Review: Northern Italy Including Cinque Terre With Trafalgar – Escape – Official Travel Blog Of AffordableTours.com

By: Ana Pitiranggon, Employee Development Team Specialist

I decided to take Northern Italy Including Cinque Terre with Trafalgar tour with my daughter because I have always wanted to visit northern Italy. I chose to travel with Trafalgar because I have traveled with them before and they offer an absolutely exceptional value for the price of their tours, and this trip was no different. My daughter and I could not have asked for a better place to begin our trip than the beautiful city of Milan.

The first two nights of the trip were spent in Milan, exploring the rich history and culture of the city.

The walking tour was lovely and we had such a great local specialist who was very knowledgeable.

We opted for an optional excursion to visit the beautiful Sforza Castle, home to some of the most incredible works of Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci.

Our next stop was the much-admired Lake District and Lake Maggiore, unfortunately George Clooney was not around to greet us.

We then headed to visit the Villa Taranto botanical gardens for a chance to view and smell rare lilies and over 300 varieties of dahlias.

Then we embarked to the beautiful lakeside village of Baveno for two nights. Being the gateway to the three Borromean Islands, we of course took an optional excursion to visit Isola Bella, one of the Borromean Islands, which included a visit to the gorgeous Borromeo Palace where the albino peacocks roam the palace’s astonishing gardens freely.

The next day, my daughter and I spent a full day of relaxing around town and fully submersing ourselves in the tranquil environment of Baveno before heading across Lake Maggiore to Isola Madre for a wonderful Be My Guest dinner filled with delicious seafood pasta with the locals.

The next morning, we departed for the maritime city of Genoa, the birthplace of Columbus, for a walking tour of the city with an excellent local specialist to take in the majestic Renaissance and Baroque architecture lining the roads. By evening, we reached the seaside town of Viareggio for a quick dinner and night’s rest before my personal highlight of the trip. In Viareggio the next day, Trafalgar went above and beyond and included a full-day excursion to the UNESCO-listed site of Cinque Terre, and even brought on another local specialist to give us a full experience!

Cinque Terre with Trafalgar was absolutely stunning and both my daughter’s and my own’s highlight of the entire tour. It is truly a must-see destination for anyone thinking of touring Italy.

The next day, we made our way to the lovely town of Parma, home of its famous Parma ham and cheese. We immersed ourselves into a delicious treat with a visit to a prosciutto factory and a family-run parmesan factory. How delightful!

We opted for another optional excursion in the evening to experience delicious local gnocci, prosciutto, risotto, and more in the historical town. With the trip unfortunately coming to an end, we spend our last full day delighting in a guided tour of Parma with a local specialist. We got to visit the 12^th-century Piazzo Duomo and Garibaldi Square to visit the beautiful Romanesque Cathedral and Baptistery and the Palazzo del Governatore with its lavish astronomical clock. Next, we enjoy a scenic drive back to Milan for a bittersweet Farewell Dinner with our Travel Director and tour-mates. The following day, we depart Milan for home sweet home.

The incredible thing about traveling with Trafalgar, which may go unnoticed for most, are the available transfers that help make the entire trip smooth sailing. From the moment we arrived in Milan on Day 1, to the very last day, Trafalgar was prepared with transfers to help each guest on the tour get to where they needed to go. I give a huge thank you to Trafalgar for doing this so professionally and conveniently. Also, Trafalgar does an exceptional job at recruiting the absolute best local Tour Guides for every destination we visit. Being that we traveled to various destinations throughout this tour, Trafalgar definitely did not fall behind on our hotel accommodations in every city. We enjoyed beautiful, lovely, culture-rich hotel stays every single night.

The optional excursions offered at every destination were well worth the extra cost associated with them. Although we weren’t fortunate enough to take every optional experience, the ones that my daughter and I did take did not disappoint in the slightest. We were able to experience so much more sightseeing and local foods like gnocchi, seafood spaghetti, pizza, fresh pesto, focaccia sandwiches, and much more. Trafalgar went far above and beyond to provide the most desirable and excellent optional experiences that I definitely suggest you take.

Last but not least, Trafalgar really hit a home run with their Tour Director. Our Tour Director was nothing short of phenomenal and was available to help us with any of our needs. It is not always easy being in a foreign country, but Trafalgar made sure it was by gifting us with such an exceptional Tour Director and an amazing driver.

Stop thinking twice and book your next trip to Northern Italy Including Cinque Terre with Trafalgar tour!