Shannon and Lou were excited to have a Christmas Honeymoon in northern Italy. They wanted to see the beauty of the snowy Dolomites and Swiss Alps while still experiencing a few classic Italian spots like Venice, Milan, and Bologna! I was so pleased to hear they enjoyed the delicious food and the stunning landscapes Northern Italy has to offer.
Here’s their trip report:
Hi Ann!
We had an AMAZING time!! We loved every part of the trip.
The Venice hotel [Ca’ Sagredo Hotel] was perfect, very accommodating and they gave us great dinner recommendations for local restaurants to avoid the touristy spots.
We absolutely loved the
trip to the Dolomites
[also featured at the top photo]
as well as the guided walking tour and the walking food tour. The only thing that I would maybe tell future guests is the Venice walking food tour was a little heavy on the alcohol (full glass of wine at every stop), which is definitely not a problem, but I could see how it might be if lunch or afternoon drinks before the tour were consumed lol. Regardless we loved it and had a great time but just something to keep in mind!
Bologna was also great, food was absolutely fantastic and we really enjoyed exploring the city. We LOVED the foody tour to Modena with the winery, balsamic vinegar tour and Parmesan cheese. This tour was one of our favorites by far. The lunch provided was excellent.
The hotel in Bologna [Starhotels Excelsior] was good, the only thing I would maybe warn other guests of is that they do allow smoking in this hotel. We were on a non smoking floor but regardless I think it would be bothersome to some who have asthma/other sensitivities. The proximity to the train station here was very convenient for traveling.
We spent the day on Sunday walking up to San Luca from the hotel, which is definitely more than a workout but the views are incredible and highly recommend to anyone else traveling to Bologna with some free time!
Finally, Milan and our trip to the Swiss Alps were absolutely stunning!
I would recommend anyone taking this trip to find something open to eat in advance to getting on the bus at 0700 in Milan. There was a small stop for coffee/snacks but pretty limited. You were right that most things were closed on 12/24 and 12/25.
We also found that mostly everything was closed on the 26th as well- public holiday. Regardless by this point in the trip we were tired and just really happy to relax. It was nice to walk around the city on Christmas without all of the crowds of people.
This hotel [Chateau Monfort] was excellent. Staff went above and beyond for us for dinner recommendations and anything else that we needed. Spa here is also excellent if you have future guests looking for that experience- they allow you to use the sauna, salt pool, relaxation room without booking a treatment. I know we discussed with you already but by the 26th we were just kind of done with the tours and decided not to go to Turin, although I’m sure it would have been lovely. We had a great detox day in the spa in its place 🙂
I don’t think there is much we would have done differently! The transfers to and from the airports were extremely helpful to have booked in advance. Additionally, traveling by train between cities was very easy.
Thank you for all of your assistance and guidance! We can’t wait to plan our next trip!!
Wishing you a happy and healthy New Year!
Shannon and Lou
