like the better base option!

I think up north is risky with weather then, when we do France there is still snow on the mountains at this time.

[raceboy]

We've done Italy tours a few times now and try to get back there at least once a year...
Last year we flew into Pisa, which is a standard flight from our nearest local airport, you really don't need more than half a day there and it's a lot nicer at night once all the day trippers have cleared off.
So one night in Pisa then the train to Florence, Italian trains are on the whole clean, punctual, and quick, we had a few nights there, lovely place, definitely recommend it, then train to Bologna, Bologna itself is nice but we hired a car and drove to Modena/Maranello for obvious reasons, and Sant'Agata the 3 museums took up the best part of the day, but if you rushed you could fit in a quick visit to Pagani.
The next day was a short train trip to Imola where you can do a tour of the circuit, a lap in a van and visit the Senna memorial, and the town of Imola itself is very nice not on the usual tourist hit list so nice and quiet.
Back to Bologna then another train to Verona, beautiful place, food in the main Arena area is a bit touristy but the views are almost worth it, we then finished off with a few days relaxing at Lake Garda, but you could just as easily get to Venice, it's the same train, just east instead of west, then back to Verona for the flight home.

[Stuart70]

Fly into Florence, hire car, stay in Siena and travel around the towns, villages (S Gimignano esp) and if the weather is kind head for thermal pools too.

Florence is only good if out of season and bearable.

If you are going to Venice then head for Murano / Burano boat trip as well. I have always found Venice overrated but I am a cultural vacuum!

Pisa is a tower and that is about it for me; only worth doing if you have not done it before.

If you are lucky with the weather it is a glorious time to travel in Italy.

[Louis Balfour]

fourstardan said:

We got a parking fine in Sardinia for confusing signs...lessons will be learnt!

It feels like Florence is sounding like the better base option!

I think up north is risky with weather then, when we do France there is still snow on the mountains at this time.

Florence is a good base and easily accessible by train from Pisa airport. You take the Pisa Mover from the airport to Pisa Centrale and then a train from there to Florence. It is easy, clean and enjoyable.

Not sure what standard of accommodation you intend to go for. But I used a nice B&B called Il Marzocco last year, which was well-priced and comfortable. It's quite close to Florence station and a short walk to the city centre.

[MattS5]

fourstardan said:

I'm looking at a Spring Week in Italy at the end of April, it's usually Riviera but we've done this the last few years now so fancy a change.

Flights from Bournemouth are available to Venice which is always nice as its local but its awkward times (9pm out 7pm back), it's more flexible from LGW.

Thoughts on;

Option 1

-Fly into Venice
-Stay in Venice for a night/two
-Train to Florence and stay in Florence in rental
-Get Train to Rome for a day trip
-Day trip to Pisa

OR

-Fly into Florence from LGW get car and base in rental in Florence
-Day trip to all of the above but driving and maybe Train into Rome as it's 4 hours and hell for driving I've heard

OR

Fly into Rome and stay outside of the Rome's M25 with train trips into the city and day trips out (if we have any energy) to Florence/Pisa and skip Venice, probably warmer as well slightly?

Additional Questions;

-Are there any other spots available to visit within the week from these locations? I'd love to go see Pompei/Vesuvius tbh but thats 3 hours from Rome is it worth while and dodgy ?
-Am I mad wanting to see this much in a week?
-Are there any theme park/zoo/kid haven options in these cities?

Thanks in advance

I asked a similar question last year and had some decent/helpful responses. It might be of some use:

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

[fourstardan]

MattS5 said:

I asked a similar question last year and had some decent/helpful responses. It might be of some use:

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

Thanks for this.

Maranello is 1hr 20 from Florence....another feather in the cap for this option.

Also, I've browsed on the west coast and stumbled across a theme park called Mirabilandia, 1. the Drive looks like a dream drive around hairpins and seems to be Bikers haven, and 2. my god looking at the Hot wheels at this theme park stunts blow my mind let alone what it'll do with my sons!

[shirt]

ettore said:

I think you’re packing in a bit too much for a week - too much travelling and you’ll be skimming everything.

It’s quite a good time to visit Venice as it’s not overly hectic, but perhaps one other stop.

