Parma, Cremona & Mantua - Parma

Our second tour to this relatively unknown corner of northern Italy is based in Parma, a city synonymous with the very best food and produce in Italy, and includes visits to the art cities of Cremona and Mantua. Musically, too, the region has the finest credentials: Giuseppe Verdi was born in the small farming village of Roncole and Arturo Toscanini was born in Parma itself. This really is an exploration of the three things we most closely associate with Italy – art, food and music. A number of fine lunches and dinners are included and there will be an opportunity to learn more about the two specialities for which the region is world famous, ‘parmigiano e prosciutto’.   ITINERARY DAY 1 - FLY TO BOLOGNA We fly from London to Bologna, and transfer to Parma where we stay for the duration of the holiday at the centrally located 4 star NH Hotel Parma. DAY 2 - PARMA Parma was once the seat of the influential Farnese family, whose patronage allowed art and music to flourish. Together with a gastronomic reputation that’s renowned around the world, this makes Parma the most perfect of Italian cultural experiences. At the city’s art gallery and former Farnese residence, the Palazzo della Pilotta, we will see works by Correggio and Parmigianino, before continuing to the Teatro Farnese, the wooden theatre of 1628, the first to be constructed with a proscenium arch. We will also see the city’s exquisite opera house, the Teatro Regio, and the frescoes by Correggio at the Cathedral. DAY 3 - MANTUA Nearby Mantua was the base of the rival Gonzaga family, patrons of Mantegna and Romano. We will see works by both artists during our day in the city, as well as the family residence the Palazzo Ducale, and the elegant Palazzo Te on the outskirts. In the evening we drive to the banks of the River Po for dinner at the magnificent Antico Corte Pallavicino, a distinguished restaurant, which was once a farmhouse on the Pallavicino estate. DAY 4 - CREMONA In Cremona, birthplace of Stradivarius and where members of the Stradivari family created the world’s finest string instruments, we will see the Museum of the Violin. Recently opened, it has one of the world’s most important collections of historic musical instruments. Dozens of craftsmen still continue this tradition today and we will visit a working luthier’s atelier in the afternoon to see the craft in practice. DAY 5 - GUISEPPE VERDI Today is devoted to the life and work of Giuseppe Verdi, who was born in rural Roncole and who lived most of his life not far away in Busseto. Here we will visit the Villa Verdi where the composer lived for many years. Lunch is included at I due Foscari, a hotel once owned by the son of the great tenor, Carlo Bergonzi. The day ends at the Museo Nazionale di Giuseppe Verdi where the composer’s creative genius and his importance in the world of opera can be appreciated to the full. DAY 6 - FLIGHT BACK We return to Bologna airport for the flight back to London.Holiday Name : Parma, Cremona & Mantua 
Reference : KKM