Lake Garda All Inclusive

Your holiday begins when you meet your Tour Manager and fellow travellers at London St Pancras, before boarding the Eurostar service to Paris. From the French capital, you continue by rail across France, crossing the Italian Alps as you travel to the handsome city of Turin where you spend the night in a hotel in the heart of the city's historic centre. You enjoy your first dinner as a group in the hotel.

• Dinner

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 your group continues by rail. You arrive at the lakeside town of Desenzano. From here, you transfer by coach to your 4-Star hotel in charming Garda. This small town is set in a picturesque bay and is perfectly placed to explore the elegant lakeside towns as well as the majestic mountains.

Your hotel is centrally located just a short walk from the lake. With a peaceful courtyard, it is a great place to unwind. You have a three-course dinner here tonight, with five drinks included between 5pm and 10pm every night in Garda.

• Breakfast, Dinner

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

With free time in Malcesine, you may like to visit the impressive 14th-century castle which dominates the village. Colourful buildings line narrow cobbled streets down to the shorefront, where charming small piazzas look out across the lake. You might want to enjoy your picnic lunch while drinking in the view from one of these picturesque squares.

The boat ferries you back to Garda in the late afternoon, allowing you to enjoy the fresh air, glistening lake and exquisite views before returning to your hotel for tonight's three-course dinner.

• Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Today is free to explore Garda at your own pace. As you have access to a swimming pool at a nearby, sister hotel, you might like to unwind by the pool before enjoying lunch at your hotel. If you want to soak up the scenery of this gorgeous lake, at the southern end of the town is the Rocca di Garda. 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 get to Bardolino on the public boats that carry passengers between towns on Lake Garda - or you might prefer a walk down the 'lungolago', a flat 1.5-mile lakeside walkway connecting Bardolino and Garda.

• Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Today you travel by coach 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 you're introduced to the city's ancient history as you wander beside Roman ruins and medieval buildings, seeing Juliet's balcony and the awe-inspiring Roman Arena, which predates Rome's Colosseum and is now an open-air opera house.

You also visit the heart of romantic Verona, the Piazza delle Erbe, the city's oldest square, where you might like 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 here 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.

You return to Garda by coach in the late afternoon to enjoy dinner and drinks at your Garda hotel.

• Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

With a full day at leisure, you could make use of the lake boats to enjoy some more sightseeing. You might like to visit the island's largest lake, Isola del Garda, which is only accessible by boat. Isola del Garda has been owned by the Cavazza family for generations. 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.

Nearby 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. Here, a two-acre site is filled with unusual plants from all over the world, plus Japanese gardens, water features and grottoes and decorated with 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 you travel by coach to the 'Floating City' of Venice, a highlight of your holiday. On arrival your group is transferred by a private boat to St Mark's Square, the heart and soul of Venice. Here you can view the impressive landmarks of St Mark's Basilica, the beautiful Doge's Palace, and historic cafés. On a guided tour you 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. Your guide shares stories and details of the different sights along your tour, which finishes back in St Mark's Square, where you view the Clock Tower and the oldest coffee house in the world, Caffè Florian.

After the tour, you have time to continue discovering this wonderful city at your own pace, perhaps enjoying a picnic lunch in a scenic spot. You may like to enter St Mark's Basilica to see its atmospheric interior or take a closer look at some of the other grand landmarks you've passed. Wandering besides the city's luminous turquoise canals, passing Venetian palazzos and beautiful ruins, is the perfect way to soak up the ethereal atmosphere.

You return to Garda by coach and dine at the hotel this evening.

• Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

This morning you take a short cruise to Sirmione, known as the 'Pearl of Lake Garda' in part due to its location. Set on a narrow peninsula which stretches into the lake, this fascinating 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 medieval streets and colourful piazzas, you'll find beautifully restored buildings, including a 14th-century church. You can stop to enjoy your picnic lunch overlooking the lake or sip a coffee or Aperol spritz on a laid-back terrace.

A short walk from the old town is the medieval Scaligero Castle, which 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. Another ancient site to explore is the extraordinary Grottoes of Catullus, the preserved 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 wonderful views from the top.

You sail the short distance back to Garda this afternoon and enjoy your final dinner and drinks in Italy at your hotel this evening.

• Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Your group leaves Garda by coach this morning, travelling to Milan where you board 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.

Chambéry is a charming town nestled at 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, you check into your hotel near the station, where you will have dinner tonight.

• Breakfast, Dinner

This morning the group leaves Chambéry for Paris. Travelling through France, you can begin to look back on this wonderful holiday to one of Italy's greatest lakes. From the blissful lakefront villages and surrounding mountains to the amazing Venice and historic Verona, Lake Garda exudes laid-back charm.

In Paris, you board the Eurostar service to London St Pancras International. On arrival in the early evening, you say a fond farewell to your fellow travellers and Tour Manager with whom you have shared these unforgettable experiences.

• Breakfast