Italy Full Immersion
 15 Days
/ 14 Nights
Day 1 ARRIVAL IN ROME
Day 2 ROME
Day 3 ROME-FLORENCE
Day 4 FLORENCE-VENICE
Day 5 VENICE
Day 6 VENICE-ASSISI
Day 7 ASSISI-SORRENTO
Day 8 SORRENTO-EXCURSION TO CAPRI
Day 9 SORRENTO-TAORMINA AREA
Day 10 TAORMINA AREA
Day 11 TAORMINA AREA-AGRIGENTO
Day 12 AGRIGENTO-PALERMO
Day 13 PALERMO-ROME
Day 14 ROME
Day 15 DEPARTURE
Day 1: ARRIVAL IN ROME
Private car trft to the reserved Hotel. Welcome dinner in
one of Rome's fine restaurants.
Day 2: ROME
Sightseeing with private guide starts with vistas of the beautiful Piazza
Venezia and a stroll along the Via Sacra at the ROMAN FORUM, where Roman legions
marched in tnumph; then pass the Colosseum and hear about gladiatorial combats
and early Christian martyrdom; finally proceed via Circus Maximus and across
the Tiber to see monumental ST. PETER'S SQUARE AND BASILICA.
Lunch in local restaurant. During the afternoon continue the visit of the vatican
Musuems and the Sistine Chapel.
Dinner in one of the fine restaurants of Rome.
Day 3: ROME-FLORENCE
Follow the Aurelian Way along the Tyrrhenian coast to Pisa.
Here take your pictures of the amazing Leaning Tower, 180 feet high and no less
than 16 feet out of the perpendicular.
Then on to Florence, the splendid capital of Tuscany. Arrive in time for a first
glimpse of the Renaissance treasures.
Dinner in local restaurant, with Tuscany menù.
Day 4: FLORENCE-VENICE
Private Guided sightseeing includes magnificent SANTA MARIA DEL FIORE, 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 GALLERY OF FINE
ARTS.
Time afterwards to shop for Florentine leather goods and gold jewelry before
you head across the wooded Etruscan Apennine Hills to the northern tip of the
Adriatic Sea. Arrive in Venice.
Private boat transfer to the reserved Hotel. Dinner in a venice restaurant.
Day 5: VENICE
Start morning privat sightseeing of your walking tour are St. Mark's Square
and the Byzantine splendor of ST. MARK'S BASILICA, lavish DOGES' PALACE and
the Bridge of Sighs.
Also watch VENETIAN GLASS BLOWERS fashion their delicate objects in an age-old
traditional manner.
Then enjoy Venice at your own pace, or join an optional gondola ride.
Dinner in a fine restaurants.
Day 6: VENICE-ASSISI
Along the coastline of the Adriatic Sea to Ravenna. Here see the famous mosaics
in the 6th-century
BASILICA OF ST. APOLLINARIS IN CLASSE. In the afternoon arrive in Assisi and
visit the massive 13th-century lower BASILICA OF ST. FRANCIS built above the
saint's grave. Time afterwards to enjoy the peaceful town at your own pace.
Dinner in local restaurant the famous Umbria local speciality.
Day 7: ASSISI-SORRENTO
South through the rolling Campagna Romana. Today's highlight visit is to POMPEII,
the Roman city both destroyed and preserved by an eruption of Mount Vesuvius
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.
Overnight in the charming resort of Sorrento, delightfully situated on the Bay
of Naples.
Dinner in restaurant.
Day 8: SORRENTO-EXCURSION TO CAPRI
Glide across the blue bay to the beautiful Isle of Capri, a royal retreat
for 2,000 years. A privat local guide takes you to the shimmering BLUE GROTTO
(weather permitting; otherwise visit VILLA SAN MICHELE in Anacapri) and up to
pretty Capri village.
Time to stroll about at your own pace before returning across the bay to Sorrento.
