Quick answer
For a first trip, base yourself in Milan, Varenna on Lake Como, Verona and Venice for 7 nights, all linked by direct or one-change trains. With 10 days, add a Lake Garda day from Verona and a night in Bologna before returning to Milan. With 14 days, add Turin, the Bernina Express from Varenna and two nights in the Cinque Terre.
Train fares were checked on 5 October 2026 for Tuesday 10 November 2026 (five weeks ahead) and for the next day, and sight hours and prices on the same day.
The route at a glance
This route is a loop: you fly into and out of Milan, and no move between bases takes more than about 3.5 hours by train. Most people fly into Malpensa; if your European connection lands at Orio al Serio instead, see our guide to Bergamo airport to Milan.
| Leg | Train | Time | Fare five weeks ahead |
|---|---|---|---|
| Milano Centrale to Varenna-Esino | Trenord regional, hourly | 64-65 min | €7.40 |
| Varenna to Verona Porta Nuova | Regional to Milano Centrale, then Frecciarossa | 3h23 | €23.60 |
| Verona to Venezia Santa Lucia | Frecciarossa | 1h12-1h16 | €10.90 |
| Venice to Bologna Centrale | Frecciarossa, hourly | 1h33 | €13.90 |
| Bologna to Milano Centrale | Frecciarossa | 1h02-1h04 | €18.90 |
| Venice to Milano Centrale (7-day plan) | Frecciarossa | 2h27 | €19.90 |
Added up, the 10-day loop costs €74.70 per adult in train fares when booked five weeks ahead. High-speed fares rise as the date approaches: Verona to Venice was €29 for the next day against €10.90 five weeks out, and Venice to Bologna €39 against €13.90. Regional fares do not change with the booking date, so the Varenna leg costs the same whenever you buy it.
Two practical rules apply on every leg. Frecciarossa and Italo tickets are for a set train and seat and need no validation, while a paper regional ticket must be stamped before you board. Trenitalia and Italo are separate companies, so a ticket for one is not valid on the other. Our Milan to Venice train guide explains the operators and luggage rules.
7-day Northern Italy itinerary
Seven nights cover Milan, Lake Como, Verona and Venice, with only one single-night stop.
| Nights | Base | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| 1 and 2 | Milan | Duomo, the Last Supper, Navigli |
| 3 and 4 | Varenna, Lake Como | Ferry to Bellagio, villa gardens |
| 5 | Verona | Arena, Piazza delle Erbe |
| 6 and 7 | Venice | Piazza San Marco, the canals |
Days 1 and 2: Milan. Book the Last SupperMap before anything else: it costs €15, every visitor needs a booking, and the museum is closed on Mondays. Our Last Supper tickets guide explains when tickets are released. Spend the other half day at the DuomoMap, and follow our 2 days in Milan plan for the walking order. Staying near Milano Centrale saves time on day 3, since every train out of Milan in this plan leaves from there.
Two of my own picks for the Milan evenings: before dinner, try the whispering arches in Piazza dei Mercanti (Palazzo della Ragione)Map, two minutes from the Duomo, where a word spoken into one corner pillar of the Palazzo della Ragione is heard at the opposite corner. After dinner, my cocktail bar is LacerbaMap on Via Orti near Porta Romana, named after a Futurist magazine of 1913 and decorated to match; check its hours before you go.
Days 3 and 4: Lake Como. Direct Trenord trains reach Varenna-Esino in 64 to 65 minutes for €7.40. Varenna works as a base because it has the station and the ferry pier: Bellagio is 15 minutes across the water for €5.50, and the central lake day pass costs €17.50 if you plan four or more crossings.
The houses of Varenna on the eastern shore of Lake Como, below wooded mountains.
On the full lake day, see the Villa Melzi gardensMap in Bellagio (€10, closed from 1 November) and Villa MonasteroMap in Varenna (€15). Our guides to Varenna, Bellagio and the Lake Como villas cover hours and tickets. If Varenna is full, our Lake Como where to stay guide compares the other towns, and you can search hotels in Varenna on Booking.com.
Day 5: Verona. There is no direct train from Varenna to Verona: every connection changes at Milano Centrale. The fastest takes 2 hours 53 minutes with a EuroCity (€25.60), the Frecciarossa version 3 hours 23 minutes (€23.60), and two regional trains 3 hours 42 minutes for a fixed €17. In Verona, the ArenaMap costs €12 and opens Tuesday to Sunday from 9am to 7pm. Juliet's HouseMap is sold online only, €5 for the courtyard or €12 with the house, and needs a booking even with a VeronaCard. Arrive on a Monday and the Arena and CastelvecchioMap are both closed. Our Milan to Verona guide has a full day plan.
