Northern Italy Roadtrip 2024

This year my husband and I got to tick quite a few things off the bucket list during our Northern Italian road trip this June. Having only been to Rome together we wanted to prioritise exploring more of what Italy has to offer. The Dolomites and Lake Como were particularly high up on my list, so I used them as a base and took my time planning the perfect two week itinerary! We prioritised mountains, lakes and nature as that’s what we tend to crave as a Kiwi and Canadian living in the very flat landscape of The Netherlands. I’d love to share some of the hotels, restaurants and highlights with you to help you prepare your own trip (probably why you’re on this page in the first place).

A note beforehand: we drove from The Netherlands, taking two days to drive the 12 hours to Italy with a stop for the night in Germany both on the way there and back. You can also fly into Milan and rent a car from there, the itinerary will still mostly work from that starting point.

Itinerary

• Days 1-4 (3 nights): Ortisei Sankt Ulrich
• Days 4-5 (1 night): Lake Braies
• Days 5-6 (1 night): Riva del Garda, Lake Garda
• Days 6-7 (1 night): Sirmione, Lake Garda
• Days 7-9 (2 nights): Verona
• Days 9-11 (2 nights): Cinque Terre (Levanto)
• Days 11-14 (3 nights): Bellagio, Lake Como

Save this map for all the trip highlights! Sorted by where to stay, where to eat and what to do.

Ortisei Sankt Ulrich (3 nights)

This was our base for the Dolomites, in the beautiful Gardena valley. As we mainly planned to go walking and hiking I wanted to stay in one of the towns here for easy access to the funiculars which could take us up and down. This was a bit more expensive than staying further out (of course), but for me it was worth it to leave the car behind and being able to walk everywhere we needed to go, instead of driving in and paying for parking. Especially as the first stop after two full days spent in the car!

Where to stay:

We really hit the jackpot with most of the places we stayed over these two weeks, and Garni Walter was definitely an amazing start. The rooms were modern refurbished and we enjoyed our balcony. The way to my heart is through my stomach though, and this is where Garni Walter really excels. The owner of the hotel, Sylvia, made fresh pastries, cake, apfelstrudel, croissants etc daily which greeted me warmly every morning. Next to these she had a wonderful spread which included very fresh produce, meats and cheese. Enjoying some Austrian pastries after you’ve assembled your own insalata caprese with buffalo mozzarella and fresh pesto really encapsulates being in Northern Italy.

Wander and see:

People are primarily here to go hiking/ walking/ mountain biking – we were no exception. Because we only had two full days I had planned for us to visit Seceda and Alpe di Siusi as these were listed in as a highlight during most of my research, and had funiculars from Ortisei.

I tried to research hikes beforehand but found it difficult. There’s definitely no shortage of blogs trying to help on that front, but in the end the paper map that we got from Sylvia at the hotel allowed us to easily construct our own routes. We had cell phone coverage the entire time as well, so we could literally use Google Maps if needed.

• Seceda: This was the mountain range that I had been seeing in my dreams (thanks to Pinterest and Instagram when researching the Dolomites), it has to be one of the most photographed areas. We took the cable car and funicular starting in the middle of Ortisei to the top of Seceda. From there we constructed our own route going as we went. To summarise the route: we made it almost to the Col Raiser Cable Car via Pieralongia, had a late lunch at Baita Cuca and had to ascend the 400 metres to get back to the Seceda Cable car. Depending on the time of year the chairlift may be open to take you up, but not in early June unfortunately for us. This part was very brutal needless to say, but we really enjoyed our almost full day this way!
• Alpe di Siusi: The next day we took the funicular near our hotel to the Alpe di Siusi, having decided to take it easier after Seceda. We took the path that’s also suitable for strollers, and really enjoyed a more chill route with astounding views. We spent a good hour at Malga Sanon reclining in some deck chairs and just taking it all in, Radler in hand.

Where to eat:

• E-Quattro Pizza Genuine, this is a pretty unassuming place, but very busy and extremely delicious. The best pizza we had all trip I would say. Pizza is all they do, and you can also takeaway.

Lake Braies (1 night)

We headed to Braies for one reason only; the lake. This is a very popular destination which you want to visit before 10 AM. To make this stop more chill we took our time driving via the Val di Funes to Braies to enjoy a nice afternoon enjoying the view from the hotel and leaving the lake till early the next morning.

Where to stay:

This wonderful, generations of families owned guest house really made this stop extra special. Their photos turned out to be quite outdated on Booking.com as everything was much more modern than I was expecting. Simply cannot recommend Berggasthaus Agritur Moserhof enough; we did the halfboard (breakfast and dinner) and the food was really great. Nothing beats the views that you get whilst dining and from the room however… a surprise as they don’t seem to advertise this either!

