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Discover where the inspiration for classic Italian literature was found during this 10-day trip in northern Italy. After a short history lesson cycling the streets of Rome, take to Florence on foot. The city where poet Dante Alighieri was born and philosopher Niccolò Machiavelli lived will grant you a day of shopping and gluttony as guilt-inducing as Inferno. You’ll finish in Milan, a Unesco City of Literature, no doubt with an additional suitcase full of page-turners.
With a copy of Homer’s Odyssey in hand, you can spend eight days hopping the Greek islands on this small-group trip without fear of misadventure, leaving you time to read a new piece of classic literature at every port. Flip through the plays and screenplays of local writer Iakovos Kambanellis as you familiarise yourself with the beaches of Naxos. Next, let your heart sing to The Music of My Islands, as you sail around Milos with Sachtouris’ poem on the page in front of you.
You don’t need to be a Ragnar Jónasson fan to get wrapped up in mystery during this five-day Iceland trip. Simply hiking out onto the black-sand beaches and glacial tongues will make you wonder why you didn’t have the Land of Fire and Ice at the top of your travel bucket list sooner. Soaks in hot springs, private rides to the Golden Circle’s lava fields and geysers, and hiking behind waterfalls are only some of the wonders you’re destined to enjoy.
As Portugal whisks your heart away in a passionate affair, you’ll wonder if love was first grown in the Douro Valley vineyards. Grab this nine-day trip by the hand and find out, as you and your heart join a small group journeying between Lisbon and Porto. Calmly explore Arrábida Natural Park and Coimbra, and you’ll firmly grasp the “elusory reality” that Portuguese Nobel laureate José Saramago has written about.