Opera synopses :2023
( coming soon )

Il Trovatore ( Festival Verdi ) – Online link 
I Lombardi alla prima crociata – Online link
Nabucco – Online link
Falstaff – Online link
Le Nozze di Figaro ( La Scala ) – Online link 
I Due Foscari ( La Fenice ) – Online Link 

Just a few local ideas for each of our city bases

(Our local guides will have more ‘free time’ suggestions
and up-to-date info. about museums etc. Please check opening times, as these can change )

REGGIO EMILIA

Restaurants near hotel ( those with *, we have eaten there ):-
* Cafe Arti e Mestieri – ( more of a restaurant at night ) – Via Emilia San Pietro, 16 – nice garden for daytime – closed Sunday night & Monday all day.
* Cucina Clandestine – small cafe style, but home-cooked by owner-chef – Via dell’Aquila 6 – closed Sunday.
* Dimondi –  Via del Carbone, 3/B – small, so bookings essential – good wine list and a ‘real’ restaurant – closed Sunday night & Tuesdays.
* Trattoria Sipario – 1/A Viale Allegri Antonio – 5 mins North ( by the park ).
Spumanteria all-Opera ( Facebook page only ) – Galleria Cavour, 8 – also near to Opera House – Wines, cocktails and also meals in a friendly atmosphere – Open daily.
Osteria Vineria Guerrina – Via Migliorati, 2 – 2 mins North ( small, traditional, hand-made pasta )
I Malavoglia – Corso Giuseppe Garibaldi, 34 – 3 mins West – ( Sicilian style, lunch special menu )

Deli & Wine : La Buteiga – Via S. Carlo, 12 – 5 mins SE ( great selection of local deli items and wines to buy by bottle/take away )

People Watching : Piazza Fontanesi ( little bars and seating to watch the world go by )

Museums : Museo di Tricolore – A museum about the history of the Italian flag, just behind the City Hall which houses the hall of the Tricolore.
Cloisters of San Domenico – Begun in 1233 Free to enter. via Dante Alighieri, 11
Galleria Parmeggianni – A Gallery about the history of the region. Costumes, Armoury, Jewellery.. Audio Guides are available. Corso Cairoli, 2
Palazzo dei Musei – Civic Museum which houses a wide variety of exhibits. Via Spallanzini, 1

PARMA

Credula Postero – Parma : A truly unique antique shop click here   Directions from hotel click here  (located up in the restaurant area, near Ristorante Tribunale )

Free Music Museums of Parma
The Opera Museum, the Casa del Suono (House of Sound) and the Arturo Toscanini Birthplace Museum have been brought together under one umbrella with FREE Entry.

* Museo Casa Natale Arturo Toscanini (Toscanini’s birthplace & Museum), Borgo Rodolfo Tanzi n. 13 Parma Tel 0521-285499
OPENING HOURS : Sunday from 10 to 18 – Tuesday from 9am to 1pm Wednesday to Saturday 9am to 1pm & 2pm to 6pm
* Casa del Suono (House of Sound/Music), Museum and Research Center which tracks the history of music.
Piazzale Salvo D’Acquisto tel. 0521 031103    OPENING HOURS : Wednesday to Sunday from 10am to 6pm
* Museo dell’Opera ( Opera Museum) ( 7 mins walk east of hotel ) — CLICK HERE ( in Italian )  “Journey into the musical theatre in Parma”
Palazzo Cusani Piazzale San Francesco, 1 tel. 0521 031170 www.lacasadellamusica.it OPENING HOURS : Wednesday to Sunday from 10am to 6pm
NOTE: Casa del Suono and Museo dell’ Opera are diagonally opposite each other.

Restaurants near hotel :-
Trattoria Gallo d’oro – Borgo della Salina, 3,  — 10 mins South
Bollcine San Bartolelemo – Piazza S. Bartolomeo, 9 — 7 mins South ( v. close Teatro Regio )
La Greppia – Str. G. Garibaldi, 39/A – Rather upmarket and very old-fashoned.
Il Trovatore – Via Ireneo Affo’ 2A (upper end in terms of cost)
Enoteca La Barrique – Strada Giuseppe Garibaldi 59 (bar and meals, low cost)
Ma Dabon – Strada Giuseppe Verdi 6B – Low cost, lunch specials & cooking classes!
Old Cafe – Strada Giuseppe Garibaldi – Low cost, lunch, friendly.

