The Villas & Gardens of the Italian Lakes
This 7 day tour begins in Milan on 14 May 2020. For centuries the northern Italian lakes have attracted the wealthy and famous. During our tour we’ll visit gardens on the islands of Isola Madre, Isola Bella and travel to the Swiss part of Lake Mag- giore to visit the botanical gardens on Isole di Brissago.
Index Category Transportation Dates Spring Garden Tours Luxury Coach 14 May 2020
Location Cost Lunches Itinerary Italy € 2721 6 included
Grade Flights Breakfast What’s included Easy Garden Tours Excluded 7 included Why travel with us? Days Single Supplement Welcome Drinks 7 € 350 Included Contact us Nights Group 6 15-20
Accommodation Tour Booklet Luxury 4* Hotel On Arrival
The International Garden Tours Specialist The Villas & Gardens of the Italian Lakes
Day 1 - 14 May 2020
Arrival & Check-In - Villa Malpensa Hotel, Milan
Check-In to the Villa Malpensa Hotel out a tour information booklet. The (Milan) in time to meet your tour hotel is conveniently located near guide and fellow garden visitors over Milan Malpensa Airport.Make you own complimentary drinks between 1800- arrangements for Dinner at the Hotel’s 1900. Your tour leader will give you excellent restaurant. an overview of the tour and hand
Day 2 - 15 May 2020
Gardens Visited : Villa Cigogna Mozzoni, Villa Taranto
After breakfast and check-out we thousand varieties of plants here there head north by luxury coach and is much to see! During our visit, Cornus our first destination: Villa Cigogna Florida Rubra and Davidia Involucrata Mozzoni. With views over Lake Lugano, (Handkerchief Tree) should be in flower, Villa Cigogna Mozzoni’s garden was the latter being a rare sight. Look out commissioned in 1560 and inspired by for “The Fisher“, a bronze statue by the the most famous gardens of Rome and Neapolitan artist Vincenzo Gemito and Florence of the time. With frescoed don’t forget to visit the greenhouses!At Loggias, a Giardino Segreto (secret the end of the afternoon we leave Villa garden), a Grotto, a Nymphaeum and Taranto and check-in to Hotel Simplon, a water staircase, Villa Mozzoni is a which will be our home for the next rare example of an Italian Renaissance 4 nights. The hotel is next to Lake garden and is a fitting start to the Maggiore and has a direct view of the tour. After lunch at a local restaurant Isola Madre which we visit tomorrow. we travel to the Giardini Botanici Villa Surrounded by a magnificent centuries Taranto. Set in 16 acres on the western old park, the hotel boasts a bar and shore of Lake Maggiore, Villa Taranto excellent restaurant and there are was established in 1931 by a Scotsman, plenty of other dining options nearby. Neil Boyd McEacharn. Beyond the grand entrance gates, we find fountains, waterfalls and terraced gardens from which we will have a fine view of the Pennine Alps. With more than twenty
Day 3 - 16 May 2020
Gardens Visited: Isola Madre and Isola Bella
After breakfast we visit two very special a rare Nolinia longifolia which is native gardens on Lake Maggiore: Isola Madre to Central America, exotic trees such and Isola Bella. Isola Madre and Isola as the Camphor Tree (Cinnamomum Bella were both owned by Count Carlo camphora), Pepper Trees (Schinus III Borromeo and are two of the three molle) and the rare Kashmir Cypress Borromeon islands. We travel to each (Cupressus cashmeriana).After by private launch which will stay with boarding our boat we head off to Isola us throughout the day. Isola Madre is dei Pescatori, the third Borromeon the largest of the two islands and had island on Lake Maggiore. Here, we will been used as an orchard, vineyard and have a splendid lunch before travel to hunting ground before its vegetation our second garden destination: Isola was cleared away to hold a collection Bella. Isola Bella was transformed of exotic trees and plants. Today there into a magnificent terraced garden in is a magnificent Palace on the Island the 17th century and enlarged in the surrounded by a garden which holds an 19th century to include vast collections important botanical collection. There is of plants from New Zealand, China,
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India, the Himalayas, South America own arrangements for Dinner either by and Australia ! The superb Italianate choosing to eat in our Hotel restaurant Baroque gardens complement perfectly or nearby at one of the restaurants the adjacent large Palace. We travel recommended by the Hotel’s concierge. back to our hotel by boat.Make your
Day 4 - 17 May 2020
Gardens Visited: Villa Carlotta and Villa Balbianello
