Gay Vacations: Escorted tour from Venice to Verona for gay travelers

VENICE to VERONA: Art & Gastronomy of the Veneto
June 14-21, 2009

Most visitors to the Veneto region of Italy seldom venture beyond its capital, Venice. This is not surprising as Venezia is one of the great destinations of the world. Its unique aspects are legendary. One cannot help be enchanted by its singular beauty, its past and present glory, and the sense of fragility it provokes. For those who go beyond Venice, a special region awaits! There’s an impressive variety of landscapes, through zones of intensive viticulture, past some of the world’s most magnificent villas. Italy’s most famous dessert, tiramisù, was invented in the Veneto! And the word ciao, as a salutation to say hello or good-bye, was coined here, too.

The Veneto’s cities are distinct and beautiful. Verona is the home of Romeo and Juliet; Italy’s most famous opera festival; stunning architecture; and some of the most intensive wine production in the country. Bardolino, Valpolicella, Amarone, Bianco di Custoza, and Soave are but a few of the varieties produced near Verona. The province of Verona is also known for its superb olive oil.

The city of Vicenza is most noted as the laboratory of Andrea Palladio (1505-80), perhaps the most important architect of the last half millennium. His work is everywhere in and around Vicenza. The province of Vicenza is also full of good wine and is the home of Asiago cheese and can boast delicious cherries, white asparagus, and grappa as well as noteworthy ceramics.

The largest city in the region, Padova (“Padua” in English) is the Veneto’s economic center and is the seat of one of Italy’s foremost universities. Padova is full of art treasures (including the incomparable Scrovegni Chapel with its 38 frescoes by Giotto) and can boast one of the most magnificent food markets in all of Italy. In the province of Padova are the Colli Euganei, green hills filled with mineral water sources and home to the charming village of Arquà Petrarca.

UNESCO World Heritage cultural sites included in this wonderful itinerary:
* Venice and its Lagoon *
* Vicenza and the Palladian villas of the Veneto *
* Botanical Garden of Padova *
* Verona *

Day 1 - Sunday, June 14, 2009
We will meet today at our charming small hotel in the center of Venice in the late afternoon so that we can get acquainted with our fellow travelers over a welcome drink and a trip orientation. This evening we’ll enjoy our Welcome Dinner together.

Welcome drink and dinner included.

{Please note: There is so much to see in Venice, and we cannot cover it with our mere two nights here. If you’d like to arrive a day or two early or extend your tour by returning to Venice at the end, please let us know and we can set up extra hotel nights for you.}

Day 2
Today we will rejoice in the most beautiful and surreal of all human creations — Venice itself. We have a full day to soak up its marvels! Founded in the 5th century and spread over 118 small islands, Venice became a major maritime power in the 10th century. The whole city is an extraordinary architectural masterpiece in which even the smallest building contains works by some of the world's greatest artists such as Giorgione, Titian, Tintoretto, Veronese, and others.

Our explorations will be on foot and by boat. Our tour will include the awesome Basilica of San Marco, the center of the center of Venice. It is a glorious reflection of the city’s connection to Islamic, Byzantine, and European art. As Venice’s single most famous building it is also one of Europe’s most exotic cathedrals. The main body of the Basilica is dominated by 13,200 square feet of mosaics – a vast kaleidoscope of color and Biblical anecdotes dating mostly from the 12th and 14th centuries.

Adjoining the Basilica is the magnificent Palazzo Ducale (Doge’s Palace), the seat of power of the Republic of Venice for almost a thousand years and home to its rulers. The present palace is a triumph of Gothic architecture. Paintings by Titian, Veronese, and Tintoretto adorn various halls of the Palazzo Ducale.

We’ll also wander over to the Frari, a huge plain Gothic church the interior of which is striking for its sheer size and for the quality of its works of art. These include masterpieces by Titian (Assumption of the Virgin and the Madonna di Ca’ Pesaro) and Bellini (Madonna and Child with Saints); sculptures by Donatello and Canova; and a number of imposing monuments to famous Venetians.

Just strolling around Venice and absorbing its atmosphere is an event, and we’ll see such landmarks as the Rialto Bridge, which crosses the Grand Canal, a busy part of the city for centuries. Venice’s commercial heart developed around here; indeed, it was the “Bazaar of Europe” with all of its goods from the Orient. Busy markets still flourish here with piazzas and streets for fruit, meat, fish, and souvenirs.

