<p>If you have travelled the region please share .
What are the best 1 or 2 day excursion from Milan?
Would it be Lucerne? Would it be Zermatt ?
I know that the parents here have travelled the world 
The Last Supper and La Scala we have seen a while ago, this time thinking about renting a car and going some distance;)</p>
<p>I would check out Lake Como. It is beautiful, and you could run into George.</p>
<p>You have a number of fabulous choices for a quick excursion from Milan. Lake Como (as mentioned above) is one of your choices – it’s beautiful and not far away – Como, Belaggio, Varenna, etc. Another excursion would be Lake Maggiore and a visit to the Borromean Islands, which are exquisite. My favorite choice (but maybe I’m biased because I have relatives who live there) is a quick 1-hour train trip from Milan to Lugano in Switzerland. Lugano looks like the mediterranean with palm trees, red-tiled roofs, wide promenades by the water, but flanked by gorgeous mountains. It’s the beauty and safety and cleanliness of Switzerland (but with the warmth and food and language of Italy). From Lugano you can take excursions to the beautiful villages of Gandria and Morcote (that cling to the mountainside next to Lake Lugano). A little north of Lugano (also easily reachable by train) is the town of Bellinzona that has 3 castles. If you want to travel farther, although if you just have 1 - 2 days I’d advise against it, you could continue north from Lugano through Bellinzona and onto Lucerne. The scenery is unbelievable. Although a good portion of the drive would be through the Gotthard Pass (a very long tunnel).</p>
<p>Lugano is fabulous (actually considered Franklin as a college option for S1), loved Lake Como (took the hydro boat to Bellagio) and recently we did a trip to Genoa/Genova because I am a Christopher Columbus fan! One day I will go back and do a boat trip from Genoa to Portafino.</p>
<p>Another option is to go in the opposite direction and head to Venice. I think it’s about a 3 hour train ride there – you do not want a car in Venice.</p>
<p>The above suggestions are good and Zermatt is also a good suggestion. I really like Zermatt with its lack of petrol vehicles (only a limited number of electric ones are there) and the spectacular views when you take the cable car from town part way up to the Matterhorn.</p>
<p>The last time I went there we stayed the night in Milan and then drove our rental car to Zermatt - it’s a nice drive.</p>
<p>Venice is 2 hours by train. If you want to spend the night there are good hotels near the train station (one of the few places I have been to where the area around the train station is not sketchy) so you don’t have to lug suitcases around. </p>
<p>Tripadvisor is a very good resource for checking places out.</p>
<p>Have you been to Verona, Siena, or Pisa? They all have a day or two of sights and good eating. Venice too, of course if you haven’t been. </p>
<p>Sounds like though you are looking for something different. You can get to Lake Constance (Bodensee) in about 4 hours of driving and the Black Forest. Or you could go to Lake Lucerne in Switzerland in about the same amount of time.</p>
<p>In your shoes, I might head toward Nice - about three hours or the other way along the coast towards Livorno.</p>
<p>Everything seems closer than here. Florence is 3 - 4 hours away, Bologna is closer, Parma and Reggio are even closer. Cinque Terre is about 2 1/2 hours away. All times are thanks to google maps and of course, driving times can be different. </p>
<p>Sirmione is a little town on a finger of land that sticks into Lago di Garda. It’s just off the autostrada heading towards Venice.</p>
<p>I like Cremona, Bergamo, Como and Lugano. To the east (if your interested in art) look into Mantova,Verona and Padova.(the “the Mantegna trail”) The Palazzo Ducale in Mantova is spectacular and off most tourist radar. One caveat, during winter and spring you can run into some very bad fog conditions and your drive from Milano to the Veneto can be daunting.</p>
<p>We enjoyed Sirmione on Lake Garda this summer. Lake Garda has an underground hot spring there that is captured and pumped to spa hotels on the other side of the peninsula. There is a ruined villa on the point that was owned by Catullus. There is an old castello with a drawbridge at the base of the peninsula. Verona is only 45 min away - the opera festival at the Arena is spectacular.</p>