Car Travel from MXP and beyond

[ziggy4]

So we have rough draft plans for our May road trip- MXP to Stresa (1 night) then to CinqueTerra area (Apartment base in Volastra- stay several nights) then Parma (5 nights, day trips from here) then Milan (2 nights). We only have loose plans so far for the CT days and the Parma day trips.

I know the long drive will be Stresa to Volastra but we love scenery and random stops in fun places. Hubs wants to take a scenic route (Genoa to La Spezia) and hopefully have some coastline views? We are ok with hills and turns, but I would prefer not to spend all day on that. Any suggestions for a route that can compromise for us?

Also, will our US phone GPS work for adequate directions- I'll probably also have paper maps because I navigate "old school" style. Other suggestions?

Thanks!

 

[Alpinista]

The SS 1 will take you down the coast from Genoa to around Sestri Levante, but then even that road turns inland before getting you to La Spezia. I'm thinking you will be adding at least an hour to your driving time (Genoa to La Spezia) to take this route and will note that the coastal area is fairly well built up and there will be transit time getting through the little towns on the coast. If you just take the Autostrada, you might consider getting your views from the sea, rather than from the road by making use of the water ferries that work up and down the coastline in the CT area (after arriving refreshed from a stress free and high speed drive)?

Your phone will be fine for navigation. We use both a European GPS and our phone when driving (the GPS uses a British voice that butchers the Italian street/road names, but doesn't use our phone plan's data, so we trade off between the two). Getting around Italy is pretty easy once you accept the fact that trying to link route numbers to directions is impossible -- the road signs always tell you which towns are next (in sequence by proximity), so you just do point to point navigation.

 

[joe]

Hubs wants to take a scenic route (Genoa to La Spezia) and hopefully have some coastline views? We are ok with hills and turns, but I would prefer not to spend all day on that. Any suggestions for a route that can compromise for us?

Two years we did something similar : we had an evening flight from MXP and started the day close to La Spezia, so we had the whole day to travel leisurely to the airport. Our compromise was to take the SS1 from La Spezia, but to hook up to the autostrada just before Sestri Levante. This gave us some scenic driving and a bit more time in the lovely mountains north of the coast.
As Alpinista said, I'd keep away from the coastal section, or save a part of it for a short drive.

Taken from the SS1 in that section :

 

[ziggy4]

Thanks so much Alpinista and Joe! The feedback and pictures (gorgeous) were both helpful! A few other questions-

1) is A12 the same road as E80? It seems to be, in this area at least
2) If we decide to try a combination of A12 and SS1, is there an area where the transition between the roads is more convenient, easier, less timely, etc? I've seen mention of Rapallo-Recco area on SS1 as very scenic, but if it takes forever to get back to A12, maybe we'll just do Autostrada the whole way as Alpinista suggests and get our coastal views by hike, ferry!
3) We will be driving from Stresa toward the CT area (Volastra). One suggested route is A26 toward Genoa then A12 or SS1. Another Suggestion is A8/A50 around Milan, A1 to Parma area, A15 to La Spezia. Distance and time seem fairly close between the two routes. Any thoughts? Coastal views are not mandatory, but we do love a pretty drive!

Thanks

 

[Alpinista]

The A12 and E80 are the same.

The SS1 from Recco to Rapallo is an inland route that cuts across the little peninsula. You pick up the sea again at Rapallo and can follow it all the way to Sestri Levante from there. I will have to defer on best exits to toggle on/off the autostrada since we are always through travelers from Lucca to Rapallo or other towns towards the French border, but Google Maps says it is only about 35 minutes from Rapallo to Sestri Levante on the SS1, so that might be an option to look at as far as getting some good views and a nice restaurant or bar to stop at to enjoy the sights along the way.

Two comments on hiking -- Your base is going to be about 90 minutes from Rapallo by car, but one option is to take either train or boat from CT to Rapallo and then hike the coastal trail from there to Portofino (or to continue on to San Frutuosso). The views from the trail are very nice and you have stops at Santa Margherita Ligure, Portofino, and/or San Frutuosso for snacks, drinks, or meals as you want. There is a water taxi that connects all these towns, so can hike as far as you want and then taxi back. You can find the trail description on line, but easy to find just by leaving the town area and heading towards the Excelsior Palace Hotel (visible on a hill above the town).

If you are hiking the CT towns, I always suggest that it is far more fun to walk down the 377 steps on the stairs at Corniglia than it is to walk up them ;-) This means align your hike so that you are going north to south.

Sounds like you have a great trip lined up -- enjoy ;-)

 

[Andrew]

For the Stresa-Volastra route, you may be looking at mapping sites that take it into consideration, but the A26-A12 route would detour you into the streets of Genoa because of the bridge collapse there. If you want to hit the coast around Genoa, you can do A26-A21-A7.

 

[ziggy4]

For the Stresa-Volastra route, you may be looking at mapping sites that take it into consideration, but the A26-A12 route would detour you into the streets of Genoa because of the bridge collapse there. If you want to hit the coast around Genoa, you can do A26-A21-A7.

Thanks for the head's up! I had seen mention of the bridge out in August and meant to ask about it!

 

[ziggy4]

The A12 and E80 are the same.

The SS1 from Recco to Rapallo is an inland route that cuts across the little peninsula. You pick up the sea again at Rapallo and can follow it all the way to Sestri Levante from there. I will have to defer on best exits to toggle on/off the autostrada since we are always through travelers from Lucca to Rapallo or other towns towards the French border, but Google Maps says it is only about 35 minutes from Rapallo to Sestri Levante on the SS1, so that might be an option to look at as far as getting some good views and a nice restaurant or bar to stop at to enjoy the sights along the way.

Two comments on hiking -- Your base is going to be about 90 minutes from Rapallo by car, but one option is to take either train or boat from CT to Rapallo and then hike the coastal trail from there to Portofino (or to continue on to San Frutuosso). The views from the trail are very nice and you have stops at Santa Margherita Ligure, Portofino, and/or San Frutuosso for snacks, drinks, or meals as you want. There is a water taxi that connects all these towns, so can hike as far as you want and then taxi back. You can find the trail description on line, but easy to find just by leaving the town area and heading towards the Excelsior Palace Hotel (visible on a hill above the town).

If you are hiking the CT towns, I always suggest that it is far more fun to walk down the 377 steps on the stairs at Corniglia than it is to walk up them ;-) This means align your hike so that you are going north to south.

Sounds like you have a great trip lined up -- enjoy ;-)

Lots of great info here! Thanks so much. Slow Travelers are THE BEST help in trip planning!