The Winter Wonderland Tour

I make no apologies, but I do tend to plan holidays and trips abroad a fair way out. For me it's  part of the joy of travel......the anticipation, the organising, the research, the planning and attention to detail....some may say too much detail.
But sometimes, I'm told, you just need to "loosen up a bit" and go with the flow....which is just what we are doing this time.

A couple of months ago we had, what my sister Kath called, a "lottery win .......with a use-by date!"

Thanks to the kindness and generosity of Mike and Wendy (brother and sister in-law of Battlefields Tour fame) we are travelling again......yes, just over twelve months since our big trip in 2016 and a few weeks since returning from Tasmania.....but what can you do?

In short, the conversation went something like this:-

Mike - " we are off Europe again and we've got two spare Business Class tickets .......interested?"

Tony -  " maybe......when are you planning to go?"

Mike - " November / December"

Tony - " 2018?"

Mike - " no, no....the tickets expire at the end of this year"

Tony -

To be fair Mike had it all organised and, as they usually do, had planned for Winter travel....a novelty for us but, as my Wendy quickly realised, it would involve lots and lots and lots of Christmas markets.........perfect!

So this is the plan.....and it "ain't too shabby"

• Emirates business class to Venice staying just off St Mark's Square.
• One week Mediterranean cruise (in a suite) from Venice to Bari (Italy), Athens, Olympia (Greece), Kotor (Montenegro) and Split (Croatia) & return
• A few days in a ski chalet in the Dolomites - Italian Alps
• Train to Florence for a few days of Renaissance immersion and  then to Amsterdam ....for more culture. Well there is the Van Gough Museum...apart from other things!
• A week in Iceland ( I know Ice - Land) exploring the unique landscape from our cabin in the countryside (out of the regional town of Selfoss) and then some tours in Super Jeeps to see the sights of the Golden Circle, hopefully experience the Aurora Borealis, go snowmobiling on a glacier....and go swimming in the hot springs at the Blue Lagoon.
• Then on to Oslo for a couple of nights and then Emirates Business Class home.

Although we have travelled a bit, Wendy and I have never been to these places, so we are quite looking forward to this itinerary......and the very flash modes of transport!

In our travels to date we have never been on a cruise, as such, so that part of the trip will also be a new experience....... although I did spend some time in the early 1960s travelling on the MV Bulolo which used to ply between Australia and New Guinea carrying cargo & mail....and a few passengers.

It was an old coastal steamer that had seen a fair bit of war service (including the D-Day landings)  but it did have a small salt water pool and a table tennis table which we thought was super flash .........so I hope that the Costa Luminosa "measures up!"

Costa Luminosa

Anyway, only a few days to go now before our next adventure begins.....bring it on I say!