ED in July.. Suggestions needed.

So, I have ordered my 335i for a delivery on July 16th.
We have some elements of our trip that are non-negotiable, but we are flexible on most of them.
1) We are leaving Boston on July 2nd.. as we are going to St. Petersburg, Russia, and Odessa, Ukraine first.
2) We are flying into Munich on July 14th.. Staying in Munich until the 16th (ED).
( I assume the 16th is enough for delivery, museum, etc?)
3) On July 21st, we are picking up our friends at the airport in Milan.. and we will need to drop them off on the 29th in the same place.
4) In between 21st and 29th we are thinking of traveling through Italy..
- One night in Milan
- 2 nights in Venice
- 2 nights in Cinque Terre?
- Genoa? Parma?
5) Flying out on Aug 2nd from Munich

We have never spent any time in western europe before, so totally open to recommendations. One thing is.. my wife's request to limit driving to 3-4 hours every other day or less..
I know that some of these places (Venice) are not recommended in July, but this is our only opportunity for a long vacation..

Originally Posted by moshe

So, I have ordered my 335i for a delivery on July 16th.
We have some elements of our trip that are non-negotiable, but we are flexible on most of them.
1) We are leaving Boston on July 2nd.. as we are going to St. Petersburg, Russia, and Odessa, Ukraine first.
2) We are flying into Munich on July 14th.. Staying in Munich until the 16th (ED).
( I assume the 16th is enough for delivery, museum, etc?)
3) On July 21st, we are picking up our friends at the airport in Milan.. and we will need to drop them off on the 29th in the same place.
4) In between 21st and 29th we are thinking of traveling through Italy..
- One night in Milan
- 2 nights in Venice
- 2 nights in Cinque Terre?
- Genoa? Parma?
5) Flying out on Aug 2nd from Munich

We have never spent any time in western europe before, so totally open to recommendations. One thing is.. my wife's request to limit driving to 3-4 hours every other day or less..
I know that some of these places (Venice) are not recommended in July, but this is our only opportunity for a long vacation..

It would help a lot to know what you like. Art? Outdoors? Scenery? Food and drink?

The BMW Museum (as are most museums in Germany) is closed on Mondays. 16 July is a Monday, so if you want to see the Museum you would have to do it on Sunday, 15 July, or Saturday, 14 July, depending on your arrival time. The Museum is open from 10:00 until 18:00.

http://www.bmw-welt.com/web_rb/bmw-w.../overview.html

You didn't mention the Plant Tour, which is available on Mon-Fri. The English language tour is usually at 11:30.

As you work on the planning, note that there are two airports that serve Milan... Malpensa is the larger one with most of the international flights; Linate is the one with domestic and regional service. They are approx one hour apart and on opposite sides of the city. There is a limousine bus connection between them.

How set are you on the Cinque Terre? You could head up to lake Como, which is a very easy drive from Milan. We stayed in Bellagio for 2 nights and had a great time exploring the area.

July and August is vacation time - all roads is overcrowded with cars.
One day for Milan is plenty.
If you can - get to lake Como for one day.
I would suggest Tuscany back roads - but I don't know your preference.
Pisa is tourist trap, Sienna will Be top 3 on my list, 2 days in Florence.
Privet Odesse-mame!

Kamdog:
We like:
1) Food and drinks
2) Cultural things (museums to a point, architecture)
3) Outdoorsy things (scenic)

SD: Ah.. thanks for the pointer! So looks like Sunday we will go to a BMW museum, and Monday a factory tour before the ED.. How long does each of these things typically take?

Milepig: Cinque is not non-negotiable.. we just had some good reviews about the place.. we are thinking about Como lake before picking our friend from Milan, i think it's on the way.

MB330: Tuscany back roads sounds like my type of adventure.. any specific roads/destinations you can mention?

Also, looking for suggestions for 5 days between Munich and Milan.. and the same thing on the way back.. Milan to Munich..


