There are trips I take for destination experiences and then there are those that I take for in destination conferences. Making connections with top tier suppliers and experiencing a destination firsthand makes me a better travel advisor. My recent trip to Northern Italy was a bit of both—and there was plenty of incredible food, wine and beautiful hotels along the way!
I traveled to Venice for Travelux Club 2026, where I had the opportunity to meet with luxury hotels and travel partners from around the world. I added time before and after the conference to experience more of Venice and continue on to Lake Garda, which turned this into the perfect combination of work and destination research.
Arriving in Venice the Venetian Way
After landing at Venice Marco Polo Airport, we headed straight for our private water taxi provided by our trusted partner ShoMe Venice.
There is something pretty special about arriving in Venice by private water taxi. Your first views of the city are from the water as you make your way toward your hotel, and it immediately reminds you that Venice is unlike anywhere else.
My home in Venice was The St. Regis Venice, beautifully positioned on the Grand Canal and just a short walk from St. Mark's Square. Location is obviously important in Venice, but I also pay attention to how a hotel feels once you step inside—because the right hotel can completely change the experience of a city.
We didn't waste much time getting started. Our first day included lunch and a site inspection at Hotel Gabrielli Venezia followed by a private Grand Canal boat tour.
The boat tour was a great reminder that Venice really should be experienced from the water at least once. We traveled along the Grand Canal, beneath the Rialto Bridge and toward St. Mark's Square, seeing the Doge's Palace and Bridge of Sighs from an entirely different perspective. We even passed one of the city's traditional squeri, where gondolas are still made and repaired.
It was the perfect introduction—or reintroduction—to Venice.
Finding the Venice Beyond St. Mark's Square
One of my favorite experiences of the trip was our Hidden Venice tour.
Rather than spending the morning checking off the major landmarks, we explored Cannaregio, San Polo/Rialto and Santa Croce while stopping at traditional Venetian bacari for cicchetti and wine.
This is exactly the type of experience I love incorporating into my clients' trips.
Yes, you should see St. Mark's Square and the Rialto Bridge. But some of my favorite travel memories happen when you step a few streets away from the places everyone else is visiting.
Cicchetti are essentially Venetian small bites, traditionally enjoyed with a glass of wine, and moving from bacaro to bacaro gives you a completely different feel for the city. It turns sightseeing into something much more local and social—and, as anyone who knows me knows, adding food and wine to a walking tour is always right up my alley.
Travelux Club 2026
The main reason for my trip was Travelux Club, a luxury travel conference that brought together travel advisors and approximately 50 luxury suppliers for several days of meetings and events.
Our conference days were held at the JW Marriott Venice Resort & Spa, which meant commuting to work by boat. There are definitely worse ways to start a workday!
These events are important to my business because so much of what I do depends on relationships. I can research a hotel online, but sitting down face-to-face with the people representing these properties and destinations gives me information I simply can't get from a website.
Who is the hotel really right for? Which room categories are worth the upgrade? What's new? What experiences can we arrange that aren't necessarily obvious online?
Those conversations matter when I'm deciding where to send my clients.
And Travelux certainly wasn't all meetings.
Our evenings took us to some beautiful venues around Venice, including an aperitivo at Violino d'Oro, cocktails at Ca' Dadda overlooking the Grand Canal, an evening at Nolinski Venezia and dinner at Gio's at The St. Regis.
We finished the conference with a farewell soirée at Hilton Molino Stucky Venezia—naturally arriving and departing by boat.
When in Venice!
Trading Venice for Lake Garda
After several busy days in Venice, we left the canals behind and headed for Lake Garda.
Our home here was Grand Hotel Fasano, and this was an entirely different side of Northern Italy.
The hotel sits along the lake surrounded by a centuries-old park, and the entire atmosphere immediately feels slower and more relaxed. After the energy of Venice and several full conference days, it was exactly what I needed.
We started with lunch at the hotel's Magnolia restaurant before heading into the countryside for a visit to Conti Thun Winery.
Our afternoon included a tour of the vineyards and cellar followed by a tasting of six wines paired with local cheeses, charcuterie, focaccia and the estate's olive oil.
This is another reason I love pairing Venice with Lake Garda. You go from one of Italy's most fascinating cities to vineyards, gardens, mountains and water without needing to travel an enormous distance.
Experiencing Lake Garda From the Water
Just like Venice, Lake Garda is a destination that deserves to be experienced by boat.
We traveled directly from the hotel's pier to Isola del Garda, where we toured the island and its gardens before enjoying local wine and snacks overlooking the lake.
It was one of those experiences where the setting does most of the talking.
Lake Garda sometimes gets overshadowed by Lake Como for American travelers, but I think that's exactly what makes it so interesting. It offers beautiful hotels, boating, wineries, charming towns and fantastic food while giving travelers another option for experiencing Italy's lake region.
And after spending time here myself, I have a much better idea of the type of client I would send to Garda versus Como.
A Michelin-Starred Finish
Our final evening at Grand Hotel Fasano included dinner at Il Fagiano, the hotel's Michelin-starred restaurant.
After days of meetings, touring, walking, boating and wine tasting, sitting down for a beautiful dinner overlooking Lake Garda felt like the perfect way to wrap up this part of the trip.
Why I Take These Trips
People sometimes ask what makes travel designers choose certain conferences or places to travel to.
This trip is a perfect example.
Over the course of several days, I slept in the hotels, toured additional properties, met directly with hotel teams, experienced the transfers, traveled the routes, ate in the restaurants and tried the experiences I might eventually recommend to my clients.
I now know what it's actually like to arrive in Venice by private water taxi. I know which experiences get you away from the crowds. I've seen the hotels rather than just looking at their photos. And I've experienced firsthand how beautifully Venice and Lake Garda can work together in one itinerary.
Those are the little details that make the difference when I'm planning a trip.
Because luxury travel isn't simply about choosing the most expensive hotel or checking off the biggest sights. It's about putting the right pieces together for the person taking the trip.
And sometimes that requires a little firsthand research—with a glass of Italian wine along the way.
Thinking about Italy? Let's start planning something beyond the cookie-cutter itinerary.