Venice: Our trip begins in the magnificent city of Venice. Our first night will be at the 4-star boutique hotel, Dona Palace, just a 2 minute walk from St. Mark's Square, which Napoleon called "the drawing room of Europe." Early arrivals can spend the day exploring the sights of Venice prior to our first official gathering at 5 PM. Over cocktails and dinner we meet our new traveling companions and preview the coming attractions. The next morning we are whisked away by water taxis to our (2) vans to begin our journey north: first to Malcesine on Lake Garda for lunch then to the mountain village of Ortisei, our home base for the rest of the week.

Val Gardena: The village of Ortisei is located in the middle of the picturesque Val Gardena in the province of South Tyrol. South Tyrol was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire prior to World War I, and German continues to be the primary language spoken in this province. When traveling and hiking through South Tyrol, every street, advertisement, sign, etc... is written in both German and Italian. Thus Ortisei is also known by the German name St. Ulrich. Ortisei is surrounded by lush alpine meadows, clear mountain streams and towering peaks making it a hiker's paradise.  Our accommodations in Ortisei are on a hill overlooking the town and surrounding mountains. Hotel Niblea is a classic 4-star boutique alpine resort. Now in its third generation of ownership by the Rella family, our hotel feels more like a luxury home than commercial property. It offers 4-star dining and an amazing new wing featuring spacious guest rooms, a fabulous spa and an indoor/outdoor pool. Each of our rooms are located in this new space with stunning views down the valley. Our days in Val Gardena will be filled with three key ingredients: 1) spectacular outdoor hikes/activities during the day; 2) relaxing late afternoons in the hotel's beautiful and modern spa ; and 3) delicious dinners with pleasant conversations at night. Outdoor Activities: While we have organized privately guided hikes for each of our days in Ortisei, there will be alternative activities for people to choose from as well. Our hotel participates in the Val Gardena Active Program. Every day they offer guided outdoor activities including Rock Climbing Tours or Lessons, Mountain Biking or E-Biking Tours, and Hiking Tours. The Val Gardena Active Program also offers other Cultural Experiences, such as: Forest Energy Walks, Outdoor Yoga, Cooking Class for Dumplings and Strudel, and Outdoor Workshops for Geology, Wild Life Spotting, Traditional Wood Carving and more. So if you don't want to do our hike one day, you can choose a different Val Gardena Active option or just take a day off to hang out at the hotel or in town. Niblea Spa: Of course, staying all day in the spa and reading a good book is considered an activity as well. Here Hotel Niblea will not disappoint. Their newly completed wellness facilities are amazing. You can enjoy the view looking over Ortisei and Val Gardena from both the indoor/outdoor infinity pool and the Finnish sauna. Or perhaps speed up your recovery from a challenging hike by sweating gently in their deluxe steam bath. After your swim or sauna, you can settle into the cozy relaxation room or the sunny outdoor terrace wrapped up in your plush terrycloth bathrobe, sauna towel, and bath slippers. Toby is offering to teach by example for those who may be sheepish in partaking in this heedlessly self-indulgent European tradition. Niblea Dining: We will be half board during our stay at Hotel Niblea. This means we will have breakfast and dinner at the hotel. Lucky for us that Niblea offers 4-star cuisine and service for its meals. Mornings start with a colorful, varied breakfast buffet with organic products from the area. Dinners feature a 4-course gourmet menu with a large salad buffet, and the restaurant has an excellent selection of local and national wines. They offer two special dinners weekly, including: a traditional South Tyrolean dinner with local specialties and a candlelight gala dinner. While we can promise our guests that this trip will burn lots of calories, we cannot guarantee that they won't be replaced by these amazing meals and wines.

Prosecco Road As we descend from the Dolomites for our return to Venice, we make an important overnight stop for a true Italian treasure, Prosecco. La Strada del Prosecco, the Prosecco Road, runs for nearly 20 miles from Conegliano to Valdobbiadene in the Veneto region just north of Venice. This breathtaking wine region is full of small terraced vineyards planted on steep slopes almost exclusively dedicated to grapes for Italy’s famed sparkling wine. Our 4-star hotel, Hotel Villa del Poggio, overlooks the vineyards and hilltop towns of the area. Our last day of the trip will be spent relaxing at this beautiful property.  After lunch we will have an introductory wine tasting of the finest wines from the Valdobbiadene DOCG zone, considered the best in Italy. In fact, Prosecco is the basis for Italy’s de facto national cocktail, the Aperol Spritz. As evening approaches we will share one last dinner together. We depart early the next morning to Venice Intl. Airport, so everyone can catch their flights home or continue their adventure to new destinations.