Thanks everyone

If you are headed towards the Cinque Terre from Venice, build in a day in Florence to see David at the Accademia. As soon as you know the date, make an appointment. See the Duomo, it is nearby. The more time you can afford to spend at Florence, the better. Venice to Florence is about 3 hours. Florence to Cinque Terre is under 3 hours, but is much shorter distance-wise.

When in Venice, do this, it is pricey, and don't share it with strangers, but it is a lifelong memory. The bald guy in the gondola in front was singing, and the sound was bouncing off the walls, all the pedestrians stopped along the bridges to hear it, it was just wonderful.

http://goitaly.about.com/od/transpor...qt/gondola.htm

Originally Posted by moshe

Kamdog:
We like:
1) Food and drinks
2) Cultural things (museums to a point, architecture)
3) Outdoorsy things (scenic)

SD: Ah.. thanks for the pointer! So looks like Sunday we will go to a BMW museum, and Monday a factory tour before the ED.. How long does each of these things typically take?

Museum will take as long as you let it. If you're a real car nut I'd say 90 minutes or more, just a casual trip will take less.

Are you doing a plant tour? That begins at 11:30 M-F and takes 2 hours. You can do a morning pickup and then the tour.

Originally Posted by moshe

We like:
1) Food and drinks
2) Cultural things (museums to a point, architecture)
3) Outdoorsy things (scenic)

MB330: Tuscany back roads sounds like my type of adventure.. any specific roads/destinations you can mention?

Also, looking for suggestions for 5 days between Munich and Milan.. and the same thing on the way back.. Milan to Munich..

A few suggestions:
Tuscany: See San Gimignano (the medieval Manhattan), and Lucca.

On the way down to Milan or on the way back:
1) Neuschwanstein followed by Switzerland's Bernese Oberland (Jungfraujoch) and Lake Como, or 2) St. Moritz, Berchtesgarten (Eagle's Nest and Documentation Center) and Salzburg.

While with friends consider the French Riviera (Nice, Cannes and Monaco).

Another idea. It looks like you're with the friends for more or less a week.

How about renting a villa somewhere for the week and using it as a base for side trips. Tuscany puts you close to many things - Florence, Sienna, Lucca, San Gimignano, winey tours, etc., just to name a few. And you can tour the countryside.

Originally Posted by moshe

Kamdog:
We like:
1) Food and drinks
2) Cultural things (museums to a point, architecture)
3) Outdoorsy things (scenic)

SD: Ah.. thanks for the pointer! So looks like Sunday we will go to a BMW museum, and Monday a factory tour before the ED.. How long does each of these things typically take?

Milepig: Cinque is not non-negotiable.. we just had some good reviews about the place.. we are thinking about Como lake before picking our friend from Milan, i think it's on the way.

MB330: Tuscany back roads sounds like my type of adventure.. any specific roads/destinations you can mention?

Also, looking for suggestions for 5 days between Munich and Milan.. and the same thing on the way back.. Milan to Munich..


Thanks everyone

Just lost your self between small cities.

I think the plan for you is 1 night in Milan, (travel to Venice), 2 nights in Venice. What will you do next?

Guess who

Originally Posted by moshe

SD: Ah.. thanks for the pointer! So looks like Sunday we will go to a BMW museum, and Monday a factory tour before the ED.. How long does each of these things typically take?

Depending on how much you like auto museums, the BMW Museum could take you between 0.5 hours to just walk through quickly to as much as 2-3 hours. We were fortunate that when we did ED the BMW Art Cars were on exhibition in the dome portion of the Museum.

The Plant Tour runs from 11:30 to 14:00 (eat lunch first or have a late breakfast!)

Thanks for the input everyone. We are the ones traveling with Moshe: so counting on the experts who have made the track for their input. Wonder if anyone has done a day trip to Vatican / Rome from the planned itinerary? So the plan for now is -
- One night in Milan (confirmed)
- 2 nights in Venice (confirmed)
- 2 nights in Cinque Terre? (suggestions please)
- Genoa? Parma? (suggestions please)

Thanks everyone!!!

Milepig, I am adding in Bellagio i think which hotel did you stay @? Can you recommend?
or anyone else a hotel on around lake Como?

