La Scala: 0039 02 807041/809126, teatroallascala.org; tickets £10-£125. Mozart's old enemy Antonio Salieri opens the new season with his Europa Riconosciuta conducted by Riccardo Muti followed by Wagner's Tannhäuser and then what promises to be a very special Tchaikovsky's Queen Of Spades with Dmitri Hvorostovsky.

La Fenice: +4 1786511, teatrolafenice.it; tickets £10-£120. The season continues with a double bill of Goffredo Petrassi's Morte Dell'Aria and Il Cordovano, Jules Massenet's Le Roi De Lahore, Gioachino Rossini's Maometto Secondo, Mozart's La Finta Semplice and Wagner's Parsifal.

Where to book: Tickets are hard to find and often go through several agents ramping up the price before they get to you. Ordering from the opera house can be almost impossible as most have been sold locally. Liaisons Abroad (020-7376 4020, liaisonsabroad.com) is a reliable source of tickets for opera, festivals, pageants and sporting events such as Serie A football. Tickets for La Scala from £145, La Fenice from £110.

Packages: Kirker Holidays (0870 112 3333, kirkerholidays.com) has three nights' B&B at the three-star Hotel American in Venice with scheduled flights from London or Manchester, water taxi transfers and a ticket for La Fenice from £586pp. In Milan, it has three nights' B&B at the four-star Hotel De La Ville with scheduled flights from London, Birmingham or Manchester, return private car transfers and a ticket for La Scala from £853pp. From January, JMB Travel (01905 830099, jmb-travel.co.uk) has two nights' B&B at the three-star Hotel Fenice, Milan, from £799pp, including BA flights from Heathrow and a ticket for La Scala. A similar deal in Venice, staying at the three-star All'Angelo, costs from £540pp.

Venice hotels: Ca'Maria Adele (+041 5203078, camariaadele.it) in Dorsoduro to the south of San Marco is a new boutique hotel with 14 rooms to suit all tastes. The Doge's Room is an opera in itself of rich red brocade and gold. B&B doubles from £117. The three-star La Fenice et des Artistes (+041 523 2333, fenicehotels.it) is the closest to the opera house and is comfy rather than chic; doubles from £80 B&B.

Milan hotels: The four-star Hotel Regina (+2 58106913, hotelregina.it) has fairly plain rooms but is only 10 minutes from the Duomo and lends bikes to cycle round the sights; B&B doubles from £130. Antica Locanda Solferino (+2 02 657 0129, anticalocandasolferino.it) is a former tavern whose plentiful charm ensures it is regularly full - book in advance. B&B doubles from £100.