Northern Italy Cruise & Venice Simplon-Orient-Express

Start your holiday in style as you enjoy included airport lounge access before your flight to Venice. On arrival, a private transfer will see you to your ship – the S.S. La Venezia. Fully refurbished, and with decks named after the islands of the Venetian Lagoon, it’s an opulent home to three restaurants, a spa, a lounge and bar – the perfect home-from-home for your cruise through northern Italy.

Before departing Venice, you’ll have a day to explore the myriad wonders of Italy’s floating city, as an expert guide helps you to untangle the secrets and myths of its iconic waterways. There’s also time for a scenic cruise around the Venetian Lagoon and a very special after-hours private tour of St Mark’s Basilica. End the day in style with a Captain’s Welcome Reception and delicious celebratory dinner.

Today, you'll have a choice of morning excursions, taking in the Veneto region’s UNESCO World Heritage cities of Padua or Vicenza. Then, after lunch onboard, you'll join a guided walk in Venice to meet a local gondola artisan before a scenic sailing across the lagoon, heading for Mazzorbo and Burano.

Spend a memorable day exploring the northern Venetian Lagoon. Visit Torcello's famous basilica with an art historian, then take a stroll through the agricultural island of Mazzorbo and the multi-coloured houses of Burano. Alternatively, head to Murano to learn about the art of glassblowing.

Joining your expert guide, you'll explore the charming coastal area of Chioggia with a stop at a bustling local market. Then, with a choice of activities, you might visit the grand Castello del Catajo, or join a local sommelier to learn about the long history of winemaking in the Veneto region. Heading to Dominio di Bagnoli, you'll explore one of the oldest wine producing properties in Europe for a private tasting.

This morning, you'll join a sailing excursion to explore the Po Delta where the Po River and the Adriatic Sea meet. During a leisurely lunch and a relaxing afternoon you'll cruise back to Venice. Back amid the charms of the floating city, a choice of superb excursions awaits, the first of which is a ‘do-as-the-locals-do’ appreciation of the city’s markets and culinary hotspots in the company of an expert guide, often the ship’s head chef. Alternatively, take a walking tour to Rialto Bridge and visit the sites made famous by renowned intellectual and part-time playboy – Casanova. In the evening, a Captain’s farewell reception and dinner will see you end your cruise in style.

After a delicious breakfast on board, you'll disembark for a private transfer to Verona and your five-star hotel. Take the time to relax and freshen up as you prepare for an exploration of ‘Shakespeare’s city’. Indeed, be sure to take in the likes of Juliet’s balcony before enjoying skip-the-line access and a private tour of one of Italy’s most prestigious music venues – the Arena di Verona. 

Spend a final relaxing morning in Verona before taking your private transfer to the station where the blue-and-gold carriages of the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express will be waiting to welcome you. Settle into your wood-panelled cabin as you race across rural northern Italy, enjoying a delicious three-course lunch set against a backdrop of the Dolomites' granite spires. Then, following a relaxing afternoon, dress for dinner, mingle in the Bar car and order a signature cocktail while you listen to period pieces performed on the baby grand piano. Finally, settle down to a four-course, wine-paired feast, dining on dishes inspired by the train's route as you head across alpine Switzerland.

Wake to a Continental breakfast served in your cabin as you sweep across northern France towards Paris. On arrival, you'll say goodbye to the fineries of your Art Deco accommodation and a short transfer will whisk you to Gare du Nord for your Eurostar journey to London St Pancras. Alternatively, if you would like to end your experience in style with a luxury stay in Paris, please speak to one of our specialists.