• 5 Dinner (D)
• 15 Breakfast (B)

• Hand sanitizer is freely available on board for you to use throughout the day.

• Rome: Follow in the footsteps of gladiators for a deeper insight into life in ancient Rome when you enter the Colosseum.

Insight Vacations

• Business class coach with extended leg room
• Top-rated dining, from farm-to-table to local restaurants
• 4 & 5-star stays

Meet your Travel Director and fellow travellers over dinner at a local restaurant in Rome. Taste specialties of Lazio in a setting that brings the city’s food culture into focus.

Roman cooking draws character from straightforward ingredients and long-established recipes. Sharing a table offers a welcoming introduction to the capital beyond its monuments, with regional flavours and conversation at the centre of the evening.

Explore Rome with a Local Expert, seeing St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City and landmarks of the ancient capital, including the Circus Maximus, Arch of Constantine and Palatine Hill. Enter the Colosseum for a closer look at the world of Roman spectacles.

These sites reveal different layers of the Eternal City: imperial ambition, public entertainment and the enduring significance of the Vatican. Your expert connects the monuments to the lives once lived around them.

Explore the Villa Barberini Gardens at Castel Gandolfo, admiring patterned flower beds, fountains and the carefully composed spaces of the former papal gardens. The visit offers a quieter perspective on the artistic heritage associated with the papacy.

Set in the Alban Hills outside Rome, Castel Gandolfo has long been linked with papal retreat. Here, formal planting and water features turn the landscape into an expression of design as well as a place to pause.

Cruise by jetfoil to Capri across the blue waters of the Bay of Naples. Watch the island’s steep limestone coastline come into view as you approach a place celebrated for its dramatic setting.

The crossing is more than a way to reach the island: it reveals why Capri has attracted visitors for centuries, from Roman rulers to modern artists and travellers. Sea, cliffs and shoreline provide a distinctive first impression of the island.

Walk through Capri town with a Local Expert, discovering narrow lanes, lively piazzas, whitewashed buildings and small artisan studios. Look out across the water from viewpoints woven into the island’s steep streets.

Capri’s appeal combines a Mediterranean village setting with a cosmopolitan history stretching back to Roman times. The guided exploration brings attention to the details behind its reputation, from intimate alleyways to the sweeping seascapes beyond them.

Take in the views from Anacapri, the hilltop settlement above Capri’s celebrated shoreline. From its elevated setting, look across the Bay of Naples towards Mount Vesuvius and the surrounding sea.

Anacapri’s position brings the island’s rugged geography into focus: cliffs rise sharply from the water, while the distant volcano recalls the region’s turbulent geological past. It is a chance to appreciate the scale of the landscape as well as its colour.

Walk through Pompeii with a Local Expert, following ancient streets through the remains of a Roman city buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79. Examine the urban layout and the traces of everyday life preserved at the site.

Pompeii’s streets make Roman history unusually tangible. Your expert helps interpret what survives, connecting the public spaces and domestic remains to the people who lived here before the eruption changed the city.

Discover hilltop Todi on an orientation walk, taking in its medieval streets and the Piazza del Popolo, the town’s principal square. Look beyond the stone-built centre to the vineyard-covered Umbrian plain below.

The piazza remains a gathering place for local life, including the evening passeggiata. Exploring on foot makes it easier to appreciate how Todi’s historic buildings, compact lanes and commanding position give the town its distinctive character.

Taste Umbrian regional flavours at a local restaurant in Todi, accompanied by a glass of Orvieto Classico wine. This hosted dinner offers a food-led introduction to the countryside surrounding the hilltop town.

Orvieto Classico is a white wine associated with the area around nearby Orvieto. Enjoying it alongside local cooking brings together two expressions of Umbria’s agricultural traditions in a relaxed restaurant setting.

Explore Assisi with a Local Expert, walking its cobbled streets to see St. Clare’s Church and the ancient Roman Temple of Minerva. Continue along Via San Francesco for a visit to the Basilica of St. Francis.

The basilica is among medieval Europe’s most significant religious monuments, closely tied to the saint born in Assisi. Together, the Roman remains, churches and views across the Umbrian valley reveal the town’s long and layered history.

Walk Perugia’s Old Town with a Local Expert, seeing the Priors’ Palace, Collegio del Cambio and cathedral. In the main square, admire the carved details of the Fontana Maggiore, the city’s Great Fountain.

Perugia’s historic centre reflects its importance in medieval Umbria, with civic and religious buildings gathered around a lively public space. The guided orientation helps place the landmarks within the story of this hilltop city.

Meet Marta and her weavers at Perugia’s Laboratorio Giuditta Brozzetti. Learn how they use traditional looms to preserve distinctive Umbrian textile patterns, and hear about the training and employment opportunities the women-owned workshop provides.

This MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® experience connects a working artisan practice with its community. Supported by a TreadRight Foundation grant, Marta’s work helps keep regional weaving knowledge alive while creating opportunities for local women.

Explore Florence with a Local Expert, viewing the marble-clad cathedral, bell tower and baptistery’s Gates of Paradise. Discover Piazza della Signoria, the city’s historic political centre, and the neighbourhood around Santa Croce.

Watch a gold and leatherwork demonstration to see skills associated with Florence’s artisan heritage. Monumental Renaissance architecture and hands-on craftsmanship offer two complementary ways to understand the city’s artistic identity.

Taste Tuscan red wines in the Chianti area and learn to recognise the cherry, plum and earthy notes associated with quality Chianti. Explore how ageing influences Chianti Classico, Riserva and Gran Selezione styles.

