Tour of Northern Italy's Lakes and Alps

Upon arrival in Milan we check into our hotel individually. Milan is the centre of fashion and style in Italy, the country most renowned for its style icons. Among the fashion houses headquartered in Milan are Versace, Gucci, Armani, Valentino, and Moschino. Our tour begins with a welcome dinner at our hotel.

We enjoy a half day city tour with a local guide exploring the major works of art, architecture and design including the Duomo and Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper. We transfer to Bergamo in the Lombardy region to the north-east of Milan with its four gates erected when it was part of Venice. These gates symbolise Bergamo’s value as a major repository of past treasures. Here we enjoy a guided city tour including a ride on the Funicular up to Bergamo’s Old Town. We then transfer to our hotel in Salo in Brescia in time for dinner.

Today we enjoy a full day exploring Lake Garda, Italy’s largest and most spectacular lake surrounded by mountain villages and peaks. We will be escorted by a local guide. The tour includes a boat trip on the lake and entrance to the Roman Villa. We’ll be back at the hotel late afternoon.

Today we explore Mantova, also known as Mantua, once an Etruscan stronghold before it was overrun by the Romans. It is this provenance dating back to 2,000 BC that makes it a mecca for students of the past and present. The capital of Lombardy is surrounded on 3 sides by man-made lakes created in the 12th century.

Then we travel to Verona, which is considered to be Italy’s Stratford-upon-Avon with its Shakespearean connections. Its Piazza delle Erbe Verona was originally the Roman Forum; the rectangular piazza is in the heart of Verona’s historic centre and is surrounded by beautiful medieval buildings and towers.

Our next stop is Trento, the capital city of the province of Trentino, 2 hours from the Austrian border. Here we enjoy a local guided tour which will demonstrate the Austrian influences on its architecture and cuisine.

After a morning at leisure we drive the short distance to Vahrn and have a guided tour of the Abbazia di Novacella (also known as the Augustinian Canons Regular monastery of Neustift). This afternoon we have free time to explore Bressanone, before returning back to our hotel.

We spend today exploring Bolzano, a mountain transformed into a city and gateway to the Dolomites. During our guided morning tour, we learn about the city before we visit the South Tyrol Museum where we get to meet the Ice-Age man, Ötzi. The trip includes a visit to the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology. After some time to explore on our own we return to our accommodation for dinner.

Today we transfer by coach to Palmanova including stops en route in Lake Misurina & Cortina d’Amprezzo. The remainder of the day is free to explore the town, and in the evening we will got out for dinner at a local restaurant.

Today we visit the Archaeological Museum of Cividale which features precious finds of the Roman, early-Christian, early-medieval, Romanesque, and Gothic ages. We are joined by our local guide for a city orientation tour of Udine. This tiny, mountain-ringed city in northeast Italy was once part of the Austrian Empire, so it radiates a strong Viennese flavour. Returning to Palmanova in the evening, we will get the chance to try the local cuisine again with a meal in the evening.

Transfer by coach to Trieste where we enjoy a city tour with our local guide including the main sights of the city, the Basilica and the Castello di Miramare. Trieste lies at the very edge of northeast Italy and is sandwiched by both nearby Slovenia and also the Adriatic Sea and is amongst Italy’s most unique cities and Mediterranean resorts.

Today we explore Gorizia on the border of Italy and Slovenia. In Slovenia across the border a new town has been founded by the name of Nova Gorica. It lies on a plain surrounding by the Collio hills, famous for their full-bodied wines. After our guided city tour we transfer to Carso Plateau for a walk and vineyard visit which will include a wine tasting and sampling of the local delicacies.

We explore Palmanova with our local guide. This town is quite extraordinary in that it is a town shaped geometrically like a nine-point star. This fortified town was founded by the Venetian Republic at the end of the 16th century in order to defend its eastern borders both from the Hapsburg Empire and from the Turks. Itd is known internationally as one of the very few towns to have achieved the status of being an accredited perfect residential centre. Our journey continues to Grade and Aquileia, an important Roman site with impressive mosaics.

We drive this morning to Quartro d’Altino to take the train directly to Venezia Santa Lucia Station from where we are then transferred by private boat to Piazza San Marco, Venice. A local guide will then escort us on a walking tour of the city before letting us explore at leisure. We will meet up again for a private boat trip to Santa Lucia, and then take the train to Padova, where we will have dinner in our hotel.

On the way to Parma we visit Ferrara, famous for its preserved mediaeval quarter alongside a superbly intact Renaissance one. We have a local guide and visit the Castello Estense. Early afternoon we travel onto Bologna, epicentre of Italian cuisine. We have a city sightseeing tour of Bologna before we head to Parma.

Parma, in northern Italy, is famous for its art, architecture, cheese and ham. Our tour of the region will start with two tours and tasting sessions with ham and cheese producers. We will then visit the main sites of the city, including the Cathedral, Baptistery and Diocesan Museum. To finish off the day, we will go out to a local restaurant to really sample the local cuisine.

After breakfast, we set off to spend the day exploring the region of Reggio Emilia, in the Po Valley. The region is renowned for garlic-scented salami, cotechino with lentils, culatello ham. Salva cheese, Bertolina, a sweet focaccia with egg, and the local dessert, the Spingarda. Torrone (nougat) started here too. In the afternoon, we return to the hotel for some time at leisure.

This morning we check out of our hotel and drive to the coastal town of Portovenere. It is a delightful village with fish restaurants along the promenade. The afternoon is at leisure, with lots of interesting back streets to discover. In the evening we walk to a local restaurant for dinner.

After breakfast, we have a leisurely day to continue exploring Portovenere and surrounds at our own pace. In the afternoon, we take a coach drive through the region to see some more spectacular sights.

Cinque Terre is a clutch of five seaside villages at the foot of terraced hills falling steeply toward the sea. We explore this compact, untouched Ligurian area in which the past is the present. We have included a one way boat transfer from Portovenere to Monterosso and the one day Cinque Terre pass issued for trains and La Via dell’Amore. We then meet the coach again at La Spezia rail station and are transferred back to the hotel.

Turin’s Count Camillo di Cavour implemented the unification, Il Risorgimento, of Italy in 1861. The first capital of united Italy, it is renowned as the home of Italy’s royal family. Turin, with its fine, aristocratic atmosphere, old-world sophisticated shops, grand boulevards and palaces, leafy parks, and art galleries, actually leads a double life as also the centre of European industrial technology.

This afternoon we have a guided tour of Turin including a visit to the Cathedral, containing the Chapel of the Holy Shroud and the Palazzo Reale, seat of the Savoy Royal Family from 1660 until the unification of Italy.

We cruise to the 3 Borromean Islands on the western side of Lake Maggiore, directly opposite Stresa. The islands take their name from the aristocratic Borromean family who transformed the islands of Bella and Madre into grand, luxurious residences. The third island, named “dei Pescatori” after its age-old fishing community, was left to continue its traditional way of life. We will enjoy guided tours of the islands Bella and Madre, including a visit to the palaces and gardens. After some leisure time, we return to our accommodation to pack and have our final dinner together.

Our tour ends today after breakfast with a transfer to Milan. Arrival at Malpensa airport will be approximately 9.30 am and the coach will continue into the city centre with a drop-off at approximately 11:30am.