Day 1 - Depart Canada

Board your overnight transatlantic flight.

Day 2 - Arrive in Rome, Italy

Time to rest or start exploring the “Eternal City.” At 6 pm, meet your Tour Director and traveling companions for a special welcome dinner with wine at 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. Cross the Tiber and visit the COLOSSEUM and the ROMAN FORUM, where Roman legions marched in triumph. Then, time for independent activities and exciting optional excursion possibilities. (B)

Day 4 - Rome–Pisa–Florence

North to Pisa for pictures of its amazing Leaning Tower. Continue to Florence, the capital of Tuscany and home to Renaissance splendor. Why not join an optional dinner at a Tuscan restaurant? (B)

Day 5 - Florence

Follow your Local Guide to the ACADEMY OF FINE ARTS with Michelangelo’s David and the magnificent CATHEDRAL. Admire Giotto’s Bell Tower, the Baptistry’s “Gate of Paradise,” and sculpture-studded SIGNORIA SQUARE. Afternoon free to relax or to find out more about Florence’s artistic wealth. (B,D)

Day 6 - Florence–Milan–Lugano, Switzerland–Lake Maggiore, Italy**

Drive through the Apennine hills past Bologna, home of Europe’s oldest university, to dynamic Milan. Orientation features its gothic DUOMO, glass-domed GALLERIA, and famed La Scala Opera House. Then, continue to Lugano in the Italian-speaking part of Switzerland. A leisurely break to stroll along the lake, window-shop the refined Via Nassa, or sip an espresso on the Piazza Riforma. Next, a scenic drive along Lake Maggiore, one of Italy’s most beautiful areas. Spend two nights at your elegant resort. (B,D)

Day 7 - At Leisure by Lake Maggiore**

A restful day to sleep in or maybe join an optional excursion to the baroque palace and peacock gardens of enchanting Isola Bella (open Mar. 26-Oct. 23, subject to change). (B,D)

Day 8 - Lake Maggiore**–Verona–Venice

East to Verona, medieval setting for Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, to see Juliet’s Balcony and the well-preserved Arena. Join the locals for lunch before continuing to Venice, deemed by some the most romantic city in the world. Enter in style by PRIVATE BOAT. (B)

Day 9 - Venice

Highlights of your guided walking tour are ST. MARK’S SQUARE and the byzantine BASILICA, lavish DOGES’ PALACE and the BRIDGE OF SIGHS. Then, watch skilled GLASSBLOWERS fashion their delicate objects in the age-old manner. Later, discover Venice at your own pace or take an optional gondola ride. (B)

Day 10 - Venice–Ravenna–Assisi

Follow the sparkling Adriatic coast to Ravenna to see the mosaics in the 6th-century BASILICA OF ST. APOLLINARIS IN CLASSE. Afternoon arrival in Assisi. Visit ST. CLARE’S CHURCH and ST. FRANCIS’ BASILICA with a local guide. Time to take in this peaceful town on your own. (B,D)

Day 11 - Assisi–Pompeii–Sorrento

Today, visit POMPEII, the Roman city both destroyed and preserved by an eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. Overnight in the charming, bayside resort of Sorrento. (B)

Day 12 - Sorento

Excursion to Capri. Speed across the bay by JETFOIL to the Isle of Capri. Ride the FUNICULAR to Capri village for a guided visit of this pretty town. Free time to explore the little shops on the Piazzetta before returning to Sorrento. The remainder of the day is at leisure. (B)

Day 13 - Sorrento–Rome

A short drive back to Rome. Tonight, consider saying arrivederci to your traveling companions at an optional festive dinner in one of Rome’s fine restaurants. (B)

Day 14 - Return to Canada

Your homebound flight arrives the same day. (B)

AIRPORT TRANSFERS
Airport transfers may be included when you make your flight arrangements. Click Here for more information.

Not Included in the Vacation Price:
Airport taxes and fees; passports; visas and vaccinations; tips to your tour director, tour driver, local city guides; gratuities on ferries, trains and cruise ships; laundry; telephone; mini bar; alcohol, beverages and food not on the regular table d’hôte menu (these extra items will be billed to you before leaving the hotel or restaurant); optional excursions; porterage at airports; travel protection; excess baggage fees; all other items of a personal nature.

NOTES:
**Departures 10/26 - 12/32 Overnight in Milan instead of Lake Maggiore. Dinner on day 6 and Lugano not included.
12/21 Christmas Eve in Florence and New Year's Eve in Sorrenton.