The remainder of the day is free. Tonight an optional outing to a performance
of the tarantella, a frenetic, local dance.
Dinner in restaurant.
Day 9: SORRENTO-TAORMINA AREA
Away from the bustling industrial North and the opulent rural scenes of Tuscany
and the Campagna Romana. Calabria is rustic simplicity. An area that traditionally
cannot feed all its children and thus produces a steady stream of emigrants.
At the toe of the Italian boot board a ferry to cross the Straits of Messina
and land in Sicily, the great melting pot of the Mediterranean world.
Phoenicians' Greeks, Romans, Saracens, Normans, the French, and the Spanish
have all left their mark and contributed to a rich heritage. Evening arrival
at your hotel in the Taormina.
Dinner and overnight.
Day 10: TAORMINA AREA
Full day guide to enjoy this beautiful resort: you visit the medieval castle
of San Pancrazio, The Greek Theater and naturally an excursion to Mount Etna,
join your tour director for an included walk on Taormina's Corso to shop for
hand embroidery and local goods.
Dinner in a local fine restaurant.
Day 11: TAORMINA AREA-AGRIGENTO
A day devoted to the scenic beauty and treasures of the island's heart.
Via Catania motor to Enna, a strategic fortress-town perched high on a sheer
rock.
Enjoy the spectacular panoramic view and bear about the rebellion of the Sicilian
slaves against the Roman rulers of the city. Then continue to Piazza Amerina
for a visit to the 4th-century ROMAN VILLA OF CASALE.
Its colorful and perfectly preserved mosaics depict mythological themes and
hunting scenes.
From the wheat fields of the elevated center descend to the vineyards and olive
groves of the south coast.
Dinner and overnight.
Day 12: AGRIGENTO-PALERMO
Follow your local guide on a breathtaking walk through the VALLEY OF TEMPLES.
Even travelers having visited Athens and Delphi are awed by the gigantic yet
graceful Greek structures
which miraculously survived 24 centuries of tormented history. An act hard to
follow? Wait until you visit
the Dorian Temples and Acropolis at SELINUNTE this afternoon. Built on a natural
balcony overlooking the sparkling Mediterranean, these accomplishments of an
ancient civilization will make you wonder about the quality of mankind's progress
since the days of Greek splendor. Tonight you are in Palermo.
Dinner in a fine nice restaurant.
Day 13: PALERMO-ROME
Drive up to Monreale for a panoramic view of the Conca d'Oro, and a visit to
the 12th-century NORMAN CATHEDRAL with its 50,000 square feet of precious Byzantine
mosaics.
Later travel the short distance to the picturesque fishing village of Mondello,
and back to Palermo over scenic, history- steeped Monte Pellegrino. This afternoon's
sightseeing with a resident expert includes ornate Piazza Bellim, the CATHEDRAL,
and the Arab- Norman PALATINE CHAPEL in the Royal Palace.
Flight to Rome ( Not included ). Arrival in Rome, meet your privat driver and
trft to the reserved Hotel.
Dinner in local restaurant.
Day 14: ROME
Free day at disposal for last shopping or special visit. Farewell Dinner in
a beautiful restaurant
with view on Rome.
Day 15: DEPARTURE
Suggested hotels:
Rome: Hotel Eden/Empire Palace/Hotel Sofitel
Florence: Helvetia & Bristol Hotel/Hotel Albani/Hotel Anglo American
Venice: Bauer Hotel/Hotel Colombina/Bauer Palladio Hotel
Assisi: Hotel Subasio/Hotel Dal Moro
Sorrento: Grand Hotel Vittoria/Grand Hotel Cocumella
Taormina: S. Domenico Palace/Grand Hotel Timeo/ Excelsior Palace
Agrigento: Hotel Baglio della Luna/Hotel Villa Athena
Palermo:Hotel Villa Igea/Grand Hotel Et Des Palmes/ Hotel Principe di Villafranca
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