Lakes are lovely but as we’re PH, you could train to Bologna (best food) which is a great city in its own right but, more importantly, you can hire a car and you have Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati, Paganini, Ducati et al , plus foodie trips to be had.

Florence would also be good and Pisa is easy from there but, again, better hiring a car and getting out into Tuscany proper (Siena, Montelcino etc etc)

I love an Italian road trip and a packed itinerary but agree there’s too much going on here for a week.

I’ll buck the trend and suggest hiring a car. There’s just so much to stumble upon as well as planned country trattorias.

Fly into Venice, stay, hire a car from the airport, then straight fairly boring run down to bologna. Great foodie city, but not pretty outside of the historic centre. stay central.

Then take the futa pass to Florence. Park just outside the LTZ near the Westin.

Cracking city lots to do, much better outside of the summer heat. Drive out to the hills for dinner then back for drinks and a late night walk.

Treat Pisa as a photo opportunity, I wouldn’t spend more than a few hours there.

It’s a 3hr drive back to Marco Polo at Italian speeds.

[Griffith4ever]

fourstardan said:

I'm looking at a Spring Week in Italy at the end of April, it's usually Riviera but we've done this the last few years now so fancy a change.

Flights from Bournemouth are available to Venice which is always nice as its local but its awkward times (9pm out 7pm back), it's more flexible from LGW.

Thoughts on;

Option 1

-Fly into Venice
-Stay in Venice for a night/two
-Train to Florence and stay in Florence in rental
-Get Train to Rome for a day trip
-Day trip to Pisa

OR

-Fly into Florence from LGW get car and base in rental in Florence
-Day trip to all of the above but driving and maybe Train into Rome as it's 4 hours and hell for driving I've heard

OR

Fly into Rome and stay outside of the Rome's M25 with train trips into the city and day trips out (if we have any energy) to Florence/Pisa and skip Venice, probably warmer as well slightly?

Additional Questions;

-Are there any other spots available to visit within the week from these locations? I'd love to go see Pompei/Vesuvius tbh but thats 3 hours from Rome is it worth while and dodgy ?
-Am I mad wanting to see this much in a week?
-Are there any theme park/zoo/kid haven options in these cities?

Thanks in advance

Fights - that's your preference.

Car hire in Florence - if you prefer - driving in Italy is absolutely fine. I lived there. You will have people on your ass, but they are not angry. As you get South of rome - particularly to Pompeii then people will run red lights and do u turns on the motorway :-)

Skip Pisa - its pointelss and a torutist trap, all for a wonky tower that entertains for 5 mins.

I've done the "outside the M25 of Rome and train in" - it's a great idea. You get cheap accom with a a pool, then an easy and safe train in and back each day. 1 day is a rush job for Rome.

If you can get to Pompeii then make sure you do Herculaneum "across the road". It's better in terms of preservation.

If you are in Tuscany then San Gimignano is wonderful and 1 day is plenty.

[Griffith4ever]

Stuart70 said:

Fly into Florence, hire car, stay in Siena and travel around the towns, villages (S Gimignano esp) and if the weather is kind head for thermal pools too.

Florence is only good if out of season and bearable.

If you are going to Venice then head for Murano / Burano boat trip as well. I have always found Venice overrated but I am a cultural vacuum!

Pisa is a tower and that is about it for me; only worth doing if you have not done it before.

If you are lucky with the weather it is a glorious time to travel in Italy.

All good advice.

Florence - try and find out when the Chinese are not on hols..... Its such a shame. I've done Florence pre "China freedom" and post. They are two different cities :-(

[cliffords]

Griffith4ever said:

Stuart70 said:

Fly into Florence, hire car, stay in Siena and travel around the towns, villages (S Gimignano esp) and if the weather is kind head for thermal pools too.

Florence is only good if out of season and bearable.

If you are going to Venice then head for Murano / Burano boat trip as well. I have always found Venice overrated but I am a cultural vacuum!

Pisa is a tower and that is about it for me; only worth doing if you have not done it before.

If you are lucky with the weather it is a glorious time to travel in Italy.

All good advice.

Florence - try and find out when the Chinese are not on hols..... Its such a shame. I've done Florence pre "China freedom" and post. They are two different cities :-(

Agree this . It's really evident in the Italian cities discussed on here and others too. It's very noticeable in Switzerland now too with some areas being very different in summer months .