An Italian experience

Malavika Sangghvi is off to Italy soon. She gets some tips for a luxury holiday.

I am planning a three-week holiday in Italy this summer. My choice is informed by scenes from Roman Holiday and Amarcord, Botticelli and Raphael, Alighieri and Armani, Puccini and Pavarotti. I’m thinking windswept vineyards, dappled cathedrals, epic ruins, cobbled streets, al fresco dining, design, laughter, wine, art, history… How will three weeks do it justice?

But I take heart from the fact that never before has there been so much information on Italy in India. Leading Indian industrialists are getting their kids married there. Two friends have separately quit their businesses and set up travel companies to design Italian vacations for Indian high rollers. A banker friend has bought an estate in Sicily. So I begin to seek advice from the Italy experts. Men and women who there each year like pilgrims, who know its secrets and who live la dolce vita.

 

Fashion impresario Tony Sinh, who has set up ‘Moments’, a high-end vacation advisory, gives me the benefit of his experience. “Go to Milan for its fashion, visit via Montenapoleone and via Della Spiga. These two streets have all the fashion you seek, both for men and women.”

Walking distance from this area is the famous Cathedral of Milan with a host of small cafés and restaurants. Great food and wine. At a little distance, in the church of Santa Maria, Leonardo’s Last Supper.

Or go to Rome. My favorite is the area between Piazza del Popolo and the Spanish steps, leading to the Trevi fountain. Besides art, it has what I want from Rome. Lovely boutique hotels, all the fashion and shopping, and then Trevi romance.

Roohi Jaikishan, executive director, RR Oomerbhoy, the food conglomerate which has brought Italy into the kitchens of India, throws her weight behind Italy’s natural beauty. “I would plan to visit Italy’s lake districts. Lake Maggiore becomes a ski paradise during the winter. During the summer, it’s great for water sports. Varenna and the resorts within the eastern shore of Lake Como are lovely. Lake Garda is where citrus and olive trees grow and is home to beautiful vineyards.”

Zara Gilford of Colletts Travel, based in London, says, “I would suggest doing a couple of days in Florence. Pick up the car and drive into the Tuscan countryside about two hours away. Spend a few days exploring the little medieval towns, vineyards, etc. Then take a train to Rome for a week and then fly or take a train to finish off in Venice.”

Ritu Dalmia, who runs Diva, the Delhi-based restaurant that serves delicious continental cuisine, and who wrote Italian Khana, says, “Karen Brown’s Bed and Breakfast in Italy is my Bible for finding tucked away charming hotels all over Italy. The best way to see Italy and its jewels in its little towns and villages is region-wise, and by road.”

Mercury Travels’ Nagsri Prasad says “Rent a Ferrari and explore the Italian Riviera – Naples, Capri, Sorrento etc.” Mumbai’s leading lotus-eating bachelor (who mysteriously doesn’t want to be named) suggests I go to Costa Esmeralda. “It was developed by Aga Khan in the ‘70s and is the equivalent of St Tropez. There is a great golf course next to the Petra Bianca and Cala di Volpe area. If you are planning to rent a boat, then Costa Esmeralda is a good place to base yourself. There are many dive sites in the area.”

My hairdresser Armaity suggests “biking along the Adriatic Sea coast and the beaches of Trieste and Rimini”.

With so much advice coming my way, I don’t know how my Italian holiday is going to finally turn out. I’ll send you a postcard.