Signpost Guide Italian Lakes and Mountains : Plus Venice and the Vento, Liguria and Florence

by Barbara Radcliffe Rogers and Stillman Rogers

• ISBN13: 9780762722297
• ISBN10: 0762722290
• Format: Trade Paper
• Copyright: 2002-06-01
• Publisher: Thomas Cook Publishing

Summary

Signpost Guides provide practical information to guide motorists through unfamiliar routes, signs, traffic laws, and parking. Hundreds of attractions are described in detail, together with recommendations for shopping, dining, and accommodations.

Each Signpost Guide features:
-- Full-color, detailed area maps, supported by driving directions and route plans
-- Helpful and practical tips, including average driving times and distances
-- Individual chapters on major cities that supply information essential to getting around without a car
-- Unique ratings system to help travelers sample the very best of each region

This guide includes driving routes around Northern Italy's magnificent lakes -- Maggiore, Como, and Carda -- and the stunning mountain scenery of the Dolomites, the Alpine Foothills, Val d'Aosta, and Mont Blanc. Also featured are the nearby cities of Venice, Verona, and Padua as well as Florence, which are irresistible to many visitors to Northern Italy.

Table of Contents

About Signpost Guides	8	(2)
Northern Italy at a glance	10	(2)
Introduction	12	(2)
Travel facts	14	(10)
Driver's guide	24	(6)
Getting to northern Italy	30	(2)
Setting the scene	32	(8)
Touring itineraries	40	(2)
The Valle d'Aosta and Turin	42	(12)
Spectacular Alps and green valleys
Lake Maggiore	54	(10)
A lake shared with Switzerland
Lake Como	64	(12)
Europe's playground since the Romans
Milan	76	(10)
Smart, urbane and fast-paced capital of the North
Bergamo and Lake Iseo	86	(10)
A charming old city with a secret lake
Brescia to Mantua	96	(8)
Small cities most tourists never see
Lake Garda	104	(14)
Castles, wine, watersports and fun in the sun
Verona	118	(10)
Roman to Renaissance, Shakespeare to sopranos
Valpolicella and Pasubio Valley	128	(8)
Visiting the vineyards
The Alto Adige	136	(10)
Historic cities with a German accent
The Dolomite Road	146	(8)
Dramatic mountain peaks and world-class skiing
Eastern Dolomites	154	(8)
Tiny Alpine Villages with big views
The Borderlands	162	(10)
Longobards, Romans and Austrians all left their mark
Venice	172	(16)
The world's most romantic city
Eastern Alpine foothills	188	(12)
A land of little Venices
Western Alpine foothills	200	(10)
Castles crown hilltop towns
Vicenza and the Euganean Hills	210	(12)
The city Palladio designed and springs where Romans bathed
Padua and the Brenta Canal	222	(6)
St Anthony's shrine and Venetian summer palaces
Across the Apennines: Bologna to Florence	228	(8)
Along the high spine of Italy
Florence	236	(12)
The undisputed queen of the Renaissance
Florence to Pisa	248	(8)
Tuscany's other gems
The southern Riviera di Levante	256	(8)
Holiday beaches and cliff-hung towns
The northern Riviera di Levante	264	(8)
Smart resorts and quiet harbours
Genoa to the French border: the Riviera di Ponente	272	(10)
Sand and scenery on the Mediterranean
Language	282	(1)
Index	283	(3)
Photo and production credits	286	(1)
Feedback form	287