• THURSDAY

  🍷 Venice → Slovenia’s “Little Tuscany”

  Wine country, medieval villages & our first Slovenian feast

  Our adventure begins in Venice, where we’ll gather before heading east toward one of the most beautiful wine regions you’ve probably never heard of.

  But first: cheese, charcuterie and Prosecco. We’ll make a quick stop in Palmanova to visit the wonderfully entertaining Nereo before continuing into the vineyards along the Italian-Slovenian border.

  This is the land of Schioppettino, a fascinating red grape grown around Prepotto that produces beautifully aromatic, age-worthy wines. If there’s a wine on this trip worth bringing home a few bottles of, this may be it.

  Then we cross into Slovenia and enter Goriška Brda — Slovenia’s “Little Tuscany.” Rolling vineyard-covered hills, cypress trees, hilltop villages and views stretching toward the Alps make this one of the prettiest corners of the country.

  We’ll settle in for lunch in the postcard-perfect medieval village of Šmartno before eventually making our way to Trieste, our home for the next three nights.

  Today’s highlights: Prosecco • Schioppettino • vineyard country • Šmartno • long Slovenian lunch • arrival in Trieste

  FRIDAY

  ☕ Trieste: Italy with an Austrian Soul

  Coffee houses, Adriatic views, Refosco & a night at the wine bar

  Today we explore Trieste, one of Italy’s most unusual cities.

  Sitting directly on the Adriatic and surrounded by Slovenia, Trieste spent centuries looking toward Vienna rather than Rome. The result is a fascinating mix of Italian, Austrian, Slovenian and Central European culture — grand Habsburg architecture alongside Italian piazzas, seafood, wine bars and arguably the best café culture in Italy.

  We’ll explore the city through its food and history, stopping, tasting and learning along the way.

  Then it’s back into wine country to visit Parovel, a small producer in the rugged Karst landscape just outside the city. Here we’ll meet Refosco, one of the signature red grapes of this corner of the Adriatic.

  The evening ends the way evenings here should: at a local wine bar.

  Today’s highlights: Trieste • historic cafés • Adriatic seafood • Karst wine country • Refosco • wine-bar evening

  SATURDAY

  🇸🇮 Mediterranean Slovenia

  Castles, family cooking & our deep dive into Slovenian wine

  Today we cross the border again and spend the day in Slovenia.

  Our destination is Štanjel, a spectacular hilltop village crowned by its castle and surrounded by the rocky Karst landscape.

  Lunch will be something special: a meal prepared by a mother-and-daughter team, giving us a much more personal look at Slovenian cooking than you’ll find in a guidebook.

  Then we turn our attention fully to wine.

  This afternoon’s tasting is our proper introduction to Slovenian wine — the indigenous grapes, the regions, the winemaking traditions and the new generation of producers putting Slovenia on the international wine map.

  Expect to leave wondering why you haven’t been drinking Slovenian wine for years.

  Today’s highlights: Štanjel Castle • Mediterranean Slovenia • family-run lunch • indigenous grapes • Slovenian wine tasting

  SUNDAY

  🍸 From the Coast to the Mountains

  A gin-making lesson, tiny villages & a seriously memorable lunch

  We say goodbye to Trieste and begin traveling inland toward Ljubljana.

  The landscape changes dramatically today. Vineyards and Mediterranean influences begin giving way to green valleys, forests and mountains rising in the distance.

  Our first stop is about as far from a tourist attraction as you can get.

  We’ll visit a tiny Slovenian village to meet Erik, who will give us a hands-on and decidedly fun introduction to gin making.

  Then we’ll walk through the village to lunch at a restaurant run by a husband-and-wife team that is producing some of the most exciting food of the trip — the kind of place that feels destined for Michelin recognition.

  After a leisurely lunch, we continue to Ljubljana, check into our centrally located hotel and leave the evening free for wandering.

  Ljubljana is exceptionally easy to fall in love with: pedestrian streets, outdoor cafés, bridges, architecture and the Ljubljanica River winding right through the center.

  Today’s highlights: countryside drive • gin making • tiny Slovenian village • destination lunch • arrival in Ljubljana

  MONDAY

  🏰 Ljubljana: Slovenia’s Storybook Capital

  Old-world streets, Tivoli Gardens & wines from Slovenia’s interior

  This morning we explore Ljubljana on foot.

  It may be one of Europe’s smallest capitals, but that is exactly what makes it wonderful. The historic center is compact, beautiful and largely pedestrianized, with colorful buildings lining the river beneath Ljubljana Castle.

  After our walk, we’ll head toward Tivoli Gardens for another long lunch.

  And tonight we go back to wine — but with a twist.

  So far we’ve concentrated largely on the western wine regions near Italy. Tonight, over an easy and informal tasting at a local wine bar, we’ll explore Slovenia’s inland wine regions and discover just how diverse this tiny country really is.

  Today’s highlights: Ljubljana walking tour • riverfront cafés • Tivoli • leisurely lunch • inland Slovenian wines

  TUESDAY

  🏔️ The Slovenian Alps

  Lake Bled, Lake Bohinj & one spectacular final lunch

  Save some room on your camera roll.

  Today we head north toward the Austrian border and into the Julian Alps.

  Our first stop is legendary Lake Bled, with its turquoise water, tiny island church and castle perched high above the lake.

  But Bled is only the beginning.

  We’ll continue deeper into the mountains toward Lake Bohinj, the larger, wilder and less-developed Alpine lake tucked beneath the peaks of Triglav National Park.

  Near Bohinj, we’ll sit down for a generous final lunch together surrounded by some of the most spectacular scenery of the trip.

  Afterward, there’s no need to rush. We’ll stop for coffee or a digestif, and you’ll have time to walk along the lake and take in the mountains.

  It’s a pretty extraordinary way to spend our final full day in Slovenia.

  Today’s highlights: Julian Alps • Lake Bled • Lake Bohinj • mountain lunch • lakeside walk • coffee & digestifs

  WEDNESDAY

  🇮🇹 Buon Viaggio — Back to Venice

  One last breakfast, one last Slovenian coffee, and then we make our way back across the border toward Venice.

  We’ll drop everyone at Venice Marco Polo Airport, where you can fly home, catch a train onward through Europe, or — highly recommended — hop aboard a water taxi and spend a few extra days in Venice.

  If flying home Wednesday, schedule your departure for 2:00 PM or later.

Our meeting point will be at the Hilton Garden Inn in Mestre, which is on the mainland. It is easy for

us to gather and to get out of town. If you are staying in Venice, we will also do a pick up at the

Marco Polo airport.

At the end of the tour, we will drop you off at the Venice airport. From there you can easily take a

water taxi into Venice, fly out of Venice airport, or take a train to another destination. If you need

to fly out that day from Venice, please schedule your flight from 2 pm onward.

Pricing & Booking

Cost per person: $4,900 (based on double occupancy)

pick up and drop off in Venice