Verona and Lake Garda | Hidden History

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Verona and Lake Garda

7 days

from £2375 per person

Steeped in popular history and well-known for their beauty, Verona and Lake Garda are surrounded by further World Heritage sites, less than an hour away. Enjoy this bounty of historic art and architecture, along with the wonderful wines produced here since ancient times.

Highlights:

Based in beautiful Verona, in a 4-star hotel in the heart of the city.
Sirmione and Desenzano, charming historic towns on the scenic shores of Lake Garda.
The architectural masterpieces of Vicenza, the city of Palladio.
Two wine tasting lunches sampling the famous Franciacorta and Valpolicella.
Brescia’s world-class Museo di Santa Giulia.

Dates & Prices:

15-21 April 2026. Only £2375. Booking open.

Single supplement only £475

Early booking is recommended.

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What’s Included:

Six night’s 4-star hotel accommodation in the centre of Verona.
All breakfasts, two wine-tasting lunches and two evening meals.
Daily excursions with all transport, entrances and expert guiding.
Flexible flight and transfer arrangements (see the Getting There tab).

Tour Overview

What is extraordinary about this region is not just the wealth of World Heritage sites but that, together, they offer such a breadth of history, from ancient Rome to the Italian Renaissance, an historical narrative with profound relevance to the culture of the western world. It is also extraordinary that, by staying for all six nights of the tour in a 4-star hotel in the heart of Verona, we can comfortably explore this world heritage in depth with drives of no more than an hour from our hotel.

The city of Verona is famed for its notable Roman remains, including its amphitheatre, today used for world class opera instead of gladiatorial games. It is also the fabled city of Shakespeare’s Romeo of Juliet, set in the 14th century when the city was at its height. Less familiar to most people are the impressive, real-life castles and frescoed churches from this period, and the plethora of ancient Roman ruins which underlie them.

On the nearby shores of Lake Garda we discover two beautiful historic towns, Sirmione and Desenzano, separated by a delightful boat ride across the lake. Both towns have magnificently-sited medieval castles and Roman villas, the former owned by the Roman poet Catullus, and the latter now the most important and best-preserved ancient villa in northern Italy.

While Lake Garda is beloved throughout the world, few know about the important Roman and early medieval remains just a few miles away in the World Heritage city of Brescia. Situated in Lombardy, Brescia was a flourishing Roman city and then one of the most important duchies of the Kingdom of the Lombards, who ruled much of Italy in the 7th and 8th centuries. The city boasts a world class museum, with the best collection of ancient remains north of the River Po.

The nearby city of Vicenza is known as the “City of Palladio” and is the centrepiece of the World Heritage site “City of Vicenza and the Palladian Villas of the Veneto”. Recognised as one of the most influential architects in history, Andrea Palladio adorned the city with more than twenty Renaissance masterpieces, such as the Olympic Theatre and the Villa La Rotonda, perfect expressions of Palladio’s love of symmetry and classical forms.

In addition to all this wonderful history, art and architecture, we explore the famous wine heritage of the Veneto and Lombardy region, epitomised by red Valpolicella from the former and sparkling white Franciacorta from the latter. Our winery visits examine traditional grape varieties and fermentation methods dating back to antiquity.

See the ‘Itinerary’ tab above for more details.

: Verona Castelvecchio [1]

: Vicenza Palazzo Chiericati [2]

: Scaligero Castle [3]

Your Tour Director

Tom Abbott

Tom Abbott is an art and architectural historian with vast experience of guiding and lecturing. He is a native of Minnesota, USA, where he graduated in Psychology and Art History before moving to Europe in 1988, where he gained a Master of Arts in Art History at the Technical University of Berlin, and furthered his studies at the Louvre School of the History of Art in Paris. He lectures for numerous arts societies and alumni associations, and leads numerous special-interest tours throughout Europe, inspiring everyone with his encyclopedic knowledge of European art and architecture through history.

Activity Level

Our tours are good for your health. There is plenty of walking and fresh air, but the pace is always gentle and stops are frequent. On this tour the walking is all on even, level ground and is not especially challenging. It simply requires a reasonable level of mobility and independence.

