Palladio’s Legacy: Venice, Italy

Arrive in Venice and independent transfer to the hotel. Enjoy a welcome dinner in a local Venetian restaurant.

Overnight in Venice. Included Meal: Dinner.

MORNING
The guided walking tour will concentrate on St. Mark’s Square, surrounded by elegant, historic buildings. Napoleon called Piazza San Marco “the drawing room of Europe.” First is a tour of the Doge’s Palace. This former seat of Venetian power has the second largest room in Europe. Of interest in the council rooms is Tintoretto’s Paradise over the Grand Council Chamber — alleged to be the largest oil painting in the world. The palace is connected to the old prison by the Bridge of Sighs. In the late 16th century, the decision was made to build new, airier prison cells to replace the original dark dungeons. It was from this new prison that Casanova made his daring escape across the rooftops in 1755.

The highlight of the square is St. Mark’s Basilica, a Byzantine masterpiece. This cathedral was begun in 830 C.E. to house the tomb of St. Mark, whose relics were stolen from Alexandria in Egypt. The inside walls are encrusted with precious art, rare marble, and magnificent mosaics. Behind the altar is the famous gold altarpiece, Pala d’Oro, which is one of the finest examples of gold craftsmanship.

AFTERNOON
Explore the secret gardens of Venice. Venture off the beaten track with a fascinating boat tour and learn about many of the city’s famous squares, which were once green spaces. Enjoy a glimpse over the high walls to view some of the elaborate palace parks that flourish in this floating city.

Hidden among dense alleyways and meandering canals, are some of the city’s natural treasures. Witness palace gardens that are part of private residences. Some of these residences are still inhabited by the Count and Countess and are not normally open to the public. As a member of the Venetian Gardens Association, the tour’s knowledgeable guide will share their knowledge of these special, exclusive spaces.

Hop back on the limo water taxi and explore the secret gardens of the Cannaregio area before ending the tour with a private visit to a real jewel – San Francesco della Vigna, the oldest urban vineyard in Venice. Here is also one of the two Franciscan churches on the island designed by Jacopo Sansovino. The splendid marble facade is by Andrea Palladio (Italian, 1508-1580). San Francesco della Vigna has three cloisters: two cloisters are used as a vegetable garden and vineyard, while the third cloister collects rainwater to irrigate the vineyards. Visit this secret garden and marvel at the enchanted hidden gems of the lagoon.

Overnight in Venice. Included Meal: Breakfast

MORNING
Tour the Castello district. Castello, the most authentic area in the city, an off-the-beaten-path neighborhood still almost entirely inhabited by Venetians.

First is Rio della Tana, right at the Arsenale entrance, and Rio dei Giardini, close to the Biennale. At the Arsenale is the 46-metre-long Enrico Dandolo submarine, part of the heritage of the Naval History Museum, and the 49 ft. high Lorenzo Quinn Building Bridges sculpture: six pairs of touching hands embracing and tracing a symbolic bridge, designed for the 2019 Venice Biennale. The sculptor has said of this work:“Venice is a world heritage city, and it is the city of bridges. It is the perfect location to spread a message of world unity and peace so that more of us around the world build bridges with others rather than walls and barriers.”

Next stop is San Giovanni and Paolo to admire one of the most impressive medieval and religious buildings in Venice and visit Libreria Acqua Alta, the most famous, almost floating bookstore of Venice.

Palazzo Grimani, a real jewel of frescoes, stuccoes, and gildings, is the final site of the morning.

AFTERNOON
A visit to the Jewish Ghetto

Embark on a private boat tour down the Grand Canal in Venice, called “the most beautiful avenue in the world” for its monuments, churches, and palaces. Equally fascinating are the people who inhabited it; nobles, artists, courtesans.
End the boat tour at Cannaregio, a hidden gem of the city. One-time tourists rarely take the opportunity to explore it, missing the chance to experience its local, peaceful and quiet vibe. Visit the majestic church of Madonna dell’ Orto, with its mullioned windows and its Greek marble columns supporting double-framed pointed arches. The interior includes paintings created by Tintoretto (Jacopo Robusti, Italian 1518-1594), who is buried here. Walk along the Fondamenta della Misericordia and stop at a local bacato for a truly Venetian aperitivo in fondamenta. Taste a spritz or Prosecco accompanied by the famous cicchetti selection. After the aperitif the tour will reach the Jewish Ghetto, one of the settings of Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice. Prior to Napoleon’s conquest in 1797, the Jewish population was segregated and compelled to live here by the government of the Venetian Republic. The Ghetto was connected to the rest of the city by two bridges that were open only during daylight and locked at night.

