An Italian Wedding?

What makes an Italian wedding so different and why is it that more and more people are choosing Italy to tie the knot?

All you need to do is to watch great movies like the Godfather where Al Pacino has to leave America and takes refuge in Sicily, where he then marries a young local woman Apollonia Vitelli and here we see simplicity in motion.  Or why not watch romantic Italian movies, Much Ado About Nothing or a Room with a view and you'll know that the land of Italy is steeped in a romantic culture. The fresh flowers and purple bougainvillea, the rolling hills of green, the food and wine, the beautiful buildings and interiors, music, the colours of the facades and nature, gold, ochre…..earthly colours, all inspiration to get your heart racing and your blood pumping. This is the land of St Valentine, Juno, Queen of the Roman Gods and Goddesses who the Romans worshipped. Read More

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TURIN'S TURN

Whilst the majority of tourists going to Italy head for the same old, same old, those savvy travellers ‘in the know’ will take a left turn and slip into Turin with a smirk on their faces.

And quite justified too. The beautiful old baroque city is more than just the ex capital of Italy when the nation was born 150 years ago. Amongst a host of other things, Turin is also responsible for Gianni Agnelli and the Fiat, the Alfa Romeo and home to the Slow Food movement’s Salone del Gusto. 

If ever there was an excuse to visit this glamorous city, it’s at the end of October for this five day slow food feste – the Salone del Gusto.  It’s a fantastic biennial food festival that showcases quality small-scale producers from around the world.  More than 200,000 visitors turn up to sample the fabulous food and drink from more than 900 stallholders.

When you finally drag yourself away, there are 155 palazzi, museums and churches to explore as well as the fabulous shopping in Via Roma. In total, almost nine miles of grand marble arcades to pop in and out of and when the going gets tough, sink into a richly velvet and gilt decorated belle époque cafe for a bicerin - a rich blend of coffee, cream and hot chocolate.  

And just when you think you may have covered the lot, someone reminds you to visit the Duomo di San Giovanni which is where the Turin Shroud is kept!

A weekend is hardly enough but if that’s all you have, try to lay your head in one of the many art deco hotels or elegant 300 year old palazzos.  

Turin is breathtaking.

Contact a member of ABTOI, an operator who can help you plan your break to Turin. More information on Turin, Piedmont and the tour operators  

For more details on the Slow Food Movement and Salone del Gusto: Salone del Gusto

TAKING THE TRAIN IN ITALY

One of the most frequent questions asked when planning to travel around Italy by train is whether one should buy an Italy rail pass.

Italian trains are still relatively inexpensive so while having an Italy rail pass may be convenient it doesn't usually save you money unless you are taking several long distance train trips (from northern Italy to southern Italy and back for example) or traveling to Italy from another country. If you buy an Italian train pass you will still have to make (and pay for) seat reservations on high-speed trains.

Regional trains in Italy are inexpensive so using a train pass for regional trains and even most Intercity trains is not saving any money.

There are many types of European rail passes available including passes good for train travel in a single country or for multiple countries. Train tickets in most other European countries are generally more costly than those in Italy so if you're traveling by train in another country in addition to Italy you may want to consider a two-country pass

Eurostar (ES or Treni Eurostar Italia)
Italy's premier train, not to be confused with the Eurostar. Seat reservations on Eurostar Italia are manditory. Eurostar travels swiftly between major Italian cities.

Intercity and the newer Intercity Plus trains
Relatively fast trains that run the length of Italy, stopping at the large cities. First and second class service is available. First class coaches offer slightly better seats and are generally less populated. Seat reservations are compulsary on the Intercity Plus trains, and the fee is included in the ticket price.

Regionale (Regional Trains)
These are the local trains, often running around work and school schedules. They are cheap and usually reliable--but seats can be hard to find on major routes. Many regional trains have only second class seats, but if available, consider first class, asking for Prima Classe, per favore, it's less likely to be full.

