I spent a week in Northern Italy outside of busy season. I loved the smaller crowds, half-priced hotels, and crisp weather.

Mo MitchellFeb 8, 2024, 04:25 IST

My boyfriend and I had a great time seeing Northern Italy in December. Mo Mitchell

My boyfriend and I took a trip in December to Northern Italy.
We found fewer crowds and cheaper prices, which helped us get more out of every day there.

In December, I flew with my boyfriend to meet his family in Germany.

It was our first time traveling together internationally, and we decided to spend five days in Italy, just a few hours from his family's home in Southern Germany.

Since Italy is swarming with tourists in summer and early fall, I was excited to travel in the winter, when it's less busy and less expensive.

Our train ride from Innsbruck, Austria, to Verona took just over three hours.

We passed snow, sun, and lots of trees on the ride. Mo Mitchell

Our accommodations were in the middle of the city and much cheaper than I'd expected.

We stayed close to a lot of Verona mainstays. Mo Mitchell

Later, we wandered to Piazza Erbe, a lovely old square just a few minutes’ walk from our hotel.

The city's atmosphere was warm and lively.Mo Mitchell

We had no solid plan for dinner that night, but easily found a place with no wait.

We washed down our meal with red wine. Mo Mitchell

We spent the next day exploring Verona in the daylight.

Most people seemed content to just look at the house from the outside.Mo Mitchell

We toured all four of the city's main famous churches.

Pictured here is the Chiesa di Santa Anastasia. Mo Mitchell

With no crowds, it was easy to move quickly between all the sites we’d wanted to see.

Walking around Verona was a breeze. Mo Mitchell

We got to see the city from above, too.

We didn't wait long for the funicular. Mo Mitchell

We quickly stopped back in our hotel to get changed and headed to dinner.

We didn't wait for a seat at Trattoria de Camillo.Mo Mitchell

The next day, we headed out into the wet, foggy morning to catch our train to Milan.

Milan was beautiful. Mo Mitchell

We also saw the Duomo — and, once again, we didn't wait long to do so.

The Duomo has amazing stained-glass windows. Mo Mitchell

Lunch was traditional Roman food.

The pasta was excellent. Mo Mitchell

The next day, we woke up around 8:30 a.m. for our train to Venice.

We took the train from Verona to Venice. Mo Mitchell

Within the first few stops, enough people got off so we could sit near the front of the boat.

The wind was crisp and the view was spectacular.Mo Mitchell

As we continued walking, we saw a procession of boats, with each rower dressed in Santa hats.

The fog in Venice was beautiful. Mo Mitchell

Although I wasn’t expecting the fog, I was glad we got to see it.

The fog in Venice was an unexpected, but welcome surprise. Mo Mitchell

Later that evening, we headed back to Verona.

The arena in Verona was epic and we had the place mostly to ourselves. Mo Mitchell

Overall, I enjoyed exploring the large and small cities of a cold but temperate Italy.

Italy was awesome in the winter. Mo Mitchell

I've been a tour guide in Italy for 16 years. My top recommendation is an incredible ancient port city that's way less crowded than Rome.

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