Verona is the ultimate city of romance in Italy: the setting of Shakespeares Romeo & Juliet, made up of rose-hued buildings and castles nestled over the Adige River. But you wont get bored, and if you do you are probably doing it wrong. You can pretty much walk into any bakery in Liguria and get an amazing piece of focaccia. I think for us it would be enjoyable, but the plan is not carved in stone yet so we are open to suggestions. 10 Day Northern Italy Itinerary Breakdown. This is the version of our website addressed to speakers of English in the United States. I think Id do that and fly out of Rome. That is a minimum of 9 nights or it could be 12 nights if you went at a more leisurely pace. Northern Italy is the most developed part of the country, so transportation is easy-to-access and can take you just about anywhere. We arrived in Eze around 9 am and parked in a big parking lot (you keep driving above Eze, it was a great price and included one pass for the Jardin Exotique. If you are a resident of another country or region, please select the appropriate version of Tripadvisor for your country or region in the drop-down menu. We and our partners use data for Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. Id say flying into and out of Paris would be ideal, but you could also start in Rome and do it in the other direction. As a resident of northern Italy, I can share with certainty that the best time to visit is either June or September. I highly suggest taking a look at the embedded maps to discover places worth adding to your itinerary based on the amount of time you have available. Great website. Its small and always crowded, especially from about 10 AM until 5 PM most days. Yes, its a tourist experience, but its also still incredibly unique and wholesome to run away to the city and get lost in its alleys for a few days. France and Italy: Best 2 to 3 week itinerary for first-time This is a very nice small town on the Portofino peninsula and I loved the relaxed atmosphere and the views of the sea. I'm Michela, a travel photographer living in northern Italy with a passion for empowering wanderlusting women like you to travel fearlessly and start living their travel dream. And we wanted to stay and dine in style. Required fields are marked *. And long road trips are indeed possible. complete with the Restaurant Guido da Costigliole, a Michelin star dining-spot. Niceis the largest (and cheapest) city on the Cte dAzur (AKA French Riviera) so its the perfect base to explore this stunning part of the world for a few days. If youre planning on taking a train around northern Italy, read all my Italy train travel tips so you know exactly how to prepare. This was easy to do and we got off in Menthon-Saint-Bernard. I considered this northern Italian spot as the ideal one to start our trip. Franciacorta is a territory between Bergamo and Brescia that produces sparkling wine or spumante, mostly Prosecco, Italys version of Champagne. From the views, to the quiet harbor, to the unreal swimming spots like Lord Byrons Grotto and the untouched beaches of Palmeria Island, its a lovers paradise and exudes Italian charm. Play with the http://www.viamichelin.com chosing prefered route and discovery route and see what it offers you. Train (TGV) at ? Of course there are many ways to travel. And long road trips are indeed possible. But Europe and France in particular has such a concentration of t Im jealous! Hopefully all these options make clearer what is at the top of your northern Italy bucket list! I would actually recommend the slower pace to most people on their first trip because travel days (checking out of a hotel in one city and into a hotel in the next city) are rarely good sightseeing days and they can be a bit stressful, so minimizing them is good in some cases. Italian food is in a league of its own, but youll soon find And I think a canal trip around Paris would be great. Life moves just a little bit slower, especially up in Citt Alta, an UNESCO World Heritage site and the medieval, historic old town that rests on a hilltop overlooking the more economic center, Citt Bassa. Newer travelers always assume that more is better and overly-seasoned travelers always preach that virtually any city anywhere deserves at least a week. I highly recommend booking a tour with a local guide for the unique experience of hunting for truffles and do a Barolo wine tasting. Hit the 5 major areas on everyones northern Italy bucket list. Be prepared for a small hotel room, even if you pay a lot, so its more about paying for the location rather than for a luxurious and large place to sleep. However, the travel time is the longest. I start my first trips doing road trips. Those are all amazing places to visit! We had not checked out the town of Vienne, where this establishment is located, in detail. We took a bus that goes around to the small towns around the lake. Prepaid French 3G micro-SIM for iPad - it's not a problem! Youll see all the famous and amazing Amalfi Coast views, and you can return either by bus or boat for an ideal day out. But I will inform about other options to travel around, too. France Itinerary tips and tricks, Affordable safaris in Kenya & Tanzania: Tips from a pro. Or I might just stick with France only on this trip. I just find that you will be doing a lot of driving in a short amount of time passing by so many great places along the way. So you won't really have time to explore small towns and countryside. I use Omio for purchasing train tickets or go straight to the Trenitalia website. We cooked our dinners at our accommodation and swam in the pool. Rushing around for two weeks can be exhilarating, but rushing around for three weeks can really start to get exhausting. Train to Florence 2 nights Discover more specific destinations for loved-up travelers on the map: Italian food is in a league of its own, but youll soon find out when visiting northern Italy that the traditional dishes are not pasta and pizza. Your email address will not be published. They had a shuttle bus that took us down to Eze). It is a fascinating medieval village, enveloped by woodland and backed by mountains. If you have longer, great! To reachSorrentoyoull take a train to Naples and then change for a one-hour local train (known as the Circumvesuviana) to its final stop. Thank you! Thank you for suggestions. With regional buses you can typically reach small towns, while with Flixbus, youll mostly be limited to cities. Just a couple of comments - we LOVED this trip, we enjoyed each of