 Day 1 (Sat.) Board your overnight transatlantic
flight.
Day 2 Arrival in Rome,
Italy. (Sun.) Time to rest or start exploring the Eternal City.
At 6 p.m. meet your tour director and traveling companions. Enjoy a
four-course welcome dinner with wine at your hotel. (D)
Day 3 Rome. (Mon.)
Sightseeing with your local guide starts with a visit to the VATICAN
MUSEUMS and SISTINE CHAPEL, 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. Afternoon at leisure. You may
want to join your local guide for an optional walk that takes you to
magnificent, marbled Trevi fountain, Navona Square, the
well-preserved Roman Pantheon, and the Spanish Steps. (BB)
Day 4 Rome. Excursion
to Pompeii. (Tue.) Today is dedicated to Pompeii, the Roman city
both destroyed and preserved by a volcanic eruption in 79 A.D. See
patrician homes, public baths, and commercial districts strikingly
recalling day-to-day life when Rome was at the apex of her power.
The evening is at leisure; why not try out Roman culinary delights?
(BB)
Day 5 Rome at Leisure.
(Wed.). Full day to savor la dolce vita and enjoy
independent activities. Take a stroll along beautiful Via Condotti
and discover Rome’s hidden treasures at your own pace. In the late
afternoon, you may want to join an optional excursion to Tivoli and
visit the most famous of all the Renaissance residences in Europe:
Villa d’Este with its incredible fountains and terraced gardens,
followed by a country-style dinner. (BB)
Day 6 Rome. Excursion
to Florence. (Thu.) Early morning departure aboard the Eurostar
train for a smooth ride to Florence, the splendid capital of
Tuscany. Your 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. After a leisurely lunch, time for independent sightseeing
and browsing through the shops in Piazza Santa Croce. Florentine
leather goods and gold jewelry sold by the ounce are attractive
buys. In the late afternoon you are back in Rome. (BB)
Day 7 Rome at Leisure.
(Fri.) A full day to discover the imperial capital at your own
pace or to join your tour director for an optional excursion to the
Catacombs, a network of secret underground corridors built by
Christians during centuries of Roman persecution. Later visit St.
Paul’s Outside the Walls, a basilica built over the tomb of the
“Apostle to the Gentiles.” Afternoon at leisure. We suggest Rome’s
first cathedral, St. John Lateran; or if you want to learn more
about the Etruscans, don’t miss the exceptional collection at the
Villa Giulia National Museum. This evening an included farewell
dinner celebrates the success of your Italian vacation. (BB,D)
Day 8 (Sat.) Your
homebound flight arrives the same day. (BB) | 