The view from our room

What to do:

Visit lake Braies of course! There’s multiple places to park which are all priced very differently (even when right next to each other) so be sure to check on Google Maps which ones suits your needs best. As mentioned, go before 10 AM (probably 9 AM in July and August), and spend some time by the lake. You can just wander a bit like we did, or you can circle the entire lake if you feel like more of a walk. You can also rent the rowing boats for a fee via La palafitta, though you can’t reserve one beforehand.

Lake Braies was a major highlight, the photos speak for themselves…

Riva del Garda (1 night)

Leaving the cooler temperatures of the Dolomites behind us we headed South West to the top of Lake Garda. It was suddenly roughly 15 degrees warmer so it really felt like the Summer part of the trip was starting!

Where to Stay: Hotel Luise, worth it alone for being one of the best breakfasts of my life. They literally had everything you can think of; fresh fruit, pastries, English breakfast, desserts, lots of different kinds of fresh bread. The highlight was definitely someone making fresh pizzas all morning!

Wander and see:

We spent the next day leisurely driving down the entire (Limone Sul Garda) side of the lake, to make it to our next destination; Sirmione at the bottom. You can see which side suits you best, I believe the other side has some more wineries, especially towards the bottom. The cool thing about splitting up your stay on the lake like this is that the top has quite a different feel to the bottom, and this way you get a taste of both.

Sirmione (1 night)

Where to stay: Hotel Mon Repos, at the very top of this very thin peninsula at the bottom of Lake Garda. The hotel is a little paradise with a very tranquil pool, and is definitely a peaceful reprieve. Note that to get here you have to drive very carefully through the old historic centre of Sirmione, bustling with people, children, dogs, prams. The hotel ensures that your license place is recognised so it goes very smoothly – but it’s not for the faint of heart.

Wander and see:

• Castello Scaligero; one of the main attractions in Sirmione. This 14th century fort was worth the 6 Euro entree fee, purely for the views you get from the top.
• Passeggiata delle Muse is a lovely walkway which starts at a little beach. We took our ice cream and walked it back to the hotel at night. There’s small natural thermal baths on the way and a restaurant too.
• Visit Palazzo Callas for whatever exhibition they currently have. When we were there we got to see Life’s a Beach by Martin Parr, with lots of photos taken around Lake Garda.

Where to eat:

• We enjoyed the people watching from our spot at Osteria Al Torcol. With lots of touristy offerings in the small town we tried to find something which felt a bit more local. This hit the spot, especially their home made pasta and extensive wine list.

Verona (2 nights)

This would be the shortest drive on the trip, at just an hour from Sirmione to Verona. A day and a half felt like a great amount of time for us to take it easy in the heat, but still see what we wanted to.

I had heard great things from a colleague about this romantic city, with its many bridges, towers – and said to have been the inspiration for Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Dante also spent time here after being exiled from Florence, writing a good part of Divine Comedy here.

Where to stay: We obviously had the car to contend with, so I found Veroniamo; a great apartment with free parking in a neighbourhood located across the water, North of the Ponte di Castelvecchio. The host was very attentive, it was super modern and clean, had airconditioning, 1,5 bathrooms and a kitchenette. Also very much one of our major accommodation highlights! We easily walked everywhere, leaving the car for two days.

What to do:

• Giardino Giusti was one of my favourite stops as one of Italy’s oldest gardens. Dating back to the 16th century, these gardens (and apartment) are a wonderful meander during siesta. Because of its elevation it also makes for the best view in the city. I enjoyed counting all the towers and seeing all the greenery contrasting with the warm terracotta roofs.
• Ponte di Castelvecchio, probably one of the most popular of Verona’s bridges. This 14th century bridge stands out due to the combination of red brick and white marble, making it very photogenic; both whilst on the bridge and looking at it from afar. If you’d like to add some medieval history and artefacts as part of your visit, you can combine this with a visit to the neighbouring Castelvecchio museum.
• Just wander. I advise this in every city basically, but being quite small/mid sized means that you can just get lost in little streets, pop into different stores, stop for a drink etc without feeling like there’s too much to see.
• Two very popular tourist spots we did not care for ourselves but feel I should mention are Casa di Giulietta and the Arena di Verona. The former being the house said to have inspired Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, and the latter being a wel preserved Roman Amphitheatre. The Arena also has shows and opera in the Summer, so that could be a very cool experience when checking in advance!

