On September 12, 2019, Venetian host and Captain Mauro Stoppa of the vessel, Eolo, and I will shove off for a singular culinary and cultural tour of Venice and its lesser known islands. She is one of the few remaining purpose-built, flat-bottom boats left that were designed during the time of the doges to navigate this fabled city of 100 islands and 150 canals. Here is our itinerary, offering our guests an intimate experience for cruising by day, and first-rate accommodations in historic inns and hotels at night. We invite you to come on board for three days of island hopping, followed by three days of immersion in Venice proper. You will see how John Ruskin, upon seeing Venice could write,
I have never entered it with such wonder, nor left it with such regret.
Read more about us here, see a new video about our tour, or go directly to the Eolo’s website for more information and press endorsements from prominent food and travel publications including The Herald Tribune (The New York Times), Saveur, Conde Nast Traveler, and the Financial Times.
Reserve by June 30. Terms & Conditions below.
Host Mauro Stoppa on board his beloved Eolo. | Credit: Paolo Destefanis for Veneto: Authentic Recipes From Venice and the Italian Northeast, by Julia della Croce
CRUISING VENICE, SEPTEMBER 12-18, 2019
…it’s hard to blame people for getting excited when they eat risotto with sea asparagus—the Venetian “salicornia”— or grouper cooked in peaches with a Byzantine basilica as a backdrop. —Elisabetta Povoledo, The New York Times
- See the glittering city on the sea only as natives can while sailing aboard the historic and beautifully restored Eolo, a flat-bottom “bragozzo” whose design goes back to the time of the Doges and is the only one of its size still navagating.
- Experience the magic of the lagoon, its history and culture; natural life, music, and rich local traditions.
- Explore the bucolic, lesser known islands by boat and on foot with our native guide.
- Visit lace, glass, fabric, and food artisans who have been practicing their arts for generations.
- Eat the genuine local cuisine while under sail and dine in the best restaurants of Venice.
- Sleep in the islands’ charming inns and historic hotels.
- Finish with a sojourn in Venice for 3 luxurious days in a magnificent private palace and immersion in the art, history, and culture of this spectacular city.
Experience the magic of the lagoon, its history, natural life, and rich local traditions. |Credit: http://www.cruisingvenice.com
Day 1
Mazzorbo and Burano
The island of Mazzorbo and our lodgings, Locanda Venissa. | Credit: Paolo Spigariol
- We will meet you upon your arrival at Venice Airport and take you by water taxi to the Venissa, a manor house-hotel and wine estate on its own bucolic island, Mazzorbo, top-rated by The New York Times, Michelin, and Travel + Leisure. The tiny, peaceful island, once an important trading center, is known today for its colorful houses, vineyards, and orchards. Settle in and eat a light lunch. After a rest, go for a guided walking tour to the nearby island of Burano, renowned for its lace making. You will have time to visit the artisans, do some shopping, or just stroll the ancient streets lined with colorful houses.
- Return to Mazzorbo for a rest and dinner at the Venissa’s acclaimed inn and restaurant.
Venissa portico. | Credit: Paolo Spigariol
Day 2
Torcello and the northern Lagoon
The Eolo under full sail approach the fabled island of Torcello. | Photo: Paolo Spigariol
- Breakfast at the Venissa, then board the Eolo and set sail for Torcello and the northern waters of the lagoon. The original site of Venice and famous haunt of Hemingway, the island has a rich and fascinating history. Visit its impressive Byzantine Basilica of Santa Maria Assunta, built in 639 A.D., and the 11 th century octagonal church of Santa Fosca. Climb the bell tower for a bird’s eye view of the lagoon, and wander the island’s tranquil paths.
- Board the Eolo again and set sail for a quiet canal in a nearby saltmarsh richly populated with birdlife and carpeted with colorful native flora. Anchor. Lunch on the chef’s freshly cooked specialties based on splendid produce and seafood of the lagoon.
Flamingoes in an estuary of the lagoon.| Credit: http://www.cruisingvenice.com
- Set sail for the pristine northern lagoon where thousands of flamingoes can be seen flying over the saltmarsh to join other wild fowl that inhabit the islands nearby.