Helpful Tip:                                                                                                    

Before board your train--validate your ticket! Find the yellow box and insert the end of your ticket. This prints the time and date of the first use of your ticket, and makes it valid for the journey. When the guard comes round to inspect your ticket, if it’s not validated, the fines are stiff! (around Euro 50)

For more detailed information on Italy's rail system, check with ABTOI member International Rail, the specialist Italian Rail travel provider who can help you with all your concerns:   http://www.loveitaly.co.uk/company-details.asp?Company=33

Carnival Capers at Half-Term

If you've ‘done' Venice and Rio and are looking for a colourful new   carnival experience, head for Acireale where Sicily's oldest and most spectacular carnival takes place on the island's east coast.

Dating back to the 16th century, the Acireale Carnival (19 February-8 March)  is best known for its spectacular floral displays and floats.  Today, celebrations include street parades and entertainers and fortunately, the former egg and orange-throwing has been replaced by marching bands, dancers and masked performers.

Acireale is a seaside city at the foot of Mount Etna, just a few miles from   Taormina and with some fantastic Baroque architecture.  Stay at one of our properties (http://www.solosicily.com/), either in the heart of Acireale at the Melaverde apartment or in an independent cottage at The Queen's Jewels, a farm estate in the stunning Taormina countryside.

Just you and Michelangelo

Being one of 17,000 visitors that trundle through the Vatican in the hope that by the time they reach the Sistine Chapel, the crowds would have thinned out, thus providing a much awaited spiritual moment, is a soul destroying process.

We have the answer.

It may be an expensive option but afterall, how often do you plan to visit Rome's magnificent centre piece?

Take an exclusive tour, one that is usually reserved for Royals and celebrities, now open for the public to book.  They take place before or after opening hours and yes, they are expensive costing around £230 pp (as opposed to £15 pp for standard admission) but if you don't invest in anything else in your life, this one is a no brainer.

Entering a mysteriously quiet Vatican City before all the crowds have assembled is already a privilege. To have your own private guide to navigate the 1,400 possible viewing rooms of the Vatican Museum is positively luxurious. The guides are of course extremely enthusiastic, knowledgeable Italians who illuminate all that you view.

And then when you truly believe it cant get much more exciting, you finally reach the piece de la resistance, the chapel itself. Michelangelo spent four and a half years painting the chapel by himself, and this is the closest one can get to being alone in it as he was. There are no guards loudly asking you to be quiet, no banging into thousands of other tourists who are also looking up, just pure magical silence to savour the experience and soak up the vivid blue restoration of the Last Judgment and the Separation of Light from Darkness.

Ask our ABTOI operators who can help you with your city break in Rome : http://www.loveitaly.co.uk/regions.php?id=8&r=Latium

New Year

A new year brings with it new experiences and an entire 12 months in which to explore Italy from top to bottom.

Art & Culture

2011 will see the celebration of 150 years since the unification of Italy. The Scuderie del Quirnale in Rome showcases an array of paintings reflecting political change throughout the past two centuries.
Stay in one of our beautiful properties within the Eternal City, or on the outskirts in Southern Lazio for a more peaceful vacation.

Sport
The world's top female skiers hit the slopes of Cortina d'Ampezzo in January, for the FIS World Alpine Skiing World Cup and is the most glamorous event in the skiing calendar. Stay in one of Cottages to Castles' wonderful properties on Lake Como or within Varese, just an hour drive from the cityscapes of Milan and ideal for a short visit to the ski resorts of the north.

Festivals
Italy is home to the Festa and every month is full of celebration and tradition.  This month sees the Il Palio di Sant Antonio Abate in the Tuscan town of Buti, near Pisa.  The Palio is an exciting, competitive and colourful day where a large horse race takes place representing each neighbourhood, the winner takes away the much coveted Palio.

For a full range of self catering accommodation throughout Italy visit http://www.cottagestocastles.com/.
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ITALY: Essential Tourist News You Should Know!

If you are thinking of visiting one of the great Italian cities this year, there are plenty of developing/renovation projects that may help you decide which city will be your choice for 2011.  Here are some helpful tips.

One of the most visited sites in Italy, the Colosseum, is being cleaned from top to toe as well as given permanent lighting for spectacular night time visits. The ambitious project could also open up new areas which were previously closed to visitors.

Great news that the Vatican Museum is running a very smooth online reservation system  http://mv.vatican.va/  Now you can even visit at night from April to October from 7 – 11 p.m. And after a long renovation, you can finally see the museum's Etruscan Rooms.