Where to eat:

• I don’t say this often so take my word for it when I say that you simply cannot miss La Bottega della Gina XXL. They have the best ravioli that I have EVER had, which you can purchase to take home or enjoy prepared for you on the spot. There’s quite a few to choose from, but I went for ‘the mix’ both times we went. This way you get to try most of the different ravioli with simply some butter and parmesan. The flavours are so good that they do not need more than that. You can watch them make it in the window whilst you eat.
• As we were there over the weekend we enjoyed a slow morning on Sunday with brunch at Elk Bakery. This was on the way into the old centre from our apartment. It gets very busy but we didn’t mind waiting for a bit. The completely vegetarian Ziga Bistro was right next door and also looked very good.
• Gemma Pizzeria was close to the apartment, well priced and had great reviews. Good if you’re running low on steam like we were, and want to rest in between being out all day and having dinner. They also have a second location in the city centre.

Cinque Terre, Levanto as base (2 nights)

Since we were somewhat in the area, I wanted to head the four hours to the coast to the UNESCO world heritage site that are the five villages which make up Cinque Terre (also the literal translation). We used Levanto as our base to be away from the crowds and be able to park the car, as car is definitely not the mode of transport you want to be using here. La Spezia borders the other side and is more popular as it’s bigger and where the trains from Milan stop. I wanted to avoid that specifically for that reason considering our short time here.

Controversial opinion perhaps, but I would not necessarily recommend visiting Cinque Terre – unless it is really a bucket list destination for you, or consider March or October as times to visit. Alternatively going for longer and really taking your time, including lots of time to swim or be at the beach. But if that is your main reason for coming, there are other places in Italy to do that that are less crowded (and less expensive).

We knew it would be really crowded, but even being mid June it was super hot, way too busy and simply difficult to move around. There was a 6000 person cruise ship in that day, and they are pretty much a daily event, therefore hard to plan around (I tried with Cruise Mapper when I booked everything in February, but apparently not all cruises must’ve been confirmed yet).

Where to Stay: The apartment we stayed at in Levanto was near the train station, and had parking, but I would not recommend it honestly. Considering this was the most expensive place per night of the entire holiday, but also the most lacking and dilapidated I was not thrilled to say the least. Staying in Levanto itself though I would recommend as a base! I also read about people parking their car for multiple days in a garage in La Spezia and staying in one of the five towns – that’s something you could consider looking into to. Just make sure to find somewhere a little out of the way and slightly more peaceful, unless you want to be right in the action all day and night.

What to do: I’m going to structure this a little differently, highlights from each of the five towns and the order we saw them in. Note that we arrived late in the afternoon from Verona and there was a train strike. We did manage to catch one to Riomaggiore to enjoy an evening there, which also meant it was quieter than usual. I don’t know how people do this as a one day trip and would not recommend. We struggled (mostly with heat and crowds) to do four stops in one day, and were very glad we had already visited Riomaggiore the evening before. I would say add a day or two to create a bit more calm, and be able to do more of the walking trails as those were our favourite parts – or even just some time to swim in Levanto.

Any day that you want to use the train multiple times (best way to get around) and do some of the walking, it will be worth getting the Cinque Terre Card.

Riomaggiore:

• We came here for golden hour because out of the five, Riomaggiore just looked the most colourful and appealing to me. We grabbed some slices of pizza from a tiny hole in the wall and clambered our way past the marina, to the rocks where everyone was sunbathing and swimming. We spent quite a while like this, enjoying the light and the view.

Monterosso:

• f you’re looking for the beach, Monterosso is where you’ll want to be. You can rent a sun bed on the sand along almost the entirety of it. There’s also a little area near the walking path where you can chill for free (without the sun beds), but it’s quite small.
• We had some excellent focaccia for breakfast at Il Frantoio, people watching for a while on a bench in the shade.

Vernazza:

• You can walk the entirety of the Cinque Terre, which would have been my preference if we’d stayed longer. It’s about 16 KM’s but obviously with lots of ascending and descending considering you’re scaling an elevated coastline. It should take about 5-8 hours depending on your pace. We opted to at least do part of the route, from Monterosso to Vernazza and really enjoyed it. Especially the descent into Vernazza, which makes more impact than the other way around. This is one of the two routes you’ll need at least the hiking part of the Cinque Terre Card for. Oh, and no open toed sandals allowed either.
• After the walk we had a rest and some ice cream, and just sat for a while. We seemed to be there at the same time as a lot of the cruise ship crowd so we didn’t hang around too long – it was simply too busy.

