Last fall, I was invited to participate as hosted buyer at the Travelux Conference which was held at Villa Erba on the banks of Lake Como. Of course, I jumped at the opportunity!
The best part…I stayed the the ultra-luxurious Villa d’Este. Now that is MY kind of conference! I plan to do an entire post dedicated just to this absolutely stunning hotel, but, until then, I will share a glimpse of what is to come…scroll through the slide show for more photos of Villa d’Este…
During the three day conference, I met with luxury travel suppliers from all over Europe. This was my view during coffee and lunch breaks…
On our second day of meetings, we were asked to choose from one of three networking activities – a visit to the silk factories for which the area is famous, a boat trip on the lake with a stop in the village of Bellagio OR the chance to drive a Ferrari.
SO…I actually opted for the boat – I wanted any chance I could to enjoy the scenery from the lake! While I didn’t drive that sweet little sports car, I did get to see these beauties…
Palazzo Clooney
Alas, no George sightings for me since it was the off-season…
Each evening, we were hosted at a different luxury hotel on the lake – cocktails at Villa Flori, a lovely four star hotel with a perfect position right on the lake, and Casta Diva, a luxury hotel in Blevio, on the other side of the lake. Our final night we celebrated with a gala dinner at the gorgeous Grand Hotel Tremezzo further up the lake. On the night of the gala, we arrived by boat at a private palazzo, pictured below, where we were welcomed by a harpist and an opera singer, and tuxedo clad waiters serving prosecco and aperitivos…pure magic!
We concluded a successful Travelux event with a private fireworks show over the lake…
The next day, my husband flew over and met me at Villa d’Este. Time for our vacation to get started! Stay tuned for Part Two of my time on Lake Como, featuring the best day of my entire three week trip…
Thank you to NEBE for including me in the 2017 Travelux event…I am already counting the days until next year!!
Want more? Here is a video from the Travelux event…
xoxo
All photos were taken by me on my iPhone 6.
Good morning, dear Sandy. Lake Como is definitely on my bucket list. As soon as George and you-know-who remove that silly little restraining order against me, I’ll call you to start planning my trip. Great photos!
Enjoy your week!!!
This is STUNNING! Talk about a dream work trip. Can’t wait to see your full hotel recap and come up with another 500 reasons why I need to go back to Como!
Gorgeous! Even without the presence of Mr. and Mrs. Clooney! Let’s add this to the VERY long list of places we want you to send us on vacation!
Wow, what a conference! I love the Italian lake region, so pleasant and beautiful. Thank you for sharing! ~ebh
What an amazing trip and such a gorgeous place – can’t wait to see part two! It was such a pleasure meeting you last week – cannot tell you what a treat that was for both of us. Happy May!
This sounds like my kind of conference, beautiful hotels, interesting activities, fireworks and a boat tour of fabulous houses! I cannot wait to hear more.
I hope that you are having a great week Sandy!
Oh Sandy, swoon…swoon…swoon! Every detail is perfection!!! I’m so happy you hit beautiful weather at Lake Como. In July we had moody showers mixed with bursts of sunshine. It made for a romantic atmosphere but some photos were more tricky. Great call on the boat ride! 🙂
All this and THEN your husband joins you for vacation….Sounds like the trip of a lifetime!
By the way, isn’t the travel industry the BEST??
xx, Heather
Wonderful to travel and share your passion with others!
xo
Patricia