And not just at the Vatican Museum are visiting hours getting longer.  This year, it's getting even easier to buy Ferragamo shoes (and anything else) on Rome's fashionable Via Condotti.  No longer are shops closed for a long lunch break -  many are now staying open throughout the day — generally 10 a.m. to 7 p.m!

In Florence, the streets around the Duomo have recently been pedestrianized which is fabulous news. However, beware:  The Uffizi Gallery, famous for its fabulous Renaissance art, is undergoing a renovation, scheduled for completion this summer. Until then, its Tribune Room (with Venus de' Medici) will be closed. When it reopens, you'll view the precious marble statue of Venus through glass panels.

Again, more late opening with the Leaning Tower of Pisa opening late on summer evenings, making it possible to tour the landmark and survey the Field of Miracles from above after dark. The system for making reservations and sorting out the huge crowds that come to see and climb the tipsy tower is working well:  http://www.opapisa.it/

Venice has a new museum: The Punta della Dogana, housed in the former Customs House at the end of the Grand Canal in the Dorsoduro neighborhood. It features cutting-edge 21st-century art in spacious rooms. This isn't Picasso and Matisse, or even Pollock and Warhol — those guys are ancient history. But if you're into the likes of Jeff Koons, Cy Twombly, Rachel Whiteread, and a host of newer artists, the museum is as impressively contemporary as Venice is Old World. The displays change completely about every year, drawn from the museum's large collection. In fact, the art is spread over two locations — the triangular Customs House and Palazzo Grassi.

The Dogana traghetto, (or ferry gondola), is back, shuttling passengers across the mouth of the Grand Canal, between Harry's Bar (near St. Mark's Square) and the new Punta della Dogana art museum.

Venice's new People Mover monorail, a shuttle train fixed to a circular cable, opened in 2010 and carries passengers from the parking lot at Tronchetto to Piazzale Roma. It departs every few minutes, makes the half-mile trip in three minutes, is completely automated (no crew on board), and drops you a block from the Calatrava Bridge on Piazzale Roma, where the town center is an enchanting walk away.

For help to book the perfect fabulous Italian getaway, check all ABTOI members http://www.loveitaly.co.uk/

Our Top 10 Italian 'Hit List' To Visit In 2011

We have decided to kick off the new year with our Top 10 Italian destinations which we think are really going to excite you in 2011.  We want to introduce you to some beautiful places in Italy which only a few people know about and which I am sure will be a great distraction for you this week and allow you to plan your Italian Escapade.   Without further ado, here is our Top 10 hot list of Italian destinations to experience this year, Italian Connection and Spirito Italiano stylee !!!!

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Italy Voted Best Holiday Destination!

Travel Weekly, the main travel industry newspaper has just revealed the World's best holiday destinations in its 8^th annual Reader's Choice Awards programme.

Italy received the title of best destination, beating France and Spain in the European battle.

South Africa, Australia and Jamaica took the top awards in the categories covering Africa, Asia-Pacific and the Caribbean.

Arnie Weissmann, Travel Weekly's editor-in-chief, said: 'The professionals who read and rely on Travel Weekly have the expertise to select those businesses, destinations and hotels that provide a higher level of service to their clients.

'Our readers can be confident that these winners represent the best this industry has to offer.'

Find your perfect Italian holiday and an operator to help you:  http://www.loveitaly.co.uk/discover_italy.asp

A bit of Wedding Luxury....

I decided that this weekend and this week I would concentrate on organising the office, putting everything in its rightful place, clearing up and try to get everything computerised so that everything is in its rightful place, fully recorded.  There is just so much to do and I do not think I will get it done by Christmas!

However I came across this photoshoot we did a while back for the Swarovski complimentary members magazine, where we organised for them to go to a beautiful Tuscan castle in the San Casciano area and this was produced.  I have tried to get a little technological and have updated it onto YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ktukJO6PEc

This is a great venue for an Italian wedding as it has a range of lovely spaces which can be used for the ceremony, a small chapel, a garden/vineyard, a large courtyard..... and it is also the ideal location for a reception.  For further details just get in touch.

 

 

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