Easter holidays are just around the corner, and there is no better time to head off for a few days’ break.
12 Feb 2020
Gruppo UNA
This year, Easter falls on April 12th. Just like every year, schools and offices close for a few days, giving you a chance to strike off on a short break.
Come and explore these suggestions for a trip to Italy.
Venice and its islands.
Venice is without doubt one of the most popular year-round destinations in Italy. What better time of year than spring to enjoy a tour of the islands in the Venice Lagoon? Travelling comfortably by watertaxi or a characteristic vaporetto waterbus, you can reach charming islands while admiring the city as it slowly recedes behind you.
Murano is the Venetian island famous the world over for handmade glass manufacture and glassworking. Walk along its streets and you’ll come across a multitude of glassworks and workshops, where you can see glass being blown. Not to be missed is a visit to the Seguso furnace, which has made glassware for European royal families, the Vatican, hotels and theatres. The Seguso Experience offers a multi-sensory journey through the worlds of art, tradition and passion.
Burano will blow you away with its colorful houses. Legend has it that the facades are so gaudily-painted to help local sailors make out their homes on foggy days.
If you’re a wine-lover, don’t miss a visit to the Venissa estate. Located on the island of Mazzorbo, the Dorona vine has been challenging salt and high water for centuries to produce a wine with unique characteristics.
Where to stay in Venice?
To reach the islands comfortably, we recommend you stay at the Gruppo UNA Maison Venezia | UNA Esperienze, which is located right in the heart of the historic district of Cannaregio, a strategic area for Lagoon trips.
Hidden Turin.
Turin offers many attractions, notably museums, churches, squares and gardens. But if you want to visit the Savoy city in a different way, take a trip 15 metres deep and discover an underground world of catacombs and galleries full of mystery and magic, on one of the night-time tours available by appointment.
Having re-emerged from hidden Turin, next on this off-the-beaten-track tour we recommend a visit to the Luxemburg International Bookshop, one of the ten best in the world according to Argentinean newspaper Clarín. This true paradise for readers is a source of great pride for the city.
Whether you’re a lover of wine or cocktails, Turin has some surprises up its sleeve… At the splendid 17th century Villa della Regina, you’ll find an age-old vineyard that produces the only geographical appellation wine in the world that is grown within a city. If that’s not enough for you, then whey not (at least once) sample Turin’s famous Tamango hallucinogenic cocktail. The place you need to go is Les Arcades. The prodigious nature and stories that swirl around this cocktail have been decanted even by the BBC.
Where to stay in Turin?
To make sure that everything is close at hand, we recommend a hotel in the heart of the city. The Gruppo UNA Principi di Piemonte | UNA Esperienze hotel, with its own spa and wellness centre, is the ideal choice for your Easter holidays in Turin.
Unseen Naples.
As well as its headline sites, Naples hides lesser-known but equally interesting symbols of the city’s soul.
Here are our suggestions for discovering Unseen Naples.
- The Naples botanical gardens are among the largest and lushest in all of Italy, home not only to thousands of herbaceous, arboreal and shrub species from all over the world but specimens of practically every single type of flower. Take a trip through its themed gardens, from desert to beach plants, or stroll through its orchards and citrus groves. There is no better time than early spring to enjoy the beauty of this corner of paradise.
- The Underwater Park at Gaiola, a Protected Marine Area in the heart of the Gulf of Naples, is a place of rare beauty. From the first century B.C. onwards, sumptuous villas were built around here along the coastline. Among these, we recommend a visit to the suggestive, “accursed” Villa della Gaiola, so-called because many of its past owners suffered an untimely death.
- One marvel you might not expect is the Naples metro, which CNN called the most “surprising” entry in its ranking of the most beautiful subway stops in Europe... Toledo station came top!
Where to stay in Naples?
To enjoy all the authenticity of Neapolitan life, we recommend UNAHOTELS Napoli. Housed in a historic building, the hotel is a perfect combination of warm Italian hospitality and urban convenience.
Taormina and Isola Bella.
Taormina is certainly a treasure worth visiting at least once in a lifetime. With spring just around the corner, spending the Easter holidays in Sicily is a great way to enjoy the lengthening days and the first warm rays of the sun.
In his “Italian Journey” (1787), Goethe called Taormina “a strip of paradise on earth”, with its Greek-Roman theatre, medieval streets, breathtaking views and fine food.
Not far from Taormina you’ll find Isola Bella, for many an Eden on Earth: a rock connected to the beach by a thin, short stretch of sand and pebbles. Boat excursions to the Grotta Azzurra and the Grotta della Conchiglia caves, which are rich in marine fauna and flora, leave from the east side of the beach. Their natural beauty is a great attraction to photography and video enthusiasts.
Where to stay in Taormina?
To visit Taormina, its surroundings and all of the wonders nature has to offer, we suggest you stay at the Gruppo UNA UNAHOTELS Capotaormina, which enjoys an enchanting position from where you can breathe in lungfuls of sea air directly from your balcony.
An alternative solution is to stay overnight at the Palace Catania | UNA Esperienze, located right in the heart of Catania, with stunning views of Mount Etna.