- Sail to the Locanda alle Porte 1632 at sunset for dinner and an overnight stay. Constructed in 1632 between the lagoon and the Sile River, the building, once the customs house, controlled the entrance into the Grand Canal. There, Venetian officials collected taxes from both residents and foreigners doing business in Venice. Today it is an inn and a restaurant. Sunset dinner and overnight stay.
Inside the Locanda alle Porte 1632. |Credit: http://www.cruisingvenice.com
Day 3
Lazzaretto Nuovo and Malamocco
Venetian carnival mask originating from the quarantine representing the doctor of the black plague. Vinegar-soaked cloth was wrapped on the face and covered with the long-nosed mask to avoid the infection.|Credit: http://www.cruisingvenice.com
- Breakfast at the Locanda alle Porte 1632.
- Board the Eolo. After local fishermen deliver their early morning catch to our boat, we set sail. Mauro and Julia will prepare lunch from what the lagoon has offered this morning.
Mauro shows how to stuff zucchini blossoms on-board the Eolo. | Credit: Paolo Spigariol
- Drop anchor near the island of Lazzaretto Nuovo, which once serve as a quarantine facility. Venice appears in the distance. Lunch on board.
- Disembark on the island and find remarkable evidence of inhabitants who lived here well before the Romans. During the Middle Ages it was used solely as a place to quarantine goods and sailors for a period of time before they could enter Venice as a precaution against the spread of disease. Talk to local mask makers to learn about the origins of their craft. This is where the Venetian mask originated, elaborate cloth cover-ups soaked with vinegar to ward off disease. Today, the island is a beautiful and and peaceful respite.
- Board the Eolo again and set sail for the ancient village of Malamocco. Dinner and overnight accommodations in a beautiful 14th entry villa, Ca’ del Borgo.
The Eolo under sail in the lagoon. |Credit:
Day 4
Chioggia and Venice
- Breakfast at Ca’ del Borgo.
- Set sail for Chioggia and take a guided tour of the old port, considered a “little Venice.” See the vibrant fish market, where Mauro will buy the ingredients for our lunch. Stop at the grain store, dating to 1322, one of the most important historic buildings on the island. Visit the island’s Duomo with its masterpieces by Tiepolo, Carpaccio, and Tintoretto.
Fishmonger, Chioggia. | Photo: Julia della Croce
- Leave Chioggia for Valle Zappa, a remote island that was once a private hunting and fishing area where you will find a unique example of “mirror architecture.”
- Lunch under sail. The bell towers of San Marco, which once guided ships into the port of entry, will appear in the distance.
- Disembark in Venice. Transfer by water taxi to Palazzo Morosini degli Spezieri, 5-star, newly renovated private apartments in a magnificent 17th century palace overlooking a quiet canal. Spend 3 nights in your own apartment with a kitchen, private living room and bathroom.
- Dinner on your own. Recommendations for Venice’s most authentic and famous restaurants are for the asking.
Our accommodations in Venice in the newly renovated Palazzo degli Morosini Spezeri are spacious apartments overlooking a quiet canal. Photo: Compliments of Palazzo Morosini degli Spezieri
Day 5
Venice
On our walking tour of Venice. | Credit: Julia della Croce/Forktales
- Follow your guide through the famous Mercato di Rialto with its beautiful vegetable and fruit stalls and colorful fishmongers. The famous market was once the trade and financial center of Venice. Wander your way through an intricate maze of narrow alleys, bridges and canals to Bevilacqua Textiles. Established by Luigi Bevilacqua c. 1499, it continues the city’s ancient tradition of weaving velvets, brocades and damasks by hand.
- Lunch in an acclaimed vegetarian restaurant nearby.
- Conclude your day with immersion in the city’s culture, including a stop at the imposing Gothic Frari church with its precious treasures, including The Assumption, the first public commission for a young Titian who would become the most important artist working in Venice. Also see the exquisite Madonnas by Giovanni Bellini and Paolo Veneziano, and Titian’s burial monument.
- Dinner on your own. Recommendations for Venice’s most authentic and famous restaurants are for the asking.
