• 4 Dinner (D)
• 9 Breakfast (B)

• Rome: During an orientation with your Travel Director see the medieval buildings, Renaissance palaces and Baroque churches scattered throughout the city.
• Rome: Be inspired by the magnificence of Michelangelo and Botticelli at the Vatican Museums.
• Rome: In the Vatican City visit St. Peter’s Basilica. Witness the early genius of Michelangelo as you take in the Pietà.
• Follow in the footsteps of gladiators for a deeper insight into life in ancient Rome when you enter the Colosseum.
• Assisi: With a Local Specialist, find out why the Basilica of St. Francis is considered to be one of the crowning artistic achievements of 13th-century Europe.
• Florence: Join a Local Specialist to view the multicolored marble cathedral, bell tower and baptistery, adorned by Ghiberti’s Gates of Paradise. Visit the political heart of the city, Signoria Square.
• Florence: See the area around Santa Croce Basilica, famous for the quality of its luxury goods, and witness a gold and leatherwork demonstration.
• Pisa: Visit Pisa’s Square of Miracles with a Local Specialist. Learn about the history of the iconic Leaning Tower and see the ornate Bapistry and Cathedral. 
• Bologna: Join a Local Specialist on an exploration of Bologna. See the medieval squares and red-bricked facades of this historic city.  
• Venice: Discover the ancient skill of Venetian glassblowing and play a part in preserving this traditional craft.
• Venice: Savor the vibrant atmosphere of Venice during a walk through its calli to a traditional food market in the shadow of the famous Rialto Bridge.

• Deluxe coach travel
• Selected hotel dinners plus a locally hosted meal
• 4-star stays

Visit the Basilica of St. Francis in Assisi with a Local Specialist and discover the story of the saint born in this Umbrian hill town. The basilica is his final resting place and an important place of pilgrimage.

Admire its celebrated medieval frescoes, including works by Giotto, which helped transform the way artists depicted human stories and emotion. The church’s artistic heritage makes this more than a visit to a historic religious site.

Explore Pisa’s Square of Miracles with a Local Specialist and learn the story of its Leaning Tower, the famously tilted bell tower beside the city’s marble cathedral. See the ornate Baptistery and the Camposanto within this remarkable ensemble of religious buildings.

The broad green square gives each monument room to be appreciated, from the cathedral’s patterned stonework to the tower’s unmistakable silhouette. The Camposanto’s history is linked to soil traditionally said to have come from the Holy Land.

Trafalgar

See the Eternal City on an orientation drive with your Travel Director, passing a cityscape of medieval buildings, Renaissance palaces and Baroque churches. It is an introduction to the layers of history that make Rome distinctive.

Share a welcome dinner with your fellow travellers and begin getting to know the people accompanying you through Italy. The hosted meal offers a relaxed first taste of Italian hospitality.

Explore the Vatican Museums with fast-track admission alongside a Local Specialist. Their vast collections span centuries of art, including works associated with Renaissance masters such as Botticelli.

Stand beneath Michelangelo’s frescoes in the Sistine Chapel, where the painted ceiling and Last Judgment give this sacred space its extraordinary artistic significance. Museum tickets may be unavailable on some departures; in that case, a visit to Rome’s Capitoline Museums is offered instead.

Visit St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City with a Local Specialist and view Michelangelo’s Pietà, the marble sculpture depicting Mary holding Christ. The immense basilica is one of the most significant churches in Christianity.

Take in the scale and detail of this Renaissance landmark, built over the traditional burial place of St. Peter. Access to the basilica may be restricted on some departures; when it is unavailable, the visit still includes the atmosphere of St. Peter’s Square.

Walk through Florence with a Local Specialist, taking in Piazza della Signoria, the marble-clad Duomo and Baptistery, and views of the Ponte Vecchio over the Arno. The streets reveal the civic and artistic ambitions of the Renaissance city.

See the area around Santa Croce Basilica and witness a gold and leatherwork demonstration. These crafts connect Florence’s long tradition of skilled artisanship with the workshops and luxury goods still associated with the city.

Explore Bologna with a Local Specialist, seeing its medieval squares, red-brick facades and the towers that shape its historic skyline. Views of the city’s leaning towers offer a glimpse of the status symbols once built by powerful local families.

Bologna’s streets reflect centuries of civic and university life in one of Italy’s great centres of learning. This guided introduction brings the character of the city into focus beyond its well-known culinary reputation.

Cruise by private launch to St. Mark’s Square and see Venice from the water, the perspective that has defined the city for centuries. Along the way, admire landmarks including the Bridge of Sighs, Palladian churches and the historic Customs House.

At the square, take in the exteriors of St. Mark’s Basilica and the Doge’s Palace. Their elaborate facades recall the wealth and political power of the former Venetian Republic.

Visit one of Venice’s remaining glassblowing studios to discover the skill behind Venetian glass. Gain insight into how artisans shape this delicate material and why preserving the craft matters to the city’s cultural identity.

Glassmaking has been associated with the Venetian lagoon for centuries, particularly with nearby Murano. Seeing the work in a studio setting offers a closer connection to the techniques and patience behind objects found in Venice’s shop windows.

Meet the team from Venice Lagoon Plastic Free for a discussion about protecting the waters surrounding Venice. Learn how plastic pollution affects lagoon wildlife and daily life, and consider practical ways to reduce waste while travelling.

This MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® experience connects the city’s celebrated waterways with the environmental work needed to safeguard them. You’ll receive tools for more sustainable travel, including a reusable glass bottle; the visit supports UN Sustainable Development Goal 14: Life Below Water.

Explore Pompeii with a Local Specialist on an optional excursion from Rome. Discover the remains of the Roman city buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE, and hear how the disaster preserved evidence of ancient daily life.

Passing the Abbey of Monte Cassino on the return journey adds a glimpse of a site associated with fierce fighting during the Second World War. This experience is at additional cost and bookable on tour.

Visit Burano, an island in the Venetian lagoon, on an optional experience. Walk beside canals lined with brightly painted fishermen’s houses and enjoy a quieter, more residential contrast to central Venice.

The island’s close relationship with fishing and its long lace-making tradition give its colourful streets a character of their own. This excursion offers a chance to see another side of lagoon life and is at additional cost and bookable on tour.

Enter the Colosseum with a Local Specialist for a closer look at ancient Rome’s monumental amphitheatre. As you explore, learn how its arena hosted gladiatorial contests and public spectacles before immense crowds.

Opened in the first century CE, the Colosseum remains a vivid record of Roman engineering and public life. Its tiers and surviving stonework help convey the scale of the events once staged at the heart of the empire.

Join a member of the Miari Fulcis family on their working Tuscan estate for a hosted Be My Guest dinner. Look around its medieval cloister and gardens before sitting down to a meal shaped by local flavours and family stories.

The estate produces organic olive oil and honey, grounding the evening in the agricultural traditions of the Tuscan countryside. Olive groves, vineyards and a setting featured in classic films lend the gathering a distinctive sense of place.

Walk Venice’s narrow calli with a Local Specialist, crossing small bridges and seeing the architecture of its canal-side neighbourhoods. Cross the Rialto Bridge, one of the city’s best-known crossings of the Grand Canal.

Experience the bustle of a traditional food market near Rialto, where the produce and everyday rhythms offer a view of Venice beyond its monuments. The area has been a centre of commerce for centuries, making it a fitting place to encounter the city’s living traditions.