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Italian officials estimate that up to two million visitors will view the Shroud of Turin – Christ’s purported burial cloth – when it goes on display in the spring for the first time for ten years.

A million people have already reserved their chance to spend a maximum of five minutes observing the relic in Turin from April 10th to May 23rd. Pope Benedict XVI will visit on May 2nd.

The large rectangular piece of cloth is said to have been imprinted with an image of Christ’s body, notably his face. It’s kept in a bullet-proof, climate-controlled case in Turin Cathedral.

It was discovered in the French city of Troyes, south-east of Paris, in the mid-14th century. Radio-carbon dating analysis in 1988 determined that the fibres in the cloth dated from the Middle Ages – sometime between 1260 and 1390 – but those findings have, in turn, been challenged.

The Vatican has tiptoed around the issue, making no claim about the authenticity but calling it a powerful symbol of Christ’s suffering.

by Andy Moreton

If you’re visiting for a glimpse of the Shroud or just to explore this vibrant city, Luxique offers the best rates at six luxury Turin hotels – from the grand Principi di Piemonte to the stylish Townhouse 70.

Italian police have acted to prevent large numbers of counterfeit goods reaching the streets and markets.

In a raid on eight warehouses east of Rome, they seized hundreds of items – said to be of ‘amazing quality’ – including clothes, shoes, leather goods and other accessories. It’s thought the items would have been given designer labels and sold around tourist attractions.

Italy’s national retailers’ association says that around 6.9 billion euros’ (£6 billion/$9.4 billion) worth of fake products are sold each year.

It’s not only brands such as Gucci, Bulgari and Armani that the Italians fight hard to protect – it’s foodstuffs as well.

And the pizza makers of Naples are celebrating after the European Union officially protected Neapolitan pizzas from imitations. They will now carry what’s called a Traditional Speciality Guaranteed label and become part of Europe’s food heritage.

It’s essential for a genuine Neapolitan pizza to include, among other things, only San Marzano tomatoes and fresh buffalo mozzarella cheese. The Italian farmers’ association says half of Italy’s 25,000 pizzerias currently use the wrong ingredients, such as East European cheese or Ukrainian flour.

Italy now tops the EU chart for products that are protected – it has 180, more than Spain or France.

by Andy Moreton

If you’re planning to visit Italy, take a look at Luxique’s comprehensive selection of luxury hotels in Rome, Venice, Florence, Milan and many other cities.

For the fifth year in a row, France has topped a list of the best places in the world to live.

International Living magazine’s 30th Quality of Life Index surveyed almost 200 countries across nine categories, including cost of living, culture/leisure, environment, and safety/risk.

“In France, life is savoured,” said International Living publisher, Jackie Flynn. “I don’t think anyone would disagree that France is one of the most beautiful countries in the world, where there is so much pride in all the small details. The French love little window boxes filled with flowers, tidy gardens, pretty sidewalk cafes and clean streets.”

International Living paid particular attention to provincial France, praising the affordability and services outside Paris, especially for retired people and their families.

Australia jumped up the rankings from fifth to second place on the strength of its economic recovery, while the US dropped from third to seventh. International Living claimed that sustaining the ‘American Dream’ had escalated out of the reach of many.

Top Ten
1. France
2. Australia
3. Switzerland
4. Germany
5. New Zealand
6. Luxembourg
7. United States
8. Belgium
9. Canada
10. Italy

The UK’s position? A lowly 25th behind the Czech Republic and Lithuania.

by Andy Moreton

Luxique can help you book some of the finest luxury hotels in Paris and in many other areas of beautiful France.

The Alpine ski season has begun earlier than usual thanks to unseasonably heavy snowfalls.

Last weekend, skiers and snowboarders enjoyed outstanding conditions for this time of the year. There were significant snowfalls across Austria, France, Italy and Switzerland – some up to 20 inches deep. The Austrian resort of Kitzbühel had earlier set an 80-year record by opening on October 24th.

Ski tour operators welcomed the early snow, saying it had helped stimulate sharp increases in bookings, which would go some way to countering the effects of the economic downturn.

Betony Garner, of Ski Club of Great Britain, said:

“The crucial thing is that the temperature has been staying low so the snow is settling – some resorts are blanketed like it’s the middle of winter.”

Many Alpine resorts had been becoming increasingly nervous about the unseasonably warm weather of late, which saw temperatures as high as 18C (65F), fearing a repeat of the dire season of 2006/7.

by Andy Moreton

Heading for the piste? Check out Luxique’s selection of luxury Alpine hotels in France, Italy, Switzerland and Austria.

One of the most distinctive sights in Venice – among many others – is the thousands of wooden navigation poles that dot the lagoon.

They’re used as markers by boats and ferries to prevent them from running aground in treacherous sandbanks, and they’ve been a traditional part of the Venetian scenery for many years.

Now, though, the city authorities have raised something of a storm by proposing that the 100,000 or so wooden stakes be replaced by plastic poles made out of recycled waste. They say these would last much longer and cost less to maintain than their old, barnacle-clad timber equivalents.

“We have hundreds of wooden poles which are rotting away - there are entire forests of them,” said Mara Rumiz, the city official in charge of public works.

However, critics of the proposed move say that it would bring an end to centuries of heritage and that the plastic poles would be much less picturesque. One commented that visitors would have the impression of a plastic Venice, not dissimilar to the one which exists in Las Vegas.

