The Best of Italy & Greece 2010

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- Vacation Overview  

Discover historical Italy and classical Greece! Sightseeing highlights are St. Peter’s, the Sistine Chapel, and the Colosseum in Rome; Pisa’s Leaning Tower; Michelangelo’s David in Florence; St. Anthony’s Basilica in Padua; St. Mark’s, Doges’ Palace, and the Bridge of Sighs in Venice; St. Francis’ and St. Clare’s Basilicas in Assisi; and a walking tour in pretty Perugia. From Ancona, sail to Patras in Greece. Learn the history of the Olympic Games in Olympia, explore the excavations of Delphi, and visit the Acropolis in Athens. Three nights in Athens also give you time to explore on your own or to take an optional cruise to some of the charming islands.

Itinerary

Day 1

(Sat.) Board your overnight transatlantic flight.

Day 2: Arrive in Rome, Italy.

(Sun.) Time to rest or start exploring the “Eternal City.” At 6 pm, meet your Tour Director and traveling companions and leave the hotel for a special welcome dinner with wine at one of Rome’s lively restaurants. (D)

Day 3: Rome

(Mon.) Sightseeing with your Local Guide starts with a visit to the VATICAN MUSEUMS and SISTINE CHAPEL, 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. Time for independent activities and exciting optional excursions. (B)

Day 4: At Leisure in Rome.

(Tue.) Another day to savor la dolce vita. If you feel like traveling, you may want to join an optional excursion to Pompeii, the Roman city both destroyed and preserved by a volcanic eruption in 79 AD. Tonight, why not join an optional dinner with local specialties and wine? (B)

Day 5: Rome–Pisa–Florence.

(Wed.) Follow the Aurelian Way along the Tyrrhenian coast to Pisa. Take your pictures of the amazing Leaning Tower, 180 feet high and no less than 12 feet out of the perpendicular. Next is Florence, the splendid capital of Tuscany and the “Cradle of the Renaissance.” Tonight an optional dinner at a typical Tuscan restaurant can be arranged. (B)

Day 6: Florence.

(Thu.) Follow your Local Guide to 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 is at leisure. (B,D)

Day 7: Florence–Padua–Venice.

(Fri.) Across the wooded Etruscan Apennine Mountains into the lush plains of the Po River to Padua, city of St. Anthony, for a visit to the majestic six-domed BASILICA. Time for lunch and independent exploration before continuing to Venice. (B)

Day 8: Venice.

(Sat.) 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. Also watch skilled GLASSBLOWERS fashion their delicate objects in an age-old traditional manner. Then, enjoy Venice at your own pace or join an optional gondola ride. (B)

Day 9: Venice–Assisi–Perugia.

(Sun.) A comfortable drive to peaceful Assisi. A walking tour with a Local Guide features ST. CLARE’S CHURCH and ST. FRANCIS’ BASILICA, the hub of a religious order devoted to ideals of humility, forgiveness, simplicity, and love for God’s creatures. Hear about monastic life and see the priceless frescoes adorning the walls of the church. Then continue to Umbria’s capital, Perugia, and enjoy a walk through its pretty center. (B,D)

Day 10: Perugia–Ancona–Overnight Cruise to Patras, Greece.

(Mon.) In Ancona, board your high-speed FERRY for your overnight cruise to Greece. (B,D)

Day 11: Patras–Olympia.

(Tue.) Dock at Patras and continue by motorcoach to Olympia. (B,D)

Day 12: Olympia–Delphi.

(Wed.) Focus on Olympia, where the athletes of antiquity performed in honor of the King of Deities. Learn about the history of those original Olympic Games as you walk with your Local Guide among the impressive remains of the GYMNASIUM and the Temples of Hera and Zeus. Visit the MUSEUM, which displays a magnificent statue of Hermes. In the afternoon, proceed to mythical Delphi. (B,D)

Day 13: Delphi–Athens.

(Thu.) Morning visit with a Local Guide to the ancient sanctuary of the god Apollo in its dramatic setting on the slopes of Mount Parnassus. Hear about the Oracle and tour the EXCAVATIONS. Also visit the ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM to admire the Charioteer of Delphi, an extraordinary 5th-century BC bronze statue. On your way to Athens, your Tour Director will tell you about Thebes, the setting of Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex, and Marathon, where in 490 BC, 10,000 Athenians defeated more than twice that number of Persian invaders. You may wish to join an optional dinner outing to one of Plaka’s tavernas with cool Retsina wines and folk dancing reminiscent of Zorba the Greek. (B)

Day 14: Athens.

(Fri.) Tour the capital’s classical sights with a Local Guide: the Parthenon’s crowning beauty atop the ACROPOLIS, the Erechtheum with its Porch of Maidens, the beautifully preserved Theseum, Roman Temple of Zeus, Theater of Dionysus, and the Agora where Socrates taught. Vistas of the Royal Palace, government buildings, and elegant homes in the modern city provide a striking contrast to the remains of a glorious past. Exciting optional evening excursions are available. (B)

Day 15: At Leisure in Athens.

(Sat.) A full day at leisure. How about an optional day cruise to the islands of Aegina, Hydra, and Poros? (B)

Day 16: (Sun.) Your homebound flight arrives the same day. (B)

Vacation Highlights