Tuscany holiday, Italy
| country: | Italy |
| location: | Tuscany |
| trip type: | A small group adventure |
| departures: | 2010: 18 Apr, 9 May, 23 May, 4 Jul, 22 Aug, 10 Oct 2011: 10 Apr |
| price: | From £799 - £899 (8 days) including flights from the UK, from £679 - £749 excluding flights. |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
read 3 travellers reviews
the amazing things you'll be doing
Italian is in practice a 'literary version' of Tuscan and became the language of culture for all the peoples of Italy, thanks to the prestigious masterpieces of Dante Alighieri, Niccolò Machiavelli and many others. It would later become the official language of all the Italian states and, after unification, the Kingdom of Italy. Away from the well-worn tourist trail, parts of Tuscany are still quite remote, such as the Garfagnana, a beautiful rural enclave flanked by Appenines and Alpi Apuane - the Marble Mountains - birthplace of Michelangelo's David. This is the ideal location to learn Italian whilst relaxing at our comfortable lodge surrounded by an enchanted countryside. We use our newly learnt skills on short walks to ancient hilltowns and of course Romanesque Lucca.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | Fly to Pisa; transfer to Braccicorti. |
| Day 2: | Introduction to history of Garfagnana; first Italian lesson in afternoon. |
| Day 3: | Guided valley walk with visit to local cheese factory and impressive Verrucole fortress. |
| Day 4: | Our second Italian lesson; discover underground world of 'Grotta del Vento' (Wind Cave). |
| Day 5: | Free day to relax by the pool, enjoy a self-guided walk or visit Barga's various art galleries (optional). |
| Day 6: | Visit local market with traditional foods of area; final Italian lesson. |
| Day 7: | Explore the graceful walled city of Lucca; afternoon tasting the famous Lucchese wine. |
| Day 8: | To Pisa; fly to London. |
travellers' tales
The most memorable part of the holiday was seeing Michelangelo's David, he is amazing, no man could ever live up to that!! Ach no, the whole trip was fantastic, I enjoyed every minute. The food was absolutely beautiful. (more)
small group adventure holiday
Typically you will be sharing your experiences with between 4-20 like minded travellers (depending on the trip, operator and how many others are booked on the trip) and you'll have a group leader with you. Whether you are travelling alone or with friends its good value, and a great way to meet new people! While itineraries are pre-planned there is some flexibility and you'll have plenty of privacy. This trip will appeal to travellers of all ages who enjoy meeting new people as well as seeing new places. how this holiday makes a difference
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This tour has been designed to both operate in a way that minimises our impact on the environment that we visit and to maximise the benefit that our clients can have on the host community. The group size is deliberately kept small to enhance the experience of our clients and to protect the ecosystems we visit.
All our leaders are committed to Responsible Tourism and have received training and get additional refresher training on a regular basis. The leaders will give a briefing on Responsible Tourism issues to help you understand how you can help reduce you impact and maximise the benefits to the local communities from your visit. We use all locally owned accommodation on this trip so contributing directly to the local communities. Our food on the trip is bought fresh at local stores and markets helping to both support the local economy and ensuring that our clients sample the local delicacies, a highlight of any trip to Italy. At our offices we have worked to reduce our carbon footprint through a reduction of energy use and energy conservation measures. We also actively try to reduce the waste produced by having active reduction and recycling policies in place. We run annual staff workshops on Responsible Tourism. Global warming is a reality and to help you make a difference by reducing the carbon dioxide that is produced when you travel we offer a chance to carbon balance your flights. We encourage all our clients to do this and do so for all our staff travel. Go on do your bit! |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |