Kirker Holidays’ enduring passion for Italy is evident once again as the specialist tour operator launches its 2010 brochure, featuring more than 90 hand-picked hotels in over 40 locations.

With more than 23 years’ experience in offering short breaks and tailor-made holidays to this ever popular destination, discerning travellers could be in no better hands as they plan next year’s Italian itinerary. Whether it’s a classic city break, a lake, coast and countryside escape or a more adventurous excursion to one of Italy’s lesser-known delights, Kirker’s expert team is on hand to create the perfect holiday.

 

Kirker’s Italy 2010 brochure includes four fascinating new destinations, each guaranteed to impress even the most ardent Italophile. Boasting more bicycles than people due to its flat terrain, the picture-perfect walled city of Ferrara is famous for the magnificent Castello Estense. Culture lovers will swoon, too, at Palazzo Diamanti’s fine picture collection and the allegorical frescoes at Palazzo Schifanoia and the Casa Romei.

 

Famous as the home of balsamic vinegar as well as Ferrari and Maserati, a short break to Modena promises relaxing strolls around its atmospheric old quarter filled with pretty squares and arcades, as well as visits to one of the best examples of Romanesque architecture in Italy (the Cathedral) and The Palazzo Ducale, containing important works from the Este collection.

 

Set against a dramatic backdrop of snow-capped mountains, Lake Orta is among the most picturesque of the Italian Lakes. Just eight miles long and two miles wide, its pretty water’s edge blossoms with gardenia, wisteria and rhododendrons, whilst vistas dotted with the spires of several churches and an atmospheric early-morning mist make Orta the idyllic choice for a romantic escape.

 

Joining Vulcano and Lipari in Kirker’s Aeolian Islands’ programme, Salina is a horticulturalist’s idea of heaven. With over 400 different types of plants, ranging from poplars, ferns and chestnut trees to caper bushes and olive groves, the island appears almost entirely green when viewed from a distance. Vineyards abound here too, producing Malvasia – a delicious white wine that is only made on Salina.

 

Also new to Kirker’s Italy programme for next year is an expanded selection of hotels, including the iconic Grand Hotel Gardone (four-star superior) on the Gardone Riviera, one of the most famous hotels on the Italian Lakes; the lovely 16th century Villa Del Quar (five-star deluxe) near Verona, with a superb open-air swimming pool and its own vineyards; and the Villa Spaletti Trivelli (four-star deluxe), offering an oasis-like ambience in the heart of bustling Rome. Gastronomes in the know will love Alain Ducasse-owned L’Andana (five-star deluxe) in southern Tuscany – home to the famous chef’s first restaurant in Italy – while hydro-massages with champagne rosé and facial treatments with gold dust await at Naples’ four-star deluxe Grand Hotel Parker’s.

 

Allow Kirker Holidays to tailor make next year’s trip to Italy and be assured of knowledgeable and attentive service at all times, including advice on every aspect of a single or multi-centre itinerary that extends to recommending restaurants, booking opera tickets or arranging a private guided tour through the company’s Concierge Service. All prices include return flights, private car transfers or car hire (where applicable) and Kirker’s guide notes to restaurants and sightseeing in the major towns and cities. Visitors to Venice receive complimentary tickets to the Doges’ Palace and water taxi transfers while a short break to Florence wouldn’t be complete without timed tickets to the Uffizi Gallery, which are also included when booking with Kirker Holidays.