Gardens of the Neapolitan Riviera, 4 Nights 15 Oct 2009 by AIR from £735.00

Breathtaking views and dazzling gardens await on a classic tour to this ever-popular part of Italy.

Price £735 per person based on two sharing a twin room, with scheduled flights from London to Naples. Visits to the gardens of Villa San Michele, Giardani di Augusto, La Mortella, Villa Rufolo, Villa Cimbrone and to Pompeii.

Day 1
We depart from London on our scheduled flight to Naples (regional flight connections and overnight accommodation before or after the tour available on request). Upon arrival we will transfer to the city centre of Naples where we will have free time to sightsee. Founded in the 7th century BC probably by the Greeks who were already present in the area, the town was named Neapolis, the “New City”. Only a few traces of the ancient wall remain - the city has been repeatedly rebuilt on the same site. In the late afternoon we will travel to our hotel in the Sorrento area.

Day 2
Following breakfast we will travel by boat to the beautiful island of Capri which is only 6 kms in length and 2km in width, where we will have our first visit to the gardens of Villa San Michele. The Villa San Michele was built on the site of a Roman manor on the mountain face looking across towards Monte Tiberio and the bay. It houses the Swedish author Axel Munthe’s collection of Roman sculpture, antique furniture and prints and is now the property of the Swedish State. The park of great beauty and botanical interest affords a splendid view of the Gulf of Naples with Vesuvius and the Sorrento peninsula dominating the skyline.

Our second visit will be to Giardini di Augusto with its fantastic panoramic view of the island’s south side. The gardens belonged to the villa of Friedrich Alfred Krupp, son of the founder of the great German steelworks. Built on the ruins of the ancient Roman structures, the gardens were donated by Krupp to Capri. In a corner of the garden a statue of Lenin was erected to commemorate his stay on the island.

Day 3
This morning, after breakfast, we travel to the medieval cathedral town of Ravello, where we visit the gardens of Villa Rufolo, which commands picture-perfect views over the Amalfi coast. This is one of the oldest surviving palaces in Italy dating from the 13th century - Wagner visited the villa in 1880 and was inspired to write part of his opera Parsifal here. On the upper terrace umbrella pines and cypresses shade a wellhead while on a lower level classical geometric beds edged with box are filled with modern flowers. Tender plants which thrive in the mild climate are a feature of the lower terrace.

In the afternoon we will visit the gardens of Villa Cimbrone, a 19th century Moorish/English hybrid by William Beckett, Lord Grimthorpe, who owned the property until 1900. The garden was designed on a clifftop promontory with magnificent views of the Amalfi coast jutting out 106 m above the Mediterranean. Trees, flowers and plants grow in profusion. A wisteria-clad pergola stretches almost the full length of the central axis, while on either side there are imaginative themed gardens including a stretch of lawn decorated with statues, a sunken teahouse garden, a rose garden and shady grove of umbrella pines and cypresses which descends down the steep slopes to the valleys below.

Day 4
Following breakfast we will travel by boat to Ischia, the largest island in the Bay of Naples to visit the gardens of La Mortella. The composer, Sir William Walton, came here with his wife Susana in 1956 and started the garden in the sloping gully before building the house in 1962. Russell Page, the garden designer, drew up a plan for the south-sloping valley, allowing the rocky ground to dictate the seemingly naturalistic planting style but imposing his own geometry - an axial line framing the distant peak of Mount Ipomeo. Here you will be dazzled by the array of rare and tender trees, palms, shrubs, ferns and bulbs. Part of the charm of La Mortella lies in the fact that it is not only a garden of lush exotics, but simultaneously indigenous plants cling precariously to the steep terraced hillsides above. Umbrella pines, groves of ilex and arbutus, Itailian cypresses and myrtles thrive here in glorious companionship.

Day 5
Following breakfast we will check out of the hotel and make our final visit to one of the most remarkable sites in the world - Pompeii, the town which was tragically drowned in lava following the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. The town was buried under 23 feet of ash, which solidified with rain and time, preserving everything as if it was in a time capsule. Hidden for centuries, excavation work revealed an elegant resort with complete streets, beautiful villas and sculptures. Now almost four-fifths of the original city has been unearthed and many of the treasures are housed in the National Museum in Naples.

Afterwards we will return to the airport for our return flight to London where on arrival our group will disperse.