We return to beautiful lakeside setting of the Hotel Stella d'Italia, Valsolda in September for our ever-popular Maestro! Food & Music on Lake Lugano. Please note the new departure date on Sunday 25th September and return 2nd October.
The holiday includes top price seats for Don Giovanni at the magnificent Teatro Sociale, Como, a concert with Orchestra della Svizzera italiana (Prokofiev Violin Concerto No. 1 and Brahms 1st Symphony) at the LAC Concert Hall in Lugano and a concert with our own Filarmonica di Valsolda, three days of organised sightseeing visits to the beautiful Villa Carlotta on Lake Como, Villa Fogazzaro on Lake Lugano, the lakeside towns of Bellagio & Menaggio on Como and the city of Lugano itself. We also include three dinners, two suppers and two lunches (all with wines included).
Lake Lugano is 70% in Switzerland and 30% in Italy. We stay on the Italian shore of the lake at a hotel that has become a firm favourite with Maestro clients over the past ten years, the enchanting Albergo Stella d'Italia situated on the lakeside in San Mamete, one of the seven little villages that make up ‘Valsolda’.
“Piccolo Mondo Antico” (“Little old-fashioned world”) is how Italian author Antonio Fogazzaro described Valsolda in his novel of 1895 and little has changed since! The ‘Stella’ opened in 1910 and remains owned and managed by the Ortelli family. It is unique in our experience of Italian lakeside hotels in that ALL rooms face the lake and the only difference between 'standard', 'superior' and ‘deluxe’ is really the decor and size of the room. It has an idyllic setting besides the lake just 2km from the Swiss border and 7km from the centre of Lugano. San Mamete is a small lakeside hamlet with just one square but has a bank, baker, general store, pharmacy and hair-dresser as well as a few bars & cafes.
The hotel and its beautiful garden invite you to relax and enjoy the lake. This year the hotel has added a 'wellness' suite with massage and spa facilities. If you want to explore independently a bus runs several times a day between Lugano and Menaggio on Lake Como, stopping outside the hotel in each direction. The hotel also has a once a day visit from the traditional lake steamer as it traverses the lake from Lugano to Porlezza.
Flights from Manchester and Gatwick are with Easyjet inc. forward seats (rows 6 - 10) 23kg baggage and small carry on item. We also include fast-track security at Manchester, Gatwick and Milan to ensure a smooth journey. Departures from London City (BA) and Birmingham (Lufthansa / Swiss) carry a supplement but include a private one way transfer to the hotel on arrival. We are NOT offering flights from Heathrow for this holiday.
Flight times:
Sunday 25th September
Manchester - Milan 1020 - 1335 (Easyjet)
Gatwick - Milan 1120 - 1425 (Easyjet)
London City - Milan 1355 - 1650 (BA) £100 supplement
Birmingham via Munich depart 0700 arrive Milan 1155 (1 hour connection - Lufthansa) £100 supplement
Sunday 2nd October
Milan Malpensa - Manchester 1505 - 1615
Milan Malpensa - Gatwick 1525 - 1630
Milan Malpensa - London City 1730 - 1830
Milan Zurich Birmingham 1455 - 1810 (80 minute connection - Swiss)
