Hi essle My husband and I spent a month in Italy about the same time of year in 2012. We looked at all the car options including the buy-back options of a new car after minimum 3 weeks use etc. In the end, in agreement with other posts, we really enjoyed a combination of planes, trains and automobiles (and ferries) literally! I has really wanted to take a train from France via Switzerland to get to Bellagio, but this was VERY expensive as it turned out, so we arrived into Milan by plane from Paris (€39). We then took a very pleasant train to Varenna and the ferry over to Bellagio. After Bellagio we caught a bus to Lecco and hired a car and drove north up through alps and then thru the Dolomites for a few days, which was fantastic, and then made our way to Treviso and left the hire car here after a few days driving to beautiful local places. We then caught a bus to Venice, and after this, a train to Bologna, and then to Florence, and here we hired a car and drove around Tuscany for a week, returning the car to Florence and catching a train to naples..for Amalfi.. etc etc...! I costed all of this out carefully, and in the end, this was the most enjoyable, least expensive, least difficult and most time efficient way to thoroughly enjoy Italy for a month! We found car hire places at central locations to easily get out of the big cities so as to avoid the local traffic zone fines etc....happy to help! anna
Comments posted
Hi essle My husband and I spent a month in Italy about the same time of year in 2012. We looked at all the car options including the buy-back options of a new car after minimum 3 weeks use etc. In the end, in agreement with other posts, we really enjoyed a combination of planes, trains and automobiles (and ferries) literally! I has really wanted to take a train from France via Switzerland to get to Bellagio, but this was VERY expensive as it turned out, so we arrived into Milan by plane from Paris (€39). We then took a very pleasant train to Varenna and the ferry over to Bellagio. After Bellagio we caught a bus to Lecco and hired a car and drove north up through alps and then thru the Dolomites for a few days, which was fantastic, and then made our way to Treviso and left the hire car here after a few days driving to beautiful local places. We then caught a bus to Venice, and after this, a train to Bologna, and then to Florence, and here we hired a car and drove around Tuscany for a week, returning the car to Florence and catching a train to naples..for Amalfi.. etc etc...! I costed all of this out carefully, and in the end, this was the most enjoyable, least expensive, least difficult and most time efficient way to thoroughly enjoy Italy for a month! We found car hire places at central locations to easily get out of the big cities so as to avoid the local traffic zone fines etc....happy to help! anna