This classic Italian 19-day vacation is our most popular, with departures throughout the year. Two-night stays in Rome, Florence, Lake Maggiore**, Venice, and Sorrento, plus one night in St. Francis’ Assisi, offer plenty of time to visit the main sights with a Local Guide. Discover St. Peter’s, the Sistine Chapel, the Colosseum, Michelangelo’s David, St. Mark’s and Doges’ Palace with the Bridge of Sighs. Stops are also made in Pisa to see the Leaning Tower, and in dynamic Milan, in subtopical Lugano in Switzerland, in Verona, in Ravenna, and in Montecassino to visit the medieval Abbey. The two nights in Sorrento include visits to Pompeii at the foot of Mount Vesuvius, and to the Isle of Capri, with a visit to Villa San Michele in Anacapri.
Year-Round
Departures 0102-0327 and 1030-0403 overnight in Milan instead of Lake Maggiore. Dinner and Lugano visit on day 6 are not included.

ROME
Welcome dinner at a local restaurant; guided sightseeing including headsets, visit the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s Square & Basilica, and the Colosseum and Roman Forum
PISA
Picture stop at the Leaning Tower
FLORENCE
Guided sightseeing including headsets, visit Michelangelo’s David, the cathedral, and Signoria Square
MILAN
Orientation including the Galleria and the Duomo
LUGANO (SWITZERLAND)
Afternoon stop
VERONA
Orientation including Juliet’s Balcony and the Arena
VENICE
Private boat ride; guided sightseeing including headsets, visit St. Mark’s Square & Basilica, Doges’ Palace and the Bridge of Sighs; glassblowers’ demonstration
RAVENNA
Visit the Basilica of St. Apollinaris in Classe
ASSISI
Visit St. Francis’ Basilica
POMPEII
Guided visit of the excavations including headsets
SORRENTO-CAPRI
By jet/hydrofoil
CAPRI
Guided sightseeing, visit Villa San Michele in Anacapri

-MEALS: Buffet breakfast (BB) daily; 6 three-course dinners (D) (departures 0102-0327 & 1030-0401: 5 three-course dinners), including a special welcome dinner with wine in Rome
-AIRPORT TRANSFERS Airport transfers may be included when you make your flight arrangements with the tour company
-INSIDE VISITS are shown in UPPERCASE in the tour description, including admission charges when applicable
-Hotel Accommodations. Twin-bedded rooms with private bath or shower, hotel taxes, service charges, and tips for baggage handling
ROME Cicerone (SF) or Starhotels Metropole (SF) or Holiday Inn Rome West (F) or Villa Pamphili (F), FLORENCE Grand Hotel Mediterraneo (F), LAKE MAGGIORE Grand Hotel Bristol (F) at Stresa or Grand Hotel Dino (F) at Baveno or Starhotels Ritz (F) at Milan (0108-0401 & 1028-0331), VENICE Ambasciatori (F) at Mestre, ASISI Dei Priori (F), SORRENTO Grand Hotel Cesare Augusto (F) or Corallo (F), ZIE: Hilton Sorrento Palace (SF)
-Professional Tour Director while touring, cruise director on River cruises, host services on Independent Vacations, and 50 hosts in London alone to assist you at airports and hotels
-Private deluxe motorcoach with air-conditioning, extra leg room, and emergency washroom while touring
-Travel bag and travel documents

Day 1  (Mon.) Board your overnight transatlantic flight.

Day 2  Arrival in Rome, Italy. (Tue.) Time to rest or start exploring the Eternal City. At 6 p.m. meet your Tour Director and traveling companions for a special welcome dinner with wine in one of Rome’s lively restaurants. (D)

Day 3  Rome. (Wed.) Sightseeing with your Local Guide starts with a visit to the VATICAN MUSEUMS and SISTINE CHAPEL (arranged next morning if closed today), 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. (BB)

Day 4  Rome-Pisa-Florence. (Thu.) North to Pisa for pictures of its amazing Leaning Tower. Continue to Florence, the capital of Tuscany and home to Renaissance splendor. (BB,D)

Day 5  Florence. (Fri.) Follow your Local Guide to the 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. Why not join an optional dinner at a Tuscan restaurant? (BB)

Day 6  Florence-Milan-Lugano, Switzerland-Lake Maggiore, Italy**. (Sat.) 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 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. Then continue via Locarno to Lake Maggiore, one of Italy’s most beautiful areas. Spend two nights at your elegant resort. (BB,D)

Day 7  At Leisure by Lake Maggiore**. (Sun.) 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). (BB,D)

Day 8  Lake Maggiore**-Verona-Venice. (Mon.) East to Verona, medieval setting for Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, to see Juliet’s Balcony and the wellpreserved Arena. Join the locals for lunch before continuing to Venice, deemed by some the most romantic city in the world. (BB)

Day 9  Venice. (Tue.) Enter in style by PRIVATE BOAT to meet your Local Guide. Highlights of your 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. (BB,D)

Day 10  Venice-Ravenna-Assisi. (Wed.) 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 to visit the massive 13th-century lower BASILICA OF ST. FRANCIS. Then time to take in this peaceful town on your own. (BB,D)

Day 11  Assisi-Pompeii-Sorrento. (Thu.) Today visit POMPEII, the Roman city both destroyed and preserved by an eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D. Overnight in the charming, bayside resort of Sorrento. (BB)

Day 12  Sorrento. Excursion to Capri. (Fri.) Glide across the blue bay to the beautiful Isle of Capri. Sightseeing with a Local Guide includes a visit to VILLA SAN MICHELE in Anacapri. Time to explore at your own pace before returning to Sorrento. The remainder of the day is at leisure. (BB)

Day 13 - 17  Sorrento. (Sat. to Wed.) Few locations in the world match the special charm of Sorrento. A favorite with the international jet set, this resort on the Bay of Naples boasts an exquisite climate, beautiful beaches, trendy boutiques, interesting museums and galleries, and a vibrant nightlife. It’s all yours for five relaxing days. (BB daily)

Day 18  Sorrento-Rome. (Thu.) Today you will be transferred back to Rome. (BB)

Day 19  (Fri.) Your homebound flight arrives the same day. (BB)