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$2700 Double / $3300 Single

The Grand Canal, Piazza San Marco, Carnevale masks, and darkened alleyways full of mystery. This is likely what you know about Venice. But what if Venice was a completely different place than you expect? In this StayCation exploring one of the world’s most mysterious and romantic cities, we will uncover the city that the locals know, and get to the heart of what it means to be Venetian.

The floating city shaped like a fish is divided into six districts, or sestiere. Each day, we will explore a district, seeing daily life in parts of the city that tourists rarely venture. Our activities will focus on learning about the lagoon, the artists of the city, and the truly surprising history that most tourists miss.

We have enjoyed our small groups so much that we will continue to keep numbers low and personal attention high.

This itinerary is subject to improvement, your guide may rearrange or change activities without notice.

Day One

Overnight: Venice

Welcome to Bella Venezia

In the late afternoon we meet in our centrally located hotel for a tour orientation. Then we will board a private water taxi for a joyride down the Grand Canal, finishing with a dinner of local Venetian specialties.

Day Two

Overnight: Venice

Sestiere Castello

In the morning we will be joined by a local guide to take us around the back streets of this unique city and finish our walk on Piazza San Marco. Our evening will start with a gondola ride (you really must) and maybe a light dinner to finish the day (on your own).

Day Three

Overnight: Venice

Accademia

Our focus this morning will be a deeper look at art with a local guide, visiting the Accademia Gallery filled with venetian masterpieces, and after that the famous “Scuola Grande di San Rocco” a real tribute to the genius of Tintoretto, one of the greatest among the venetian painters.

Rest of the day on your own.

Day Four

Overnight: Venice

Lagoon Tour

Today we will hop aboard a Vaporetto and explore the islands of the lagoon and learn about the history that shaped the early days of Venice (Burano and Torcello). Lunch together in Torcello in a bucolic island setting, then back to the hotel to relax, or to explore more hidden corners on your own.

Day Five

Overnight: Venice

Cooking Class

Today we’ll learn how to cook some venetian specialties from our friend and cook Michele in his own apartment! Get ready to roll up your sleeves and enjoy great food and wines!

After a wonderful lunch together, you can choose to end the day visiting a spectacular Gothic Church (S.Maria dei Frari) or simply find a perfect spot to enjoy the sunset!

Day Six

Overnight: Venice

Venetian Boats

You can sleep in today, because our main activity on our last day of the tour will be to learn the basics on how to row a venetian boat (weather permitting)! Followed by some local cicchetti (AKA Venetian Tapas) to wrap up the late morning schedule.

The rest of the day will be free to buy last minute souvenirs and to say goodbye to Venice, sipping a coffee or a Spritz overlooking a quiet Campo.

Farewell Dinner together in a nearby local restaurant.

Day Seven

Tour Over After Breakfast

Your guide will be available this morning to help you with your further travel plans. Grazie e arrivederci Venezia!

Price: $2700 (Air not included). Single Supplement is $600. We welcome singles and can try to pair you with another single to room with, but the single supplement will be required if we can’t.

What’s included: 3 dinners and 2 lunches (wine included), 6 nights lodging in a clean, comfortable, and centrally located hotel. All admissions and fees for group activities. Transport within the tour and private guides, tips included.

Deposit Policy: A non-refundable deposit of $600 per person is due upon booking.

Tour begins and ends in Venice. International airport there is VCE.

If you have additional questions please email us at: info@adventureswithsarah.net

If you would like to book this tour just for your own group of friends or family (minimum 6 people), we can offer a private tour with different dates to suit your travel needs.

I have been visiting friends and showing them my photos from the Piemonte tour. I was telling them how great it was to become immersed in this area and see things you would not normally have the opportunity to do or know about. Having a caring and inquisitive guide who delights in sharing where she lives brings so much to the experience. Go visit Piemonte with Lisa- you will have such an amazing time and fond memories to share and relish!

Patricia Eaganafter a tour in Piedmont, Italy with Lisa

I have had the joy of traveling with Adventures with Sarah many times, from Thailand, to Turkey, and many places in between. I choose to book with AWS because I can rely on a tour that is paced well, varied in activities, with great food and even greater guides. As a frequent traveler to Europe, I really enjoy AWS tours due to a small group size and the opportunity to go in depth into a region and really experience the culture of the area I’m visiting. And every time, with every group, I meet fellow travelers who are now friends. Adventures with Sarah is a tour company that I would recommend without hesitation. In fact, I have 3 tours booked for this year!