The Daily Telegraph’s correspondent in Italy, Nick Squires, said:

“It is the latest chapter in the decades-old saga over how to reconcile the history and heritage of one of the world’s most beautiful cities with the practicalities of day-to-day life.”

by Andy Moreton

Luxique’s travel experts have carefully selected the finest luxury hotels in Venice to make your vacation truly unforgettable. And if you want to experience Venice Nevada–style, take a look at the remarkable Venetian Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

Venice is again considering radical plans to ease the overcrowding in the city in the summer months.

One proposal being looked at is to ban day-trippers; visitors would have to have hotel reservations to get in. It’s estimated that about 20 million people travel to Venice every year and as many as half arrive and leave on the same day.

Enrico Mingardi, who’s in charge of public transport, said: “There’s a physical threshold above which we cannot go.” He said Venetians could no longer tolerate the discomforts of mass tourism.

The council is to have discussions with tourist organisations and residents’ groups to explore ideas.

The notion of setting a limit on the number of tourists entering Venice has been discussed on and off for the past 20 or 30 years. “It’s always proved controversial because it goes against the democratic principle that anyone should be able to come to Venice,” said a council spokesman.

by Andy Moreton, with Nick Squires in Rome

Book your luxury hotel in Venice through Luxique. Our selection includes three of the classic places to stay in the lagoon city – the Cipriani, the Gritti Palace and the Danieli.

GPS, Satnavs, call them what you will, but sometimes they can just lead you astray …

A Swedish couple on a driving holiday in Italy punched Capri into their GPS, but transposed a couple of letters and several hours later found themselves 400 miles off course in Carpi, a town in the north.

“It’s hard to understand how they managed it. I mean, Capri is an island,” said Giovanni Medici, a spokesman for the Carpi regional government.

The middle-aged couple, who haven’t been named, discovered their error when they asked staff in the local tourist office how to reach the island’s famous Blue Grotto. “They were surprised, but not angry,” said Medici. “They got back in the car and started driving south.”

The picturesque island of Capri, famed as a romantic holiday destination, lies in the Gulf of Naples in southern Italy. Carpi is a busy industrial town in the province of Emilia Romagna, at the other end of Italy.

by Andy Moreton

Make Capri your destination and let Luxique help you book one of the finest luxury hotels in Capri.

Tourists in the Italian city of Naples are being given a helping hand by ex-prisoners.

The former convicts, dressed in yellow jackets, have been posted at various points including the port and the station. They help visitors cross the streets, offer them information and even escort them through the city’s more dangerous alleyways.

The education chief in the Campania region, Corrado Gabriele, told the Italian newspaper La Repubblica that the escorts had followed a 60-hour theory course to prepare them for their new role.

“It’s true that we’re entrusting tourists to former prisoners but who knows the risks of the city better than they do?” he asked.

Hoteliers and tourist agencies are not convinced this projects the right image for Naples. The city has already taken a bashing through the award-winning film Gomorrah, which exposes the city’s Camorra crime syndicate.

The city council’s head of tourism, Valeria Valente, commented: “This service requires a certain politeness, a bit of language knowledge and people skills.”

One of the course trainers, Vincenzo Minopoli, conceded there had been teething problems with the ex-prisoners. “In the first few days we had some issues with getting them to be a little less brusque with tourists, but they do have a great desire to work.”

by Andy Moreton

The city of Dresden in eastern Germany has lost its position as a World Heritage Site because of the construction of a four-lane bridge across the river Elbe.

The Dresden Elbe valley won heritage status from UNESCO five years ago for its 12-mile stretch of landscape, which incorporates the city centre and features Baroque palaces, churches, opera houses and museums.

Conservationists say the four-lane bridge will be a blot on the unique Elbe valley and is sited in a particularly sensitive spot, near the old city, from where it will be seen.

Construction of the bridge began in 2007. Supporters of the project say it’s essential to reduce traffic congestion. An alternative plan for a tunnel was rejected for cost reasons.

UNESCO took the decision at its meeting in the Spanish city of Seville. Areas added to the list of World Heritage Sites include the Dolomite mountains in Italy and the Wadden Sea along the coasts of Germany and the Netherlands.

The Wadden Sea coastline is a wetlands area rich in wildlife. The Dolomites, in Italy’s northern Alps, was praised as ‘one of the most beautiful mountain landscapes anywhere’.

Each World Heritage Site is the property of the state on whose territory it’s located, but it’s considered in the interests of the international community to preserve each one.

by Andy Moreton

Luxique offers the best rates at Dresden’s premier luxury hotel, the Taschenbergpalais Kempinksi, as well as three fine hotels in the Italian Dolomites.

The Italian airline, Alitalia, has apologised after its in-flight magazine printed a map which left out the island of Sicily.

Sicily is Italy’s largest region and the biggest island in the Mediterranean, but a passenger noticed it had disappeared from the route map as she was on a flight to that very place. Smaller islands such as Sardinia were correctly marked.

The magazine’s editor, Aldo Canale, said it was a simple printing error: “We have run lots of editions on the beauty of Sicily and we would never dream of eliminating it from maps of Italy,” he said.

Alitalia was re-launched earlier this year under private ownership. It had been a state-run company for more than 60 years before going bankrupt.

by Andy Moreton

The island really does exist and to prove it, Luxique offers the opportunity to book one of ten luxury hotels in Sicily at the best available rates. Choose from the quiet and romantic San Domenico Palace - housed in a former 14th century monastery - to the classic Grand Hotel et Des Palmes.