After lunch we take advantage of a guided shopping excursion that will lead us to some of the backstreet traditional artisinal shops for the discerning buyer. We'll discover some of the smaller boutiques tucked away in Venice's less trodden neighborhoods. Later, your time is free to explore as you wish. Perhaps you’d like to venture to the outer islands of the lagoon, such as Murano, Burano, or Torcello. Or take in a museum such as the Peggy Guggenheim Collection or the School of San Rocco. (Please note that the Accademia Museum is closed on Monday afternoons.) Across the water from San Marco is San Giorgio Maggiore whose church and monastery are among Andrea Palladio’s greatest architectural achievements. Of course, there is plenty of shopping and plenty of cafés where you can just sit and take it all in. Dinner is on your own this evening.

Breakfast and lunch included.

Day 3
Departing from Venice we will head westward into the region of the Veneto. Not far away from Venice the conical Colli Euganei (Euganean Hills), remnants of long-extinct volcanoes, rise abruptly out of the plain, their slopes patched with vineyards between the scattered villages, villas, and churches. Numerous hot springs bubble up in this terrain. Our first stop will be the picturesque medieval village of Arquà Petrarca on the southern edge of the hills. It was once called simply Arquà, but its name changed to honor the medieval poet, Francesco Petrarca, known in English as Petrarch (1303-74), who lived here in his old age. He had often sung the praises of the well-tended landscape of olive groves and vineyards, and spent the last few years of his life living in a house frescoed with scenes from his lyrical poems. We will visit this beautiful setting before making our way next to the Villa Barbarigo at Valsanzibio. The villa itself is of a simple design compared with its Baroque garden. Planted from 1669, the gardens are a riot of waterworks, and there are over 120 species of trees grown here. The great ensemble at Valsanzibio was formed in the late 1600s by Antonio Barbarigo, Procurator of San Marco in Venice, who conceived the landscape as an allegorical representation of a primeval Eden regained on Earth.

After lunch we will stop off for a brief visit to the small town of Montagnana. Pristine brick walls, one of the best-preserved examples of medieval walls in Europe, circle the town. They extend for over a mile, pierced by four gateways and defended by 24 polygonal towers. At the eastern gate (Porta Padova) gate is the Villa Pisani (1560) by architect Andrea Palladio, about whom we will become more familiar later in the trip. Montagnana’s late-Gothic Duomo (cathedral) contains the Transfiguration (1555) painted by Paolo Veronese.

Then it’s just a short way to our delightful countryside accommodations, where we’ll settle in for the next five nights. Our lovely hostess Maria will greet us with an aperitivo, and we’ll have time to relax – perhaps you’ll enjoy a nice dip in the pool – before our welcome dinner here.

Breakfast, lunch, dinner included.

Day 4
Our fun-filled morning will unfold right “at home” as our hostess leads us in an informal, hands-on cooking session in her kitchen. We’ll prepare several dishes, from appetizers to dessert, learning about the local cuisine from Maria and her friends as they share their techniques, special ingredients, and family recipes. It doesn’t matter what level of cook you are. And then the best part is that we get to enjoy the fruits of our labor as we sit down to indulge in our creations.

Afterwards we’ll see a little bit of our surrounding countryside as we make our way just a bit up the road to a local vineyard with its beautiful 17th-century villa and gardens where we can taste their famous Friularo, a dry red wine. This winery is the recipient of numerous awards over the years. They also produce olive oil, grappa, corn, and rice. Then we’ll also pay a visit to a small artisinal cheese maker in the area and observe how they produce their cheese. We'll get to sample their excellent and fresh-from-the-day products.

After returning to the relaxing ambiance of our country inn, enjoy a swim before dinner if you’d like.

Breakfast, lunch, dinner included.

Day 5
Padova (Padua) is so often skipped by tourists who stay on the train to Venice. This is understandable, but they’re missing something nice. Padova, along with Bologna and Pisa, is one of the great university towns of Italy. It has, in Giotto’s frescoes in the Scrovegni Chapel, some of the most important art of the early Renaissance. The city’s Basilica of Sant’Antonio (Saint Anthony of Padua, who in fact was from Lisbon) is noteworthy. And it is a city for food lovers and home to one of the best food markets in the entire country.

There is no better way to get a feel for a city than to visit the market squares in the morning. And this city’s daily food market is outstanding. The Piazza dei Frutti (for fruits) and the Piazza delle Erbe (for veggies) flank the vast Palazzo della Ragione, the town’s medieval law court and council chamber. Under the porticoes of this grand building are sheltered wine bars, bakeries, restaurants, and food shops. This whole experience is truly a feast for all the senses.

The Scrovegni Chapel (also known as the Arena Chapel) is home to one of the world’s greatest fresco cycles: Giotto’s 32-panel series of paintings on the lives of Christ and the Virgin Mary (1303-05). Like Giotto’s frescoes in Assisi, these exerted a powerful influence on and marked a turning point in Western art, introducing a naturalism into painting that departed from the formality of Byzantine art of the preceding 1,000 years. Indeed, Giotto is regarded as the father of Western art.