Getting There

For flexibility we add flights on a personal basis, rather than booking group flights. This gives you complete freedom to choose when and how you travel, including your preferred departure airport, flight times, length of stay, airlines etc.

Why not extend your stay in the region, or perhaps reduce your carbon footprint by enjoying the journey to Italy by train instead.

We will be happy to help. See the ‘Getting There’ tab above for more details.

Travel More Sustainably

Did you know you can travel from the UK to Italy by train in a single day? Or why not stop off on the way? There’s a choice of routes, some fast and some slower but amazingly scenic. Why not go out one way and come back another?

Great scenery, room to breath, loads of legroom, cafes and bars, power sockets, free WiFi, no baggage fees, no 2-hour check-ins, no security queues…and around 80% less CO2 than a flight.

See the ‘Getting There’ tab above for more details.

What to Expect

All our tours include a full programme of expertly guided excursions and interesting talks to create an enriching travel experience. The emphasis is on both the cultural interest and the nature of the experience—focused but with time to relax and absorb it all.

We like to explore and get off the beaten track for special access to hidden gems and better integration with the local culture and economy. We keep our group sizes small (8–18 people) which enhances your experience and minimises adverse impacts on local communities. It is very relaxed and informal with no prior knowledge expected.

Click HERE for more about what to expect.

How To Book

Tours have minimum and maximum numbers of participants, so you will benefit from booking early; it secures your place and enables us to confirm your tour earlier. We keep our group sizes small, so tours can quickly fill but it is always worth checking for late availability.

Reservations & Enquiries: To reserve your place or enquire further simply click the “Book This Tour Now” button on the relevant tour page, and submit your details. You can also call us on (UK) 0121 444 1854, or email enquiries@hiddenhistory.co.uk.

There is no commitment and no payment at this stage; reservations are purely provisional until we have confirmed availability and proceeded with booking and payment.

Booking & Payment: Once we have checked availability, a deposit is required to secure your booking (£100 for UK tours, £250 for non-UK tours). We will email you a payment link which enables payment by credit card, debit card or bank transfer. Card payment can also be made by telephone (UK) 0121 444 1854.

Places and prices are guaranteed only with a deposit. Full payment is usually required 2 or 3 months ahead of the tour.

Financial Protection: Hidden History Travel is a member of the Travel Trust Association with membership number Q2398. This means that we provide you with the strongest consumer protection available in the travel industry. Any payments you make are 100% protected by the association to pay for your holiday or to reimburse you if we fail to provide it. Hidden History Travel also holds ATOL licence number 12463. This means that if you book your flights with us you will be protected if we or your airline cease trading.

See our booking conditions for further details.

BOOK THIS TOUR NOW

Image Attributes

[1] Zairon, CC BY-SA 4.0, Source

[2] Didier Descouens, CC BY-SA 4.0, Source

[3] Adobe Stock (Free), Source

[Hero image] Adobe Stock (Free), Source

Day 1: Arrival

After settling into your hotel in the heart of Verona, meet your tour leader for an included evening meal, with delicious dishes from the region.

Day 2: Verona

A full day strolling through the beautiful, historic city of Verona, whose World Heritage status reflects the artistic strength of its numerous monuments from Roman, medieval and renaissance times. We start with the famous Arena di Verona, one of the largest surviving Roman amphitheatres, and today famed for its operas. From there, we walk a short distance to Verona’s castle, the Castelvecchio, built by the Scaligeri dynasty that ruled the city in the Middle Ages, when the city was at the height of its power. We proceed to two well preserved Roman arches, the Porta Gavi and the superb Porta Borsari and from thence to the Piazza Erbe, once the Roman forum. Nearby, we have a special visit to the Criptoportico di Corte Sgargerie, a veritable palimpsest of Roman archaeology. After an independent lunch, we explore the medieval and Roman remains in the Piazza dei Signori and continue to the Arco degli Scaligeri, the tombs of the medieval lords of Verona. We end the day with a visit to the city’s wonderful Roman theatre and adjacent museum.