Corniglia:

• I had read that as Corniglia is on a hill, it can be slightly quieter as people tend to skip it. You can take a bus (part of the Cinque Terre Card) up to the town from the station, but the line will be decently long. Otherwise you ascend a decent amount of steps – the option we went for. By this point we were pretty over the heat and the crowds, and I was getting peckish. Luckily I had come across Terra Rossa wine bar during my research, tucked slightly away from the main crowds. This ended up being an amazing respite and next to the walking trail, our highlight of the day. It’s run by two sisters who have a very extensive wine list, and some light snacks and a homemade cake to keep you going. Its open on sunny days from 11:00 till sunset, and you can’t make a reservation.

Manarola:

• By this point I’ll admit we were pretty sweaty and tired, so we didn’t give Manarola a very good go. We did make it to the overlook point for a good photo. It also looked like a great place to take a swim, with a spot to jump off rocks too. It’s also supposed to be great for sunsets, maybe due to the position of the overlook point.

Bellagio, Lake Como (3 nights)

I had very high hopes for our last stop, as Lake Como was also a bucket list spot for me. It did not disappoint, we certainly went out with a bang! We stayed in Bellagio, which is also known as the pearl of the lake. I would do this again, because of the proximity to the towns around the mid lake. Bellagio is also a bit bigger, so definitely great to have as a base.

Where to stay: Hotel Silvio, I got a room with a view and a balcony – 100% worth it. I enjoyed doing my makeup on the balcony in the morning, and watching all the lights come on across the water at night. The location is great, at walking distance from the centre of Bellagio, but also close to the little borough of San Giovanni.

This was another spot where we left the car parked the entire time. We prioritised the mid lake area as it was our first time and we only had two and a half days. You can go everywhere by ferry, or even private boat taxi if you’re feeling boujee. We spent the second full day on the ferries as we had bought the mid lake ferry pas, giving us hop on/ hop off for the day. Tickets cannot be purchased in advance, just at the ferry terminals in the seperate towns. Keep in mind that it can get very busy at times, and that you really don’t want to miss the final ferry or it will be a very expensive taxi back around the whole lake.

What to do:

Bellagio:

• The absolute highlight was renting a boat to explore the lake. This felt like the quintessential Italian lake experience so I had to prioritise it. This is not cheap, but nowhere near as bad as renting something with a driver (or as relaxed). We were chuffed with Bellagio rent a boat, where we got a private boat for three hours. You don’t need experience to do this, but you do obviously need somebody confident to take on the challenge. Next time I would do six hours. We had plenty of time to enjoy the boat and go almost down to Como and back up, but easily could have done with a bit more chill time, or going down the other arm of the lake.

• Our hotel was right next to some steps which pretty much lead straight to The Gardens of the Villa Melzi. We paid slightly more for a two day pass so that we could meander through the gardens on the way to and from Bellagio’s center, alternating the route. Really nice wandering the two centuries old gardens when craving a bit of tranquility and really adds to the romance of Bellagio as a whole.
• Wander the old centre of Bellagio, enjoying the boutiques and all the streets and coloured buildings. Stop for an aperitivo at Hotel Florence’s lake side wisteria lined terrace.
• Walk to the little boroughs of San Giovanni or Pescallo for a more local experience than Bellagio proper. 
• We ran out of time, but next time we will definitely make time to do the Greenway of Como, which is supposed to be an amazing 10 km walk through some different villages. 

Where to eat:

• We had a really great dinner our final night at Ristorante Bilacus, on their romantic, jasmine covered terrace. They have a very extensive wine list, and a very succinct menu which is excellent.
• A lot of places were fully booked here, which we didn’t encounter anywhere else on the holiday. Dispensa 63 came highly recommended by a local, but was fully booked every night.
• We went to La Lanterna which looked a bit touristy, but the artist theming was fun, the homemade pasta good and the tiramisu pretty amazing!
• Dai Viga served quick, fresh pasta for lunch – like La Bottega della Gina in Verona. It wasn’t quite as good (but the bar was really high), but an excellent option for a quick lunch option or very early dinner.

Varenna: 

We took a ferry to Varenna on the second day, and I wanted to highlight it because it was so beautiful. 

• Upon arrival at the ferry you can follow a path alongside the lake into the town, which after a very rainy April and May this year was wonderfully luscious, green and floral. I love gardens, plants and flowers so for me this was worth the visit alone!
• We also visited Villa Monastero. These gardens were quite a lot smaller, but you could also visit the inside of the Villa here. I enjoyed the views of the lake, and the steep elevation which added some depth to everything. 
• We had lunch at Il Cavatappi, which was tucked away in one of the streets and hit the spot

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