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Nothern Italy/Tuscany in October - where to go.

Nothern Italy/Tuscany in October - where to go.

Old Jul 14, 2014, 10:35 am
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Nothern Italy/Tuscany in October - where to go.

My wife and I have booked airfare to MXP on 16 October returning 29/10. We are thinking of heading to Tuscany for the first part of the trip and then spending time on Lake Como the 2nd half.

We have had friends who stayed in a small apartment in Livorno near the coast. Is this a good base to see the hill towns? Cinque Terre? Not sure I want to rent a car from MXP. The train seems to be about a 5.5 hour trip.

Any other suggestions for a base in Tuscany? Is train bus the way to go vs car rental?

As for Como, again I am thinking train instead of car. Train to Verrana seems doable. Ferry is what I am thinking for transport around the lake.

We are also open to a side trip to Venice. Not sure we would want to do more then a day trip there.

Thanks in advance for any answers/suggestions.
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Old Jul 14, 2014, 1:08 pm
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Originally Posted by whynotniwot
My wife and I have booked airfare to MXP on 16 October returning 29/10. We are thinking of heading to Tuscany for the first part of the trip and then spending time on Lake Como the 2nd half.

As for Como, again I am thinking train instead of car. Train to Verrana seems doable. Ferry is what I am thinking for transport around the lake.

We are also open to a side trip to Venice. Not sure we would want to do more then a day trip there.

Thanks in advance for any answers/suggestions.
A few quick answers; I am a huge fan of visiting Italy during the off season. However, the season at Lake Como finishes around the end of September. It's in the mountains a few miles from Switzerland. It starts getting too cold to enjoy a lake, and the hotels and restaurants start shutting down.

If Lago di Como is a must for you, think of spending the first half of your vacation there, not the second half, because the later you go after September 30th the worse it will be because more and more places will start shutting down for the season.

For Lago di Como, train and ferry is the only way to go if you want convenience and simplicity.

For Venice, if you only want to do a day trip you may want to skip it altogether. It's worth so much more than that. If you are a day tripper whose only goal is to walk around Piazza San Marco and see the Rialto Bridge, in my opinion it is not worth it to go at all.

Last edited by Perche; Jul 14, 2014 at 1:40 pm
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Old Jul 16, 2014, 12:46 pm
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Thanks Perche.

Ok. Any suggestions then instead of Lake Como? Cinque de Terre? We want to spend some time on the coast. We have friends who stayed just south of Livorno in an apartment.
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Old Jul 16, 2014, 1:43 pm
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It's a little farther but that time of year is pretty nice in the south. Amalfi without crowds, Puglia, Sicily...

Some of the LCC's (U2 for example) can be pretty reasonably priced.
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Old Jul 16, 2014, 1:49 pm
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If I understand this correctly, you are saying that you have 13 days to spend in Italy with a completely open agenda. The only thing that you are leaning towards is that you have friends who once stayed at an apartment in Livorno, and you are inclined to see the hill towns of northern Italy. If that's the case, you have a lot of options.

I would not blow off Venice as a side trip. Venice is not a side trip. It is a destination. With an October visit you'd actually be able to get to Venice pretty close to the perfect time to visit one of the most unique and most beautiful cities in the world.

Last edited by Perche; Jul 16, 2014 at 2:57 pm
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Old Jul 16, 2014, 1:58 pm
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Originally Posted by Perche
If I understand this correctly, you are saying that you have 13 days to spend in Italy with a completely open agenda. The only thing that you are leaning towards is that you have friends who once stayed at an apartment in Livorno, and you are inclined to see the hill towns of northern Italy. If that's the case, you have a lot of options.
+1 - lots of options. also seems that there is a desire to be on the coast. weather does cool a bit that time of year and October can be rainy in certain areas so check the climate if that matters to you.

We're crossing paths as wife and I are landing on 10/29 @ MXP on AA.

Last edited by JMN57; Jul 16, 2014 at 2:11 pm
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Old Jul 17, 2014, 11:57 am
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I was in Italy last October. I can tell you the weather is perfect for walking around and such, but its too cold for vacation on Lake Como.

I just returned from 3 weeks in Italy. Milan, Venice, Bologna, Florence and Rome.

IMHO, please, please go stay in Venice a few days and I mean on the island itself. I highly recommend Boscolo Venice. Awesome neighborhood. I did a day trip there in 2011 and hated it. This time 4 nights and loved it.

