Wonders of Italy - JG Explorer

We board our ferry to Calais and stay overnight in France on a bed and breakfast basis.

Travel onwards to our overnight hotel in northern Italy, with dinner included.

We continue to our hotel in Montecatini, our base for the next two nights, stopping en-route in Pisa, famous for its leaning tower.

Today we travel by train to Florence, where we enjoy a guided walking tour. Undoubtedly one of Italy’s most charming cities, don`t miss the Palazzo Vecchio, Giotti’s Bell Tower and the Ponte Vecchio, Florence’s lovely ‘Old Bridge’, which is still occupied by gold and silversmiths today. Afterwards, we return by train to our hotel in Montecatini.

We leave Montecatini and travel to Rome via Siena in central Tuscany – a beautifully-preserved hilltop city surrounded by olive groves and vineyards, best known for its Palio horse race which takes place each summer in the Piazza del Campo. After time enjoying the square and admiring the medieval brick buildings, we continue south to our hotel on the outskirts of Rome where we stay for two nights.

There’s no place like Rome! We start this exciting day of sightseeing with a guided city tour. Highlights include Via Veneto, Santa Maria Maggiore, Circus Maximus, Ponte Sisto, Castel Sant'Angelo and the iconic Colosseum, the largest amphitheatre ever built in the Roman Empire. We continue our tour on foot, taking in some of the most famous sights of the Italian capital; the Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Piazza Navona and the Spanish Steps. The rest of the day is free to explore the city at your own pace and choose a restaurant for an early dinner before we return to our hotel.

We travel to Venice with an en-route stop in the beautiful medieval hilltop town of Montepulciano. This rare gem in southern Tuscany is full of elegant Renaissance buildings and has the most wonderful square, the Piazza Grande. Make sure you have a look at the figure of Pulcinella on the clock tower or explore the charming streets of the Old Town, while taking in the stunning views of the surrounding countryside.

After breakfast, we board our coach and enjoy a walking tour of Venice, a city renowned for its beauty, architecture and artwork. A ‘Floating City’ with over 400 bridges and 177 canals, Venice is known as the ‘City of Bridges’ and attracts visitors from all over the world to view its wonderful monuments, houses and squares, such as the Piazza San Marco which contains St. Marks Basilica. Other highlights include the Bridge of Sighs, the Doge’s Palace and of course the gondolas that ply their trade up and down the canals. The rest of the day is left free to explore at leisure and choose a restaurant for dinner (not included).

After breakfast, we leave Venice and head to Verona, a city that needs little introduction. Famous for its terracotta rooftops, star-crossed lovers and bridges arching over the glistening waters of the Adige River – Verona is a medieval old town with heart. Explore the beautifully-preserved amphitheatre, pockets of pretty streets and, of course, Juliet’s House, where you can gaze up at her balcony and leaf through the love notes that surround the bronze statue of the young lover. Afterwards, we re-board the coach and continue to our hotel in Austria, where we enjoy dinner.

Travel to our overnight hotel in France, with a light evening meal included.

Continue to Calais for our return ferry home.