Board your overnight transatlantic flight.

Day 2 Arrival in Rome, Italy

Time to rest or start exploring the Eternal City. 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 lively restaurants. (D)

Day 3 Rome

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. Afterwards relax or explore the city on your own. Later you may wish to join an optional walk to Trevi Fountain, Navona Square, the Roman Pantheon, and the Spanish Steps, and finish with a Roman dinner party. (BB)

Day 4 Rome

This morning follow your Local Guide and visit the COLOSSEUM and the ROMAN FORUM, where Roman Legions marched in triumph. Then time to savor la dolce vita and enjoy independent activities. An optional excursion to Ostia Antica is available. (BB)

Day 5 Rome–Siena–San Gimignano–Florence

First stop this morning is in Siena. Walk through ancient, narrow lanes to Piaza del Campo, site of the Palio, Siena’s spectacular medievalstyle horse race. Then continue through unforgettable landscapes of gently rolling, vine-clad hills for a stop in hilltop San Gimignano, the most picturesque of Italy’s perfectly preserved medieval towns. Afterwards on to Florence, the splendid capital of Tuscany and birthplace of the Renaissance. (BB,D)

Day 6 Florence

Follow your Local Guide and visit the ACADEMY OF FINE ARTS with Michelangelo’s celebrated David and the magnificent CATHEDRAL. Admire Giotto’s Bell Tower, the Baptistry’s heavy bronze “Gate of Paradise,” and sculpture-studded SIGNORIA SQUARE. The afternoon is free. Florentine leather goods and gold jewelry sold by the ounce are attractive buys. You may wish to join an optional dinner outing to a fine Tuscan restaurant. (BB)

Day 7 Florence Excursion to Pisa and Verrazzano Castle.
A fast journey will bring you to Pisa. Here take your pictures of the amazing Leaning Tower, 180 feet high and no less than 12 feet out of the perpendicular. Today’s highlight: hear about the fine art of blending four types of grapes to obtain the famous Chianti at VERRAZZANO CASTLE; enjoy WINE TASTING and lunch before returning to Florence. (BB,L)

Day 8 Florence–Venice

An easy morning drive through the wooded Apennine Hills to Venice, a powerful magnet for romantics and art lovers from around the globe. Enter its glittering maze of islands, canals, and bridges in style by PRIVATE BOAT to meet your Local Guide. Highlights of your walking tour are ST. MARK’S SQUARE and BYZANTINE BASILICA, lavish DOGES’ PALACE, and the BRIDGE OF SIGHS. Then enjoy Venice at your own pace, or join an optional gondola ride. (BB)

Day 9 Venice

Murano and Burano Islands Excursion. (Fri.) Enjoy an unforgettable Venetian LAGOON CRUISE to the islands of Murano and Burano. Glide past the islands of San Giorgio and Santa Elena, and along the banks of the famous Lido. In Murano watch GLASSBLOWERS fashion their delicate objects in an age-old traditional manner. Then continue on to the picturesque fishing village of Burano, renowned for its bright pastel-colored houses and for its lacemaking. Take pictures of traditional fishing boats and enjoy an included lunch. Return to Venice in the early afternoon. (BB,L)

Day 10 Venice–Verona–Milan

Stop in Verona, medieval setting of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet and see Juliet’s Balcony and the Arena, an incredibly well-preserved pink marble Roman amphitheater. Built in the 1st century A.D., it is now the magical venue for world-famous opera performances. Then on to the dynamic city of Milan with its famous Scala Opera House, glass-domed GALLERIA, and magnificent GOTHIC DUOMO. An optional farewell dinner may be the perfect way to celebrate the success of your Italian vacation. (BB)

Day 11