Ultimate Italy

Dining Summary

• 5 Dinner (D)
• 11 Breakfast (B)
• 3 Lunch (L)

Choice Highlights

Choose between two carefully selected activities
• Assisi: Join a Local Expert for a guided visit to the imposing Basilica of St. Francis.
• Assisi: Treat your palate as you sample Umbrian specialties at a tasting experience.
Choose between two carefully selected activities
• Florence: Join an art historian to immerse yourself in Renaissance Florence. Visit the Accademia Museum and marvel at the statue of David, a Michelangelo masterpiece. See the impressive trio of the Duomo, Bell Tower and Baptistery before arriving to Piazza della Signoria, traditionally the political heart of the city.
• Florence: Join a local foodie and get to know Florence one bite at a time on your walking tour. Learn about Florentine speciliaties, visit the lively Mercato Centrale and sample a selection of gourmet highlights.

Additional Included Highlights

• Enjoy seamless personal assistance throughout your journey. From securing exclusive reservations, to organising transportation, your Travel Concierge ensures every aspect of your travel is tailored to your tastes and preferences.
• In select destinations, our network of Local Expert Guides will illuminate your journey on a deeper level.  ​
• Included at all hotels.
• Hotel taxes, porterage and tips, as well as tips for included dining experiences, are included.
• Enjoy breakfast every morning, and an array of incredible dining options throughout your journey, infused with discovery and adventure.
• On days where a Relaxed Start (RS) is indicated, you can select to indulge in breakfast in bed.​
• Enjoy complimentary hotel WiFi. And, on select coaches, onboard WiFi may also be available.
• Transfers are included on your journey start and end dates, and where additional accommodation has been booked in advance through Luxury Gold. Transfers to train stations or alternate hotels, in the same start or end city as the itinerary, may be requested.

Curated Experiences

• Vatican: Enter the Vatican Museums and visit the Sistine Chapel on a tour with your Local Expert. Be awed by the frescoes that adorn the walls and roof, painted by masters such as Michelangelo, Botticelli and Ghirlandaio.
• Venice: Triumphantly enter the Doge's Palace as a guardian permits only you and your traveling companions to enter for an after-hours tour. Discover the art, culture and history of the Venetian Republic in a small, intimate group.
• Venice: Witness the ancient skill of glassblowing at a long-standing arts center, where you can see the artisans create singular works of beautiful art. On this MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience discover more about this incredible craft that has been part of Venetian culture for several centuries. Every visit helps to support the workshop and the survival of this traditional craft.

Exceptional Dining

• Rome: As night falls, delight in the romance of the Eternal City before gathering for a delicious Welcome Dinner of Italian cuisine and wine at a restaurant known only to locals, near Rome’s famous Pantheon. Watch the world go by as you savor a meal with new friends.
• Capri: After your morning cruise, cool off from the Mediterranean sun with a refreshing local beverage, the lemon granita. Freshly made with sweet Sicilian lemons, this tasty drink will add zing to your day before more exploring.
• Capri: Take in beautiful views of the Gulf of Naples from the privileged perch of Michelin-starred Mammà restaurant. Savor a delectable meal of Mediterranean flavors in perfect Caprese style, created with passion from fresh, local produce by chef Salvatore La Ragione.
• San Gimignano: Get a taste of magnificence in gelato form. Ascend serpentine alleyways to the artisan ice cream parlour of World Champion Gelato maestro, Sergio Dondoli, for a taste of his creamiest treats. It may be difficult to leave.
• Tuscany: Explore Guardastelle with a wine expert to learn about the various grape varieties and visit the ancient cellars, where you will enjoy a wine tasting. Afterwards, indulge in a lunch of Tuscan specialties and beautiful views of the rolling hills and vineyards.
• Florence: Enjoy dinner in an elegant Florentine villa, where you’ll dine on regional dishes including the famous local specialty 'Fiorentina' - a Tuscan beef steak, seasoned and grilled to perfection.
• Tuscany: Immerse yourself in the culture of Tuscan food with a hands-on cooking class in the former hunting lodge of the Medici family. Source fresh ingredients from the blooming garden and learn how to roll your own fresh pasta with a professional Italian chef.
• Venice: Enjoy a traditional Venetian meal in a local restaurant.

