9 Days / 8 Nights
A perfect itinerary for your first time in Italy! We've taken care of selecting wonderful 4* hotels, transfers and 1st class train tickets between cities. All you have to do is enjoy yourself as you visit the must-sees of each city on our hand-selected day tours, and have some free time to explore on your own with this independent tour of Italy.
Itinerary
Arrive in Rome at Fiumicino Airport. Your private driver will bring you to your Rome hotel. Rest up and grab some food. Tomorrow begins your exploration of Italy!
Explore the most important sites of Ancient Rome - the Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine Hill with skip the line access.
The afternoon and evening are at leisure. Want to see more of Rome? Check out our other Day Tours in Rome and feel free to add them to your itinerary. We suggest seeing the incredible Borghese Gallery & Gardens (not included in the package price).
Enjoy the free day to explore Rome as you wish! We suggest either the Vatican Museums Tour with No Wait Access or a Pasta Making Class (not included in the package price). Feel free to add any of our Rome Day Tours to your itinerary.
You will be picked up at your hotel and transferred to Rome Train Station for your train ride to Florence. Once you've arrived in Florence, you will be met at train station and taken to your hotel.
Enjoy the free day to explore Florence as you wish!
Discover Florence's historic center on this walking tour including the Ponte Vecchio, the imposing Duomo (only from outside), elegant Uffizi Square, the renowned leather market, and the Accademia Gallery with Michelangelo’s David. Please note that a full explanation of the Duomo's inside and outside features will be given by the guide. The entrance to the Duomo is free and you can visit independently if you wish. Please note that on Sundays and during religious festivities, visits inside the Duomo may be restricted.
The afternoon and evening are at leisure. Want to see more of Florence? Check out our other Day Tours in Florence and feel free to add them to your itinerary. We suggest seeing the incredible Uffizi Gallery (not included in the package price).
Enjoy the free day to explore Florence as you wish. Or feel free to add any of our Florence Day Tours to your itinerary.
You will be picked up at your hotel and transferred to Florence Train Station for your train ride to Venice. Once you've arrived in Venice, you will be met at the train station and taken to your hotel by a motor boat.
Enjoy your free day in Venice!
Join a small group on a fun and informative tour of Venice. This guided walk is a perfect introduction to Venice’s art, history, and traditions. Plus, enjoy a shared gondola ride to see Venice from the water!
The afternoon and evening are at leisure. Want to see more of Venice? Check out our other Day Tours in Venice and feel free to add them to your itinerary. We suggest seeing the incredible St. Mark's Basilica and Doge's Palace (not included in the package price).
***This group tour is not available in November and December. As alternative we can offer a private walking tour of Venice including the Doge's Palace.
Your Italy Vacation has come to an end as you transfer from your hotel to Venice Airport and head back home.
Inclusions
- 3 nights in a 4-star hotel in Rome
- 3 nights in a 4-star hotel in Florence
- 2 nights in a 4-star hotel in Venice
- Private arrival and departure airport transfers
- Private transfers to/from train station in each city as per itinerary
- 1st class train tickets: Rome-Florence and Florence-Venice
- Colosseum & Ancient Rome Tour
- Best of Florence with Accademia Gallery Tour
- Venice Walk with Gondola Ride
- Breakfast daily at hotel
Hotel Info
Hotel Marcella Royal ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
The Marcella Royal Hotel is a first class boutique hotel conveniently situated in the center of Rome. 10 minutes from Via Veneto, in an affluent and well-to-do district, within walking distance of the city’s numerous sights and attractions, including Via Veneto, the Spanish Steps, Via Nazionale, Barberini and many more.
The 4 star hotel provides all the creature comforts and amenities that you require for a most relaxing and unforgettable stay in the Eternal City. Carefully decorated and furnished throughout, including all the guest rooms and communal areas, ourthe hotel is like an oasis of tranquility, right in the heart of the hustle and bustle of Rome.
Rome
Hotel Rivoli ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
If you are searching for luxury accommodation in Florence city center, then the exclusive Rivoli Boutique Hotel will most certainly fulfill all expectations. Situated in the heart of Florence, this 15th century former Franciscan convent has been tastefully refurbished to provide comfortable, elegant accommodation whilst retaining the hotel's delightful periodic character and charm - from the lobby, with its unique opulent archways and pillars, classic ceilings and cross vaults to our lavishly frescoed lounges.
Florence
Hotel Palazzo San Lorenzo ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
Palazzo San Lorenzo is a new, four-star superior hotel with an elegant design mix of classical and contemporary. It offers 26 luxurious rooms and junior suites that have been carefully designed in every detail and equipped with every comfort in order to make your stay in Venice an unforgettable experience.
Located directly along one of Venice’s more characteristic canals in the heart of the historical city center, Palazzo San Lorenzo is distinguished by the curved Istrian-stone window sills and the bas relief of the hotel’s namesake.
Venice
Optional Tour Add-Ons
Duration: 3 hours, 9:15am - 12:15pm
City: Rome
A great introduction to the artistic treasures of the Vatican in an enjoyable and hassle-free manner.
