Following a charming breakfast at your hotel, rendezvous with our tour guide and drive to the first stop along our discovery of the foothills of the Dolomites: Villa Sandi. Begin your exploration of this Palladian architectural masterpiece by diving underground into the ancient barrel cellar. Perhaps an uncommon site for a modern art gallery, but it will surely be one to remember! We will conclude the tour by filling our glasses with some of the Villa’s finest Prosecco di Valdobbiadene and toasting to the trip ahead. Next up, a cooking class at Locanda Sandi restaurant awaits, where you will prepare traditional Italian cuisine with local late summer harvest under the direction of a professional chef. After exercising your culinary muscles, enjoy what you’ve prepared — augmented by the chef! — in the Locanda’s enclosed veranda bursting with greenery.

Following lunch, return to the hotel for a repose before traveling by coach to Possagno to become acquainted with the homeland and artistry of Antonia Canova, Italy’s foremost neoclassical sculptor. When Canova’s request to be buried in the Roman Pantheon was rejected, he seems to have channeled his disappointment well! Canova promptly drew up plans to build and finance the Tempio di Possagno, a Roman Catholic parish church where his remains lie, which you will pause to see on your way into the city.

Visit the gallery halls of Museum Gypsotheca Canova, filled with his signature forms etched in smooth marble, terra cotta sketches and plaster-cast models. Many guests experience these bright halls only in daylight, but our group will enjoy a private candlelit tour of the museum just after dusk. We’ll enjoy a delicious dinner as we wait for the natural light to fade from the museum, creating the perfect atmosphere to appreciate the intricacies of Canova’s work by lantern.