Lots to do in Florence. You can do a day wine tour, or cooking class (we did both two weeks ago). I also did a wine tour last October and the weather was perfect. This year in June/July it was a tad hot. the countryside is just beautiful outside of Florence. We also DIY day trip to Cinque Terre. You might want to do one or two night in one of the cities there. Catch a separate Cinque Terre train out of La Spezia. BTW, skip Piza. The only thing there is the leaning tower and its way too packed with tourists.

So much to see in Rome as well. I've been to Milan a couple of times, once you see the Duomo and the Last Supper, that was about it for me.

Just be prepared, Italy is expensive for tours. Trains are NOT expensive; but you need to pre-reserved in order to guarantee a seat. We did this for all our city changes online, printed our tickets on line and gave them to the train staff as they come through.
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Old Jul 18, 2014, 12:38 pm
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Thanks for all of the suggestions.

Yes we have 13 days and no real agenda. My wife likes cooler weather and small towns. She is not real keen on large cities. She likes water. Hence why we were looking at the coast and Lake Como. Livorno was only mentioned because our friends stayed near there in an apartment for a week. We are in no way tied to that area.

What we normally like is to stay away from large touristy areas.

This trip we were thinking it would be preferable to park ourselves in just a couple of spots and use them as bases to do day trips. I am open to other ideas.
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Old Jul 18, 2014, 4:08 pm
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Originally Posted by whynotniwot
Thanks for all of the suggestions.

Yes we have 13 days and no real agenda. My wife likes cooler weather and small towns. She is not real keen on large cities. She likes water. Hence why we were looking at the coast and Lake Como. Livorno was only mentioned because our friends stayed near there in an apartment for a week. We are in no way tied to that area.

What we normally like is to stay away from large touristy areas.

This trip we were thinking it would be preferable to park ourselves in just a couple of spots and use them as bases to do day trips. I am open to other ideas.
I like your idea of more or less staying put and getting into the rhythm of a place, rather than trying to squeeze Italy into 13 days. You have some research to do. A coastal place near the water encompasses a lot of territory, so it's a little hard to say.

Of all of the beautiful coastal and lake front areas, I'd forget about Livorno. There is beauty every where you turn in Italy, but Livorno is a big commercial cruise port. It's about as different from what you say you want as could be. I think you have some research to do, but a medium size town near water doesn't narrow things down much. That describes a lot of Italy.

In essence, you are going at a great time to see a lot of places because you are somewhat off season. So, you can do a lot of things that would be nightmarish in July and August, but great in October.

Not to push Venice, but if you want water, and lots of side trip availability?

Last edited by Perche; Jul 18, 2014 at 5:24 pm
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Old Jul 18, 2014, 6:14 pm
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Was also planning October but will need to delay till November
Recommendations? Want to go to Venice and Rome, what smaller towns? Orvieto still nice?
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Old Jul 18, 2014, 7:46 pm
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Originally Posted by jerseygirl
Was also planning October but will need to delay till November
Recommendations? Want to go to Venice and Rome, what smaller towns? Orvieto still nice?
Whether you can see Venice, Rome, and smaller towns depend on how much time you have.

Depending on your interests, in general, the later in the season you go, the better. Off season, for example, I had a layover in Rome with someone who wanted to see the Sistine Chapel. We cabbed it over there and walked straight into the Chapel and were pretty much alone for as long as we wanted to be. I've also been there in July and August when the lines snake around several city blocks, with people waiting in suffocating heat, and you are packed in and shuffled about like sardines, with no time to enjoy it.

In Venice the seasonal differences are even more profound than in Rome.

Last edited by Perche; Jul 18, 2014 at 8:16 pm
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Old Jul 18, 2014, 8:52 pm
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I think your best bet for seeing Tuscany hill towns on day trips from a base using public transport is either Florence or, better yet, Siena. It's just tough to get around to them from other locations. (We have done hill towns twice by car, which I love.)

Maybe some mix? 3-4 days in Florence or Siena, and 3-4 days along the coast somewhere.

I agree with those who say late Oct. is not going to be a great time to visit Lake Como. You might get some ok weather, if you are lucky, but you should not expect it. And, as noted, much will be closed already. I'd save that for some other time.

I think you are better off doing some city sight-seeing, like Florence, or Verona.

Italy is always good. We did Tuscany in January a few years ago, and loved it. (Timing was because our daughter was over there already for an art residency.)
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