Your Italian adventure begins as you depart on your international flight.

Our representative will meet you at the airport in Milan. Then, begin your time in Italy with a stop overlooking Lake Garda, Italy’s largest lake. Continue to Verona, home to Roman ruins and Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Finish the day at your hotel in Verona.

Travel by boat to the magical city of Venice. Rising between sea and sky, this fascinating city boasts waterways and boats instead of roads and cars, it comprises 118 islands separated by more than 150 canals. Stand in the Piazza San Marco, bordered on three sides by palatial arcades in two tiers and faced on the other by the Basilica of St. Mark, one of the world’s most magnificent churches. Tour the Basilica with its treasure of marble and gold background mosaics. From the square, you can see the famous Bell Tower and the Clock Tower, as well as the charming pink and white Doges’ Palace. After seeing the romantic Bridge of Sighs, enjoy free time to explore on your own. You can shop, stroll along the bridges and canals, or even indulge in a gondola ride along the Grand Canal. Return to your hotel in Verona for dinner and your overnight stay.

Travel to Pisa and snap your photo in front of the famous Leaning Tower. This 180-foot-tall round tower is over 10 degrees out of perpendicular. Originally designed to stand straight, it began to lean during its construction in 1173 and corrective efforts failed. Even without its tilt, the building would still be one of the most remarkable bell towers in all of Europe. Wander the medieval walled city of Lucca, the birthplace of Puccini. Each of the walls is lined with a different species of tree, and together they encompass a town full of medieval churches. Check into your hotel in Montecatini Terme for three nights.

The elegant city of Florence is nestled between a line of hills and the banks of the Arno River. During your visit to Florence, enjoy the beautiful gardens and a leisurely stroll through the open-air markets. Every street, square and winding alley is a showcase for Romanesque, Gothic, and Renaissance grandeur. Among Florence’s masterpieces, you’ll see the Piazza Della Signoria with its Neptune Fountain and Vecchio Palace, the Santa Maria del Fiore Cathedral, which houses Michelangelo’s unfinished Pietá, the Baptistry, which features Ghiberti’s famous Gates of Paradise, and the Academy, where you can view some of Michelangelo’s finished and unfinished work, including the awe-inspiring David.

This morning, travel to one of the most charming and picturesque of all the Tuscan hill towns, San Gimignano. Magical medieval towers dominate the town, once numbering more than 70, only 14 towers remain today. Beautiful Siena is built across several hills and valleys. The focal point of the city is the shell-shaped town square, which is both a meeting place and marketplace. It is also the venue for the town’s famous horse race known as the “Palio.”

Your journey continues as you travel to Assisi, the charming medieval town once home to Saint Francis. Just two years after his death, the large Basilica was started in his memory. At one time, the land on which the church now stands was an execution ground for condemned criminals. In his humility, Saint Francis asked to be buried there, and it became known as the Hill of Paradise. The church contains his tomb and many great works of art. Finish your day by checking into your hotel in Rome for your three-night stay.

History is woven through the streets and neighborhoods of Rome as in no other place on earth. Explore the many wonders of ancient Rome as you visit the magnificent Colosseum and the Pantheon. From the most sacred hill of ancient Rome, Campidoglio, view the Forum. See the Circus Maximus, the Arch of Titus, the famous Baths of Caracalla, the Arch of Constantine, and the Victor Emanuel Monument. View the Monti Region, Rome’s most ancient neighborhood, which spreads over three of her seven hills. In the afternoon, explore the romance of Rome as you climb the graceful Spanish Steps and stop at the famous Trevi Fountain. Legend says those who toss a coin into the fountain will one day return to Rome to toss another into the waters of Trevi.

Experience the glory of Christian Rome today as you visit the Vatican, home to one of the greatest museums in the world. And, of course, tour St. Peter’s Basilica and the Sistine Chapel with Michelangelo’s frescoes, now restored to their full, colorful glory. Tour the Catacombs of St. Sebastino and see some of the only surviving examples of early Christian art. In the 1840s, Pope Gregory XVI took steps to preserve the catacombs and their treasures. Visit the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls, which stands over the place where Constantine built the first church (over St. Paul’s grave), before returning to your hotel to begin packing for your return journey home.

Return home with memories to share or continue your Italian experience on the Amalfi Coast Extension.