Should we fly in to Rome or Milan to start our adventure?? - Italy Forum (2024)

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I don't think it matters much where you start. May gets warmer as the month progresses, but May 2010, for example, was unseasonably cold and rainy.

There is a third alternative to cars and tour buses: trains. In fact, they're a much better alternative between cities (in the centers of which only residents' cars are allowed to drive or park). They're frequent, fast and comfortable. Cars are useful and advised in places where trains, buses and ferries cannot or do not go frequently enough: chiefly the hilltowns of Tuscany and Umbria.

Agree with Zerlina--take the train whenever possible.

3-4 weeks may seem like a long time, but not for traveling the length and breadth of Italy. What are the main cities you want to see? You may want to narrow it down to several main cities with day trips on the side, or risk spending a great deal of time in transit.

The joy of visiting Italy is in being there, not packing and unpacking and spending time on the train.

Thanks for the replies. What do I want to see? Well everything! But seriously I know that is not possible in 3-4 weeks.

Tentative "major want to sees" so far would be Rome (of course!) Florence, Venice, Amalfi Coast, Tuscany, Umbria, the Lakes area if possible. I realise that we could easily spend half the time in Rome alone but we will have to limit it to about 4/5 days. I can't see us being able to get more south than The Amalfi Coast, given our "major want sees". (Would love to see Sicily but that will have to wait for another time)

I am wondering now whether we should base the itinerary on flying into Rome, head to Naples and Amalfi Coast area then swing around and head up north and eventually fly back home from Milan, hopefully taking in the Lakes area?

Or else reverse this itinerary/or any other suggestions?

Agree with you wholeheartedly, we don't want to spend most of our time in transit.

We like to balance things a little with history, countryside and sitting in a cafe when we feel like it just to chill out and enjoy the ambience.

After spending time in Rome you could fly to Lamezia Terme http://www.alitalia.com or take the train http://www.trenitalia.it/homepage_en.html

Rent a car http://www.autoeurope.com Route planner http://www.viamichelin.com

Lamezia Terme to Salerno by trenitalia train for the Amalfi coast http://www.amalficoastweb.com

Sitabus operates from Salerno to Sorrento connecting to the coastal towns

http://www.sitabus.it (Campania) or the ferry http://www.coopsantandrea.com/eng//servizidilinea/servizi_eng.asp

Train http://www.vesuviana.it operates to Pompeii Scavi and Naples from Sorrento.

Trenitalia train to Florence http://www.visitflorence.com http://www.discovertuscany.com

Trenitalia train to Venice and Venice to Como San Giovanni and Milan.

http://www.discovercomo.com

Accommodation http://www.venere.com

Edited: 13 years ago

Thanks for all this information. I am sure it will be invaluable in planning our itinerary.

I can see I am going to need to buy a better map than I have! It is difficult to plan ahead and it will be challenging but that is half the fun and TA is a wonderful resource.

Thanks again.

I like to end my trips in Rome, as it is perfect way to cap off a trip to Italy. I personally would not choose to begin my trip there as I like to ease into my visit and Rome is such a busy, bustling city it works better for me as a ending point for the flight home.

Milan IMO is a great place to begin your trip. The city is beautiful and far less touristy than most of the other places on your list. Therefore I find the pace of our visits there quite enjoyable. We really enjoy Milan overall and the last time there made a day trip to the Lakes (have stayed in Bellagio on previous trips) which was very enjoyable. You can book Last Supper tickets in advance online.

Strolling the wide avenues of Milan is always a pleasure and Milan happy hours are famous for a reason and a lovely way to begin an evening.

I agree with trains being the way to go and also choosing base locations to limit moving around, which IMO takes up time and money. In 2 weeks, we generally choose 3 locations and plan our day trips from there. Where and how long depends on your interests.

Hello Caviargal

Thanks. Only reason I am more inclined to arrive in Rome first is because I envisage May to be coolish and so better to kick off in the warmer southern areas and follow the sun northwards ending in Milan.

We would ideally like to do as you suggest and base ourselves in a few different areas to cut down on the packing/repacking treadmill.

I thought it would be nice also to stay in Tuscany a few days rather than stay in major cities for the whole time. Perhaps we could take a day trip to Florence from there?

What do you think?

This is such a personal decision and dependent IMO on your individual travel style.

For Tuscany, we prefer to stay in Florence and day trip to the countryside because (1) we choose not to rent a car; (2) we like the many dining, diversions and accommodation options Florence offers; (3) we are not really fond of the slower pace of the countryside, being more active travelers. We also are city people so like the busier atmosphere and ambiance. But it is certainly possible to stay in the countryside and day trip in.

I personally have never planned a trip with weather having an influence on how I map out my itinerary so cannot help there with any advice.

We find flying into Milan is often less expensive than Rome so that is a factor as well as generally just preferring to keep our time in Rome for the end of the trip when a visit there is part of the plan. Flights in general have a big influence on our plans as we try to avoid long connections, multiple connections and certain airports for connections (like CDG).

We like to spend time these days in less touristed areas but these are still normally cities, though smaller ones like Bologna which have enough to keep us interested for a few days. All of the places on your list are wildly popular with tourists, except for Umbria which is not as much yet- although places like Orvieto are getting pretty busy as well.

It really all depends on the experience you are hoping to have.

Edited: 13 years ago

Thanks so much for opinion and suggestions. I would say we will probably mix it up a bit with both city and country accommodation. Everyone has different preferences as you pointed out.

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