Fantasia 11

Day 1 Rome
Benvenuti a Roma! After you touch down at the airport, make your own way  to your hotel. Check in and then enjoy the city at your leisure before  spending your first night in Italy.  
 

Day 2 Rome, Assisi, Siena, Florence
Departing at 7:15am by a deluxe coach, you will arrive in Assisi, where you  can explore this tiny town, surrounded by walls built in the middle ages, at  your own leisure. Make time to visit the basilica of St. Francis, where you will  see masterpieces by Giotto and Ciambue, and to have lunch (not included).  Board the bus for Siena, a medieval town surrounded by ancient walls that  is known for the Palio, an annual summertime horse race around the shellshaped  town  square,  Piazza  del  Campo.  Next,  you  will  continue  on  to  Florence, where you will check in to your hotel before enjoying dinner and a  well‐earned night of rest.  

Day 3 Florence  
After breakfast, you will spend the day venturing around beautiful Florence,  the “cradle of renaissance, where, with the help of Michelangelo, italian art  reached its pinnacle. Based on etruscan‐roman origins, the city flourished in  the  middle  ages  as  a  free  “comune”  and was  further  refined  by  the  renaissance. You will be fascinated by its numerous monuments, churches,  and buildings, as Santa Maria del Fiore, more commonly referred to as the  Duomo. On your visit, you will be amazed by its magnificent dome built by  Filippo Brunelleschi. Cross a small piazza to see the campanile tower (partly  designed  by  Giotto)  and  the  baptistery,  with  its  bronze  doors  that  Michelangelo dubbed the “gates of paradise.” In the heart of the city, you  will see Piazza della Signoria, Palazzo della Signoria (also known as Palazzo  Vecchio),  and  the  basilica  of  Santa  Croce.  Lunch  in  a  typical  Tuscany  restaurant  in  Santa  Croce  square.  Spend  the  afternoon  strolling  the  cobblestone streets of Florence on your own or take a short trip to Pisa  (optional), one of the four main historical marine republics of Italy. There,  you will tour the square of miracles, which houses the Duomo, the leaning  tower, and the baptistery. Overnight stay.    

Day 4 Florence, Bologna, Padua, Venice  
Depart for  Bologna after breakfast  in Florence. There, you will wander  through the city’s 38 kilometers worth of elegant arcades (or porticos), for  which Bologna is famous. From Piazza Malpighi, we will walk to Piazza del  Nettuno and Piazza Maggiore (Neptune square and Major square) in the  heart of the city, where you will find Neptune fountain; King Renzo Palace;  Podestà Palace; and the basilica of San Petronio, one of the biggest in the  world.  In  the  afternoon,  continue  toward  Padova,  with  its  original  Sant’Antonio basilica. Later, you will arrive in Venice, world‐renowned for its  classic gondola boats and its elegant, refined art. Check in to your hotel and  enjoy your first venetian dinner and overnight stay.    

Day 5 Venice
Hit the water after breakfast as you board a private water bus to enjoy St.  Mark’s square, interior visit of the splendid cathedral, the Dogi palace, a  symbol of the glory and authority of Venice as it housed the seat of the  government and the court of justice. Nearby you will see the legendary 
bridge of sight. Spend the afternoon roaming along Venice’s canals at your  leisure and then return to the hotel for dinner and relaxation.    

Day 6 Venice, Montepulciano (Tuscany wine region), Rome
Once you eat breakfast, depart from Piazzale Roma to Tuscany, known for  its romantic churches and castles and its infamous wines. You will proceed  to val di chiana with a stop in Montepulciano, a medieval town rich with  history and art. Known for its “nobile” wine, which can be purchased in wine  houses in town, Montepulciano is also the host of an annual jazz and wine  festival every July. Spend the afternoon getting to know Montepulciano at  your own pace. Free wine tasting in many shops and free time for shopping.  That evening, you will check in to your new hotel in Rome.  

Day 7 Rome
Between 7:45 ‐ 8:00 am, after breakfast depart from the hotel and Take the  tour of the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel and St. Peters’s Basilica and  jump the queue! No stress to reach the area: upon arrival, your guide will  lead you into the museums where you’ll visit one of the most important art  collection of the world. Admire the beautiful spiral stairway, the gallery of  tapestries and geographical maps, before arriving at the famous Sistine  Chapel. The tour includes the visit of St. Peters’s Basilica (the visit ends in the  city centre).Explore the rest of the city at your own leisure until you decide  that you can’t do any more walking. Return to the hotel to give your feet  some rest.    

Day 8 Rome, Naples, Pompeii, Sorrento
After breakfast at your hotel, a coach bus will depart at 7:00am, taking the  highway “of the sun”through the regions of Lazio and Campania, where you  will see a picturesque view of the abbey of Montecassino. Upon arriving in  Naples, you will go on a short panoramic walking tour, seeing sites such as  the Mergellina neighborhood, castel dell’ovo, Plebiscito square, the Royal  palace, Maschio Angioino, and the port. Have lunch in a restaurant en route  to  Pompeii  and  then  visit  the  excavations  of  the famous  roman  city,  destroyed by the eruption of mount Vesuvius in 79 a.D. Leaving Pompeii, you  will drive along the Sorrentine coast, arriving in Sorrento for dinner and an  overnight in your new hotel.    

Day 9 Sorrento, Capri, Sorrento
Board a boat for the island of Capri after breakfast. Depending on weather  and sea conditions, you will enter the infamous blue grotta in a small  rowboat. After, enjoy lunch at a local restaurant and then roam the island at  your own pace. Return to the mainland for dinner and your last overnight in  Sorrento.    

Day 10 Sorrento, Rome  
Spend a leisurely morning eating breakfast at your hotel and then exploring  Sorrento. That afternoon, depart for Rome, where you will check in to your  hotel and spend the night.

Day 11 Rome
Enjoy one final breakfast before the tour comes to an end.