On our overnight layover in October (coming back from Poland) I happened to see a good deal on premium economy tickets to various cities in Europe for Spring 2023. After quite a bit of hunting we put together an open-jaw trip to northern Italy where we would fly into Milan and out of Bologna in May 2023. With those bookends set we next had to figure out where we would visit.
We had not yet visited Venice, so we made that a priority. During our research we became quite interested in the wine regions of Veneto in general, especially Valpolicella and Soave, which lead us to check out Verona and nearby Lake Garda. In the end we came up with the following itinerary:
- Milan – 1 night
- Venice – 3 nights
- Bardolino (Lake Garda) – 3 nights
- Verona – 1 night
- Bologna – 3 nights
- day trip to Modena
Between cities we relied on trains, but for the Lake Garda portion of the trip we rented a car so that we could better explore the more rural (and wine-centric!) sections.
Amazing food and drink was a common and expected experience of all these places, and we had our fill of pasta, bread, gelato and wine. We returned home with a few of our favorites.
Another item shared amongst all the cities was the fluff of linden trees floating in the air wherever we went.
Flights
ORD > STO > LIN // BLQ > CPH > ORD
Fun fact – SAS Airlines wants to give you ALL the alcoholic drinks you will need for the flight at the beginning. But they will come around several times offering coffee and tea.
We flew SAS Plus on this trip which meant an amenity kit, extra space, and access to the SAS lounges – a nice bonus. On our smaller regional flights we essentially were treated to business class onboard with an open middle seat, really tasty boxed food, and gourmet chocolates after the meal.
