Discovery Italy

Day 1: AOSTA
Local wines tasting
Arrival at the Airport of Milan or Bergamo, welcome by Discover Italy Now Tour leader, transfer to Aosta, the regional capital of the beautiful Valle d’Aosta. Check-in Hotel *** and after a refreshment and some relax you start discovering the ancient city of Aosta
During the afternoon you visit the old town and its monuments: the Arch of Augustus, the Porta Pretoria, the Cathedral and its Museum, the monumental complex of Sant’Orso with the beautiful cloister originally built in Romanesque style and subsequently modified with gothic style interventions.
On its walls there are Bible stories, animals and mythological stories of the lives of the saints.

Evening: Regional Enoteca, in the area where the Forum used to be, an ideal place where to taste local wines.
Dinner in a restaurant in the old town

Day 2: SAINT VINCENT SPA 30 km by autobus
The morning and your itinerant journey continues under the sign of Wellness and beneficial thermal treatments at Sain Vincent Spa.
The discovery, at the end of the eighteenth century, of a healing mineral water source, has gradually transformed the place into a renowned centre for thermal tourism: for the entire second half of the nineteenth century the high society in northern Italy “take the waters” in Saint Vincent, following the example of the royal family
Body and Mind regeneration.

Evening: Dinner in a local trattoria or restaurant and accommodation in 3* Hotel in Aosta.

Day 3: AOSTA – ARVIER 13 km of trekking crossing AYMAVILLES
Wine tasting and local gourmet products
The morning starts with a trek that takes you through a valley full of orchards and vineyards. At Aymavilles ends the Central Valley and begans the Valley of Cogne.
You cross here the famous wines area: Petit Rouge, Fumin, Petit Arvin, Pinot Nero, Dolcetto and Freisa as well as other varietals.Your morning destination is Arvier, known for its famous wine, Enfer Arvier that took his name "hell" from the fact that in the vineyards above the village the sun warms the stones so hard that it is almost impossible to touch them.Lunch in local trattoria tasting the local products
ARVIER – COURMAYEUR 23 km passing through the small charming villages: MORGEX, LA SALLE and the enchanting LA RUINE and its beautiful vineyards.
You cross the cultivations of Morgex and La Salle coming up to 1200 m and for this reason the wine Blanc de Morgex et de La Salle is considered the highest vineyard in Europe. You also visit Cave du Vin Blanc de Morgex et de la Salle, wineyard and company in Morgex and the cooperative Morgex Valdigne in via Mont Blanc 41/43 to learn the secrets of the rich dairy production in Valle d'Aosta.
Another visit is going to be done to the beautiful Church of Assunta in Morgex with his mighty Romanesque bell tower and the Castle of Archet, built in theXIIcentury on an earlier roman fort.At 1000 m above the sea level can be found the village of La Salle, where it grows a species of vine, called "franco di piede".Here you will visit the Church of San Cassiano.

Evening: Relax in the enchanting atmosphere of La Ruine, a charming village of 1800 century.
Dinner at Les Combes in La Salle.
Accomodation at 3* Hotel and evening with a drink at the local La Vacherie in Morgex

Day 4: COURMAYEUR – VAL FERRET 12 km of trekking
The morning starts with a beautiful and picturesque trek to Val Ferret, at the foothills of the
Grandes Jorasses.
Lunch in a typical restaurant in Val Ferret along the river Dora Baltea.

Evening: relaxing in Courmayeur, one of the most popular holiday destinations in the AlpsAccommodation: at 3* Hotel

Day 5: COURMAYEUR – ARPY LAKE 20 km of trekking
The new day starts early in the morning walking towards Colle San Carlo. Once at the top of the hill you stop for refreshments at the snack bar La Genzianella (1971m).
You head a bit later towards the picturesque Lake Arpy with its stunning waterfalls that flow into the streams that feed it, enjoying a splendid view of the Colle San Carlo and the village of Arpy
Afternoon: picnic by the lake

Evening: Relax in the charming ambiance of Courmayeur.
Accommodation 3* Hotel in Courmayeur

Day 6: PRE- SAINT DIDIER SPA 5, 5 km by autobus from COURMAYEUR
Just a few kilometres away from Courmayeur and La Thuile ski resorts, the Spa can boast a unique position facing Mont Blanc.
Prè Saint Didier is situated in a green and quiet valley at the confluence of the Verney torrent.
Prè Saint Didier is an internationally renowned tourist resort.

Prè Saint Didier Spa is totally renovated and transformed into a real temple of well-being, the ideal place for a unique vacation.
An unexpected synthesis between hot and cold, between water and mountains: in the heat of the outdoor pools with an incomparable view of the stunning Alpine peaks, the iconic “Giant'sTooth” and the majesty of Mont Blanc.The warm waters of Pré-Saint-Didier flow from the heart of the mountain at about 37 C °. These geothermal waters have a saline and moderately radioactive ferruginous arsenic acid composition.In these waters can also be found the presence of silics, arsenic acids, iron oxide and calcium carbonate.They are famous since ancient times for the ability to soften the skin, to facilitate the circulation of the blood and the muscle movements and to produce a physical and moral well-being. Thanks to the presence of iron the waters also have a tonic value.

Acqua
Thermal water
The warm waters of Pré-Saint-Didier flow out from the heart of the mountain at a temperature of around 37° C.

Hot springs
Pré-Saint-Didier’s natural thermal springs lie to north of the merging of Verney torrent with Dora Baltea river.

History of the spa
Pré-Saint-Didier’s thermal springs were already known to Romans, but it was only during the mid 1600s that they started to become a profitable activity, thanks to the first visitors who came to this beautiful valley to "take the waters".

Ecology and environment
The warm waters of Pré-Saint-Didier flow out from the heart of the mountain. They are chemicals and chlorine free, just as they used to be 1000 years ago.

Day 7: COURMAYEUR – LA THUILE 16 km of trekking
Wine tasting
La Thuille is a village situated at 1441 meters above the sea level in a beautiful sunny valley soaking in the beautiful mountain views.
Lunch in a beautiful alpine chalet

Evening: dinner and relax in the charming ambiance of Courmayeur.

Day 8: COURMAYEUR – BERTONE REFUGE 20 km of trekking, about 3 h 1/2
passing through Val Ferret, which runs at the foot of Dente del Gigante, Grandes Jorasses and Aiguille de Leschaux and offers some of the most spectacular views of the Alps.
Lunch at Bertone Refuge.

Evening: dinner and relax in the charming ambiance of Courmayeur.