Discussion of DOC and DOCG labelling puts the wines in context, connecting what is in the glass to local production traditions. Surrounded by Tuscany’s vineyard landscape, the tasting offers a practical introduction to one of Italy’s best-known wine regions.

Visit Siena’s Basilica of San Domenico with a Local Expert as one of two included Insight Choice experiences. Learn about the church’s connection with St. Catherine of Siena, a major figure in the city’s religious history.

The imposing medieval basilica offers a focused way to explore Siena beyond its streets and squares. Your expert provides context for Catherine’s enduring significance and the place this church holds in the city’s spiritual heritage.

Sample panforte in Siena as one of two included Insight Choice experiences. Taste the city’s dense traditional sweet, made with fruit and nuts, for a different introduction to local heritage.

Panforte is closely associated with Siena and its longstanding confectionery traditions. Its chewy texture and rich flavours offer a small but memorable connection to the city’s food culture, making this a fitting alternative to the guided basilica visit.

Explore San Gimignano’s tower-lined streets and visit the gelato parlour of award-winning maker Sergio Dondoli. Taste one of his frozen creations amid the lanes and squares of this Tuscan hill town.

San Gimignano’s surviving medieval towers explain its nickname, the Medieval Manhattan. Pairing time in the historic centre with an artisan tasting brings its striking skyline and a contemporary local craft into the same experience.

Explore Lucca within its historic ramparts, admiring churches, piazzas and palaces in the compact centre. Sample freshly baked Tuscan bread as a local specialty during your visit.

Lucca’s enclosing walls preserve a clear sense of the old city’s shape, while its streets reveal a long civic and religious history. The bread tasting adds a simple, everyday flavour to an exploration of one of Tuscany’s distinctive walled towns.

Explore the Cinque Terre with a Local Expert, visiting fishing villages set between steep hillsides and the Ligurian Sea. Discover village lanes and coastal scenery, with a cruise along the rugged shoreline when weather permits.

This UNESCO World Heritage landscape is distinguished by settlements shaped around difficult coastal terrain. Seeing it on foot and, conditions allowing, from the water reveals how brightly coloured buildings, harbours and cliffs fit together.

Discover how Parmigiano-Reggiano is made at a dairy near Parma. Meet a passionate local producer, learn how the cheese is crafted and matured, and taste samples with a glass of wine.

Time, temperature and skilled handling help produce the cheese’s nutty aroma and crystalline texture. Seeing the process where it happens gives greater meaning to a food closely identified with this part of Emilia-Romagna.

Visit an artisan balsamic vinegar producer in Modena for a masterclass on this local specialty. Learn what distinguishes authentic traditional production and why carefully made vinegar can command prices comparable to fine wine.

Modena’s balsamic heritage centres on patient ageing and close attention to the developing product. Hearing directly from a producer brings depth to an ingredient often encountered only at the table.

Glide through Venice by gondola as accompanying musicians provide a serenade. Pass beneath bridges and beside water-lapped doorways and elegant palaces for a canal-level view of the city.

Venice’s waterways are integral to its historic layout, making a gondola ride a distinctive way to see its architecture. From the boat, details of facades and entrances appear in a perspective that walking the streets cannot provide.

Travel by boat along the Giudecca Canal as your Travel Director introduces Venice from the water. See centuries-old palazzi and the Doge’s Palace, and visit St. Mark’s Square to admire the exterior of St. Mark’s Basilica and the nearby Bridge of Sighs.

The waterfront approach reveals how Venice’s power and wealth were displayed along its canals. In the square, its great civic and religious buildings bring that history into sharper focus.

Watch Venetian artisans shape molten glass during a workshop visit. See how heat, breath and practiced movements turn the material into delicate handcrafted pieces, and learn about the skills behind the process.

Glassmaking has been part of the Venetian lagoon’s identity for centuries. Seeing masters at work makes the precision of this traditional craft tangible and gives context to the finished objects displayed throughout the city.

Cruise across the Venetian Lagoon to Burano, an island known for its brightly painted houses and fishing heritage. Sit down with fellow travellers for dinner with wine and local specialties.

Burano offers a different view of life on the lagoon from Venice’s grand ceremonial centre. Its colourful streets and island setting provide a distinctive backdrop for a shared meal rooted in local flavours.

Cruise across the Tyrrhenian Sea to Positano on this optional experience from Capri. Enjoy time ashore to take in the Amalfi Coast village, where buildings climb the steep slopes above the water.

The journey pairs a sea-level view of the coastline with a chance to explore Positano’s distinctive hillside setting. This experience is at additional cost and bookable on tour; details, including availability, can be confirmed with your Travel Director.

Explore Cortona on a guided optional excursion, visiting a recently unearthed Etruscan temple and walking through the Tuscan hill town’s historic centre. Take in views towards Lake Trasimeno and the Val di Chiana.

The temple offers a window onto Cortona’s pre-Roman past, while its elevated streets show how the town developed across later centuries. This experience is at additional cost and bookable on tour.

Discover the flavours of a traditional Umbrian kitchen at an optional evening dining experience, accompanied by regional wines. The meal places local food and drink at the centre of an introduction to Umbria’s culinary character.

Umbrian cooking is closely connected to the produce and traditions of central Italy. Sharing its specialties with wines from the region offers a more focused food experience than a routine dinner. It is at additional cost and bookable on tour.

Explore Pisa on an optional outing from Lucca. Discover the Tuscan city best known for its Leaning Tower and the monumental buildings gathered around it in the Piazza dei Miracoli.

The square’s cathedral, baptistery and bell tower speak to Pisa’s historic wealth and architectural ambition. The itinerary does not specify which monuments are entered, so this is best considered an opportunity to see the city. It is at additional cost and bookable on tour.