Viaggi Italiani with Marcello & Becky by Beach Bum Vacations LLC

27/02/2024

It's with much anticipation and excitement we’re announcing the details of Viaggi Italiani's Summer and Fall 2024 Small Group Tours!

After a five year hiatus, we're bringing back our beloved Southern Italy itinerary - Sicily, Calabria and Amalfi.
🗓️Sunday, June 30 - Monday, July 15, 2024 - SOLD OUT!!
🗓️Sunday, July 14 - Monday, July 29, 2024 - LIMITED AVAILABILITY

For the second year in a row, we're hosting our new and exciting Romantic North itinerary - Venice, Verona, The Lakes District and Cinque Terre.
🗓️Wednesday, October 2 - Tuesday, October 15, 2024

And making a return, our popular and much loved Food, Wine & History itinerary - Rome, Assisi and Siena.
🗓️Tuesday, October 15 - Monday, October 28, 2024

Space is VERY LIMITED so don't wait - contact us TODAY to reserve your place on one of these beautiful, delicious and exciting small group tours! TEL: 609-625-7401 EMAIL: [email protected]

16/11/2023

Someone once said, a wedge of cheese has as much history as a baroque cathedral.

In Italy, cheese isn't just something that you eat - it represents a region and it's history. Just like bread, pasta and cured meats, cheese is a geographical marker. Anywhere that you visit in Italy you will find that there is a longstanding tradition of cheesemaking.

The almost endless types and uses for cheese is incredible. Cheese can be made from cow, sheep, goat or buffalo milk and it can be eaten immediately after making or aged for months and even years. Some cheeses can be eaten as they are while others are used strictly for cooking and baking.

15/11/2023

“Life is a combination of magic and pasta” - Federico Fellini

08/11/2023

The best wine is the wine that you enjoy - especially with friends!

01/11/2023

No visit to Siena is complete without a day in the Tuscan countryside with our amazing tour guide, Roberto.

We learned about Crete Senesi (the Clay Hills), visited the beautiful Monastery of Monte Oliveto Maggiore and the quaint medieval village of Buonconvento that was a stopping point for pilgrims traveling to/from Rome. We ended our day with a visit to MadonnaBella Winery & Farm for a wine tasting and lunch.

30/10/2023

The fourth and final stop on our 2023 Food, Wine and History small group tour is the small seaside town of Fiumicino. Just five minutes from Rome’s international airport, it’s a great place to spend the last night before flying home to The States but so much more than just an airport stay. The promenade along the Tiber River is a popular place to stroll in the afternoon as the commercial fishing boats come in. Later, catch the sunset over the Mediterranean then explore the shops, cafés and restaurants ranging from take-out to gourmet. This all makes for a relaxing last night in Bella Italia.

29/10/2023

The third stop on our 2023 Food, Wine and History small group tour is the beautiful medieval city of Siena in the region of Toscana (Tuscany). The city became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995 and is perhaps best known for the Palio horserace, which takes place twice yearly.

Surrounded by a well-preserved 1,000-year-old wall, the city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centuries. Siena is home to the oldest working bank in the world, Monte dei Paschi bank, founded in 1472.

Surrounded by fabulous vineyards and olive groves, Siena is also known for its hearty cuisine that often include game, namely wild boar, which is perfectly paired with the fabulous wines made throughout the region, including Chianti.

28/10/2023

Today we celebrated “Sagra del Tordo” (festival of the Thrush - a wild game bird) in the beautiful, awe-inspiring hill town of Montalcino in the province of Siena in the region of Toscana (Tuscany, as we know it). History, tradition, pomp and circumstance……it was an outstanding day!

27/10/2023

“Tutto e possibile dopo il caffe!” (everything is possible after coffee) - espresso, caffe macchiato, cappuccino……it’s all fantastic!

