Bicycling Italy:
Venture into the Veneto
14-28 September 2008
Vicenza
Days 1 & 2. We arrive at the Verona airport to a light rain and are welcomed by our guide Guido. A coach takes us to Palladio's Teatro Olimpico and then on to our hotel in Vicenza. Next day, a guided tour of Vicenza.
Bassano del Grappa
Days 3 & 4. Our first day of biking. We stop in Marostica for lunch, then on to Bassano del Grappa. The next morning, a coach takes us up a winding mountain road (14 switchbacks!) to the Alpine town of Asiago, where we see how asiago cheese is made. In the afternoon we take a guided tour of Bassano del Grappa.
Treviso
Day 5. Bike to Treviso. Along the way, a steep uphill ride to Asolo, where we have lunch.
Lido
Days 6 & 7. On the way to Lido, we stop in Dese for lunch and later take a coffee break in San Michele. Then we bike across the Venice causeway to Tronchetto, where we board a ferry that takes us by Venice and on to Lido. The next day we take a vaporetto to Venice for a guided tour of the city, then back to our Lido hotel.
Sottomarina
Day 8. In the morning we go by vaporetto to the island of Murano, take a guided tour of a glass factory, then a vaporetto back to our Lido hotel, where we mount up and ride and ferry the barrier islands to Sottomarina.
Padua
Days 9 & 10. We bike to Piovi di Sacco for lunch, then to our hotel in Padua. The next day we take a guided tour of Padua.
Verona
Days 11 & 12. We bike to Costozza for lunch, then on to the outskirts of Vicenza, where we surrender our bikes. We hike up a hill to Palladio's Villa Valmarana. Afterwards, a coach takes us to a winery then on to our hotel in Verona. The next morning we take a guided tour of Verona. In the afternoon we take a coach to Palladio's Villa Pisani.
Verona Extension
Days 13 & 14. Ken and I spend two additional days exploring Verona, including a visit to gardens and an elevator ride to the top of a tower for views of the city and countryside. In the evenings we sit at a sidewalk cafe in the Piazza Bra and watch the endless parade of locals and tourists.
Bonus
Sun Dried: A Special View of the VenetoPanorama of Verona (5131x1112 px)
Panorama of the Arena in Verona (2804x1372)