Overnight in Venice. Included Meal: Breakfast

MORNING
Transfer from the hotel to Tronchetto parking to board the private coach to Vicenza, the birthplace of Andrea Palladio, with several stops along the way including: Villa Badoer at Fratta Polesine , and Villa Poiana, all Palladian designs.

AFTERNOON
Along the way is the Villa Pisani Stra; the queen of the world-famous Venetian villas and one of the main tourist attractions in the Veneto Region. The fine villa of the noble Pisani family lies along the Riviera del Brenta, an ideal extension of Venetian Grand Canal on the land, 10 minutes away from Padua and 20 minutes from Venice. Doges, kings, and emperors were welcomed to the 144- roomrd villa. It is currently a national museum that conserves eighteenth and nineteenth century works of art and furniture. Gianbattista Tiepolo’s masterpiece, The Glory of the Pisani Family, a fresco on the ceiling of the ballroom may be viewed. An enthusiastic nineteenth-century traveler described the Villa Pisani gardens: “Every step is a new sight and a new beauty.” As in the past, the garden is enchanting with its flamboyant sights, original architecture, famous maze, valuable citrus fruit collection, and greenhouses with plants and flowers, “everything which gives pleasure to the sight and gratifies our taste,” as Almorò Pisani boasted.

Overnight in Vicenza. Included Meal: Breakfast

MORNING
A drive to the hilltop La Rotonda, ten minutes from Vicenza, takes us to one of Palladio’s most famous buildings, domed with four porticoes.

AFTERNOON
While in Vicenza sights include several palaces by Palladio: the Palazzo Barbaran da Porto, which houses the Palladio Museum, the colonnaded Palazzo Chiericati and Villa Thiene and gardens. His chief civic works here are the Basilica – the medieval town hall nobly encased in classical guise – and the Teatro Olimpico, the earliest theatre of modern times.

Overnight in Vicenza. Included Meal: Breakfast

Today will be dedicated to Montagnana and the Villa Pisani.

A walk through the historic center of Montagnana leads through its four medieval doors to a town of history and traditions, including the Villa Poina. Tour includes a private visit to Villa Pisani, Montagnana. The drawings for this villa in Palladio’s Four Books of Architecture inspired William Buckland as a model for the Hammond-Harwood House.

Montagnana has the best-preserved medieval walls of Europe. Visit the splendid Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta Montagnana and climb the 131 ft/ 40 m high tower to enjoy a breathtaking view over the historic center and the surrounding countryside with the Euganean hills in the distance.

Overnight in Vicenza. Included Meal: Breakfast

Travel to Bassano to see the wooden bridge designed by Palladio, the Ponte Vecchio or Ponte degli Alpini. The bridge in Bassano del Grappa is the symbol of the city. The “Ponte Vecchio” or old bridge, crossing the river Brenta is the town’s main attraction and center of the old town. This 13th-century wood bridge has been redesigned and repaired multiple times throughout history. The current structure of the old bridge in Bassano (a newer one crosses the river in the south) carries the signature of Palladio. It is regarded as an engineering masterpiece difficult to replicate even with today’s technology. In recent years the structure has undergone many restorations and construction companies have faced difficulties in reproducing the original design.

The Bassano Bridge is also particularly relevant in Italian history, as it was crossed by the country’s Alpini Corp who specialized in mountain warfare against the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The Bassano bridge was destroyed during World War II by the local resistance.

Next visit Villa Barbaro di Maser, a prestigious venue for the agricultural estate of the noble Venetian brothers Daniele and Marcantonio Barbaro. The painter Paolo Veronese and sculptor Alessandro Vittoria were hired to provide the décor for the building. Its fortunate location on the hill, the elegance of its proportions, its harmony with the surrounding natural setting, and the beauty of the decoration make this villa one of the most admired of Palladio’s works.

AFTERNOON
Next stop is the charming village of Asolo. The Italian poet Giosuè Carducci defined Asolo the “city of one hundred horizons.” Asolo’s long history is evident in the Roman remains of the theatre, aqueduct, and baths. Of interest are the great medieval monuments: the Queen’s Castle, the 10th century Asolo Cathedral that houses a beautiful painting by Lorenzo Lotto –along with the Rocca on top of the hill, and the Venetian palaces with characteristic elements of the Renaissance.

The visit includes a tasting at a local prosecco house. As one of Italy’s two DOCG regions for prosecco, Asolo producers insist that the difference can be sensed in the “freshness” of an Asolo wine due to the Morainic soils in the high altitude Asolo vineyard hills.

Continue to Verona.