27/10/2023

We needed a little city break during our stay in Roma so we took a day trip to Sorrento. Despite the rain we had a great day shopping and exploring then enjoyed a lovely wine tasting experience in Pompei 🚆🛍️🍷

25/10/2023

The second stop on our 2023 Food, Wine and History small group tour is the medieval city of Assisi in the region of Umbria. Best known for being the birthplace of Saint Francis, the patron saint of Italy, Assisi’s picturesque postcard-like streets are filled with small shops selling souvenirs, local crafts, religious icons, local food and wine.

Perched on a hill overlooking Spoleto Valley there are many breathtaking views and panoramas, all unforgettable.

Our amazing local guide, Anne, introduced us to the most important and interesting sights of Assisi including a trip to the nearby town of Deruta, best known for its ceramics which are exported worldwide. We also enjoyed a delicious home cooked lunch at a farmhouse.

21/10/2023

We’re back on the food and wine trail in Bella Italia starting off our 2023 Food, Wine and History small group tour in the Eternal City - Roma. With our expert private tour guides we’re able to understand and truly appreciate the history, art, culture and gastronomy of this amazing place.

15/10/2023

The fourth and final stop on our Romantic North small group tour, Monterosso al Mare is the largest of the five coastal villages known as the Cinque Terre. Surrounded by hills cultivated with lemons, vines and olives and overlooking beautiful beaches, reefs and crystal clear waters this small village is one of the most popular of the Italian Riviera.

Old town Monterosso is dominated by the ruins of a castle and characterized by narrow medieval streets with multi-coloured terraced houses, shops and restaurants.

14/10/2023

During our stay in Stresa we took the train to Milano for the day. Milano, in Italy's northern region of Lombardia, is a global capital of fashion and design as well as the home of the national stock exchange. Our local guide, Giovanni, introduced us to the awe inspiring Gothic “Duomo di Milano” (including the roof terraces) which took more than 500 years to construct. Thousands of artists, sculptors and specialized workers, including Leonardo da Vinci, were involved in the construction of the cathedral.

12/10/2023

“How beautiful is sunset, when the glow of Heaven descends upon a land like thee, Thou Paradise of exiles, Italy!” - Percy Bysshe Shelley

12/10/2023

The third stop on our Romantic North small group tour was the lovely town of Stresa in the northern region of Piemonte. Stresa enjoys a magnificent location on Lake Maggiore overlooking the Borromean Islands with their stunning palaces and ornamental gardens.

09/10/2023

The second stop on our Romantic North small group tour, Verona in the Veneto region is perhaps best known for the fictional story of Romeo & Juliet and for this it’s often called the city of love. The Verona Arena is the third largest amphitheater in Italy built by the Roman’s in 30 AD (it’s older than the Colosseum in Rome) and currently hosts concerts and large-scale opera performances. Rich is history, Verona has been a Roman city, a French city and an Austrian city. The city returned to the Italians in 1866 when the Austrians left Verona.

Our wonderful guide, Virginia, introduced us to this beautiful city on our private “Food, Wine & History Tour”.

08/10/2023

We said arrivederci to beautiful Venezia and made our way to Verona taking a little planned detour to the Prosecco wine region. We visited a small family-run winery that practices biodiversity and produces just 20,000 bottles of wine each year. It was a lovely, relaxing day.

07/10/2023

After a four year hiatus, Viaggi Italiani’s small group tours are back! This week we kicked off the season with our new exclusive itinerary, The Romantic North, in Venezia - La Serenissima (the most serene republic).

10/08/2023

Both of our Fall 2023 small group tours are SOLD OUT!! Thank you for your interest!! Stay tuned for dates and details of our 2024 small group tours!!

30/07/2023

30/07/2023

Palermo, Sicily is a beautiful, traveler-friendly city that’s full of history, charm and character. Street food is king in Palermo with influences from Africa, Arabia, Spain, Greece and Germany to name a few. Contact us today to plan your own personal trip or ask us about our 2024 small group tours.