Founder's Collection

• Tuscany: If you are traveling on a Founder's Collection departure, on Day 6 you are invited to an exclusive lunch and wine tasting with Marchese Mazzei at his centuries-old Tuscan estate. This experience will replace the lunch and wine tasting at the Guardastelle Estate.

Magnificent Stays

• Capri: Overlooking Capri's central plaza, Quisisana Hotel is in prime position for exploring the Isle of Capri. Rooms are desigined with effortless Mediterranean elegance, matching perfectly with the idyllic backdrop of lush greenery and turquoise water.
• Venice: Set in the heart of Venice and overlooking the lagoon, Metropole escapes traditional luxury clichés and expresses its personality through an eclectic décor, relic mirrors, rugs from the Far East, red velvets and antique collections.

Passport Moments

• Rome: Every side street has something to offer, as you’ll see on a guided exploration of the hidden sites of Rome with your knowledgeable Local Expert. Get away from the crowds and discover more culture and art in this living masterpiece.
• Pompeii: Walk with a Local Expert through the cobbled streets of this ill-fated town, frozen in time since the 1st century, when a volcanic eruption engulfed the streets. Hear more about the lavish lives the locals lived and visit well-preserved ruins of baths and local shops.
• Capri: Arrive in style for your overnight stay as the jet-set do, traveling to your luxurious Capri hotel by open-top taxi. Don’t forget your headscarf or hat and sunglasses so passersby can speculate about the visiting VIP.
• Capri: Embark on a private cruise that takes you around the dramatic coast of Capri to seek out hidden coves and grottos that few get to see. The White Grotto is a dazzling sight with the stalactites that dangle over its entrance.
• Perugia: Meet Marta, fourth-generation weaver and recipient of a TreadRight Foundation grant at Laboratorio Giuditta Brozzetti. Discover how she and her weavers are preserving the medieval Umbrian tradition of loom-weaving at their artisanal workshop and sharing their own piece of a colorful history. On this MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience Marta and her students help to safeguard the unique patterns while contributing to the protection of Umbria’s cultural heritage. The workshop is owned by women and actively empowers women and girls through its education and training programs.
• San Gimignano: Visit this small hillside city and find out why it's called the 'medieval Manhattan of Italy'. Enter the exquisite Porto San Giovanni, the main city gate, that's stood the test of time since the 13th century. Explore well-preserved streets and beautiful ceramic stores.
• Pisa: Accompanied by your Local Expert, marvel at the gravity-defying Leaning Tower of Pisa and see the Duomo and baptistery.
• Cinque Terre: Experience some of the most awe-inspiring coastal scenery on earth at the UNESCO-listed Cinque Terre. Join your Local Expert and discover charming Manarola, a picturesque fishing village, before traveling by train to the historic and colorful resort town of Rapallo.
• Venice: Take a private water taxi along the Grand Canal to make an elegant arrival at your luxurious hotel, which sits right by the water’s edge. Soak up the romance of this enchanting city as you experience a relaxing journey on the water.
• Venice: Let yourself be swept away by romance with a ride on a traditional gondola through the canals of Venice. See hidden corners of the city and soak up the atmosphere while being serenaded by your gondolier.
• Venice: Join your Local Expert for an enriching exploration of the many wondrous sights of Venice. Admire St. Mark’s Basilica, a brilliant example of Italo-Byzantine architecture, and feel the whispers from the Bridge of Sighs, a historic passageway to the Doge's Palace.

Personalise your day

• Assisi: Join a Local Expert for a guided visit to the imposing Basilica of St. Francis.
• Assisi: Treat your palate as you sample Umbrian specialties at a tasting experience.
• Florence: Join an art historian to immerse yourself in Renaissance Florence. Visit the Accademia Museum and marvel at the statue of David, a Michelangelo masterpiece. See the impressive trio of the Duomo, Bell Tower and Baptistery before arriving to Piazza della Signoria, traditionally the political heart of the city.
• Florence: Join a local foodie and get to know Florence one bite at a time on your walking tour. Learn about Florentine speciliaties, visit the lively Mercato Centrale and sample a selection of gourmet highlights.