Florence and Val Gardena, Italy
January 22-February 2, 2020

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Our long-anticipated departure day was finally here, or was it? My text messaging and email notifications started pinging, then my phone – it was 9:04 a.m., yet Lufthansa had already texted everyone in our group of a delayed departure and Alphorn Tours was hard at work rescheduling our connecting flight to Bologna. After sipping several bon voyage spirits, we were finally on our way! We arrived at the Hotel Rivoli in Florence just before 4:00 p.m. local time, tired but elated that we were really ON VACATION and no longer had a clock to watch!

On Friday, we all went on a walking tour of Florence, taking in the sights of Santa Maria del Fiore, the Baptistery and Giotto’s Campanile in Cathedral Square, the Pitti Palace, the Duomo, the Ponte Vecchio Bridge, hearing of the rich history and Renaissance heritage of Florence – our guides were so knowledgeable. We continued our tour with skip-the-line admission to the Ufizzi Gallery, and admired masterpieces by Botticelli (birth of Venus), Michelangelo, Raffaello, Da Vinci and Caravaggio (Medusa). Some took advantage of the Hop & Stop and also toured the city by bus. On Saturday, many took advantage of the wonderful shopping in Italy -- Italian leather jackets, pocketbooks, wallets, belts, ankle boots, you name it, someone in our group bought it! Everyone LOVED Florence, the sights, shopping, restaurants, food, wines, and our hotel, so it is just a matter of time before WSC returns.

On Sunday we traveled to Val Gardena. We stopped in Sirmione for a long lunch, with some touring the Scaligero Castle at the edge of Lake Garda and others roaming the quaint cobblestoned streets and sampling Gelato. It was the perfect rest stop but all were anxious to continue on to Val Gardena.

We arrived in Ortisei around 4:00 p.m. and were warmly welcomed by the Hotel Stetteneck staff. This gem of a hotel is surrounded by picturesque views of the Dolomites, numerous shops, local museums, pizzerias, cafes and cobble-stone streets. Did I forget to mention – we had this hotel ALL to ourselves? Add in a welcome party, a fantastic chef, amazing menus (and a salad bar like none other I’ve seen in Europe). And what is a trip to Val Gardena without sampling the local specialty - apple strudel with vanilla cream sauce? An absolute must-have and calorie-free too! Thank you for sharing Rick!

Some of us arranged for two great ski instructors, Daniel and Isaac, who guided us around the famous Sellaronda – the total distance of the loop including lifts is about 37 kilometers (about 23.1 miles of skiing) and circles the Sella Massif. On a clear day, you can see the Italian, French, Austrian and Swiss Alps from the various sides of the Sella Massif. Day after day, lots of long runs, great skiing, quaint mountainside restaurants, and for those who challenged themselves on The World Cup run, it did not disappoint … and a great apres-ski bar awaited just beyond the finish line, as did the steambath, sauna and pool back at our hotel.

Our one disappointment came from Lufthansa Airlines’ multiple changes, BUT really just a minor blip that occasionally happens with large group travel and when it does, you just have to work with it. Our memories of Florence, Val Gardena, and all we experienced in wonderful Italy is what we remember.
We had a great group of people on this trip, and shared lots of fun and laughter. Anne and Madeline extend special thanks to all for a memorable vacation!

Stay tuned . . . Lyon/Trois Vallees (Val Thorens) information and signup date will be posted in May Scrapings.

by Anne Ceres

Early Mail Sign-up Policy | Val Gardena Sign-Up Form (updated July 5) | Trip Cancellation Policy