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International Biking Tours
• Germany / Czech Republic -
The Elbe River
• France - Provence
• Italy - Veneto
Domestic Biking Tours
• Door County, Wisconsin
Biking and Barging Tours
Nordic Walking & Barging Tours
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The Veneto by Bicycle
Dates: |
September 12 - 25, 2009 |
Land Cost:
Single Supplement: |
$2984
$460 |
Difficulty Level: |
Moderate |
What's Included: |
12 nights, daily breakfast and dinner, group transfer from and to the airport; English-speaking guide, support van, bicycle rental, all entrance fees and our famous t-shirt.
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When tired of Venice, Venetians in the 16th century went to the nearby mainland, the Veneto. They do today. Bicycling in that calm and lovely region, you will understand exactly why. There Andrea Palladio built the country homes of rich Venetians, setting a style still copied, and the names of the towns are thick with literary associations: Vicenza, Verona, Padua. Can Romeo and Juliet, or Petruchio and Katherine, be far way?
Arriving and leaving by Verona Catullo Airport (opera is sometimes playing on the airport p.a. system), we go first to Vicenza where Palladio's statue stands in the main square, beside the Basilica he transformed by a splendid, two-tiered colonnade.
Our journey in the Veneto, the plain stretching from the Dolomite mountains to the Adriatic Sea and Venice, will take us in a circle from Vicenza to the little town of Bassano del Grappa, on to Treviso by way of the ancient Castle of Asolo, down to Lido, our base for two days in Venice, then to Chioggia and Padua before our final two nights in Verona where a guide will show us the famous landmarks and we'll have time to explore on our own.
By bicycle, we'll follow quiet country roads into the small towns that dot the area. The cuisine of northern Italy is distinctive and delicious, we will discover daily, and a tour of a local, family-run grappa distillery at Bassano del Grappa will give us a new understanding of this "digestivo," or after-dinner drink.
Our days in Venice (sans bicycles!) includes must-sees like the Doge's Palace and St Mark's Basilica, a walking tour to less well-known areas and time to explore on our own. In Padua we will see Giotto's splendid, recently restored fresco cycle, an exceptional experience. One of Palladio's most famous villas, Villa Valmarana in Vicenza, is the last stop before our final two nights in Verona, where we'll explore the city's famous landmarks.
The Veneto is full of marvels, set in a bicycle-friendly terrain.
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