Lake Garda All Inclusive

Your holiday begins when you meet your Tour Manager at London St Pancras, before boarding the Eurostar service to Paris. From the French capital, we continue by rail across France, crossing the Italian Alps enroute to the handsome city of Turin where we spend the night. After checking in, we have dinner with our group in the hotel.

Please note: If travelling by air, your holiday starts on Day 2 of the itinerary and ends on Day 9.

• Dinner (Rail departures only)

After breakfast there's time at leisure to explore Turin. This dignified city is an important centre of business, finance and technology, and is also a showcase of Baroque, Renaissance and modern architecture. Fringed by the Italian Alps, the city's wide boulevards and grand public squares are lined with enticing cafés.

In the mid-afternoon we continue by rail to the lakeside town of Desenzano. From here, we transfer to a 4-Star hotel in charming Garda.

If travelling by air, your holiday starts today at London Gatwick where you meet your Tour Manager and group before flying to Verona. In Verona we are transferred directly to our hotel in Garda.

The small town of Garda is set in a picturesque bay and is perfectly placed to visit the elegant lakeside towns and majestic mountains.

Centrally located, a short distance from the lake, the hotel has a peaceful courtyard. A three-course dinner is served, with selected drinks included between 5pm and 10pm, tonight and every night in the hotel.

• Breakfast (Rail departures only)
• Dinner

This morning we walk the short distance to Garda's ferry pier for a boat ride along Lake Garda's eastern shore to the beautiful medieval hamlet of Malcesine. Enroute lakeside towns gather round the shore, before the scenery becomes more dramatic as we enter the Alps, with rockier peaks edging closer to the narrowing, fjord-like lake.

With free time in Malcesine, you could visit the impressive 14th-century castle which dominates the village. Colourful buildings line narrow cobbled streets down to the shorefront, where small piazzas look out across the lake. There are several picturesque squares where you could enjoy your picnic lunch while drinking in the view.

The boat ferries us back to Garda in the late afternoon, with time to enjoy views across the lake before returning to the hotel for tonight's three-course dinner.

• Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Today is free to explore Garda at your own pace. With access to a swimming pool at a nearby, sister hotel, you might like to unwind by the pool before lunch at the hotel. Or soak up the scenery of the lake, on a walk to the Rocca di Garda at the southern end of town. This outcrop of cliffs has breathtaking views across the lake and was once home to a 5th-century fortress until it was destroyed by the Venetians.

The historic centre of Garda is a pretty warren of narrow lanes with shops, cafés and restaurants, and a wide lakefront promenade overlooking a small marina and the shimmering water.

Alternatively, you could visit neighbouring Bardolino, a delightful town famed for its full-bodied red wines and its wine harvest festival, held annually in October. You can reach Bardolino on the public boats that carry passengers between towns on Lake Garda - or you might prefer to stroll along the 'lungolago', a flat 1.5-mile lakeside walkway connecting Bardolino and Garda.

• Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Today starts with a coach excursion to historic Verona, a UNESCO-listed city that may be best-known as the setting for Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. On a guided tour we are introduced to the city's ancient history, taking in Roman ruins and medieval buildings, Juliet's balcony and the awe-inspiring Roman Arena, which predates Rome's Colosseum and is now an open-air opera house.

With free time after the tour, you could visit Piazza delle Erbe, the city's oldest square, where you may choose to enjoy your picnic lunch. Once a Roman forum, the piazza now buzzes with cafés and is lined with ornately decorated buildings, some painted with frescoes.

Other popular attractions in Verona are the Torre dei Lamberti, an 84-metre watchtower with panoramic views across the city, and the Castelvecchio bridge, a crenelated 14th-century brick and marble bridge crossing the winding Adige river.

We return to Garda in the late afternoon, with time to relax before dinner and drinks at the hotel.

• Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

With a full day at leisure, you could make use of the lake boats to enjoy some more sightseeing. The lake's largest island, Isola del Garda, is only accessible by boat and has been owned by the Cavazza family for generations. Here you can wander amongst the fragrant acacia and lemon trees that frame an extraordinary neo-Gothic style villa. There's also a small wood of pines, cypresses, magnolias and agaves.

Another lakeside spot to explore is Gardone Riviera, a hidden gem and one of Italy's most beautiful small towns. Surrounded by mountains, and with a palm-lined promenade, the town features the André Heller Botanic Garden. This two-acre site is filled with unusual plants from all over the world, with Japanese gardens, water features and contemporary art sculptures by renowned artists.

Other places to explore by boat are the UNESCO-listed Roman city of Peschiera, or beautiful Riva del Garda, surrounded by mountains on the northern shore.

• Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Today is a highlight of our tour, a coach trip to the 'Floating City' of Venice. On arrival we transfer by private boat to St Mark's Square, the heart and soul of Venice. This is the site of the St Mark's Basilica, the beautiful Doge's Palace, and historic cafés. On a guided tour we explore hidden backstreets, seeing the house where Vivaldi was born and the Bridge of Sighs - which links the city's prison with the Doge's Palace. The guide shares stories of the landmarks and our tour ends back in St Mark's Square.

Following the tour, there is time at leisure to explore the city at your own pace. You could enter St Mark's Basilica to see its atmospheric interior or take a closer look at some of the other grand landmarks we've passed. Wandering besides the city's luminous turquoise canals is the perfect way to soak up the ethereal atmosphere. We return to Garda by coach in time for dinner at the hotel.

• Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

This morning we take a short cruise to Sirmione, known as the 'Pearl of Lake Garda'. Set on a narrow peninsula which stretches into the lake, this medieval fortress town is a pleasure to explore on foot. You are free to discover Sirmione independently, over lunchtime and into the afternoon.

Among the old town's streets are beautifully restored buildings, including a 14th-century church. You could enjoy your picnic lunch overlooking the lake or sip a coffee or Aperol spritz on a restaurant terrace. A short distance from the old town, the Scaligero Castle guards the entrance to the peninsula of Sirmione. From here, you can savour great views across the lake from the top of its fortified walls.

You could also visit the extraordinary Grottoes of Catullus, the remains of one of the largest Roman villas in Italy, set on a small hill at the tip of the peninsula, with a museum and views from the top. We sail the short distance back to Garda this afternoon before a final dinner and drinks at the hotel this evening.

• Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

If returning by air to London, your group will be transferred to Verona airport this morning before your flight to London Gatwick.

If returning home by rail we leave Garda by coach this morning, travelling to Milan then boarding the train to France. Travelling through verdant valleys lined by huge, rocky mountain peaks, the route crosses from Italy to France through the Fréjus tunnel before following the route of the rushing Arc river, providing glimpses of great alpine scenery.

The town of Chambéry is nestled in the foothills of the Alps and is the former seat of the Dukes of Savoy - their impressive château still dominates Chambéry's picturesque centre. Arriving this evening, after checking in to our overnight hotel we have dinner.

• Breakfast
• Dinner (Rail departures only)

For departures by rail, this morning we leave Chambéry for Paris. This holiday to one of Italy's greatest lakes combined laid-back Lake Garda, blissful lakeside villages and a mountainous setting with excursions to wonderful Venice and historic Verona.

In Paris, we board the Eurostar service to London St Pancras International, arriving in the early evening.

• Breakfast (Rail departures only)