Italy
Bespoke luxury holidays to Italy, tailor-made by our specialist travel advisors.
Jumeirah Capri Palace
La Dolce Vita Orient Express
Hotel Il Pellicano
Borgo Santo Pietro
Hotel Cala di Volpe
Villa Eden – The Private Retreat
Villa D’Este
Mandarin Oriental Milan
Aman Venice
Villa Cora
Grand Hotel Tremezzo
Rosewood Castiglion Del Bosco
Pitrizza
Il Salviatino
Villa Sant’Andrea, A Belmond Hotel, Taormina Mare
Grand Hotel Timeo, A Belmond Hotel, Taormina
Belmond Villa San Michele
Verdura Golf & Spa Resort Golf (Rocco Forte)
Grand Hotel Quisisana Capri
Four Seasons Hotel Florence
Borgo Egnazia Hotel Puglia, Italy
Splendido, A Belmond Hotel, Portofino
Belmond Cipriani Venice
Caruso, A Belmond Hotel, Amalfi Coast
Luxury Holidays to Italy
Italy is the country our clients return to most. One trip might pair Lake Como with a few days in Venice; the next, a Tuscan estate with the Amalfi Coast or a week on the Costa Smeralda. The food, the art and the hotels are as good as anywhere in the world, and most of the country is a little over two hours’ flight from London.
Berkeley Travel plans Italy around hotels we know well, from Villa d’Este and Aman Venice to Rosewood Castiglion del Bosco and Belmond Caruso on the Amalfi Coast. Your Travel Designer arranges the private drivers, boats and guides, puts the regions in the right order so no day is lost to travel, and books each hotel with our Virtuoso and partner benefits where they apply.
Why Visit Italy?
Few countries pack so much into so little distance. In a single week you can walk the Uffizi in the morning and lunch in a Chianti vineyard, take a boat across Lake Como to a garden villa, or swim off the rocks below Capri. Every region cooks differently, and every town has a church or palazzo that would be the main sight anywhere else.
It is also a country that does hotels exceptionally well. Former monasteries, Renaissance villas and Venetian palazzi have become some of the most beautiful places to stay in Europe, and the best of them feel like private houses rather than hotels.
Where to Go in Italy
Most of our clients combine two regions in a week to ten days: a lake or a city with a stretch of coast. These are the ones we book most.
Lake Como and Milan
The lake is at its best from April to October, when the gardens are in flower and the boats run between Bellagio, Varenna and the villas. Villa d’Este at Cernobbio is the grande dame of the lake, and Grand Hotel Tremezzo faces Bellagio across the water, with a pool floating on the lake. Milan is an hour away for La Scala, The Last Supper and the fashion houses, with Mandarin Oriental Milan a quiet base in the Quadrilatero. Three or four nights on the lake is ideal.
Venice
Venice is best seen early and late, once the day visitors have gone. Aman Venice occupies a sixteenth-century palazzo on the Grand Canal, with frescoed rooms and a private garden. Belmond Cipriani sits on Giudecca, a short launch ride from St Mark’s, with a large pool that is rare in Venice. Two or three nights is enough for the Accademia, the Doge’s Palace and a private boat to Murano and Burano.
Florence and Tuscany
Florence rewards two or three nights, and Tuscany a week. See the Uffizi and the Accademia with a private guide, then stay at Four Seasons Florence in its Renaissance garden, at Villa Cora near the Boboli Gardens, or above the city in Fiesole at Villa San Michele and Il Salviatino. South of Siena, Rosewood Castiglion del Bosco has its own Brunello vineyard and golf course near Montalcino, and Borgo Santo Pietro is a restored hamlet with its own farm and kitchen garden. Il Pellicano on the Argentario coast adds the sea.
The Amalfi Coast, Capri and Portofino
The Amalfi Coast is the Italy of postcards: Positano and Amalfi on the cliffs, lemon terraces and boats to hidden coves. We base clients high above the sea in Ravello at Belmond Caruso, with its infinity pool, or across the water on Capri at Jumeirah Capri Palace in Anacapri or Grand Hotel Quisisana in the town. Further north, Splendido looks down on Portofino harbour. These coastal hotels open from spring to autumn, so plan for April to October.
Sardinia, Sicily and Puglia
For a longer beach stay, the Costa Smeralda in north-east Sardinia has some of the clearest water in the Mediterranean. Hotel Cala di Volpe and Pitrizza are our favourites there. Sicily combines Greek temples, Etna and Baroque towns: Belmond Grand Hotel Timeo looks over the Greek theatre in Taormina, with Villa Sant’Andrea on the bay below, and Verdura on the south-west coast suits families and golfers. In Puglia, Borgo Egnazia is a village-style resort among olive groves on the Adriatic.
Where Should You Stay in Italy?
We choose the hotel for the trip, not the other way round. For a first visit, the grand lake and city hotels, Villa d’Este, Aman Venice and Four Seasons Florence, set the tone. For privacy and space, the Tuscan estates, Castiglion del Bosco and Borgo Santo Pietro, feel like staying in a friend’s country house. For the sea, Belmond Caruso, Jumeirah Capri Palace and Hotel Cala di Volpe each do the Italian summer in their own way.
Families do well at Borgo Egnazia, Verdura and Castiglion del Bosco, which have space, pools and children’s programmes, while honeymooners tend towards Caruso, Capri Palace and Aman Venice. Many of these hotels carry benefits when booked through Berkeley Travel, such as daily breakfast, a hotel credit and an upgrade where available, and your Travel Designer will tell you which apply.
