11-Nights Ultimate Italy from $10,775

Luxury Gold

OFFER ID 1556307

Ultimate Italy
Enjoy the ultimate Italian experience during this 12-day guided tour. Sail to the sun-drenched island of Capri, where you will join a Local Expert for a tour of the infamous Faraglioni Rocks - three towering rocks jutting out from the Mediterranean Sea. At lunch, sit down to an Italian feast at the Michelin-starred Le Monzù, where you will have sweeping views of the Gulf of Naples while savoring dishes made from fresh, seasonal ingredients. See Florence your way with a choice of activities: Join an art historian and visit the Accademia to see Michelangelo's David or walk with a local food expert and taste this Tuscan town’s most decadent treats. In Venice, visit the Doge's Palace with a Local Expert and without the crowds - the expansive residence is yours alone to explore after hours.

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 Wi-Fi. And, on select coaches, onboard Wi-Fi 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.

Exceptional Dining

Rome: As night falls, delight in the romance of the Eternal City before gathering for a delicious 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: Savor Mediterranean flavors in perfect Caprese style, created with passion from fresh, local produce at Michelin-starred Le Monzù restaurant.
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.

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.

MAKE TRAVEL MATTER

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 t

11 nights from $10,775 per person

Itinerary

Luxury Gold: Ultimate Italy

Day 1 - Buongiorno Rome
Begin your Italy luxury tour journeying to your luxurious hotel by private chauffeur. Tonight, dine on fine Italian cuisine beneath the gaze of the Pantheon.
Accommodations: NH Collection Roma Palazzo Cinquecento.
Meals: Dinner

Day 2 - Rome and the Vatican
Explore the Eternal City and Vatican Museums with the guidance of a Local Expert. Admire magnificent frescos and unlock religious history at the Vatican before viewing the mighty Colosseum and the Roman Forum.
Accommodations: NH Collection Roma Palazzo Cinquecento.
Meals: Breakfast

Day 3 - Pompeii and the Isle of Capri / Sorrento
At the ruins of Pompeii, your Local Expert paints a vivid picture of the past. Journey south through dramatic coastal scenery and lemon groves to your luxurious hotel in Capri or Sorrento (date dependent) and enjoy an elegant dinner of local specialties.
Accommodations: Quisisana Hotel, Hotel Sorrento Palace (Seaview Executive Rooms).
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 4 - Explore the Isle of Dreams Relaxed Start
For guests staying in Capri, indulge in a Relaxed Start. A private cruise shows off Capri’s dramatic coastline as you wind your way into hidden coves and visit the White Grotto. Dine in style at Michelin-starred restaurant Le Monzù.
Accommodations: Quisisana Hotel, Hotel Sorrento Palace (Seaview Executive Rooms).
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Day 5 - Umbria, Assisi and Perugia
Discover jewels of Umbria and personalise your day. View the 28 incredible frescos of the Basilica of St. Francis with a local historian. Or, with the help of your local gourmand, learn the roots of Umbrian cuisine and taste heavenly flavors including local olive oils and truffle-infused cured meats.
Accommodations: Brufani, Perugia.
Meals: Breakfast

Day 6 - San Gimignano and Tuscany Relaxed Start
Fourth-generation weaver Marta shares the art of medieval Umbrian tradition of loom-weaving on a MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience. Delight in a private wine tasting tour with the owners of Guardastelle Estate and lunch surrounded by rolling hills and vineyards. Indulge in sensational gelato with World Champion Gelato maestro, Sergio Dondoli.
Accommodations: Hotel Montebello Splendid, Florence.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Day 7 - Renaissance Florence
Personalise your morning in Florence with an art or gourmet exploration. Join an art historian to explore Renaissance Florence in the Accademia Gallery, home to Michelangelo’s David, or explore markets and gourmet stores with a local food expert, illuminating Florentine specialties. Take a fascinating foraging trip for the region's aromatic truffles guided by an expert truffle dog. Dine on regional dishes including 'Fiorentina' — Tuscan steak seasoned and grilled to perfection — over dinner at a Tuscan Villa.
Accommodations: Hotel Montebello Splendid, Florence.
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 8 - Tuscan Cuisine and Pisa Relaxed Start
Enjoy another Relaxed Start before exploring a former hunting lodge built in the 1200s by the Medici family. Stroll the estate’s vegetable and herb garden. Do as the locals do, learning from a professional Italian chef how to roll pasta by hand.?In Pisa, marvel at the gravity-defying tower, Duomo and baptistery with a Local Historian.
Accommodations: Hotel Montebello Splendid, Florence.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Day 9 - Exploring the Cinque Terre
At the UNESCO-listed Cinque Terre, join your Local Expert and visit the cliffside towns of Manarola and Monterosso. Here, colorful houses perched upon steep, rugged coastline overlook the sparkling Mediterranean. Reach Rapallo for your stay at your luxurious hotel.
Accommodations: Grand Hotel Bristol Resort & Spa, Rapallo.
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 10 - Venice and the Doge’s Palace
Arrive by private water taxi at your luxurious hotel. Step behind the velvet ropes as you enter the Doge's Palace for an after-hours tour guided by a local art historian.
Accommodations: Radisson Collection Hotel, Palazzo Nani Venice.
Meals: Breakfast

