| Xavier College String Orchestra & Chamber Choir from Australia June 24 – July 10, 2013 Italy, Austria, Slovenia Venice, Cremona, Salzburg, Bled, Vienna |
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Day 1 Tue, June 25thVENICE
Arrive to Venice
Upon arrival at Venice Airport, your ensemble, the Xavier College String Orchestra & Chamber Choir, will be met by the touring coach, driver and experienced SCL Festival concert tour manager.
Transfer from the airport to Venice.
Venice is a magical city par excellence, one of the most scenic and extraordinary where history and art reflect in the peaceful water of the Lagoon. So much has been written about Venice that it seems superfluous to remember that this is one of the most unique cities in the world. It has justifiably been named by UNESCO as being a site of important human heritage not only for its artistic wealth, but also for its extraordinary co-existence of the activity of mankind and its natural situation on the Lagoon.
Check-in at hotel Venezia
Dinner local restaurant La Corte (250 m from Hotel)
Overnight Venice Mestre (1)
Day 2 Wed, June 26th VENICE
Breakfast at hotel
Transfer to Venice city centre for a H/D city tour in the city
Lunch on own arrangements
Dinner at the hotel Petrarca Terme
ADDITIONAL CONCERT PERFORMANCE (#1) in Venice at the gardens of the Hotel Petrarca Terme in Montegrotto Terme
Overnight Venice (2)
Day 3 Thu, June 27th VENICE - MARANELLO - CREMONA
Breakfast at hotel & check-out
Transfer to Maranello
Visit to Galleria Ferrari
Lunch on own arrangements
Transfer to Cremona
Cremona is a city and comune in northern Italy, situated in Lombardy, on the left bank of the Po River in the middle of the Pianura Padana (Po valley). Cremona has a distinguished musical history. The 12th-century cathedral was probably the focus of organized musical activity in the region in the late Middle Ages. By the 16th century the town had become a famous musical centre. Nowadays there are important ensembles for Renaissance and Baroque music, and festivals which maintain Cremona as one of the most important towns in Italy for music. From the 16th century onwards, Cremona was renowned as a centre of musical instrument manufacture, beginning with the violins of the Amati family, and later included the products of the Guarneri and Stradivari shops. To the present day, their work is widely considered to be the summit of achievement in string instrument making. Today Cremona is still renowned for producing high-quality instruments.
H/D Guided sightseeing tour of Cremona
Check-in at hotel Ibis Cremona
Dinner at local restaurant Al Portico Pizzeria
Overnight Cremona (3)
Day 4 Fri, June 28th CREMONA ---> SALZBURG
SALZBURG - ARRIVAL TO THE CITY OF MOZART IN THE AUSTRIAN ALPS
Breakfast at hotel & check-out
Visit:
Stradivari Museum: The history of the Stradivarian Museum began in 1893, the year in which the town of Cremona accepted Giovanni Battista Cerani's donation of moulds, patterns and various tools that had belonged to Cremonese violin makers, including some of Antonio Stradivari's.
Transfer to Salzburg (ca 535 km, ca 8 hours drive)
Lunch on own arrangements en route
Check-in at hotel Pension Sonnenhof
Art lovers call Salzburg the Golden City of High Baroque; historians refer to it as the Florence of the North, or the German Rome; and music lovers know it as the Festival City – birthplace of Mozart and home of the world-famous Salzburg Festival. Explore the World Cultural Heritage Old Town of Salzburg (Altstadt) with its word-renowned baroque architecture, surrounded by the Austrian Alps. Visit the Dom, the Festival Hall, St. Peter’s Abbey Church and its graveyards as well as Mozart´s birthplace in the Getreidegasse.
Dinner at hotel
Overnight Salzburg (4)
Day 5 Sat, June 29th SALZBURG
Breakfast at hotel
Guided city exploration of Salzburg including a visit to Mozart’s birthplace
See the Dom, the Festival Hall, St. Peter’s Abbey Church and its graveyards, Salzburg fortress as well as Mozart’s birthplace in the famous Getreidegasse and the gardens of Mirabell Palace.
After the city tour enjoy a guided sound of music bike tour
You will visit some famous sound of music locations not visited in the morning! Just enjoy the ride!
Lunch on own arrangements
Leisure time to freshen up before the concert
Dinner at Hotel Langasthog Ragginger
7:00 p.m. – 9 p.m. ADDITIONAL CONCERT PERFORMANCE (#2) in Nußdorf/Attersee
Mass participation followed by a 60 minutes concert, your concert will be held in the parish church of Nussdorf.
Nussdorf am Attersee is a town in Upper Austria and attracts visitors from Austria and abroad both in summer and winter season due to its picturesque ambiance.
Overnight Salzburg (5)
Day 6 Sun June 30th SALZBURG
DISCOVER THE SOUND OF MUSIC AREA
Breakfast at hotel
In the morning, you will be taken on the Sound of Music Tour
Discover Salzburg in the footsteps of “The Sound of Music” and see the locations where the world-famous film was shot. Some of the highlights and film locations that you will see on your tour include: the Gardens of Mirabell Palace, Leopoldskron Palace, Hellbrunn Nonnberg Abbey, St. Gilgen and Lake Wolfgang.
Lunch on own arrangements
In the afternoon you will be taken to an Alpine bobsled ride!
Bobsled ride on the run - This is not for the faint of heart. It is the most adrenalizing and jaw-dropping ride you can imagine.
Dinner at local restaurant Stieglkeller
Overnight Salzburg (6)
Day 7 Mon July 1st SALZBURG - BLED
Breakfast at hotel & check-out
Transfer to Bled (ca 240 km, ca 3,5 hours drive)
Lunch on own arrangements
Workshops with Prof.Helfried Fister (arranged by Xavier directly).
Check-in at hotel Trst
With immense natural beauty, Bled, together with its surroundings, ranks among the most beautiful alpine resorts, renowned for its mild, healing climate and thermal lake water. The beauty of the mountains reflected on the lake, the sun, the serenity and the fresh air arouse pleasant feelings in visitors throughout the year, guaranteeing an ideal base or a relaxing break or an active holiday. Bled attracts businessmen, artists, athletes, explorers, sport enthusiasts, the old and the young, from all over the world, enchanting them to return again and again.
Dinner at hotel Trst
ADDITIONAL CONCERT PERFORMANCE (#3) at the Lake Saloon of the Hotel Toplice
Overnight Bled (7)
Day 8 Tue July 2nd BLED
Breakfast at hotel
Workshops with Prof.Helfried Fister (arranged by Xavier directly).
Lunch on own arrangements
H/D Sightseeing tour of Bled including the Bled Castle
Bled Castle Museum: The museum located in the baroque rooms of the castle takes visitors on a journey celebrating the eventful history of Bled from the time when the first settlements in the area appeared to the present day. The furnishing of the museum interprets settlement culture over different eras.
Leisure time for independent sightseeing:
Optional: Visit the Bled and Island Church
Dinner at local restaurant Tourist farm Mulej
Overnight Bled (8)
-----> Itinerary Day 9 - 16
