Hiking Valle d'Aosta's Gran Paradiso

Our Wine Policy

Why don't we price in wine during included meals?

After all, many companies do, in an apparent fit of generosity. You'll read promising phrases like "chef-selected wine" or "all the wine you can drink".

What these euphemisms actually mean are: "chef-selected house wine" and "all the house wine you can drink".

Based on discussions with our clients, we've concluded that our travelers generally would prefer not to have wine included.

Firstly, it obviously makes no sense to price in wine for those who choose not to drink it.

Secondly, for those who do, a carafe of house wine, no matter how potable, is often less enticing than the options offered on the wine list.

And lastly, no reasonable wine budget can cover the full range of enological possibilities and prices.

For these reasons, we've decided to leave the matter up to you, allowing you to pay on your own for whatever wine you may drink.

Keep in mind that you'll have the expertise of your guide in helping you select a good wine in whatever price range you prefer, as most of our guides have quite an extensive knowledge of Italian wines.

We do, of course, include the standard beverages of all Italian meals, such as water and an after-dinner coffee, as well as some surprise treats depending on the region you're in.

How we rate accommodations

In many areas of Italy, you can choose from among five different levels of accommodation. We have preferential rates at most of the hotels we use and pass these discounts on to you. The hotels we select have received the highest ratings in their class for ambience, comfort, and service. The pricing indicated below is in euro for the major cities of Rome, Florence and Venice. In other areas, the prices are typically lower.

Comfort

This is the traditional Italian inn, usually family-owned. We've sought out the best of this class, offering great value with comfortable rooms (all with en-suite bathroom) and a great location. In some less touristed regions of Italy, this is the top accommodation option available. The published price of these accommodations per night for a double room is generally between E90-170 in the major cities of Rome, Florence and Venice.

Select

These are all attractive 3 and 4 star accommodations, among the finest in their regions, and have fully equipped rooms. They might be situated in an old olive mill, a castle, a restored monastery. The available amenities usually include buffet breakfast, a night porter, a pool (except within the cities), room service, etc. You would generally expect to pay between E170-260 per night for these accommodations.

First Class

What distinguishes these hotels from the Select category are extra touches like fine linens, free internet access, hydromassage, a noted restaurant, or a particularly fortuitous location. These are all superior-grade, 4 star hotels. On occasion we put in this classification the best rooms in the Select class hotels, what are often called the "superior" or "deluxe" rooms. The published price per night for a double falls between E260-350.

Deluxe

The main reason these hotels do not rank in our luxury class is that they are all 4 star hotels, meaning that they do not offer the complete range of amenities provided by a 5 star hotel. Nevertheless, these are among the finest hotels in Italy, and indeed in Europe. You would expect to pay from E350-500 per night in these establishments.

Luxury

Elegant 5 star hotels, among the best in Europe. There are only a few of these in the major centers of Italy, as well as some in areas like the Amalfi Coast and the Lakes District. On very rare occasions, we rank a particularly splendid 4 star hotel in this class. The published prices range from E500 on up. Please request a price quote for Luxury accommodations.

Requesting a Tour

Simply put, you choose a destination you'd like to go to, tell us when you'd like to go, and we set up your tour. Then, you decide if you want to keep your tour private to your own group or open it to other travelers, thereby taking advantage of our tier-pricing discounts.

Whatever the case, you're booking a trip that's guaranteed to run, no matter the number of participants, so you don't have to worry about your tour being canceled due to so-called "low participation rates."