Day 11 - The Magic of Venice Relaxed Start
Unlock the centuries-old craft of glassblowing and join a local guide to explore the hidden lanes of Venice. Then sit back in a classic gondola for a serenade through the romantic canals before a celebratory evening.
Accommodations: Radisson Collection Hotel, Palazzo Nani Venice.
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 12 - Arrivederci Venice
Your Italian?voyage?ends in style, with?a private boat?ride?to Venice’s Marco Polo Airport.
Meals: Breakfast

Featured Destinations

Sorrento

Sorrento is a town of extraordinary beauty and is known as a popular gateway to Italy's most spectacular stretch of coastline - the Amalfi Drive lined with fishing villages and famous resorts. The seaside resort of Amalfi sits with weathered houses scrambling up steep cliffs. Visitors marvel at its location and its magnificent cathedral. The religious sanctuary of Cloister of St. Francis is worth a visit. The tiny, exclusive resort of Positano has its famous world-class hotel, San Pietro. Excavations of the ruined city of Pompeii, which was destroyed in 79 A.D. during the disastrous eruption of Mount Vesuvius, give visitors a vivid impression of life in a very wealthy ancient city and the tragic end of its population. The Isle of Capri ranks as one of the most beautiful islands and has captured visitors for centuries with excellent climate, spectacular landscape and fantastic sea caverns. Capri has lavish villas, elegant hotels, chic boutiques and quaint restaurants. Museo Correale contains a death mask of poet Torquato Tasso and some special editions of his works, pictures, furniture and porcelain.

Excursions

Sorrento: The Ancient City of Pompeii - 6 Hours

Sorrento: The Iconic Amalfi Coast - 6 Hours

Sorrento: Capri Exploration by Private Motorboat – 8 hours

Venice

With a great historic past and incomparable art treasures, Venice is renowned as one of the world’s great cities. Its 118 islands are separated by more than 150 canals and spanned by 400 bridges. During Venice's artistic golden age many magnificent structures were erected to create world-famous masterpieces. One of the best sightseeing routes is along Grand Canal, with many palaces lining the famous waterway. St. Mark’s Square offers access to some of Venice’s most famed attractions - St. Mark’s Basilica and Doge’s Palace. From Piazza San Marco, a maze of narrow streets are lined with shops, cafés and restaurants. A popular pastime is sitting at an outdoor café facing the square while people-watching and letting the whole marvelous scenario unfold. Venice’s Murano, Burano and Torcello Islands comprise an area famous as home of Venice’s glass-blowing industry and known for their charm, skilled lace-making and medieval monuments. Relax on a gondola ride, see art treasures in museums, churches and palaces, and have a sumptuous meal - all in this incomparable city.

Excursions

Venice: Splendours of Venice Walking Tour - 4 hours

Venice: Venice for Art Lovers Walking Tour - 4 hours

Venice: The Roman City of Verona - 7 hours

Venice: Lagoon Islands - 7 hours

The story of Murano and Burano

The Canal Grande cruise followed by a walking tour of Venice

Rapallo

Florence

Perugia

Rome

Sprawled across seven legendary hills, romantic and beautiful Rome was one
of the great centers of the ancient world. Although its beginning is shrouded
in legend and its development is full of intrigue and struggle, Rome has always
been and remains the Eternal City.

Rome enjoyed its greatest splendor during the 1st and 2nd centuries when art
flourished, monumental works of architecture were erected, and the mighty Roman
legions swept outward, conquering all of Italy. These victorious armies then
swept across the Mediterranean and beyond to conquer most of the known world.
With Rome's establishment as capital of the western world, a new ascent to glory
began.

Today's Rome, with its splendid churches, ancient monuments and palaces, spacious
parks, tree-lined boulevards, fountains, outdoor cafes and elegant shops, is
one of the world’s most attractive and exciting cities. Among the most famous
monuments is the Colosseum. As you walk its cool, dark passageways, imagine
the voices that once filled the arena as 50,000 spectators watched combats between
muscled gladiators and ferocious animals.