Originally Posted by moshe

Milepig, I am adding in Bellagio i think which hotel did you stay @? Can you recommend?
or anyone else a hotel on around lake Como?

Originally Posted by GruveeBMW

Thanks for the input everyone. We are the ones traveling with Moshe: so counting on the experts who have made the track for their input. Wonder if anyone has done a day trip to Vatican / Rome from the planned itinerary? So the plan for now is -
- One night in Milan (confirmed)
- 2 nights in Venice (confirmed)
- 2 nights in Cinque Terre? (suggestions please)
- Genoa? Parma? (suggestions please)

Thanks everyone!!!

Rome is way too far. If you plan to see the vatican, you need to devote at least a half day, and expect to wait to get in. Do Rome on another trip, there is too much there.

Originally Posted by moshe

Milepig, I am adding in Bellagio i think which hotel did you stay @? Can you recommend?
or anyone else a hotel on around lake Como?

We stayed at the Hotel Florence in Bellagio. It is located on the lake and has a restaurant/terrace on the water. We had a balcony overlooking the lake but the room, although fairly large by European standards, was nice but quite simple.

Hotel Florence web site:
http://www.hotelflorencebellagio.it/homeeng.htm

You should also take a look at skywalkerbeth's recommended hotels:
http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...949&highlight=

If you do stay in Bellagio you may want to take the ferry over from the west side of the lake. The road from Como to Bellagio is on the narrow side and I would not advise driving it (as we did) at night. While staying in Bellagio I would recommend taking the ferry around the lake and getting off at any of the lakeside towns that catches your eye.

Originally Posted by Trinitony

We stayed at the Hotel Florence in Bellagio. It is located on the lake and has a restaurant/terrace on the water. We had a balcony overlooking the lake but the room, although fairly large by European standards, was nice but quite simple.

Hotel Florence web site:
http://www.hotelflorencebellagio.it/homeeng.htm

You should also take a look at skywalkerbeth's recommended hotels:
http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...949&highlight=

If you do stay in Bellagio you may want to take the ferry over from the west side of the lake. The road from Como to Bellagio is on the narrow side and I would not advise driving it (as we did) at night. While staying in Bellagio I would recommend taking the ferry around the lake and getting off at any of the lakeside towns that catches your eye.

My hotel stay was awhile ago, so I'd go with more current advice. Agree on taking the ferry around the lake, the road trip is a bit daunting.

I don't know if you know, but two towns in Cinque Terre were destroyed late 2011 due to heavy floods. I'm not sure what the status is so far , but I'm sure they're still rebuilding.

Originally Posted by Trinitony

A few suggestions:
Tuscany: See San Gimignano (the medieval Manhattan), and Lucca.

On the way down to Milan or on the way back:
1) Neuschwanstein followed by Switzerland's Bernese Oberland (Jungfraujoch) and Lake Como, or 2) St. Moritz, Berchtesgarten (Eagle's Nest and Documentation Center) and Salzburg.

While with friends consider the French Riviera (Nice, Cannes and Monaco).

San Gimignano is really one of the coolest little towns in Tuscany. A bit touristy as the day goes on, but early in the morning it is beautiful, especially if you leave the main street and head to the right for a view into the valley below. Try the many wine tasting shops and the free samples of boar's sausage and pepperoni. If you're with a lady there is some very pretty stuff for the home in the ceramic shops and some good deals on hunting kniives as well. Assissi is also pretty inundated with tourists and very pretty and historic. Over-nighting at either place would give you a view of life in an Italian hill town that the average bus-riding tourists would never see. On three previous bus tours of Italy we visited the cathedral in Assissi and immediately left for the next town. The last visit we stayed overnight just a block from the cathedral and it was unforgettable - a beautiful sunset over the cliffs near the cathedral; bells ringing throughout the evening; monks, priests and nuns from all over the World walking down the cobblestone streets and some of the best gelato in Italy.