Betsy McGregorafter multiple tours with Adventures with Sarah

Fantastic look at more "out of the way" spots and wonderful experiences of food and wine. No crowds, just the Sicilian countryside and lovely towns. Traveling in April was fantastic with all the wildflowers. And walking on Mama Etna's shoulders was a highlight!

Barbara B.Sicily Pleasures tour

It really was a wonderful trip. This was our first group trip, and the size was just right. We all got along well which was a bonus. Everything was smooth, and Sarah had picked out some really wonderful things for us to do. I felt like we were getting "sneak peeks" of special things regular tourists don't get to do. We were willing participants for her to try out new things on this trip. The hotels were lovely, and the wine lunches perfect! There was a good balance of planned activities and free time which I appreciated. I will definitely be looking for more trips to go on with Adventures with Sarah!

Leslie P.Sicily Pleasures tour

Good accommodations in the heart of all important areas. Food experience was excellent with incentive to try new foods. Sarah is very personable and has each tour member's concerns and needs in mind. Love the small groups.

Larry C.Sicily Highlights tour

We had a great time! Perfect mix of free time and planned group excursions/tours. The food was amazing! Our accommodation was comfortable and our views were unforgettable! I would book another trip with this company.

Jen R.Dalmatian Staycation tour

My husband and I had a great time touring Dalmatia with Sarah and the local guides that joined us. A favorite activity was sailing on a traditional sail boat from the island of Vis. Lovely group of travelers and many memories made!

Dawn R.Dalmatian Staycation tour

Food and wine blitz in beautiful areas of Slovenia and Croatia. You will appreciate it most if you are a true wine lover. Meetings with young enthusiastic, creative winemakers were the highlight.

Betsy W.Harvest tour

We had a wonderful trip with no issues at all. Gorgeous area, plenty of delicious food, perfect weather and knowledgeable guide!

John G.Harvest tour

What a perfect way to get back into European travel. It was obvious from the start that Trish had put her heart and soul into the planning of the Hidden Paris tour. It was a great mix of adventures and I throughly enjoyed my travel group, who became like family, and it was obvious to see why most had traveled with adventures with Sarah before, Our local guide, Julian, was excellent and it was fun finally getting to also meet Sarah and sons. Merci beaucoup, Trish for this great time and I hope to travel with you again in the future.

Leslie A.Paris Staycation tour

A thoroughly enjoyable trip. George, our leader, was super-knowledgeable, helpful, energetic, and fun. His knowledge of people and places gave us experiences we couldn't have duplicated on our own. The itinerary was great - I thought the pace was good and we had a variety of experiences. The only thing I didn't like was that the weather in late April was rather chilly and often wet, more so than I expected. However, traveling later in the spring would have meant missing Orthodox Easter, which was the highlight of the trip for me. We spent it in a rural village, and participating in the villagers' traditions was a rare privilege that I'll never forget. So take an umbrella and some warm clothes and prepare for a special experience. Maybe you'll get the sunshine that we mostly didn't get!

Melissa M.Romania tour

Our guide Susanna was both professional and thoughtful. She cared for our health and happiness! I had some health issues and was treated with kindness and help! Our accommodations were both comfortable and clean. The bus driver was fearless and professional. I will travel with Susanna again!

Melva O.Sicily Pleasures tour

This was a wonderful trip! Susanna was such a wonderful tour guide, thoughtful, funny, informative. I can’t imagine a better guide for this trip! Our accommodations were wonderful as were all the varied activities and dining experiences. I enjoyed the other travelers in our group and felt as if we were family. I have made new friends that I will keep in touch with. Thank you!

Anne B.Sicily Pleasures tour

We had a wonderful tour with our guide Susanna and fellow travelers. The tour was well planned out touching on most all the main destinations in Sicily. Susanna was super well organized, kind and considerate and a lot of fun to travel with. She was a great communicator before, during and after the tour and was helpful with day to day needs like finding laundry service, restaurants and transport to the airport. The local guides, meals, accommodations, etc were all top notch. We had a great small group of 7 travelers that all got on very well. The spacious van we used for traveling was very comfortable and the driver Giuseppe was highly skilled at driving the chaotic streets in Sicily’s cities and towns. We highly recommend booking a tour with Adventures with Sarah and especially with Susanna Perrucchini!!

Randal D.Sicily Highlights tour

In short, we will travel with AWS again and would highly recommend them! Oh!! We also felt that we received far more in value and experience than the price for the tour.

Veneto Slovenia tour