Day 6
Venice
Piazza San Marco. | Credit: Greg Mitchell
- Go with our guide to St. Mark’s Square, once the political and social nerve center of Venice’s wealth and power. See the city’s most iconic buildings and learn about their origins and history. Start off the visit at the Doge’s Palace with its perfectly preserved magnificent facade and interior. Adjacent is the opulent St. Mark’s Basilica. With its nearly 90,000 square feet of gold mosaics and precious oriental marbles, it is considered one of the best examples of Italian-Byzantine architecture.
- Lunch in a bacaro, a typical wine bar that serves “cichetti,” Venice’s answer to tapas.
- Free afternoon for exploring or shopping.
- Farewell dinner at the palace for a last taste of authentic Venice.
Day 7
Depart Venice
Farewell and thank you from the Eolo. | Credit: Paolo Destefanis
- Airport transfer by water taxi.
Rates and Particulars:
- 4,950 Euros per person including accommodations as detailed, breakfasts, lunches and dinners as described, private visits as per itinerary, all entrance fees, cooking class on board the Eolo, the service of your tour guide(s). Rates based on double occupancy; 20% more for single occupancy.
- 10% deposit upon reservation, refunded if the minimum of 6 guests is not reached.
- 40% upon confirmation, the balance 30 days before departure.
- Minimum 6 guests. Maximum, 12 guests.
- For those wishing to extend their stay in Venice, ask us to arrange for extension of accommodations at Palazzo Morosini degli Spezieri upon availability and at your own cost.
Not Included
- Flights, travel insurance, items of personal expenditure (e.g. telephone calls, laundry etc.), discretionary gratuities to boatmen and guides, government levies or taxes introduced after publication of this program (March 11, 2019).
- Please note that if circumstances beyond our control necessitates some alteration to the itinerary shown, you will be notified of any such changes as soon as possible.
- To be sustainable, a minimum of 6 guests is required; maximum 12 guests.
- Payment terms: 10% to confirm your reservation; 40% when 6 reservations are booked; balance due 30 days before departure.
Contact
- For more complete information, visit our earlier Forktales post.
- Questions? Email julia@juliadellacroce.com
- To book, please email info@cruisingvenice.com
Julia della Croce’s Veneto: Authentic recipes from Venice and the Italian Northeast, with photography by Paolo Destefanis (Chronicle Books) won the 2004 World Gourmand Awards.
“Everyone knows Venice, but the Venetian cuisine has been somewhat of a hidden treasure. Rich in the use of unique spices left from its Serenissa years, the cuisine sparkles with surprise. Julia della Croce [in her book, Veneto]…has captured wonderfully [its] nuances and sparkle of this regional cuisine.” —Lidia Bastianich
Julia della Croce has been immersed since birth in the tastes and aromas of the Italian cooking she loves. After becoming disenchanted with a political career, she began cooking in the galley of a 50-foot sailing ketch for paying passengers. She is a journalist, and James Beard award-winning cook book author and cooking teacher. Among her fourteen titles is Veneto: Authentic Recipes from Venice and the Italian Northeast (Chronicle Books), winner of the 2004 Gourmand World Cookbook Awards. She writes about the culture of food and drink in this blog, and most recently for National Geographic’s atlas of Italian food, Tasting Italy. She is a noted authority on the food of Italy.
Mauro Stoppa was born and raised on his family’s farm in a small village near Padua on the southern edge of the Venetian archipelago. He is an agronomist by education but his first love was always the world of the lagoon. In 1998, he pulled up his land roots and bought and restored the Eolo, a vintage bragozzo named after the Greek god of the wind, a flat-bottomed 52-foot fishing barge that is one of the last of its kind. There and then, he decided to fulfill his lifetime dream of living on the sea and to devote himself to the restoration of the Venetian waterways. Stoppa takes small groups on cruises to sail, eat his sublime food, and experience the magic of Venice and the lagoon he loves, a venture featured in the New York Times.
Mauro lands in NYC to cook for a private party at Sotheby’s, bringing his own ingredients with him from Venice. We met at the Met for some down time. | Credit: Nathan Hoyt/Forktales
You’ll travel to the Venice of past times on board the Eolo, Mauro Stoppa’s restored traditional sailing vessel that plies the Venetian lagoon and its ancient waterways. Offering a unique experience of Venice not found elsewhere, Stoppa and his able crew will draw you into life in Venice and its region as it has been lived by Venetians for centuries.