Overnight in Verona. Included Meal: Breakfast

MORNING
Verona became world famous for being the scene of the tragic love story of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. The story of the unfortunate couple draws thousands of people to Verona every year for its Shakespeare connection and its great Roman period monuments.

Morning stops in Verona will include: the Arena, the third largest Roman amphitheater of the world, Juliet’s House, Arche Scaligere, Piazza Bra, and Ponte Pietra.

AFTERNOON
Afternoon stops include San Fermo Maggiore, Veronetta and Palazzo Giusti. San Fermo is a rare example of the fusion of Romanesque and Gothic styles. On the other river bench, in the genuine part of the city called Veronetta, lie the beautiful palace and garden, owned by the same noble Guisti family for centuries.

Overnight in Verona. Included Meal: Breakfast

MORNING
The drive is to Mantua, nominated as a capital of gastronomy, a capital of culture, and one of the highest-ranked cities for its quality of life.

Mantua is known to local Italians as La Bella Addormentata, or “Sleeping Beauty”, and has remained largely untouched since the Middle Ages. Surrounded by lakes on three sides, the city is abundant in palaces and Renaissance architecture as well as natural beauty.

At first glance, Mantua seduces countless tourists with its imposing Castello di San Giorgio and the renowned Bridal Chamber by Andrea Mantegna. Visitors can’t help but remain in awe of this little Venice nestled in the heart of the Po River Valley, suggestively surrounded by the waters of the River Mincio, flowing down from Lake Garda.

The tiny city center offers many points of interest: Rigoletto’s House, Piazza Sordello, Palazzo Ducale, the splendid palace of the Gonzaga family, and the beautiful white façade of the Cathedral of San Pietro. Mantua is also home to numerous medieval buildings to be found around Piazza Broletto and Piazza delle Erbe. Also to be seen is The Church of Saint Andrew, a masterpiece of Renaissance architecture. Finally, the Teatro Scientifico is considered to be one of Italy’s most beautiful Baroque style theaters.

AFTERNOON
Afternoon sights include Borghetto sul Mincio: Borghetto is undoubtedly Valeggio sul Mincio’s best-known hamlet for its history, landscape, and monuments — making this a place so interesting that it has recently been included in the Club of “Borghi più belli d’italia.” This small village, built in harmony with the River Mincio, is characterized by historic fortifications dating back to the medieval ages. It owes its charm to the balanced relationship that history and nature have preserved almost intact over the centuries.

Today’s visit will include a visit to Palazzo Te, the Marquess of Mantua’s palace of leisure, and Teatro Bibiena, a Baroque masterpiece.

Overnight in Verona. Included Meal: Breakfast

MORNING
After a stop at Prato della Valle, the drive continues to Padua for a walking tour that includes the small Scrovegni Chapel, also known as the Arena Chapel, situated near the town center. Exquisite frescoes are by the 14th-century artist Giotto. The cycle of narrative frescoes inside the barrel-vaulted space are among the first examples of humanism and linear perspective.
Also in Padua is Europe’s oldest permanent Anatomical Theatre built in 1595 for medical dissections. The narrow viewing balconies were built to prevent students from falling if they should faint during a procedure. (The anatomy theatre is inside Palazzo Bo, part of the University of Padua. Visits can therefore be suspended by the university for academic reasons without warning.)

A short walk from the university is the Piazza Bo, the scene of one of the liveliest daily markets in Italy.
Another stop is at the University of Padua’s Botanical Garden, the oldest university garden in the world to have retained its original location and layout over the centuries.

The structure of the Garden (a square within a circle) was enclosed by a wall in 1552 to combat the continual theft of plants, targeted for the rarity of their vegetal properties and the value of the medicines obtained from them. The botanical stock continued to grow, with plants brought in from all parts of the globe, especially from those countries where the Venetian Republic had possessions or trade relations.

Since 1997 the Botanical Garden has been part of the UNESCO World Heritage List as a cultural landmark. The listing was justified by UNESCO: “The Botanical Garden of Padua is the original of all botanical gardens throughout the world, and represents the birth of science, of scientific exchanges, and understanding of the relationship between nature and culture. It has made a profound contribution to the development of many modern scientific disciplines, notably botany, medicine, chemistry, ecology, and pharmacy.”

AFTERNOON
On the return to Venice, sights include the summer retreats of Venetian patricians, for example Villa Foscari, ‘La Malcontena,’ one of Palladio’s most well-known and beautiful accomplishments. In Venice, check into the hotel and then gather for a lovely farewell dinner.

Overnight in Venice. Included Meals: Breakfast and Dinner

Independent transfer to the airport for flight home.

Included Meal: Breakfast