the places we went. France and Italy: Best 2 to 3 week itinerary for first-time visitors, best cities in Europe to visit for anyone, many reasons why fast travel might be your best option, Here are the best first-time Italy itineraries for 3 days to two weeks, European cities that are cheapest to fly into, Buying a France-Italy regional Eurail Pass, Buying individual train tickets in advance, Buying individual train tickets one at a time when you get there. Nice itself is quite nice, but there are dozens of small towns to choose from including Cannes, Antibes, or even Saint Tropez. Venice is another interesting one. Let me know if you have any other questions. Day 1: Milan Day 2: Lake Como Day 3: Verona Day 4: Lake Garda Days 5 & Will be Visiting a Hair Salon in Paris. Then youd take a high-speed train to Nice and then perhaps a local train to the destination of your choosing. Rough Itinerary: Southern France, Northern Italy I think the general plan would be to fly into Paris and spend 4 or 5 days there, perhaps allowing time for a day trip or two to the Loire Valley or some wine regions. The choice fell on Alassio, a Ligurian seaside resort west of Genoa. -Roger. And I found out that this is an offshot of Villa Crespi in Orta San Guilio, a high-end accommodation with a two Michelin star gourmet temple. Especially for the days where you will have long drives. Itinerary help please Southern France to Northern Italy Milan is bustling, crowded, the energy is always high. As we live in times of Corona, we only opted for lodging that comes with foodie hotspots, too. On our way home, we made a stopover south of Lyon, Frances third largest city. After all, this nation is the cradle of European civilization established by the Roman Empire and carried on by the Roman Catholic Church. -Roger. The Perfect Northern Italy Itinerary: 5 Ideas For The Trip And it's that way in every direction. If you wish to see mountains, you could drive your way up to Annecy on the French side of the Alps either by the Route des Grandes Alpes or by the Route Napoleon for example. ta.queueForLoad : function(f, g){document.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', f);})(function(){ta.trackEventOnPage('postLinkInline', 'impression', 'postLinks-112592618', '');}, 'log_autolink_impression');car right after a long flight. Both these cities will be your home base on this kind of itinerary. Another necessary and important element of visiting northern Italy is knowing how youll get around. Southern France and Northern Spain itinerary - Road You do not need a Eurail pass for your 2 weeks in Northern Italy. There is truly so much to do and see that one trip may not be enough, which is why I have curated 5 northern Italy itineraries that play to certain strengths: one for those who want to see the most famous locations, one for outdoor adventurers, one for city-lovers, one for couples, and one for foodies, so you experience a little bit of everything. This will be our first time in Europe. But like I said to see more or to discover more, you need to drive on those smaller roads but they take more time. After crossing the boarder between Italy and France, we arrived on the famous Cte dAzur, also called French Riviera. This is a hilltop stone village below the ruins of an old castle. Were thinking Paris, Venice, Florence, Rome, Sorrento and fly out of Naples. I was wondering if you had any travel agent or agency recommendations that could best assist with booking the itinerary you laid out for France and Italy? It might be best to just consider any of them and look for a hotel or resort that you like the look of and that fits your budget. Rognonas is about 10 minutes by car from Avignon TGV station. I'm usually the first to warn people of driving when jet-lagged, but for such a short This was followed by a stop in the Provence, precisely Paradou, aneighboring village of the famous Les-Baux-de-Provence. Not sure if buying a package or just make our plan since we have budgets to meet. And this is true for our first destination, Lake Orta. That is up to you and the flexibility of your travel dates! Days 7 8: Glacier Express and St Moritz, Switzerland. I just wanted to come back and thank everyone on the forum for their helpful replies. Not only on this thread, but also having read so many other c I know you wanted to go to Italy. The great news is that Naples is very easy to visit from nearby Sorrento, which is a lovely and friendly place where most people know English. With fewer than 400,000 residents,Florencefeels more like a small town than the others, even though its much larger than Venice. The drive across the Alps via the Col de Larche/Colle della Maddalena is pretty, unless you're the sort of person who gets very annoyed if stuck behind trucks for long periods, while the drive along the Riviera coast offers good sea views from many high viaducts once you're past Menton. Perhaps surprisingly, Venice shuts down early, with most restaurants and bars closed by around 10pm. The ferry from Sorrento only takes 20 minutes each way and leaves hourly most of the day. Here you can have breakfast and dinner in this Michelin restaurant. The Tuscany of northern Italy? For the last night, yes, I will plan for a hotel at the airport. And Nice has great museums and food as well. While it is part of the Piedmont, it is not necessarily known as an area where they grow vines. Stop to explore Nices Old Town on your own before returning to your hotel. Id consider basing yourselves in Sorrento, which youve probably been through on your way to Positano. Its about an hour by train or bus from Florence, so you can literally do it in half a day there and back. Consider? There are also bus tours from Florence that take you all the way there, but those come with the slowness of large-group travel. Northern Italy vs Southern Italy | Part ta.queueForLoad : function(f, g){document.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', f);})(function(){ta.trackEventOnPage('postLinkInline', 'impression', 'postLinks-112575872', '');}, 'log_autolink_impression');Avignon I would directly go there it would be one less lodging change in a short amount of time. Aug 21 Arrive in Paris 10:00 am. Tour the Villa Ephrussi, a mansion built by a member of the Rothschild banking family, and stroll through the villa gardens. The drive from Avignon to Barolo is very long - see http://www.viamichelin.com for itineraries, driving times and costs. Comment*interested in this itinerary however I would like to include 1-2 nights in Tuscany?