Archive for 'Northeast Italy'

Those looking for a romantic getaway destination in Italy would be hard pressed to find anywhere more fitting than the charming and pretty city of Verona. Most famous for two fictional inhabitants – the tragic figures of Romeo and Juliet, who were the eponymous doomed lovers of Shakespeare's most famous play, it is a place that is drenched in romance. If you have been looking for a Valentine’s Day getaway location, why not browse our vacation rentals in Veneto, the wider region in which the city is located, and come visit? Make special memories and write a timeless love story of your own in this beautiful city of love.

Once you have landed in Verona, like many others, you may be interested in taking a tour of the supposed locations from the story of Romeo and Juliet. There are, of course, tours that you can join and follow around and there are endless Romeo and Juliet-themed businesses and attractions all around town that you can visit but two particular highlights are the so-called homes of the two lovers.

Emilia-Romagna is a Northern region of Italy that is among the most developed regions of the country but is also steeped in history and boasts an incredibly rich culinary heritage. The capital of Bologna is home to Europe's oldest university, San Marino boasts scenic coastal views, Modena is home to a beautiful cathedral and famous museums with rich collections and the region has given the world Parmesan, Bolognese sauce, Lambrusco wines, Balsamic vinegar, and more. The landscapes are lush, the cities chic and metropolitan, the towns historic and pretty, and the heritage well worth diving right into. So, if you’re looking for a holiday destination in Italy, a vacation rental in Emilia-Romagna is a great idea.

For those among you that are particularly interested in pretty views and nice walks, if you were thinking on heading on a day trip to the lovely city of Bologna, then you need to head to the Villa Ghigi Park. Located on a hill slope just south of the city, just outside Porta San Mamolo, the park is made up of 28 hectares and boasts some of the most extraordinary views over Bologna. Opened to the public in 1975, the Villa Ghigi Park perfectly typifies the hilly landscape of Emilia Romagna and captures a taste of what you can expect of the geography of the whole region.

If you are looking to plan a ski trip to Italy, you might consider a vacation rental in Cortina D’Ampezzo, which is famously the most fashionable ski resort town in the country. Located in the Veneto region of Italy, just a two hour drive from Venice, it hosted the very first Winter Olympic Games back in 1956 and has been popular since the 1930s. Known as the “Queen of the Dolomites”, it is one of the best-known ski resorts in the world and hosts lots of different international sports events each year such as the Alpine Ski World Cup, the Tour de Ski, ice hockey and curling championships, and the Cortina Winter Polo.

However, beyond the actual skiing and winter sports that might initially draw one to visit Cortina D’Ampezzo, it is the beautiful town, elegant nature, and chic restaurants, cafes, stores, and vibrant nightlife that keep people coming back to this famously fashionable gem. If you are interested in this side of things, then it would best to plan your trip to Cortina D’Ampezzo for the 6th to the 8th of December 2019 when the Fashion Weekend will take place and the town will be at its chicest.

In its ninth edition, the Fashion Weekend in Cortina D’Ampezzo is organised by the Cortina for Us association and helps kick off the holiday season in the area in style. The weekend sees a host of chic events take place around Cortina D’Ampezzo that gives visitors a real taste of the most elegant kind of on and off-piste lifestyle. Hit the slopes during the day and then spend your evenings partying at the most elegant cocktail parties and special, once-off events.

There is no shortage of excellent museums to choose from in Italy, as is patently obvious. Whether you’re heading to the Vatican City, which is essentially one giant museum-state, to Florence, the birthplace of the Renaissance, to Venice, home to the Biennale, which remains one of the world’s most important contemporary art exhibitions, and much more besides, there are plenty of options. However, while the famous and large museums filled with renowned names and works of art are undoubtedly important and worth seeing, we are big fans of the more obscure hidden gems that are dotted around the country. If you have found a vacation rental in Trentino, for example, you might want to check out a rather special museum indeed: an outdoor museum located across a beautiful forested alpine area.

In the Val di Sella, a pretty little valley located in the the Valsugana region of Trentino, a half hour from Trento, you will find the Arte Sella an open-air museum that is home to around 58 works of art dotted along a trail through the woods of Val di Sella. Tracing its roots back to 1986, when local artists began exhibiting their art in this area, the one-off event then became a biannual event and, finally, in 1996 became a permanent fixture in the area. The works are all created using natural materials that are found in the area – with twigs, branches, logs, rocks, and leaves being some of the most common materials that are used – and are sometimes interwoven with living plants and trees, allowing them to change, grow, and take on a life of their own. Works are also set up to make the most of their surroundings, frame views, and live in harmony with this lovely part of the world.

This week, in preparation for the spooky season that is swiftly descending upon us, and as people consider planning last-minute mid-term break, half-term, or Hallowe’en getaways, we have been looking at some of the spookiest places, attractions, and destinations in Italy. If you wanted to pay a visit to Bologna, after you have found a vacation rental in Emilia Romagna, then you’re in luck as it is home to the Villa Malvasia, often known as the Villa Clara, which is said to be one of the most haunted places in Italy. Come take in the history, culture, and heritage of Bologna, and her creepier aspects on a once-in-a-lifetime spooky and seasonal trip to Italy!

Located on via Zanardi 449 the Villa Malvasia immediately stands out as a creepy and dilapidated shell of an abandoned and formerly beautiful mansion. Like a lot of castles and old mansions in Italy, it is steeped in local legends and, in this case, a rather disturbing one.

The villa is also known as Villa Clara due to one of the supposed former residents of the building, who is said to stay on as a ghost. Clara was said to have been the daughter or stepdaughter of an owner of the villa who was born with an especially strong gift of clairvoyance. Any dream or vision she had was more than sure to come true. Her father feared her gift and is said, in local mythology, to have locked her away and allowed her to die.