The main reasons for going to Cinque Terre are to hike the cliffs between the five towns and to enjoy the beach at Monterosso. If you want great food and pesto, spend a night in Genoa, where pesto was invented, on your way from Milan.

Both of the locations which you selected (30 km. south of Florence and near Urbino) will involve longer day trips than are necessary to enjoy the best of Tuscany and Umbria, where you will find the great food and local culture you're seeking.

We suggest spending one week in Tuscany around the Montepulciano area and one week in Umbria between Perugia and Assisi. You would fulfil your goals of food and culture touring these two provinces.

Parma and Bologna both have wonderful cuisine. Bologna is a larger, more interesting city and there are more restaurants from which to choose.

Regards, Don and Linda Toronto