MILANO

Restaurants near hotel :-
** Gino’s, Via Giovanni Berchei, 44 ( on walk to Galleria ). Fast and busy. Great for lunch. Used to tourists – just have something simple. No booking needed. Two levels.
** Al Cantinone –  An absolute gem of a place as it is simple and more somewhere you would find in a smaller town in Italy. There are two main parts to it, a ‘bar’ section where they serve a good ‘apericena’, then the restaurant. Coming out the main entrance of Sina Hotel de la Ville, you walk across ‘at 10 o’clock’ into Via Agnello and, just past ‘The Bar’ ( which is a good lunch caffe or a place for an aperitivo ) you will see Al Cantinone

** Terrazza Aperol – Piazza del Duomo  – informal and modern on terrace overlooking  the main Cathedral square. Now quite fashionable, so ask Concierge to book you a table at a busy time ( a little tip would be appreciated to do this ) – http://www.terrazzaaperol.it/en/home/
** The Campari Bar – A historic institution right on the Piazza Duomo. Be prepared to stand outside like a local and soak up the atmosphere.
https://www.campari.com/camparino/
* Conte Ugolino – upmarket Tuscan cuisine. Expensive but elegant.
* Papa Franceso – Big restaurant and menu. Touristy but organised.
* Bar Luce – Largo Isarco 2, 20139 Milan. Located at the Fondazione Prada, Bar Luce is a destination for food and inspiration. Designed by Wes Anderson, the brilliant film director, it takes it’s cues from some of the classic bars in Milan back in the 1950’s and 1960’s. If you stand ( and not sit ) it costs a lot less and the view is fabulous.

Boevcc – very expensive, white table-cloth, silver-service style restaurant ( seen recently in ‘The House of Gucci ‘)

MUSEUMS

  • Museo Bagatti Valsecci – A fascinating former home of two brothers who were avid collectors of all things Renaissance. There is everything inside from armoury to a bath and sinks!! Just .15mins from our hotel and open most afternoons.
  • Pinoteca di Brera – One of Italy’s most important collections of Renaissance art with over 500 works from 14th to 20th Century. Located in the Palazzo di Brera
  • Castello Sforzesco – The imposing Castello dating as far back as 1450, houses a collection of small museums, which are all accessible with the same ticket: Antique Furniture & Wooden Sculpture, Applied Arts Collection, Archaeological Museum (with Egyptian and Prehistoric sections) Museum of Ancient Art, Musical Instruments, Painting… You can spend some time here! It’s beside the park, Parco Sempione and easily reachable by foot from the Piazza Duomo along Via Dante. ( 20mins )
  • Palazzo Reale – (Milan’s major Exhibition facility) From October 18th “Picasso Metamorfosi”. A collection of Picasso works, inspired by ancient art. The Palazzo is very central. CLICK HERE
  • Museo del Risorgimento – A large collection of relics pertaining to the Unification of Italy, housed in the 8th century Palazzo Moriggia in the Brera district of Milan. (.18mins)
    There are too many to list any more. Do some online research, ask Concierge, ask Ido, ask Simona when we see her!

SHOPPING. Not our specialty, but for info on Quadrilatero della Moda ( the Fashion Quarter )  CLICK HERE
** Milan shopping tips click here

VENICE
Eating well can be a challenge in Venice. Follow the general rules, such as ‘avoid menus in 4 languages or with photos of the dishes’. Most ‘Tourist’ or ‘set’ menus will be ordinary. Near to the hotel we have the Colombo dell’Opera and Da Cherubino ( where we will take you for dinner ). If you fancy a special lunch on the water at Dorsoduro ( behind Salute Church ) then Stewart loves Lineadombra. ( take the Salute vaporetto stop ) . https://www.ristorantelineadombra.com/en/
It is pricey but memorable ( maybe €100 pp for a couple of courses including 1/2 bottle of good wine ).  Concierge will make a booking for you, or you can book online – normally paying a deposit. There are other cheaper places in this part of Dorsoduro, also on the water. Right across from the Squero ( gondola workshop ) is a lovely wine bar – called Osteria al Squero.

The famous ‘cicchetti’ ( pronounced ‘cheeketti’ ) will be seen in most bars ( often they are a variety of toppings on bread ).

Unless you really really want to go there – avoid Harry’s Bar. It’s not what it was when Hemingway used to hold up the bar.