From the enormous Vatican Museums to Michelangelo's ground-breaking frescoes in the Sistine Chapel, you will see how the Popes used art and culture to spread their message. Discover the history, the mystery and the masterpieces of Vatican City, a powerful town-state set in the center of Rome and be ready to embark on an unforgettable journey through the Vatican Museums and the breathtaking Sistine Chapel, where the brilliance of human creativity and devotion converge. As there is no talking allowed in the Sistine Chapel your guide will prepare you here for the many fascinating details you otherwise might miss on your own. To reach the Chapel, your guide will lead you along the Hall of Maps, the Gallery of Tapestries, the Gallery of Candelabra and through the Raphael Rooms. These works of art will come to life as you follow your guide’s commentary on your dedicated headsets. At the Sistine Chapel, take some time to pick out the rich details on the walls and ceilings – from Michelangelo’s boneless self-portrait to the shields representing violent bible stories. Then, your guide will provide an overview of St. Peter's Basilica before entering this magnificent church on your own. Here, you will see Michelangelo’s ‘Pietá’ which portrayed Mary as being as an eternal young mother. Spend some quiet time in this vast place of worship beneath the tallest dome in the world. When you finish, you are free to remain inside St. Peter’s Basilica to experience more of this amazing church at your leisure or return outside to St. Peter’s Square to admire Bernini’s clever optical illusion and the basilica’s heavenly façade.
On Wednesdays, access to St. Peter’s Basilica & Square may be closed at the time of the morning tour due to the Papal Audience.
Meeting point will be at a central location. Details will be provided in final documents.
Duration: 3 hours, 11:00am - 2:00pm, 3:00pm - 6:00pm OR 6:30pm - 9:30pm
City: Florence
Learn how to make authentic, Italian Pizza and Gelato – a fun cooking class for kids too!
Under the guidance of a professional pizza chef, called a Pizzaiolo, you will make your own pizza - stretch it, sauce it, bake it, slice it. The chef will teach you the key techniques in making a soft and flexible dough and the trick for a flavorful yet light tomato sauce so you can make this pizza at home!
After pizza it’s time for Gelato. The chef will explain why the gelato is the Italy's favorite dessert and will give insight to the 'gelato culture' that continues to grow. Learn the basic raw ingredients, how to select the best products available according to specific principles, development and application of natural colors, the heating and freezing techniques and how they have different effects on the ingredients.
Then enjoy a presentation and tasting of some of the flavors used in gelato making!
This activity is strongly recommended for families that wish to have children to learn about the Italian culture, an easy and fun experience that will last forever in their memory.
Meeting point will be at a central location. Details will be provided in final documents.
Duration: 2.5 hours, 3:00pm - 5:30pm
City: Florence
Discover one of Italy's most important museums, the Uffizi Gallery, under the guidance of an art expert, skipping the long lines!
Enjoy a guided tour of the main rooms of the Uffizi Gallery and follow the evolution of Italian art through the centuries, from the Middle Ages to Renaissance. Learn about Giotto’s revolutionary art, admire the beauty of Botticelli’s Primavera and the sensuality of his Venere, surprise yourself with Leonardo’s mix of rational genius and artistic creativity, and view the main masterpieces by many other unparalleled artists.
Meeting point will be at a central location. Details will be provided in final documents.
Duration: 4 hours, 2pm - 6pm
City: Venice
Under the guidance of a highly specialized art historian and in the comfort of a small group, enjoy a very comprehensive tour of the most important political and religious landmarks of Venice: St. Mark’s Basilica and the Doge’s Palace. A must-do for art lovers when in Venice.
Enter the majestic St. Mark's Basilica with the skip-the-line access and admire this astonishing church that boasts a profusion of polychrome domes, walls clad in marbles and glittering ceiling mosaics, many made with 24-carat gold leaf.
Then, move onto the Doge's Palace. Once home to the Duke of Venice and the city’s courts, the Doge's Palace features the very best and the very worst of Venice’s history – from vast paintings by Tintoretto and Veronese to the wooden slot where accusations of treason were slipped to the fearsome Secret Police.
Thanks to our very exclusive access you will walk through the closed-to-general-public secret passages including the old torture chambers and prisons. Then, you will visit the courtyard, the noble areas, the great ballrooms, the great Council hall, the Doge’s lavish apartments and the “Opera Museum”, home of a painting collection by Titian, Tintoretto and Veronese.
At the end, you will have the chance to walk on the famous bridge of sighs and learn the story behind the origin of its name.
Meeting point will be at a central location. Details will be provided in final documents.
Duration: 9 hours, 2:00pm - 11:00pm
City: Florence
Starting from Florence, you will be taken to Siena by an English speaking driver. In Siena, enjoy a guided walking tour of this compact city as you explore Piazza del Campo, the main central square where the famous Palio horse race takes place every year, as well as the quieter backstreets and learning everything about the Contrade, the 17 medieval city districts that compete against each other in the Palio.
Then continue to San Gimignano, famed for its medieval skyscrapers, high walls and narrow streets that typify most people image of a Tuscan hill town. San Gimignano is unique in the preservation of about a dozen of its tower houses, which with its hilltop setting and encircling walls, form its famed and unforgettable skyline. You will have free time to explore this city as you wish.
Finally, savor a typical Tuscan dinner paired with wines in a fascinating location in the Chianti countryside. Then return to Florence.
Meeting point will be at a central location. Details will be provided in final documents.
Duration: 4 hours; Several Departure Times
City: Rome
Trastevere is a neighborhood like no other. It’s where Romans choose to eat with their families and where young Romans go for buzzing nightlife at evenings and weekends. You can’t leave Rome without walking through these streets and tasting the best food on offer.
On this 4-hour walking food tour you explore this photogenic neighborhood by night. You’ll sample a blend of Italian classics like pizza and pasta, real Roman street food, less-known meats and cheeses, and amazing wine in a secret cellar.
Meeting point will be at a central location. Details will be provided in final documents.