Day 3: Brescia and Sparkling Wine

This morning, we venture into Lombardy, a region which takes its name from the Lombards who migrated here from the Carpathian basin in the 6th century and ruled much of Italy until conquered by Frankish king Charlemagne in the late 8th century. We dedicate the morning to the World Heritage site of Brescia, starting with the stunning late antique Old Cathedral and from thence to the Roman Capitolium, which includes a series of unique 1st century frescos and a staggering bronze statue of Victory celebrating a Flavian victory. We walk a short distance to the incomparable Museo di Santa Giulia, where we explore several in situ Roman domus (town houses) as well as an 8th century Lombard church and a 12th century oratory. The afternoon is spent sampling Franciacorta, one of Italy’s premier sparkling wines. After enjoying a tasting lunch, we walk around the vineyards and hear about the painstaking Champagne method of producing the wine.

Day 4: Palladian Vicenza

Today is spent in lovely Vicenza, where we explore the highlights of the city made famous by Andrea Palladio, one of the most influential architects in history. We start with a walk down the city’s main artery, the Corso Palladio, once the ancient Decumanus Maximus. Here we admire the many Venetian Gothic and Neoclassical palazzi built when the city became part of the Venetian empire. In the Piazza dei Signori, once the Roman forum, we examine the Palladian masterpieces of the Loggia del Capitaniato and the Basilica, the iconic symbol of Vicenza which consolidated the architect’s reputation. We continue to the Basilica of Santa Corona, home to a wonderful painting by Jacopo Bellini, and to the tomb of Palladio. Further Palladian wonders are examined after lunch, including the Palazzo Chiericati and the unique Teatro Olimpico, an indoor theatre with a remarkable stage building. The day ends with one of the city’s best loved sites, the Palladian Villa La Rotonda, an extraordinary neoclassical masterpiece with four identical facades which dominates one of the main roads outside of Vicenza.

Day 5: Medieval Verona, Valpolicella Wines and the Grotta di Fumane

In the medieval period, Verona was one of the most powerful cities in Italy and this morning we consider some of the stunning monuments from this age, when the Scaligeri hosted such luminaries as Dante and Giotto. First stop is the Basilica of Sant’Anastasia, first built in the 13th century and home to a series of important paintings carried out by local artists. We proceed to the Cathedral complex, which includes two early Christian churches whose mosaics survive, as well as a wonderful 12th century baptistery, in addition to the cathedral itself which was built over a period of time.

For lunch, we travel to the Villa della Torre, attributed to Raphael’s student, Giulio Romano. It is now a winery where we can enjoy the Valpolicella wines, whose grapes are known from antiquity. For something completely different and off the tourist map, we then visit the nearby Grotta di Fumane, one of the six caves in Europe which contain remains of both Homo Sapiens and Neanderthals. On returning to Verona we have time to visit the Basilica of San Zeno, just outside the city. Built in honour of the city’s patron saint, it is famed for its 14th century fresco series by the Veronese painter, Altichiero, as well as 11-12th century bronze doors, some of the most important in Europe.

Day 6: Villas of Lake Garda

Today we enjoy the beauty of Lake Garda, the largest lake in Italy and famous for its panoramic landscapes. It has attracted people since ancient times, including the Romans who built magnificent villas here. The morning is spent on the charming peninsula of Sirmione, which is dominated by a Scaliger Castle at one end and by an enormous Roman villa at the other end. The villa is known as the Grotto of Catullus, after the 1st century Latin poet who gushed about the joys of living in this enchanting town.

Traversing the lake by ferry, we start the afternoon with a visit to the Roman Villa of Desenzano del Garda, the most important and best-preserved ancient dwellings in northern Italy. Before returning to Verona, we see the little-known Roman brick factory at Lonato del Garda, a relic of an area in which a plethora of villas were built.

This evening, we include a farewell dinner of Veronese fare to celebrate our experiences, friendships and knowledge gained on the tour.

Day 7: Departure

Time to head home, or why not extend your stay in this delightful corner of Italy?