Days 6 and 7: Venice. The Frecciarossa from Verona takes 1 hour 12 to 1 hour 16 and cost €10.90 five weeks ahead; the Regionale Veloce costs a fixed €10.55 and takes about 1 hour 30. Spend the first afternoon around Piazza San MarcoMap and keep the second day for the districts away from it. Venice ran a day-tripper access fee as a trial in 2026, which ended on 27 July 2026; overnight guests were exempt, and the city has not decided on 2027. Compare times for this leg on Trainline.
Day 8: back to Milan. Frecciarossa trains run from Venezia Santa Lucia to Milano Centrale from 5:39am to 7:48pm, in 2 hours 27 minutes. Booked five weeks ahead, every departure on 10 November 2026 cost €19.90. Allow about 51 minutes more for the Malpensa Express to Terminal 1. If your airline sells it, flying home from Venice instead saves this leg.
10-day Northern Italy itinerary
Ten nights keeps the 7-day route and adds a second night in Verona for Lake Garda, then Bologna on the way back to Milan.
| Nights | Base | Added to the 7-day plan |
|---|---|---|
| 1 and 2 | Milan | |
| 3 and 4 | Varenna | |
| 5 and 6 | Verona | Day trip to Sirmione on Lake Garda |
| 7 and 8 | Venice | |
| 9 | Bologna | Porticoes, Quadrilatero market |
| 10 | Milan | Last night near your airport train |
The Lake Garda day. From Verona, regional trains reach Desenzano del Garda in 28 minutes for €4.80. Outside Desenzano station (north side), Arriva bus LN026 runs to Sirmione’s old town in about 23 minutes for €2.20, and you can tap a contactless card on the validator when you board and again when you get off.
The rooftops of Sirmione's old town seen from the Scaligero Castle, with Lake Garda behind.
In Sirmione, the Castello Scaligero di SirmioneMap costs €10 and is closed on Mondays, and the Grotte di CatulloMap Roman villa costs €10 (open only until 1pm on Mondays). A €20 ticket covers both plus the Roman villa in Desenzano. Boats between Desenzano and Sirmione (€3.50) run until 1 November 2026 and restart in mid-March 2027. Our Lake Garda from Milan guide has the bus times.
Bologna. The Frecciarossa from Venice runs hourly at 26 minutes past the hour and takes 1 hour 33 minutes; five weeks ahead most departures cost €13.90, against €39 for the next day. A slower Regionale Veloce costs a fixed €14.65 and takes about 2 hours 5 minutes. Compare both on Trainline.
Piazza Maggiore in Bologna seen from above, with the brick side of San Petronio.
The porticoes of Bologna, 62 km of covered walkways, became a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2021. Basilica di San PetronioMap on Piazza Maggiore is free to enter, though its terrace has closed permanently. The Asinelli, the taller of the Two TowersMap, is closed for maintenance with no reopening date, so book the Torre dell'OrologioMap instead (€10, booking required). Eat in the QuadrilateroMap, the old market streets off the square. The next morning, the Frecciarossa back to Milano Centrale takes about 1 hour 4 minutes, from €18.90 ahead. Our Milan to Bologna guide has restaurants and opening days.
14-day Northern Italy itinerary
Two weeks lets you add three things the shorter plans leave out: Turin, the mountain railway into Switzerland and the Cinque Terre.
| Nights | Base | Day trips and extras |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 3 | Milan | Day trip to Turin |
| 4 to 6 | Varenna | Bernina Express day via Tirano |
| 7 and 8 | Verona | Lake Garda day |
| 9 and 10 | Venice | |
| 11 | Bologna | |
| 12 and 13 | Cinque Terre | Villages by local train, Via dell’Amore |
| 14 | Milan | Flight home the next day |
Turin from Milan. Frecciarossa trains reach Torino Porta Susa in 44 to 51 minutes, from €13.90 booked ahead. The Museo EgizioMap sells tickets online only (€18), the Mole AntonellianaMap cinema museum is closed on Tuesdays, and the Musei Reali TorinoMap on Wednesdays, so go Thursday to Sunday. See our Milan to Turin guide.
The Bernina Express from Varenna. Varenna is on the line to Tirano, the Italian terminus of the Bernina Express: regional trains take 1 hour 27 minutes for €8.40, hourly from 7:25am, and the last train back leaves Tirano at 8:08pm. The Bernina Express from Tirano to St. Moritz takes about 2 hours 15 minutes and needs a paid seat reservation, which you book with the Rhaetian Railway. The line is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and a full day there and back from Varenna means over 7 hours on trains. If you would rather not plan it, GetYourGuide lists Bernina Express day tours from Milan.
Bologna to the Cinque Terre. There is no direct train. The cheapest connection changes at Parma and takes 3 hours 21 minutes for €19.45; faster-looking options through Florence and Pisa cost €31.60 to €48.90 and take about as long. From La Spezia, the local train reaches Riomaggiore in 8 minutes.
