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 Your Best Resource to Italy - Online and Off
Bella Vista Tours specializes in cooking classes and active vacations in Italy.
Fine food, beautiful walks or gentle cycle routes, and good local wine are the focus of these holidays. They are aimed at all people with a wide range of interests that may include cooking, languages, art, history, shopping, the outdoors, and wine and the countryside.
We offer escorted and independent holidays. This means that you can either join a group of like minded travelers, or feel free to go as an independent couple and rent a car or let us organize a cycling or walking week for you.
Our idea is to travel quietly, at a pace to relax by. There is time to absorb the surroundings, talk to the locals, chat with workers in the vineyards, or visit a church or small museum en route.
And of course, time to taste a few wines or buy a fresh baguette for lunch.
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 Style of Holidays We Offer
The styles of our holidays in Italy:
*Cooking Schools in Italy *Escorted Group Cooking & Walking Tours (Luxury Accommodation) *Escorted Group Cycling & Wine *Escorted Group Walking & Wine *Independent Walking (one week) *Independent Cycling (one week) *Tailor Made Gourmet Holidays (four days)
You can also customize this type of vacation for private groups from 6 – 15 people
We offer two levels of accommodation: on our Bella Vista Luxury Cooking & Walking Trips we stay in four and five star properties, in some of the world’s most beautiful villas such as Bellagio’s Villa Serbelloni on Lake Como, and exquisite Relais Chateaux throughout Tuscany.
On our other Bella Vista escorted tours and independent tours, we stay in the following types of accommodation: villas, bed & breakfasts, farmhouses and country hotels, often those characterful places with a reputation for good food and a warm, friendly welcome. These are carefully selected three and four star properties unless otherwise mentioned.
Farmhouses - Located on actual working farms, the rooms are inside, or next to, the house of the family running the farm. Some of the farms produce olive oil, while others produce wine, honey, tomatoes and other vegetables, but all will provide you with a glimpse of real Tuscan life. It's the perfect place to stay if you want to enjoy the true Tuscany.
Villas - Restored to their former splendour and available to guests, these treasures contain all modern facilities, while retaining their rustic charm. Many still have landscaped grounds to enjoy and quiet areas for walking. They are the perfect place to stay to enjoy a taste of Tuscany's past, when the great Landowner's Villas were a place for important guests and friends from around the world would congregate in the countryside.
Bed and Breakfasts - These are traditional B & B's with a Tuscan flair. Many are located in old farmhouses or villas, which no longer produce agricultural goods. Instead, the proprietors restored the house itself for guests like you. They are pefect for relaxing and enjoying the sites and sounds of Tuscany, after a wonderful breakfast overlooking the hills of Tuscany.
Country Hotels - All are located in rural areas, and will offer nearly every ammenity you need. They are perfect for those who want hotel service, but in an ideal "country" setting.
Grazie e Benvenuti!
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 Superior Service and Expertise
Our experienced consultants have traveled the world over and have years of experience working with the finest travel companies sending thousands of passengers to Italy and France.
Bella Vista Tours began as a division of Open Road Travel, a Canadian Adventure Travel Agency located in Vancouver, Canada, and operated by Michele Melland. Michele's interest in travel began as a student in Como, Italy, after which time she came back to Canada to the University of British Columbia. After graduating with a Major in Fine Arts, Michele still had the Italian Travel Bug in mind and took over the operations of Open Road Travel.
Then in 1995 Susan Bertoia and Michele Melland put their passion for Italy, a desire to hike and cook, and the enjoyment of delicious food and wine together to create Cooking and Walking tours to Italy. Since they both had a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Drama)and were fluent in Italian, they were quick to want to share the beauties of Italy and its cultural attributes; but the real difference in the tours is the local interaction that happens when a Bella Vista Tour passes through town. Soon the village is inviting our small groups in to stomp on the grapes and taste the local Grappa!
The clients who come on these trips are invited to explore a tender part of Italy and Italians that few ever have the chance to experience. Why is this particular to Bella Vista Tours?
Because the leaders of our tours have one main objective - to show you an Italy that no one else can.
Our only goal is to make sure that you come back feeling as much a part of Italy as if you were in an Italian movie - where the little old Italian man sitting on "his" bench starts telling you a story about World War II and how the city banded together, or the Signora in the field invites us to pick grapes with her...but please don't expect them to speak English! This is a different kind of tour for a different kind of traveler.
In 1998, we branched into the United States, and now offer our tours to both American and Canadian Travel Agents and Clients. We are very proud of the tours we operate, and the response from past clients, please take a look at our "testimonials" for past and future clients feedback!
We say future because many of our clients return to travel with us again and again.
Italy offers so much to be seen, and with Bella Vista Tours, you can see it again and again, and never quite see the same thing twice.
Call and speak with one of our experienced travel consultants, and begin planning your next vacation today!
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