Help! Where should we go? Genoa? Garda?

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Long story, we didn't think we could go on holiday this summer but now we can. We have a week before the end of this month, about £3,000 for me DH and dds 12 and 15. We love Italy for the food, art and shopping but open to other ideas. Thinking of Genoa but not sure there's enough to do for a week? Don't really want to hire a car.

I have been to Genova a few times, and while I was pleasantly surprised at the city (much nicer than I thought it would be) I really don't think there is enough for a week. Lake Garda has much more to do, easily fill a week there. You could go by train between the two, have a couple of nights in Genova then go to Garda. Or go from Genova by train down the coast somewhere, although there is not as much to do there as Garda.

We were disappointed with Genoa tbh. Lake Garda is lovely but you may struggle on that budget unless you get a good package (Thomson keep advertising deals especially if you can be flexible on date and airport) . South part of the lake is easier access to Verona by public transport if no transfer included.

Genoa is a port city, a bit grimy. Visit the aquarium if you go, it's amazing. Head down the coast to Rapallo or Sestri Levante. Gorgeous seaside towns, beautiful beaches and lost to see and do.

We stayed in Genoa for 2 nights (1 day) last summer then headed down the coast to Levanto. Genoa was nice but there's not loads to see.

Was just reminiscing about Genoa today. But, I was only there for 2 nights/1 day. However, from there we got the train to Pisa and had a day in Florence (but could have gone to Lucca). So, I wouldn't discard it but would combine with somewhere else. You could go to Milan or Turin as well from there.

I wasn't too impressed with Genoa. It's ok but not enough to do for a week. Have you considered Amalfi Coast? You would have to arrange a transfer if not hiring a car as it's a drive from Naples but lots of variety, beautiful scenery and lots of lovely food.

From Genoa you can visit 5 Terre further down the coast, although not sure you'll manage to keep within budget as it's a pricey area. I would avoid Garda and the Amalfi coast for the same reason. How about Puglia? You can fly into Bari, hire a car and drive down to Salento, which is the heel of Italy. Lecce is a baroque town plus there's a jazz festival this month. Loads of other places to visit. Just avoid maybe Monopoli as it's rumoured the Trump crew are going to be dropping in

We got cheap flight to Pisa last year, got train (there's a bus too) to Lucca. Definitely worth a few nights there, wandering around, hiring bikes etc. We also stayed in Pisa and from there got the train to Florence for one day. The trains are good, easy to get around and cheap.

Also, the southern Tuscan coast (near Grosseto) is good value with large, sandy beaches. Lucca is quite pricey I found, but if you go further down, south of Livorno, it's easier to find accommodation on a budget and eating out us relatively cheap. Piombino is the port for Elba island, the town itself is fairly grim but there is a nice historical centre and it's a short drive to the Etruscan sites at Populonia. Then again you also have the choice of taking the boat to Elba for the day or longer.

Oops, just spotted you don't want to hire a car. 5 Terre is entirely doable by train, as is some of the Tuscan coast from Pisa. You could also fly in to Rome and get a train fairly easily to the Lazio resorts, or northwards to southern Tuscany. I don't think Puglia is very doable without a car, from friends' experiences.
Either that or the other Italian lakes, Maggiore and Como? Fly into Milan Malpensa and both are a relatively short train ride away.

You really don't want to do Tuscany, Amalfi coast, Cinque terre, Puglia with a 12 and 15 year old. Unless they enjoy making sandcastles in the morning and visiting historic churches in the afternoon they would be utterly bored. Garda has far more for them, and you can get a week for your budget if you look around.

I love Genoa.

Puglia is fine with teens, as is the Tuscan coast. Lots of activities, both water sports and not. I've been with teens as well as small children and it's not been all sand castles and churches.
Otherwise there's the Adriatic riviera Rimini, cattolica et al) loads of activities for teens but noisy and totally tacksville for parents.

You lot are amazing, thanks all the responses. Lots of food for thought. We're looking at deals to Gard's, southern end and will look at travelling about by train from there.

Just want to highly recommend Lazise in Lake Garda...gorgeous little town and near
water park and Gardaland..great base

I highly recommend Garda, we travelled by train and boat while there and there are tonnes of beautiful places to visit. We rented an apartment on air bnb in Desenzano - the town itself lacked character a bit but had great transport links - we travelled around and visited Sirmione (amazing place, really beautiful), Malchesine, Verona, Venice, and Milan. Would go back in a heartbeat but maybe stay somewhere like Sirmione next time. Enjoy!

Have booked Desenzano! Klaw87 how was your airport transfer , are there direct trains? Thinking about hiring a car now...

Ooh amazing! Are you flying into Verona?
It was about half an hour drive from there, we booked a private taxi to take us as we didn't want to hire a car, I think we used the sun transfers website or something similar (have done this for a few holidays and never had a problem).
Train wise, the station in Desenzano has great links to cities all over Italy - we got the train to and from Verona for a day trip, not sure how close the station is to Verona airport though but that could also be an option.

We used www.trainline.eu while we were out there to check the train times for various trips and then bought tickets as and when we wanted to travel, the fares are usually very reasonable especially when you consider the cost of hiring a car and parking etc.
Also our Italian isn't the best despite our efforts with a handbook, and there are always machines available in the station that you can change to English in order to buy our tickets :)

If there's anything else you'd like to know then just let me know - I'll find some pics of some of the places we went to and post later too!

www.trainline.eu/stations/desenzano-del-garda-sirmione

There's a list here of the most popular places to visit via train from Desenzano and how long each journey is - I'll see if I can find info on boat times to other too

I always find that trip advisor usually has great advice on getting around too so do have a look there for more info

http://www.navigazionelaghi.it/eng/g_orari.asp

This is the website for ferry timetables - you can have a look at this years times to get an idea of how long it'll take you to get around. They possibly aren't the quickest ways to get to places, I don't know if driving is easier in some cases, but we really enjoyed travelling by boat and seeing more of the lake that way so we saw the travel as part of the fun :)

I think I've covered everything I can haha, if you have any questions just shout

I live nr lake Garda can highly recommend, Sirmione, Riva del Garda or Desenzano. Lots of deals on booking.com.
Nearby for kids fun is Gardaland adventure park, or Parco Sigurta, or Verona for a day out. Its not so hot now the heatwave has subsided. If you came in June you'd be sweltering.... it was 40 deg everyday. Anyway I recommmend this area highly!!

Thank you so much! It's my daughter's birthday (12) while we're away and I wondered about doing a trip to Gardaland. Is this doable by train Ladyflange? Klaw87 thanks for the links to the timetables. We stayed in Melchesnie years ago and loved using the boats. Will take your tip about pre booking a taxi.