Manarola on its rocky headland, one of the five villages on the local line between Levanto and La Spezia.
From 14 March to 1 November, the local trains between the villages need a Cinque Terre fare of €5 to €10 a ride, depending on the day’s demand band. The Via dell'AmoreMap between Riomaggiore and Manarola is one way and needs a timed booking, from €10. To get back, direct InterCity trains run from Monterosso to Milano Centrale in 3 hours 5 to 3 hours 27, from €18.90 ahead, with the last one at 6:55pm. Our Milan to Cinque Terre guide covers the card and the village trains.
Booking the trains
Book the high-speed legs as soon as your dates are fixed. On this route the cheapest Frecciarossa fares were about 60% lower five weeks ahead than for the next day, and the regional legs (Varenna, the Lake Garda trains, the Cinque Terre villages) cost the same whenever you buy them.
You can buy every Trenitalia train on trenitalia.com or in its app, and the Trenord regionals in the Trenord app, where tickets need no validation. To see Trenitalia and Italo side by side in English, Trainline sells both, usually with a booking fee: start with Milan to Verona or Milan to Bologna.
A rail pass does not pay off here. The Interrail Italy Pass (the former Eurail pass) was listed at €165 for 3 days and €196 for 4 days in 2nd class on 5 October 2026, and each Frecciarossa needs a €13 reservation on top. The whole 10-day loop costs €74.70 in single tickets booked ahead. Our Italy rail pass guide runs the numbers for other routes.
Best time for this route
April to October is when every stop in this plan works fully. The dates that matter:
- Lake Como: the villas and the full ferry timetable run from late March to early November. The Villa Melzi gardens close on 1 November, and many Bellagio hotels close from late October or early November until about April.
- Lake Garda: the boats to Sirmione stop after 1 November and restart in mid-March. The bus runs all year.
- Cinque Terre: the special fare on the village trains ran from 14 March to 1 November in 2026, and the Via dell’Amore keeps shorter hours (9am to 6pm) from late October to late March.
- Verona: the Arena opera festival runs from 11 June to 11 September 2027. The last direct train from Verona to Milan leaves at 9:43pm, so an evening performance means a night in Verona.
For a winter trip, drop the lakes and the coast and spend the nights in Milan, Verona, Venice, Bologna and Turin, which are all linked by Frecciarossa. Our guide to the best time to visit Milan has the monthly weather.
Northern Italy tours from Milan
If you would rather join a group for one or two days, most day tours leave from Milan, and the cities on this route are within a day’s reach. Do the trains on your own for the bases, and book a tour only for the trips that are awkward without one, such as the Bernina Express or a long day to the Cinque Terre.
If Switzerland matters more to you than the Bernina line, the direct EuroCity from Milano Centrale reaches Zurich in 3 hours 17 minutes, from €33.50 five weeks ahead; see our Milan to Zurich train guide. For a first trip that also takes in Florence and Rome, our 10-day Italy itinerary follows the high-speed line south, and our day trips from Milan list covers the shorter outings if you keep Milan as your only base.
Frequently asked questions
How long should a Northern Italy trip be?
Seven nights covers Milan, Lake Como, Verona and Venice at a comfortable pace. Ten nights adds Bologna and a day on Lake Garda, and two weeks lets you add Turin, the Bernina Express and the Cinque Terre.
Can you do Northern Italy by train without a car?
Yes. Every base on this route has a station, the longest leg takes about 3.5 hours with one change, and Bellagio and Sirmione are a short ferry or bus ride from the nearest station.
How much do the trains cost for 10 days in Northern Italy?
On 5 October 2026, the five legs of the 10-day loop (Milan, Varenna, Verona, Venice, Bologna, Milan) cost €74.70 per adult when booked five weeks ahead. Regional fares are fixed, while high-speed fares rise as the date gets closer.
Is an Interrail Italy Pass worth it for this itinerary?
Not for these routes. The 4-day Interrail Italy Pass was listed at €196 in 2nd class, and each Frecciarossa needs a €13 reservation on top, while point-to-point tickets booked ahead cost €74.70 for the whole 10-day loop.
What is the best time for a Northern Italy trip?
April to October. The Lake Como villas and the full ferry service run from late March to early November, the boats to Sirmione stop after 1 November, and the Verona opera festival runs from 11 June to 11 September 2027.
Can I add Switzerland to a Northern Italy itinerary?
Yes. From Varenna, regional trains reach Tirano in 1 hour 27 minutes for €8.40, where the Bernina Express leaves for St. Moritz, and a direct EuroCity runs from Milan to Zurich in 3 hours 17 minutes.
Which day of the week should I avoid in Verona?
Monday. The Arena and the Castelvecchio museum are closed, and Juliet's House opens only from 2pm to 7pm, so plan your travel day into or out of Verona for a Monday.