 Day 1 Board your overnight transatlantic flight.
Day 2 Arrival in Rome,
Italy. Welcome to a sunny, history-steeped land, home of
exuberant, friendly, hospitable people who take art as seriously as
the pursuit of ever more refined culinary pleasures. At 6 p.m. meet
your tour director and traveling companions and leave the hotel for
a special welcome dinner with wine in one of Rome’s fine
restaurants. (D)
Day 3 Rome.
Sightseeing with your local guide starts with a visit to the
VATICAN MUSEUMS and SISTINE CHAPEL (arranged next morning if closed
today), world famous for Michelangelo’s ceiling paintings and The
Last Judgement. Continue to monumental ST. PETER’S SQUARE and
BASILICA. Proceed across the Tiber for a stroll along the Via Sacra
in the ROMAN FORUM, where Roman Legions marched in triumph, and
finally visit the COLOSSEUM and hear about gladiatorial combats.
Then time for independent activities and exciting optional excursion
possibilities: Tivoli and a country-style dinner in one of the local
restaurants. (BB)
Day 4 Rome-Pisa.
Expertly guided morning visit to OSTIA ANTICA at the mouth of
the Tiber, home port for ancient Rome’s conquest of the
Mediterranean. Hear about surprisingly sophisticated urban living
more than 2,000 years before our time as you visit a trading mall,
an inviting tavern and the luxurious Forum Baths. Afterwards head
north along the Tyrrhenian coastline through an area where many a
town was founded at the very beginning of recorded history by the
mysterious, highly civilized Etruscans. Mid-afternoon arrival in
Pisa, and plenty of time to wander around dazzling CATHEDRAL SQUARE.
Built during the 12th and 13th centuries when the maritime republic
was at its apex of wealth and power, the cathedral is considered the
cradle of medieval Italian art. Take your pictures of its elegant
but precariously leaning belfry, 180 feet high and no less than 12
feet out of the perpendicular. (BB,D)
Day 5 Pisa-Florence.
Look forward to an unforgettable journey through Tuscany’s
landscape of gently rolling, vine-clad hills. Morning visit to
hilltop San Gimignano, the most picturesque of Italy’s perfectly
preserved medieval towns. On to Siena for a leisurely lunchtime
break. Follow your tour director on a 30-minute walk through ancient
narrow lanes to beautiful Piazza del Campo, theater of the biannual
Palio, Siena’s spectacular medieval-style horse race. In
the afternoon, a particularly scenic ride along the Chianti Road
leading from Siena due north to Florence. On the way call at
splendid VERRAZZANO CASTLE to hear about the fine art of blending
four types of grapes to obtain the famous Chianti Classico. Taste
the wine as the local connoisseurs do, accompanied by local
specialties. (BB,D)
Day 6 Florence. A
full day to savor the Renaissance splendor of the Tuscan capital.
Guided sightseeing includes the magnificent CATHEDRAL, Giotto’s
Bell Tower, the Baptistry’s heavy bronze "Gate of
Paradise," and sculpture-studded Signoria Square. To top it
off, admire Michelangelo’s celebrated David in the ACADEMY
OF FINE ARTS. Afternoon free for independent sightseeing and
browsing through the shops. Leather goods and gold jewelry sold by
the ounce are attractive buys. Try the culinary delights of a fine
Florentine restaurant tonight. (BB)
Day 7 Florence-Venice.
A scenic drive through the Apennine mountain range and the
fertile Po Plain brings you to Verona, setting of Shakespeare’s
Romeo and Juliet. See Juliet’s Balcony and stroll around
the lovely market square. Take your pictures of the Arena, an
incredible well-preserved pink marble Roman amphitheater. Built in
the 1st century A.D., it is now the magical venue for world-famous
opera performances. Tonight you are in Venice, a powerful magnet for
romantics and art lovers from around the globe. (BB)
Day 8 Venice.
Start morning sightseeing in style as you glide by private boat
along the Giudecca canal to meet your resident expert. Highlights of
your walking tour are ST. MARK’S SQUARE and the BYZANTINE
BASILICA, lavish DOGES’ PALACE, and the Bridge of Sighs. Also
watch VENETIAN GLASS BLOWERS fashion their delicate objects in an
age-old traditional manner. Then enjoy Venice at your own pace or
join an optional gondola ride. Tonight is your chance to sample the
city’s fine restaurants. (BB)
Day 9
Venice-Ravenna-Assisi. Along the coastline of the Adriatic
Sea to Ravenna. Here see the famous mosaics in the 6th-century
Basilica of ST. APOLLINARIS IN CLASSE. In the afternoon arrive in
Assisi. From St. Clare’s church enjoy a pleasant walk with your
local guide, via pretty Piazza del Comune down to ST. FRANCIS’
BASILICA, the hub of a religious order devoted to the ideals of
humility, forgiveness, simplicity, and love for all God’s
creatures. Hear about monastic life, and view the priceless frescoes
adorning the walls of the church. (BB,D)
Day 10 Assisi-Rome.
Enjoy St. Francis’ peaceful town on your own before departing
for the final leg of your Italian journey. After a scenic drive
along the Tiber valley reach Orvieto, perched high atop a volcanic
rock. Access, denied to many a would-be conqueror through the ages,
is easy for you. Ride a modern funicular right through the
forbidding ramparts. Time for lunch, browsing through tempting shops
in the lanes off Piazza del Duomo, and finding the right angle for a
picture of the fabulous Gothic facade of ORVIETO CATHEDRAL. In the
late afternoon return to Rome. Tonight your tour director will
suggest an optional festive dinner at one of Rome’s fine
restaurants to bid farewell to the companions of a memorable Italian
vacation. (BB)
Day 11 Your homebound
flight arrives the same day. (BB) | 
