His feeling for forms and composition has made his buildings set a whole new style that profoundly influenced the country houses in England and of plantation owners in the American Deep South. But it’s only in the region of Veneto, in Vicenza and Venice, that we find his own villas, palaces and churches.

Day 1
Arrival to Bologna airport, it is also possible to fly to Venice and have a direct transfer to Castelfranco Veneto.
If arrival is to Bologna we drive to Mantova, here we visit the church of S. Andrea that was built on the design of Leon Battista Alberti a nice example of reinessane architecture. Albertis architecture was an inspiration for Palladio, we also visit Palazzo Te, built by Giulio Romano. After this stop our bus bring us to Castelfranco Veneto, located in the middle of the region Veneto, a middle age city with defensive city walls and a good point from where we start our daily excursions.
In the evening we have a drink with a light buffet.

Day 2
Today we drive west to Verona, we take a walk in the old historical part of town with it's narrow streets and beautiful squares. In this city there is left over from Roman time and many buildings show the welfare of the city during 1200-1300. Much of the middle age atmosphere is left, together with the romantic story of Romeo and Juliet, at the palace of the Capuleti family we can see the balcony of Juliet.
During the middle age the family della Scala was governing the city, they let the architect Michele Sanmicheli build the many of the palaces thaqt we can see along Corso Cavour.
We have lunch together in Verona and than we drive to the famous wine producing area Valpolicella northwest of the city, here we have one of the most original villas of Palladio, Villa Serego in Santa Sofia, that was built for the rich man Marcantonio Serego. The production of wine in this area started already in 1300 and today Azienda Santa Sofia produces very good wines among the famous Amarone one was made for the 500 years anniversary of Palladio and take the name ”De Divino Palladio”. We taste some of the wines and visit the wine cellars, but we cannot visit the inside of te villa as it is private.

Day 3
Today we start with one of the villas that probably is one that most fullfilled of all Villa Barbaro in Maser. It was built in Aquileia, for Daniele Barbaro, and was decorated by Paolo Veronese with magnificent fresco paintings. Our bus drive us to Marostica and Bassano del Grappa to see the bridge over the river Brenta designed by Andrea Palladio, and destroyed several times during floods and wars. Lugo di Vicenza is our next stop to visit Villa Godi, an early Palladio design, here we have a lunch inside the villa.

Day 4
Today our bus bring us south of Vicenza and Verona. We visit Villa Pisani Ferri Bonetti in Bagnolo and the newly renovated Villa Pojana in Pojana Maggiore, it was built to show the power of the Pojanas family and was used as farmers house. Vincenzo Scamozzi was a pupil and cooperator of Palladio. He has designed Villa Pisani Ferri “Rocca Pisana” located on top of a hill where there was a castle erlier and the family Pisani moved here to stay away from the malaria of te rice fields of Bagnolo.

We have lunch together and return to Castelfranco in the afternoon, evening on your own.

Day 5

Today our bus bring us south to visit Villa Foscari “La Malcontenta”. After the visit we board a boat that bring us along the Brenta channel through the lagoon in to Venice, we make a stop at San Giorgio Maggiore to see the church. It was built i different epoques the erliest in the beginning of 900, but than it was completly rebuilt by Palladio in 1565. The boat leave us in the centre of Venice and the return to Castelfranco Veneto is made by train. If someone wish to stay longer in Venice there are several trains to catch back to the hotel.

Day 6
Tuesday is the weekly market day in Castelfranco Veneto and the morning is left free in town for shopping or visits on your own at the Cathedral of Giorgione, the Madonna throne and Teatro Accademico.
In the afternoon our bus pick us up to mae a visit to Villa Cornaro in Piombino Dese. Close to the cemetery of San Vito di Altivole te architect Carlo Scarpa created the Brion family cemetery, a complex in grey cement with paths and green grass, that we visit before returning to Castelfranco Veneto, for our common dinner our bus bring us outside the centre of town.

Day 7
Vicenza, hometown of Palladio and the centre place for his activity, we start visiting Teatro Olimpico, the famous theater that became the last masterpiece made by Palladio and was finished after his death. During our walk in Vicenza we pass several palaces among them Palazzo della Ragione, called La Basilica. In the afternoon we make a visit at Villa La Rotonda, maybe one of the most visited in the past and today. den villa som blivit mest beundrad av både samtiden och eftervärlden.
Farewell dinner together in Castelfranco.

Day 8
departure day