• Enjoy Zeffirelli’s spectacular productions of Turandot & Aida at Verona’s Amphitheatre

• Visits, lunches & wine-tastings to several villas & gardens in the Valpolicella wine region

• Discover historic Verona & Palladio’s La Malcontenta near Venice

• Private visit to the magical Isola del Garda on Lake Garda

• Comfortable 5* hotel located in the heart of Verona  

The spectacularity of setting, melodrama and heritage in life and art are shared by both the city of Verona and Franco Zeffirelli. We will celebrate fair Verona and the late cultural giant in late summer, and especially during our warm evenings in Verona’s Roman amphitheatre where we take our seats to enjoy two of the maestro’s most spectacular opera productions including Turandot’s centenary year performance.

Verona owes its origins to the Romans, for whom it was an important stop and trading junction. Much remains to be seen from this era such as the amphitheatre. Today’s city is organised around two major medieval squares, the Piazza delle Erbe and the Piazza dei Signori, built on top of their Roman predecessors. These charming spaces, together with the surrounding streets and piazzas, have palaces and monuments of outstanding beauty, testifying to the wealth of its native aristocracy within the wider Venetian world. From medieval times there is much to see, including the city’s civic palaces, cathedral and particularly San Zeno with its fine paintings, including Mantegna’s San Zeno Altarpiece.

Equally stimulating are the summer delights of the country villas and gardens of the Valpolicella wine region. These sit tantalisingly close to Verona. The wealth of the Republic of Venice gave rise to villas and gardens of great taste whose noble and industrious families made their summer retreats away from the city. These rural delights await us in the hills to the north of Verona. We shall visit one of the most important producers of Amarone and Valpolicella Classico at Villa Mosconi Bertani, where we shall enjoy a selection of the estate’s wines in its fine eighteenth century villa. Horticultural enthusiasts will enjoy our visit to the seventeenth century Villa Arvedi, where we shall be the guests of Count Arvedi for lunch within the splendid Baroque grotto of the villa’s garden. Verona’s Giusti Garden will come as a welcome green oasis whilst the formal garden at Villa Rizzardi will also come as an unexpected treat, as we contemplate its immaculate parterres and remarkable box amphitheatre; an apt vignette, given our opera theme. Finally, one of Palladio’s most complete villas, the Villa Foscari, ‘La Malcontenta’ is magically located on the Brenta Canal close to Venice.

Our two featured operas are iconic within the canon of two of Italy’s greatest composers: Puccini’s Turandot on the fourth night and Verdi’s Aida on our final night. Both operas are highly suited to the Arena’s great performance space.

We shall be based at the 5* Hotel Due Torri situated in the historic centre of Verona opposite the church of Saint Anastasia and within comfortable walking distance of all that we wish to see in Verona, not forgetting those all-important summer evening passeggiate.

Day 1: Monday 31 August – We fly from Heathrow to Venice, arriving in the late afternoon to transfer by coach to Verona, where we shall stay for five nights at the 5* Hotel Due Torri. Following welcome drinks on the roof terrace of our hotel, we walk the short distance to our first group dinner in one of Verona’s best restaurants – wine, water and coffee are included with all group lunches and dinners.

Day 2: Tuesday 1 September – We begin in Verona, spending the day on foot exploring the historic centre. Rising to prominence under the Romans, Verona’s ancient past is reflected by the magnificence of its Amphitheatre, easily admired during each opera. We begin at the Dominican church of Sant’Anastasia and continue to Verona’s Cathedral, a heady mix of Romanesque and Gothic architecture, complemented within through its richly decorated side chapels, one of which features a masterpiece by Titian. We end our morning at the splendid Piazza delle Erbe and the Piazza dei Signori, the civic heart of Verona. Following some free time for lunch (not included) we continue to the church of San Fermo and end our first day at the Giardini Giusti, laid out in the sixteenth century behind the owner’s town palace. Parterres, cypress tree avenues and grottoes form an Italian garden idyll, rarely matched - according to travellers such as John Evelyn. The evening will be free. 

Day 3: Wednesday 2 September – We begin in Verona’s western outskirts to visit one of northern Italy’s most important Romanesque churches – the Basilica of San Zeno. The church’s highlight is the famed San Zeno Altarpiece by Andrea Mantegna. After a coffee break, we spend the rest of the day exploring the villas, gardens and vineyards of the nearby Valpolicella beginning at the Villa Mosconi Bertani, beautifully located in a gentle valley. Our private visit of the eighteenth-century house, gardens and vineyard concludes with a wine-tasting. After a festive lunch in the Valpolicella Hills, we continue to the nearby Pojega Garden at Villa Rizzardi, laid out in the late eighteenth century and a masterpiece of Italian garden design. It is a combination of gallery-like perspectives, formal hedging and a stunning ‘green amphitheatre’. We return to our hotel where the evening will be free.

Day 4: Thursday 3 September – This morning we drive westwards to the eastern shores of Lake Garda, from where we travel by private vessel to the privately-owned Isola di Garda. A member of the Cavazza-Talbot family will host our visit as we walk around the fine terraced garden, which hugs a striking neo-Gothic villa dominating one end of the little island. We return by boat to the pretty lakeside village of Torri del Benaco for a group lunch, after which we return to our hotel where the remainder of the afternoon and early evening will be free. After dinner (not included), this evening’s opera is Zeffirelli’s production of Puccini’s Turandot. Following the performance, it is a short walk to our hotel.

Day 5: Friday 4 September – Following last night’s opera, we make a leisurely mid-morning departure and drive the short distance north of Verona close to the village of Grezzana to visit Villa Arvedi. Fine baroque interiors, one of the oldest formal gardens in Italy and a light private group lunch in the spectacular Baroque Grotto of the villa’s garden make for a bucolic day amidst our opera evenings. We return mid-afternoon to our hotel for rest after which we stroll into Piazza Bra and our final dinner in one of Verona’s best restaurants. This evening’s performance will be Verdi’s Aida.

Day 6: Saturday 5 September – We depart our hotel and travel to the Brenta Canal, east of Padua to visit Palladio’s delightfully situated villa next to the Brenta Canal - Villa Foscari,better known as La Malcontenta, one of the architect’s most accomplished villa commissions, completed for the Venetian Foscari brothers in 1560. Following our visit to some of the reception rooms and garden, we have our final group lunch nearby on the Brenta Canal, after which we drive the short distance to Venice airport and our return flight to London’s Heathrow.

The Operas: The two featured operas will be Puccini’s Turandot on the fourth night and Verdi’s Aida on the fifth night. Both operas are included in the visit cost. For the two included operas, all seats will be reserved in the First Sector Silver and these offer good sight of the stage and reasonable sound quality. However, please be aware that we are not able to choose individual seats or specify particular rows. You can upgrade to First Sector Gold seats for a supplement of £55 per opera, per person.

Price £3770 per person No Flights £3520 per person   Deposit £600 per person

Single Supplement £495 (Double for Single Occupancy) French Bed

Upgrade to 1st Sector Gold: £55 per opera/ per person

Hotel 5 nights with breakfast at 5* Hotel Due Torri - Classic Double/Twin Room

Flights British Airways

Outward:           BA606 Depart London Heathrow (Terminal 5) 1305 arrive Venice 1615

Return:            BA607 Depart Venice 1700 arrive London Heathrow (Terminal 5) 1815

Price includes 2 dinners & 4 lunches with water, wine and coffee, opera tickets in First Sector Silver stall seats for both operas, all local transfers, entry fees & gratuities, services of James Hill and local guide in Verona

Not included Travel to/from Heathrow, 3 dinners & 2 lunches