Planning Your Trip to Italy
The practical points, answered.
Getting There
Direct flights from London reach Milan, Venice, Florence, Pisa, Rome, Naples, Olbia, Catania and Bari in around two to three hours. From the airport we arrange a private driver, or a boat in Venice and to Capri.
Entry and Documents
British passport holders do not need a visa for stays of up to 90 days in any 180. Since April 2026 the EU Entry/Exit System records fingerprints and a photograph at the border on your first visit. ETIAS, a €20 online travel authorisation, is due to follow but has no confirmed start date.
Getting Around
Fast trains link Milan, Florence, Rome and Naples in one to two hours each. We use the train between cities and a private driver in the countryside, boats and helicopters on the lakes and the Amalfi Coast, and La Dolce Vita Orient Express when the journey should be part of the holiday.
When Is the Best Time to Visit Italy?
May, June and September are the best months for most of Italy: warm, long days, the sea warm enough to swim and fewer crowds than high summer. The lakes and the coast are seasonal, and most of the hotels we book there are open from April or May until October.
July and August are hot, especially in the cities, and August is when Italians take their own holidays, so the coast and islands are busiest around Ferragosto on 15 August. Spring and autumn suit the cities and Tuscany, with the grape and truffle harvests in October. Winter is quiet and atmospheric in Venice, Florence and Rome, and the season for skiing in the Dolomites.
Combining Italy with France, Switzerland or Greece
Italy borders some of our favourite places. Portofino is a short drive from the French Riviera and Monaco, Lake Como is around two hours from St Moritz and the Swiss Alps, and Greece is a short flight from Rome or Milan. For the journey itself, the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express runs from London and Paris to Venice, and our luxury train journeys include routes across Italy.
FAQ
Italy Travel FAQs
The questions our clients ask most often when planning a luxury holiday to Italy.
A week to ten days suits two regions at an easy pace. For example, three nights on Lake Como or in Venice and four or five on the coast or in Tuscany. With two weeks you can add a third region or an island. We plan no more than one move every three nights.
May, June and September, when it is warm but not too hot and the coastal hotels are open. July and August are the busiest and hottest months. The cities are good all year, and most lake and coast hotels close from November to March.
No. British passport holders can stay up to 90 days in any 180 without a visa. The EU Entry/Exit System now records fingerprints and a photograph at the border on your first entry. ETIAS, an online travel authorisation costing €20, is expected to follow but has no confirmed start date yet.
It depends on the trip. Lake Como is gardens, villas and boat days, calmer and cooler, and pairs well with Milan or Venice. The Amalfi Coast is cliffs, sea and long lunches, livelier and hotter, and pairs well with Capri and Rome. Many clients do both, with a short flight from Milan to Naples between them.
Very. Italians welcome children everywhere, and resorts such as Borgo Egnazia in Puglia and Verdura in Sicily have kids’ clubs, pools and space to roam. We plan shorter drives, private guides who make the Colosseum or the Uffizi fun for children, and villas when you want a house of your own.
A dedicated Travel Designer who plans the route, the transfers and the reservations that sell out, from The Last Supper to lunch tables on Capri, with 24-hour support while you travel. At many of our Italian hotels you also receive partner benefits such as breakfast, a hotel credit and an upgrade where available.
Speak to a Travel Designer
Tell us when you would like to travel and what you want from Italy, and a Travel Designer will come back to you the same day with a first route. The best rooms on Lake Como and the Amalfi Coast for June and September often go early in the year, so it pays to plan ahead.
YOUR DEDICATED TRAVEL PARTNER
24
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7
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365
TAILORED SERVICES
TAILORED SERVICES
Our in-house concierge service will use their extensive contact list
to help you source anything you desire.
TAILORED SERVICES
Our in-house concierge service will use their extensive contact list
to help you source anything you desire.
BESPOKE itinerary
BESPOKE itinerary
We work hand in hand with clients to create your dream
itinerary ensuring every detail is looked after from start to finish.
BESPOKE itinerary
We work hand in hand with clients to create your dream
itinerary ensuring every detail is looked after from start to finish.
BESPOKE AIR
BESPOKE AIR
We have access to every major airline and an extensive knowledge of their pricing schedules helping our clients achieve highly competitive airfares in all cabins.
BESPOKE AIR
We have access to every major airline and an extensive knowledge of their pricing schedules helping our clients achieve highly competitive airfares in all cabins.
PRIVATE SKY
PRIVATE SKY
Working directly hand in hand with our brokers and
aircraft owners we can source the best deals and most convenient slots for Private Jet hire.
PRIVATE SKY
Working directly hand in hand with our brokers and
aircraft owners we can source the best deals and most convenient slots for Private Jet hire.
EXCLUSIVE BENEFITS
EXCLUSIVE BENEFITS
We have arranged with a number of our luxury partners some exclusive additional benefits. These can include complimentary daily breakfast, a hotel credit towards food or spa treatments,an upgrade on arrival where available, and early check in / late check out.
EXCLUSIVE BENEFITS
We have arranged with a number of our luxury partners some exclusive additional benefits. These can include complimentary daily breakfast, a hotel credit towards food or spa treatments,an upgrade on arrival where available, and early check in / late check out.
COST MANAGEMENT
COST MANAGEMENT
We provide access for our clients to the most cost effective and convenient travel means. Our long standing partnerships and in depth industry knowledge ensure that we source the best rates available on the market.
COST MANAGEMENT
We provide access for our clients to the most cost effective and convenient travel means. Our long standing partnerships and in depth industry knowledge ensure that we source the best rates available on the market.
London office suite
