AboutFrancesco Marchesani Expertise I`m interested and have deep knowledge in Italian history, traditions and culture. I can answer your questions on my country`s history and cultural heritage, as well as everyday life, and travel tips too.
Experience I live in Pavia (northern Italy, near Milan) and have travelled alot through Italy, discovering it's less known (but not less beautiful) secrets.
Question Francesco, thank you in adavance for your advise. I'll be in Italy sometime in the next few months. Dates are not yet set. I have Family in Rome, Fragene and a small town in the mountains south of Rome Prosedi and will no doubt be spending ample time there. However, I have always wanted to visit the French and Italian Riviera's. We are in our 60's and not particularly adventurous. My thought was to perhaps Fly into Milano and drive or rail to Cannes for a stay over then drive or rail along the coast to Rome. Cinque Tera is a must as I understand and then all of the other spots that must be on the way. Your thoughts please on Drive vs rail; drive times as well as difficult driving conditions ???? mountainous roads etc...; Difficulties in leaving Italy for France and Monaco and returns. All kinds of questions but having difficulty in finding answers. Again, thank you
Answer Hello,
I think the easiest way to reach Cannes and the Riviera, as from from the Riviera to Rome, is by train: there are direct connections from Milan to Nice/Cannes/Monaco which are rather fast and comfortable.
Likewise, it's possible to travel by train from Cannes to Cinque Terre and continue to Rome (with a change in La Spezia or Pisa).
Average travel times are:
Milan-Cannes 6 hours
Cannes-Cinque Terre 7 hours
Cinque Terre-Rome 5 hours
You can check the timetables and prices here: http://www.ferroviedellostato.it/
(click on "English" in the upper-right corner for the English version).
Please remember that Cinque Terre as such is not a town or village, but a small region comprising five villages; when looking for train schedules, type "Riomaggiore".
There's a local train connecting all the five villages.
Driving, on the other hand, is not particularly difficult: highways connect all the cities you want to visit, with the exception of the Cinque Terre which are reached through a mountain road; the advantage of driving is that you can stop whenever you want, if you want to visit some special place on the road or just want to go to the countryside for lunch; an advantage is traffic, which might slow down your trip on certain days.
Leaving Italy for France and Monaco is not difficult at all: there are no border checks or custom stops, except for rare random checks, to the point that you might miss the border altogether if you failed to notice the board sign stating "you are entering France".
Best wishes for a wonderful trip, feel free to write me again if you need further information!