Stop to see the remains of the Forum, once the city's political and commercial
center. In later times, Rome's squares were enhanced with such imposing structures
as the Vittorio Emanuele Monument and grandiose fountains like the Fontana di
Trevi. Join the millions who stand in awe of Christendom’s most magnificent
church and admire the timeless masterpieces of Michelangelo's frescoes in the
Sistine Chapel.

Rome jars the senses and captures the soul. Grasp all you can during the short,
precious time you have available in the Eternal City. With so much to see and
do, a day or two will only allow you a sampling of the city's marvelous treasures.

Caution: As in many big cities and tourist destinations purse snatching
and pickpocketing is common. Valuable jewelry and excess cash are best left
in a safety deposit box in your hotel.

Shopping For most visitors shopping for beautiful Italian leather articles,
designer shoes, fashions for men and women, linens, knitwear, silk scarves and
ties is a favorite pastime. Except for tourist-oriented shops, the majority
of stores are closed on Sundays. Some of the department stores, such as Rinascente,
open in the late afternoon on Sundays.

Cuisine Rome's choice of restaurants is mindboggling as is the variety
of cuisine. Whether your meal is at a top-rated restaurant or a rustic trattoria,
you can be sure that you will enjoy your food, especially when accompanied by
wines from the hill towns surrounding Rome.

Other Sights Rome's attractions are endless, and depending on how much
time you have at your disposal a careful selection has to be made about what
to see. Be aware of horrendous traffic conditions and major construction work
all around the city in preparation of Jubilee 2000, the Holy Year. Some of the
sights not to be missed:

Piazza Venezia - This busy square is easily recognized by its imposing Vittorio
Emanuele II Monument. The white marble structure was inaugurated in 1911 as
a symbol of Italy’s unification.

The Forum - Once the civic heart of ancient Rome, today the remains include
a series of ruins, marble fragments, isolated columns and some worn arches.

Colosseum - No visit to Rome is complete without a stop at this awe-inspiring
theater, which is among the world’s most celebrated buildings. Here ancient
Rome flocked to see gladiatorial contests and numerous other spectacles.

Trevi Fountain - Take a stroll to Rome's famous fountain. A spectacular fantasy
of mythical sea creatures and cascades of splashing water, the fountain is one
of the city's foremost attractions. Legend has it that visitors must toss a
coin into the fountain to ensure their return to Rome.

St. Peter's Square - Part of Vatican City, this square created by Bernini
is considered one of the loveliest squares in the world. Twin Doric colonnades
topped with statues of various saints and martyrs flank either side of the square.
In the center stands an 84-foot obelisk, brought from Egypt in 37 A.D.

St. Peter's Basilica - At the head of the square stands Christendom's most
magnificent church, which was begun in 1452 on the site where St. Peter was
buried. Throughout the following 200 years, such Renaissance masters as Bramante,
Michelangelo, Raphael and Bernini worked on its design and created an unparalleled
masterpiece. Of special note are Michelangelo's Pieta and the bronze canopy
over the high altar by Bernini. The immense dome was designed by Michelangelo.

Vatican Museum - To see this museum's immense collection would take days.
As you enter, there are special posters that plot a choice of four color-coded
itineraries. They are repeated throughout the museum and are easy to follow.
It is a good idea to pickup a leaflet at the main entrance and concentrate on
exhibits of major interest. Of course, the Sistine Chapel is a must. Most likely
you may have to wait in line to enter.

Vacation Details

Valid Date Ranges

05/11/2025 - 05/22/2025

from $10,775 per person

* This departure has been designated a guaranteed departure by the operator, meaning that the minimum number of guests has been met, although still subject to weather and other conditions.

Prices Start At

from $10,775 per person

Length

11 Nights

Air City

Call for airfares from your city.

Vacation Rating

Luxury
The finest hotels in the world, luxury lodging is characterized by luxury accommodations, impeccable service and the highest standards of comfort and pampering. Luxury hotels and resorts are often found in the most desirable locations. Building from the amenities and guest services offered at a deluxe hotel or resort, the luxury establishment usually puts on the finishing touches - fresh flowers around the hotel and original works of art throughout. Hotel restaurants often employ world renowned chefs to create delectable dishes and a unique dining experience. Attention to detail and personalized service are the hallmarks of luxury hotels and resorts.

Remarks

Trip prices are per person, land only, based on double occupancy and reflect applicable discounts. Trip prices and discounts are subject to change. Airfare is additional. Tour prices, dates and itineraries are correct at the time of the website going live, however are subject to confirmation at the time of booking. Other restrictions may apply.

All fares are quoted in US Dollars.

OFFER ID

1556307

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Rio Grande Travel Centers, Inc.

6500 Holly Ave. NE Suite A-2
Albuquerque, NM 87113
USA

(505) 292-7044
(877) 768-7913