In the Basilica di Sant’Antonio is buried St. Anthony of Padua, one of Catholicism’s most revered saints (patron saint of the lost and found) who modeled himself on St. Francis of Assisi. This exotic church, begun in 1232, with its minaret-like spires and Byzantine domes, is also known as Il Santo. Magnificent bronze reliefs by the famous 15th-century sculptor Donatello illustrate the life of the saint. High altar figures of the Madonna, the Crucifixion, and other saints are also by Donatello. Near the entrance to the basilica stands one of the great Renaissance works. It is the statue of the mercenary soldier Gattamelata, again by Donatello, a man who did great service to the Venetian Republic. The sculptor won fame for the monument, the first equestrian statue made of this size since Roman times.

The world's first botanical garden was created in Padova in 1545 for the instruction of medical students at the university, and retains much of its original appearance — a circular central plot, symbolizing the world, surrounded by a ring of water. A palm tree planted in 1585, and described by the German writer Goethe on a visit in 1786, still grows here today. The gardens and hothouses were used to cultivate the first lilacs, sunflowers, and potatoes grown in Italy in the 16th century.

A stop at the Caffè Pedrocchi reveals what was hailed as the most elegant coffeehouse in Europe when it opened in 1831. Famous as a meeting place for students and intellectuals since its founding the Pedrocchi’s bar is of travertine with a brass top and brass lion’s feet. The velvet banquettes are upholstered in maroon and have red-veined marble tables and Egyptian Revival chairs.

After a day's exploration of Padova our country inn awaits us.

Breakfast, lunch, dinner included

Day 6
Verona is one of northern Italy’s most artistically alluring cities. The picturesque city center, set on the Adige River, is sprinkled with Roman and medieval remains together with churches, monuments, and a labyrinth of old streets – as romantic now as it was when Shakespeare chose it as the setting for the most famous love story in the English language — Romeo and Juliet. Many of the old buildings are made from the rosso di Verona, the local pink-tinged limestone. And if you’re a wine enthusiast you may know that Verona hosts Vinitaly, the largest annual wine fair in Italy – an event attended by most Italian wine producers, worldwide importers and restaurateurs, and wine journalists.

Verona’s huge main square, Piazza Brà, holds the 1st-century A.D. Arena, one of the largest of the surviving amphitheaters of the Roman world. The interior has survived virtually intact. It still provides the stage for the city’s famous summer opera season, holding 20,000 spectators under the stars. The acoustics are considered perfect. A far more intimate square, Piazza delle Erbe is Verona’s heart and social meeting place. It was the Forum of the original Roman city. Today Renaissance palaces and medieval townhouses surround it on all sides and contain the colorful fruit and vegetable market. Upmarket boutiques and cafés line the edges of the square. Just next to this is the Piazza dei Signori, one of Italy’s most magical piazzas with a notable trio of 12th-century civic buildings.

Built between 1123 and 1135 San Zeno is northern Italy’s most ornate Romanesque-period church. Admirable exterior details are the striped brickwork of the façade, ivory-colored tufa alternating with pink brick; the huge rose window symbolizing the Wheel of Fortune; the marble bas-reliefs of the main portal; and the 48 extraordinary 12th-century bronze panels on the main doors. Inside there are numerous frescos, and there is a compelling triptych painting by Mantegna (1457) on the high altar. Also lovely is the church’s airy cloister with its rounded Romanesque arches on one side and pointed Gothic ones on the other.

A short drive out of Verona takes us into some beautiful scenery and one of Italy’s renowned viticulture zones, Valpolicella ("valley of many cellars"). The foothills of the Lessini Mountains shelter hamlets where lives and working rhythms are tuned to the needs of the vines. We will stop in at one of our preferred wineries in the region, in a lovely spot, to visit its vineyards, cellar, and tasting room. Here they produce the famous Amarone, the production of which dates back to Roman times.

From here we return to our lodging and will have time to relax prior to another wonderful dinner.

Breakfast, lunch, dinner included.

Day 7
Inevitably one thinks of architecture when one visits Vicenza, for here are many of the greatest buildings of Andrea Palladio (1508-80), arguably the most influential architect of all time. Inspired by the classical art and architecture of ancient Greece and Rome, Palladio endowed Vicenza with palazzos and basilicas and the surrounding hills with villas for patrician families.

