Italy in 5 Weeks

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February 20, 2011

Below is a draft itinerary for 36 days in Italy. For each day, the city listed is where I will be spending the night, followed by a vague activity description for the day. Activities in each town may be switched around based on closure times or other town-specific scheduling. I've designed this trip to have lots of time to visit places I want to see while also having lots of down time to revisit a favorite location or relax and enjoy the Italian equivalent of a mai tai.

Day 1 - Travel Day (Seattle to Milan)
Day 2 - Aosta: arrive Milan 11:30am, transfer to Aosta
Day 3 - Aosta: see town
Day 4 - Aosta: day hikes in Pila
Day 5 - Aosta: gondola to Chamonix, France
Day 6 - Milan: shopping, Duomo, Castle
Day 7 - Milan: day trip to Stresa
Day 8 - Milan: opera house, bronze horse
Day 9 - Bolzano/Bozen: self-guided walking tour of town, Ice Man
Day 10 - Bolzano/Bozen: gondolas to alpine meadows, hikes
Day 11 - Bolzano/Bozen: possible day trip, or relax day
Day 12 - Venice: Verona detour, Rialto area, grand canal
Day 13 - Venice: San Marco area, Frari, San Giorgio Maggiore
Day 14 - Venice: islands in the lagoon
Day 15 - Venice: day trip to Vicenza, Padua
Day 16 - Venice: Accademia, "Learn to be a Gondolier" tour
Day 17 - Cinque Terre: arrive, check out neighborhood
Day 18 - Cinque Terre: town-hop
Day 19 - Cinque Terre: free day, beach
Day 20 - Florence: arrive, Duomo, Babtistery, Pitti Palace
Day 21 - Florence: Pisa and Lucca day trip
Day 22 - Florence: Accademia, Uffizi Gallery, Galileo Museum
Day 23 - Florence: Siena day trip
Day 24 - Florence: cooking class
Day 25 - Florence: all day "Best of Tuscany" tour
Day 26 - Sorrento: stop at Pompeii, arrive in Sorrento
Day 27 - Sorrento: Naples and Vesuvius
Day 28 - Sorrento: Sorrento and Capri
Day 29 - Sorrento: day trip Amalfi town and coast (via bus)
Day 30 - Rome: arrive, Colosseum, Forum, Capitol Hill
Day 31 - Rome: Pantheon, Baths, National Museum
Day 32 - Rome: Vatican City
Day 33 - Rome: day trip to Hadrian's Villa
Day 34 - Rome: Borghese Gardens and Gallery
Day 35 - Rome: day trip to Ostia Antica, or remain in town
Day 36 - Travel day (Rome to Seattle)

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