Italy recommendations - weekend with best friend

[Baby1023]

Hi all,

My friend is turning 30 soon and I want to treat her to a lovely weekend abroad - I’m thinking Italy as we are both big on good food and wine! I’d love somewhere that has atmosphere and feels alive - we don’t need crazy nightlife but I don’t want a ghost town either.

Is it doable over a weekend / long weekend - suggestions on where would be appreciated! Neither of us have been to Italy but both would love to go.

TIA for any help x

Lucca - fly into Pisa and it's a short hop from there. Lovely town, big enough for good restaurants, cafes, bars, but quite intimate. A stroll round the town walls after dinner on a summer's evening is pretty special.

Palermo

Depends where you're flying from? My nearest airport barely has any flights to Italy compared to a London airport.

Bologna…. Good food, lovely shops - it’s a university town so lots to see/do and reasonably priced

Genoa is very pretty and has some lovely beaches nearby. You could easily take a day trip to Portofino.

Lucca Summer festival is on until July 24th.

Verona is stunning and also has opera in the colosseum. Garda will be bustling too.

Bologna or Verona both fab and very accessible

Sorrento. Fly to Naples - lots of cheap regular flights. It’s about an hour from the airport. Get a hotel with a pool for a bit of R&R and the town is fab. Lots of restaurants and bars and coffee places.

Or Seville!

Venice
Florence
Sorrento and go to capri for the day

Florence (flying into Pisa- killing 2 birds with one stone) or Rome would be my suggestions.

Both have far too much to see everything in a weekend, but you can see such a lot in 3 days.

Eating out in Rome is cheaper than Florence, but only marginally and because Florence is big on magnificent steaks which obviously are more expensive than typical Roman dishes.

Both walkable unless you have mobility issues.

Ravenna (just to be different and because the art is wonderful).

Siena is gorgeous, the history is fascinating too, home of the Paleo.

Just a point though, I found the food in Croatia amazing too, Dubrovnik is wonderful.

For a special trip, why not Venice? You could stay in Venice (can be pricey), or Mestre just outside and take the train in, which is cheap as chips and a very short journey. The view from the train station exit across the Grand Canal is something I will never forget. Another option is to stay in Padua, another great place, with lots of lovely restaurants and a quick 30 minute train to Venice.

I also echo Bologna. It's a mad place, buzzing, great food and lots to see. And Lucca of course. Florence is mad busy but easily accessible from Pisa airport.