Hotel Indigo Verona – Grand Hotel Des Arts
The Corso Porta Nuova 105 Verona, 37122, Italy.
www.indigoverona.com

Previously the Grand Hotel Des Arts, this elegant Liberty style building, once home to Austrian nobility, has recently reopened as the charming, boutique Hotel Indigo. Benefiting from a central yet secluded location, the hotel exudes a relaxed and comfortable atmosphere with antique furniture alongside modern facilities. The refined and unique design of its 62 rooms, restaurant, bar and garden was inspired by the story of Romeo and Juliet. It is also something of a small art museum where you will find works by national and international artists such as Guglielmo Ciardi, Domenico Brusasorci, Luciano Minguzzi, Giacomo Manzù, Richard Hess, Guido Cadorin, Felice Toreli, and Arnaldo Pomodoro.

Location: Our hotel in Verona is a 20 minute drive from Verona International airport, or just over an hour from Venice Marco Polo airport. The hotel is also a 15 minute walk from Verona railway station, from where there are regular train services to Venice and Milan.

Flexibility: You are free to make your own travel arrangements, or you can book them with us. All flights booked with us are fully ATOL protected. Before booking any travel of your own please ensure we have confirmed your tour and your place on it.

Flights and Transfers: Rather than reserving group seats for a particular flight, we keep your flight options open to give you greater choice of price, departure airport, airline, flight times, cabin class, use of air miles etc. There is a selection of direct flights to Verona from several UK airports. If you book one of our recommended flights we will include your airport transfers in Italy.

By Train: Make the most of your journey while helping the planet at the same time. We recommend taking a look at an excellent website called “The Man in Seat 61”. Here you will find all the details you need for getting to Verona from the UK by train. You can get to Italy in a single day, but there is a choice of routes so why not enjoy the scenery and stop off at some interesting places along the way?

What is ATOL Protection? The ATOL scheme (which stands for Air Travel Organisers’ Licensing) is financial protection that protects you when you book a package trip that includes a flight. It protects you and your money if we, or the airline you booked with us, cease trading, before or whilst you’re on holiday. This means you will be able to claim your money back or continue your holiday and be repatriated. It is separate to travel insurance.

Hidden History Travel holds ATOL licence number 12463.

: Verona Castelvecchio [1]

: Vicenza Palazzo Chiericati [2]

: Scaligero Castle [3]

: Sirmione [4]

: Verona Amphitheatre [5]

: Vicenza [6]

: Vicenza [7]

: Desenzano, Lake Garda [8]

: Lake Garda [9]

: Brescia Lombard chapel [10]

: Brescia Roman Capitoline Temple [11]

: Desenzano, Lake Garda [12]

: Castello Scaligero, Sirmione [13]

: Roman Villa, Sirmione [14]

: Verona Cathedral [15]

: Verona Cathedral [16]

: Basilica of San Zeno, Verona [17]

: Porta Gavi, Verona [18]

: St Anastasia, Verona [19]

Image Attributes

[1] Zairon, CC BY-SA 4.0, Source

[2] Didier Descouens, CC BY-SA 4.0, Source

[3] Adobe Stock (Free), Source

[4] Sara Pupi, CC BY-SA 3.0, Source

[5] Adobe Stock (Free), Source

[6] trolvag, CC BY-SA 3.0, Source

[7] Didier Descouens, CC BY-SA 4.0, Source

[8] Tony Hisgett, CC BY 2.0, Source

[9] Milan Vokoun from Pixabay

[10] Wolfgang Moroder, CC BY-SA 3.0, Source

[11] Wolfgang Moroder, CC BY-SA 3.0, Source

[12] Tony Hisgett, CC BY 2.0, Source

[13] Photo2023, CC BY 4.0, Source

[14] Nadietta90, CC BY-SA 4.0, Source

[15] Jean-Christophe BENOIST, CC BY 3.0, Source

[16] MM, Public Domain, Source

[17] Tony Hisgett, CC BY 2.0, Source

[18] Claconvr, CC BY-SA 4.0, Source

[19] Altichiero – Web Gallery of Art, Public Domain, Source

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