21/06/2023

Pack your bags and start counting the days - Viaggi Italiani has officially released our Fall 2023 small group tour details!

October 3-15, 2023 - Our Romantic North Small Group Tour includes Venice - the Serene Society; Verona - made famous by Shakespeare's 'Romeo & Juliet'; The Lakes District; and Cinque Terre.

October 17-30, 2023 - Our Food & Wine Small Group Tour includes Rome - the Eternal City; Assisi - in the historic heart of Italy; and Siena - surrounded by Tuscany's rolling hills.

Space is VERY LIMITED so don't wait - contact us TODAY for the full details and to reserve your spot on one of these beautiful, delicious and exciting small group tours! EMAIL: [email protected] PHONE: 609-625-7401

We look forward to showing you the Bella Italia that we know and love so much!

05/01/2022

In Italy, January 6th is celebrated as the 12th day of Christmas, known as The Epiphany. The Feast of the Epiphany is a national public holiday and marks the end of the Christmas season commemorating the presentation of Baby Jesus to the Magi

January 6th is also known as La Befana. In Italian folklore, Befana is an old soot-covered woman or witch who delivers presents to Italian children on the night before La Befana (Epiphany Eve).

The story goes that on their way to see Baby Jesus, the Magi stopped to ask Befana for directions then asked her to join them. She initially refused but later had a change of heart and tried to find the manger. She was unable to find the Baby Jesus and gave the gifts she had brought to other children. To this day, she travels on her broomstick every year on the night of January 5th looking for the manger and giving her presents to any Italian child who leaves out a shoe or hangs up a stocking on Epiphany Eve.

It wouldn’t be a proper Italian festival without an excuse to bake some delicious treats - La Befana is no exception. Special sweets on La Befana include sweet coal candy, small cookies called befanini and Befana cake – a cake with a large dried bean inside. Whoever gets the bean in their slice is king (or queen) for the day.

01/01/2022

28/06/2021

Italy has re-opened its borders to American travelers! And they are ready and waiting for you to come!! Contact us today if you’re ready to travel again and enjoy all that Bella Italia has to offer you without the crowds (for now).

25/04/2021

Each year on April 25th, Italy celebrates Liberation Day, known as “Festa della Liberazione”.

The national holiday marks the day in 1945 when a nationwide radio broadcast calling for a popular uprising and general strike against the N**i occupation and Fascist regime was announced by the National Liberation Committee of Upper Italy (CLNAI), a political umbrella organisation representing the Italian resistance movement.

The first uprising and liberation took place in Bologna on April 21st, 1945, followed two days later by Genoa then Milano on April 25th, and Torino and Venezia on April 28th.

All of northern Italy was liberated by May 1st, with the advance of the Allied forces, leading the occupying German forces to surrender officially on May 2nd.

Festa della Liberazione also represents a significant turning point in Italy's history, paving the way for the referendum of June 2nd, 1946 when Italians voted in favor of a republic and against the monarchy which had been discredited during the war and whose members went into exile.

Designated a national holiday in 1946, Festa della Liberazione remains a divisive day in Italy, coming under attack each year from politicians on the right who refuse to celebrate the event.

The day is usually marked by parades across the country, speeches, the laying of wreaths and singing of “Bella Ciao”, the anthem of the anti-fascist resistance, however this year most activities will move online due to covid-19 restrictions. People are invited to leave flowers at monuments and tombstones honouring the women and men who fought in the Resistance.

13/03/2021

Ten things that we LOVE and MISS about Bella Italia!❤️
Tell us what you miss most about Italy or what you look forward to seeing and experiencing there in the future!

18/02/2021

Mount Etna, on the south side of Sicily, is Europe’s largest and most active volcano. The volcano erupted this past Tuesday, creating a fountain of lava and sending plumes of orange smoke into the sky.

Both destructive and beautiful, the photos of the eruption are awe inspiring.