Anyone planning to be in Italy next year might be interested to take a look at the Verona Opera Festival programme. If you are joining our Austria and the Dolomites tour in July 2026, then you will be just in the right place for a truly unforgettable performance of Aida.
Lombardy is one of Italy’s most diverse and complex wine regions, both geographically and viticulturally. It sits at the very the north of the peninsula and shares a border with Switzerland. The terrain ranges from high mountains in the north to the Po plains in the south, with many micro-climates in between.
Our most recent article for US online magazine Sixty & Me looks at ways of immersing yourself in Italian culture by planning your trip round one of Italy’s numerous colourful festivals and events. Many are connected to tradition, religion or, very often, dedicated to a local food delicacy.
In Jackie's recent article for US online magazine Sixty & Me, she looks at ways to get the most from your art experiences when travelling in Italy. Even if you lived in the country for a full year, the extraordinary selection of world-class art on offer would be...
The expression "full of beans" has long been used to describe a person who is full of life and energy. No surprise when you discover that beans are high in protein, full of important vitamins and minerals and also a good source of fibre. The Italians have a...
Veneto lies in the north east of Italy and encompasses a wide area from Venice in the east to the shores of Lake Garda in the west. It has one of the largest vineyard surface areas of all the regions of Italy, with an historic reputation for producing good quality...
Friuli-Venezia Giulia is located in the very north east of Italy and shares borders with Austria and Slovenia. It is one of Italy’s top wine regions, especially renowned for its white grapes, producing elegant, crisp and aromatic wines due to the cool Alpine...
The Pennine Way is one of the most famous long-distance hiking trails in the UK, and this year it celebrates its 60th anniversary. It stretches approximately 268 miles (431 km) from Edale in Derbyshire to Kirk Yetholm in the Scottish Borders. The route follows the...
Jackie's latest article for US online magazine 60 & Me looks at ten different ways to spend more time outside. Being in nature fuels our well-being and, in the natural world, we appreciate the simpler things in life. There are many activities we can all do to...
Rome From March 7 to July 6, 2025, Rome's Palazzo Barberini is hosting "Caravaggio 2025," a landmark exhibition celebrating Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. Timed with the 2025 Jubilee, this showcase features 24 of Caravaggio's masterpieces, including the recently...
The key message for anyone joining a Hedonistic Hiking tour is "less is more"! If you have travelled with us before, you will be aware that we transport you in two 9-seater minivans with limited luggage space. We can happily accommodate medium-sized...
Three of our different European tours finish in towns which connect to remarkable railway routes, and we encourage our guests to make the most of the opportunity to experience these fabulous journeys. The Bernina Express is a scenic train journey that runs between...
Cinzia Long, one of our longest-serving tour managers, is an accomplished cook who has now launched her own recipe Substack. Substack is a subscription-based platform that allows content creators to publish news, or in this case recipes, directly to their audience....
We work on our fitness all year round in preparation for our seasons of hiking and we cannot overstate to our guests how important it is to start getting fit well before the tours start. There are 3 things to think about: Strength-Cardio-Balance. Even for a Level 2 or...
For anyone who grew up in the UK, Christmas lunch or dinner almost always involved roast turkey and all the traditional festive trimmings. It came as quite a surprise therefore to first discover that there is not really one Italian Christmas dish which is eaten all...
Jackie’s latest guest article for US online magazine Sixty & Me looks at some of Tuscany's hidden gems. The region is world-famous for its major cities such as Florence, Pisa and Siena, but the smaller hilltop towns and villages have unique charms, centuries of...
Starting this Christmas Eve, Rome will open its gates to millions of pilgrims for the 2025 Jubilee Year of Hope. This special event, occurring usually only every 25 years, will mark a year of pilgrimage and reflection. It is expected to bring more visitors than ever...
Sardinia is known around Europe for its wonderful coastline and turquoise waters, but head inland and the island offers so much more than soaking up the sun on the nearest beach. Here are five of our favourite reasons to visit.
Jackie's latest guest article for US online magazine Sixty & Me looks at reasons to visit Italy in its autumn season. First of all the colours of the changing trees are a big draw, along with the flavours of the seasonal ingredients which are being harvested and...
Derbyshire’s Peak District National Park was the UK’s very first national park, created in 1951, and now covers more than 555 square miles. Crisscrossed by miles of footpaths and cycle trails, and with moors, dales and spectacular views, it’s a wonderful...