Our walking tour of Vicenza will include the Teatro Olimpico, the masterpiece and last work of Palladio. It is one of the world’s greatest theaters still in use. Europe’s oldest surviving indoor theater is largely made of wood and plaster and painted to look like marble. The arena seating area, in the shape of a half moon, is encircled by Corinthian columns and balustrades. Over the stage is a dome with trompe l’oeil clouds and sky giving the illusion of an outdoor Roman amphitheater.

In the center of Vicenza is the monumental “basilica” Palladio adapted (1549) to serve as the town hall, his first public commission and a work which secured his reputation, while all around are the palazzos he built for Vicenza’s wealthy citizens.

Just on the outskirts of the city we will see La Rotonda, Palladio’s most famous villa, featuring his trademark design inspired by the Roman temples. The interior lacks grand décor, but the exterior is the focus, having inspired Christopher Wren’s English country estates, Jefferson’s Monticello, and the work of a slew of lesser-known architects designing U.S. state capitols and Southern antebellum homes. On the UNESCO World Heritage List, it was begun around 1566, but Palladio did not live to see its completion.

Just down the way from La Rotonda is Villa Valmarana ai Nani. It was built by Palladio disciple Mattoni in the 17th century, and it is noteworthy for its series of frescoes by Giambattista Tiepolo that, taken together, create an elaborate mythological world. In the separate guest house are the frescoes depicting an idealized country life by Tiepolo’s son, Giandomenico.

Have a swim or a snooze before our farewell dinner where we can recount our favorite moments of the beautiful and very fun tour!

Breakfast, lunch, dinner included.

Day 8
After breakfast this morning we’ll say grazie e arrivederci to Maria and make our way back up to the Venice airport to catch your return flight. For those wishing to return to the city of Venice we will make a stop at the Mestre station where a taxi, bus, or train can take you over the causeway into the city, a quick ride. From Mestre you can also catch trains to other parts of Italy.

Breakfast included.

ACCOMMODATIONS
VENICE:
We have selected a small charming hotel with a friendly staff and just 20 or so rooms in the center of Venice in the San Marco quarter for our two nights in the city. Situated on a minor canal just off the Grand Canal, it's convenient to all the major sights and shopping. Housed in the former grand palazzo of a prominent Venetian noble family, it has been finely restored, and the rooms are attractively decorated in typical Venetian 18th-century style. All rooms are air-conditioned and have satellite television, minibar, and direct-dial telephone.

VENETO COUNTRYSIDE:
With just 13 guest rooms this is a beautiful, charming, and relaxing haven of serenity. A restored 15th-century villa set in beautiful grounds this 500-acre estate has comfortable rooms, excellent meals, and friendly, helpful staff. There are beautiful antiques and ornaments throughout. The nice garden with its swimming pool is a bonus.

You can enjoy walks along the field roads and listen to the birdsong. There is an intimate atmosphere here, and you will be made to feel at home. Rooms are air-conditioned. There's even a putting green in the garden.

The kitchen prepares top-quality meals using fresh local ingredients, imaginatively served, and presented in an unstuffy environment. They use as much as possible right from their own farm. Our host Maria is a descendant of the noble Veneto family that presided here hundreds of years ago.

PRICING
On most Venture Out tours, the price of the trip depends on the final number of people who sign up. This way we are generally able to offer slightly lower pricing if we get a higher number of guests enrolled on the tour.

$3,295 (14-15 participants)
$3,495 (12-13 participants)
$3,695 (9-11 participants)
Single supplement: $415

Tour Cost Includes:
* Accommodations for 7 nights -- 2 nights in Venice, 5 nights at our country hotel
* All meals except for 1 dinner on your own in Venice
* Wine, mineral water, soft drinks at dinner
* Welcome drinks in Venice and at our country inn
* Tour escort accompanying the group throughout the trip
* Local tour guides' services and sightseeing tours for all towns/cities visited
* Entrance fees at sights mentioned in the itinerary
* Comfortable, modern tour bus for each excursion; fuel, tolls, parking
* City transportation in Venice (by public boat) and Padova
* Transfer on Day 8 to Venice Airport with stop in Mestre for train/bus connections

Tour Cost Does Not Include:
* Airfare
* Beverages with lunches
* Tipping to driver and hotel staff
* Any extra hotel nights that may be needed or desired
* Entrance fees to sights not specified in the day-to-day itinerary
* Personal expenses
* Travel insurance

{Please note: Over the past few years the value of the U.S. dollar has fluctuated significantly against the Euro — and in an unfavorable direction for the dollar. At the time of publishing this itinerary, we have based the U.S. dollar price on an exchange rate of 1 Euro = $1.55. We reserve the right to alter the trip pricing indicated here should there be a significant fluctuation of the dollar in either direction — up or down.}

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