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Day 2 Arrival in Rome, Italy. Time to rest or start exploring the Eternal City. At 6 p.m. meet your tour director and traveling companions, and leave the hotel for a welcome dinner with wine in one of Rome's fine restaurants. (D) Day 3 Rome. Sightseeing with your local guide starts with a visit to the VATICAN MUSEUMS and SISTINE CHAPEL (arranged next morning if closed today), world famous for Michelangelo's ceiling paintings including the Last Judgement. Continue to monumental ST. PETER'S SQUARE and BASILICA. Proceed across the Tiber for a stroll along the Via Sacra at the ROMAN FORUM, where Roman Legions marched in triumph, and finally visit the COLOSSEUM and hear about gladiatorial combats. Then time for independent activities and exciting optional excursion possibilities: Tivoli, and an Italian feast at one of the fine restaurants. (BB) Day 4 Rome-Florence. An easy morning drive north to Florence, cradle of the Renaissance. See magnificent SANTA MARIA DEL FIORE, Giotto's Bell Tower, the Baptistry's heavy bronze "Gate of Paradise," and sculpture-studded Signoria Square. To top it off, admire Michelangelo's celebrated David in the GALLERY OF FINE ARTS. Later take a moment to check out the enticing shops with Florentine leather goods and gold jewelry. (BB,D) Day 5 Florence-Venice. Drive across the wooded Apennine mountain range to Ferrara. In its historic center visit the marble CATHEDRAL and stroll past imposing Este Castle. Then re-board your coach and motor to Venice. Enter the city in style as you glide by private boat along the Giudecca canal to meet your resident expert. Highlights of your walking tour are St. Mark's Square, the Clock Tower, the BYZANTINE BASILICA with its 1,000-year-old gem-studded gold altar piece, lavish Doges' Palace, and the Bridge of Sighs. Also watch skilled GLASS BLOWERS fashion their delicate objects. Afterwards wander at whim or join an optional gondola serenade. (BB,D) Day 6 Venice-Lucerne, Switzerland. Through the lush Lombardian plains, past the commercial center of Milan, into Italian-speaking southern Switzerland. Free time in flower-festooned Lugano for lunch and to relax in the shade of Parco Ciani's magnificent old trees. Admire the towering majesty of the Swiss Alps on the way over 6,935-foot-high St. Gotthard Pass and through William Tell country to the captivating charm of Lucerne. (BB,D) Day 7 Lucerne. Medieval heritage every step of the way this morning. Sightseeing includes the LION MONUMENT, Thorwaldsen's masterful stone sculpture in honor of the heroic Swiss Guard of Louis XVI; the famous covered WOODEN BRIDGE; and rows of ornate patrician houses lining the cobbled streets of the walled Old Town. Afterwards shop for Swiss watches and choose from our optional activities: climb a mountain by cable car; take a cruise on the fjord-like lake; sign up for a folklore party with yodeling and alphorn blowing for a first-hand impression of alpine merrymaking. (BB) Day 8 Lucerne-Paris, France. More typical Swiss vistas of tidy villages and prosperous dairy farms on the way to the French border near Basle. Then a fast ride on the modern highway skirting the vineyards of Burgundy and Fontainebleau Forest. Tonight you are in Paris, the traditional climax of every European tour. (BB) Day 9 Paris. See the sights on both banks of the Seine: Arc de Triomphe, Opéra, Madeleine, Louvre, Champs-Elysées... For a bird's-eye view take the elevator to the first floor of the EIFFEL TOWER. Of course you also visit Paris' greatest treasure, the Gothic cathedral of NOTRE DAME with its gleaming stained-glass windows. Balance of the day at leisure and lots to do. Optional excursions are available to the Louvre or to the palace and gardens of Versailles. Tonight, a lively cabaret show might be just the ticket. (BB) Day 10 Paris-London, England. Memories of World War I battles come alive on the way through Picardy and the Somme to the French coast. After an exciting Hoverspeed ride across the Channel, arrive in London in the late afternoon. An optional evening cruise on the River Thames is a great way to get a feel for the British capital. (BB) Day 11 London. Morning sightseeing with a professional London guide includes all the famous landmarks: Royal Albert Hall, Kensington Palace and the area's splendid museums, Knightsbridge with Harrods, the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben beside the River Thames, and Westminster Abbey. Highlights are a visit to ST. PAUL'S CATHEDRAL and the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace, if held. Afternoon at leisure or for an optional excursion to the Tower of London with its fabulous Crown Jewels. How about celebrating the success of your tour by taking in a West End show tonight? (CB) Day 12 Your homebound flight arrives the same day. (CB) |
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Escorted Travel in Europe
EUROTOURS HAWAII
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From St. Peter's to St. Paul's, make
your way from Italy to England with visits to Switzerland and France in between.
Arrive in Rome where you'll visit St. Peter's Square, the Colosseum and more.
Then visit Florence, cradle of the Renaissance. See Michelangelo's David
in the Gallery of Fine Arts before crossing the Apennine mountain range to
Venice. Walk through St. Mark's Square or perhaps join a gondola serenade. Drive
through the commercial center of Milan into southern Switzerland to walk the
cobbled streets of Lucerne. Then travel through typical Swiss scenery and the
vineyards of France to see the sights of Paris. After a Hoverspeed ride across
the Channel, visit the famous landmarks of London, including St. Paul's
Cathedral. 