I also highly recommend Berchtesgaden and the Documentation Center. As an avid WWII buff I can't believe some of the items on display there. For the first time ever I got a real feel as to how and why the Germans people followed Hitler. Seeing the various newspapers, books, radio broadcasts and even the tacky souvenirs and collectors' items with the Fuhrer's picture plastered all over them gives you a sense of how the whole cult of personailty was forced down the throats of the populace. With only one side controlling the media and the sources of production it was Hitler 24/7 for the common Volk.

And Salzburg? Just a half hour away from Berchtesgaden. The city is every bit as picturesque as what you see in the "Sound of Music" and in fact, still looks the same in 2012 as it did in that 1964 (?) flick. Honestly, seeing the Mozart stuff is kind of pointless because the guy died a pauper so most of the stuff in the museums wasn't really his, but the old buildings and narrow streets are very "charming" (a word you'll hear so many times while you're there that you'll eventually vomit). Grab a Bosna sausage sandwich in town while you stroll the Getreidegasse, the main street of Old Town with beautifully crafted wrought iron signage. For me, the best part of this region is outside of Salzburg, in the Salzkammergut. Plenty of uncrowded twisty roads through quaint little villages.

Thanks everyone for your help.. so my trip now looks like the following (about 80% done!!)

July 2 leave Boston
July 3-9 St Petersburg, Russia
July 9-14 Odessa, Ukraine
July 14 Arrive at Munich (staying at Kings Hotel First Class)
July 15 BMW Museum
July 16 ED, Factory tour
July 16-18 Neuschwanstein castle area.. (probably Mueller hotel or Das Rubezahl)
July 18-21 Lake Como (Varenna) Hotel Eremo Gaudio
July 21 picking up out friends at Milan airport (9am)
July 21-22 Milan (Enterprise hotel)
July 22-24 Venice ( Domina Home Ca Zusto) i know no driving into Venice, so will park outside in Tronchetto)
July 24-29th still a gap (investigating San Gimignano, Parma, Modena, Cinque terre - thanks for the flood info)
July 29 drop off our friends in Milan
July 29-July 31 still a gap (possible something between Milan and Salzburg.. maybe Bolzano)
July 31-Aug 2 Salzburg
Aug 2 Drop of a car, flight back to US

I would recommend the Cinque Terre. I just got back from my ED and I can tell you that of the four towns, only Vernazza is still closed to tourists. The others are open and quite beautiful to stroll through. There's a tremendous amount of material in this forum on the CT, and I recommend doing a search. It will be quite crowded there during the summer months, and nearly impossible to find parking. Therefore I recommend staying and parking in Levanto, a lovely town in its own right, which is the first town outside the CT. We stayed at the Park Hotel Argento, a 10 minute walk from the train station. From here you can take the train to any or all of the CT towns. For example, we took the train to Riomaggiore, the first of the five towns, and then walked and/or rode by train back to the other CT towns.

Originally Posted by moshe

Thanks everyone for your help.. so my trip now looks like the following (about 80% done!!)

July 2 leave Boston
July 3-9 St Petersburg, Russia
July 9-14 Odessa, Ukraine
July 14 Arrive at Munich (staying at Kings Hotel First Class)
July 15 BMW Museum
July 16 ED, Factory tour
July 16-18 Neuschwanstein castle area.. (probably Mueller hotel or Das Rubezahl)
July 18-21 Lake Como (Varenna) Hotel Eremo Gaudio
July 21 picking up out friends at Milan airport (9am)
July 21-22 Milan (Enterprise hotel)
July 22-24 Venice ( Domina Home Ca Zusto) i know no driving into Venice, so will park outside in Tronchetto)
July 24-29th still a gap (investigating San Gimignano, Parma, Modena, Cinque terre - thanks for the flood info)
July 29 drop off our friends in Milan
July 29-July 31 still a gap (possible something between Milan and Salzburg.. maybe Bolzano)
July 31-Aug 2 Salzburg
Aug 2 Drop of a car, flight back to US

You miss hotels names in Leningrad and Odessa
staying at Kings Hotel First Class - it's not first class
2 days in Milan - too much
24-29 - Florence, Sienna, Lucca - Remember make reservation to Uffizi Gallery and Accademia. Or you will end up in 4 hrs line.