Today we travel to Lake Como to visit feel semi-tropical.After lunch, we travel Villa Carlotta. Villa Carlotta was built by coach to visit the 18th century in 1745 and overlooks the Bellagio Villa del Balbianello. Famous for its peninsula on the northern shores of elaborate terraced gardens, Villa del Lake Como. The Villa sits at the top Balbianello sits at the end of a small of a terraced garden and is around 8 wooded peninsula and allows for views hectares (20 acres) in size. The garden down three branches of Lake Como. has a number of different sections: a The garden here is kept in exemplary formal garden surrounding the Villa, order, with pruned holm oaks, plane an English style woodland garden, an trees and masses of flowers the garden Italian garden with cut hedges and has an extremely romantic quality and pergolas with orange and camellia is a place that you are never likely to trees. Other plants of interest are forget! Make your own arrangements cedars, palms, redwoods, plane trees, for Dinner either by choosing to eat in cork oaks, magnolias and other exotic our Hotel restaurant or nearby at one plants. Rhododendrons and more of the restaurants recommended by than 150 varieties of azalea spread the Hotel’s concierge. up the slope from the lakeside. The microclimate here makes the garden
Day 5 - 18 May 2020
Gardens Visited - Villa Melzi and Villa Monastero
After a leisurely breakfast, we travel by from around 1200 AD. Over the coach to visit Villa Melzi in Bellagio on years the house was improved and the north eastern shore of Lake Como. today includes a botanical garden, Villa Melzi sits adjacent to Lake Como a museum and convention centre. and away from the tourist crowds Many exotic plants were brought to attracted by the world famous town of the garden: yuccas, palms, agaves, Bellagio. As we arrive, we walk along an as well as cedars, camphor, Magnolia avenue of magnificently pruned plane grandiflora and Monetezuma pine trees to explore the botanical garden trees. The gardens themselves are that surrounds the house. With more long and narrow and sit between the than 56 trees and plants of botanical lake and the mountain at the back of interest there is much to see here. The the Villa. Throughout the garden there Villa and garden are set in a superb are urns and statues, pleasant avenues sub-tropical location. The garden also to walk along bounded by terraces and has a number of interesting features: box-edged parterres. This is a splendid an Oriental garden, a Moorish Kiosk, garden set in a privileged position. a small museum in the old Orangerie, Make your own arrangements for old greenhouses, a bamboo grove Dinner either by choosing to eat in our and chapel.After lunch we continue Hotel restaurant or nearby at one of our journey by coach and visit Villa the restaurants recommended by the Monastero. The Villa was originally a Hotel’s concierge. medieval Cistercian convent dating
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Day 6 - 19 May 2020
Gardens Visited: Sheffield Park, Gravetye Manor
After breakfast and check-out, we bamboo, magnolia, agaves, cypress, take our coach and travel to visit Isole yucca and California poppies. Like the di Brissago, a group of two islands other Islands we’ve visited on this tour, in the Swiss part of Lake Maggiore. the location of this garden is superb. We are going to visit the botanical We’ll have lunch on the Island before garden on Grande Isola, the larger of travelling to a local vineyard where we the two islands. Set in 2.5 hectares will have a tasting of Nebbiolo wines of land, more than 1,700 species before travelling back to Milan for of plant are cultivated here. With a the last night of the tour at the Villa favourable microclimate, plants from Malpensa Hotel near Milan. Make the Mediterranean, Chile, South Africa, your own arrangements for Dinner Southwest Australia and California either by choosing to eat in our Hotel’s and of humid subtropical climate restaurant or nearby at one of the (Asia, North and South America and restaurants recommended by the Oceania) all grow well on the Island. concierge. Among them, we will find more familiar varieties such as azaleas, rhododendrons, Japanese palm trees, numerous camellias, Japanese banana,
Day 7 - 20 May 2020
City to Visit Milan & Bosco Verticale garden
Checkout of our hotel will be 12 noon. 250 small), 5,000 shrubs, and 11,000 For those staying in Italy or who want perennials and ground covering plans to extend their garden tour just a on their facade. The total vegetation little longer we include an optional found on both of the buildings is about complimentary City Tour of Milan and equivalent to that found in one hectare a visit to the famous Bosco Verticale of woodland. The Bosco Verticale is (Vertical Forest) - minimum 10 people. an incredible sight and is a fitting end The Bosco Verticale is actually a pair to this tour. We’ll say farewell to you of residential towers build in the Porta mid-afternoon in time for your onward Nuova district of Milan as part of much journey. wider urban regeneration project. The two buildings have 730 trees (480 large,
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WHAT’S INCLUDED NOT INCLUDED
Accommodations in Luxury 4* Hotels Flights to and from Italy
7 Breakfasts 7 evening meals
6 Lunches
Transport by luxury coach driven by an experienced driver
Services of an experienced English speaking tour guide with botanical knowledge
Entrance Fees for the Gardens
24-hour emergency service
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