Compare Rome, Florence & Tuscany With Cinque Terre by ITM Journeys

Day 1: Arrival

Meals: Dinner

Accommodation: Hotel Dei Mellini, Savoy or similar

Welcome to Italy!  Independent arrival at your hotel in the heart of Rome.

Late afternoon meeting with your Tour Leader in the hotel. You will learn more about your tour and familiarize with the travel companions. At the end, walk to the restaurant and enjoy a tasty welcome dinner.

Overnight in Rome

Day 2: Vatican & Heart of Rome

Meals: Breakfast

After breakfast, meet your driver and your guide and reach the Vatican Museum by private van.

Access the Museum easily with your skip the line tickets. Your visit will be memorable: our guides have drawn up a route to include all the major sights as well as some unexpected surprises. See the Belvedere Courtyard with Apollo Belvedere & Laocoön & His Sons, Raphael Rooms, the Galleries of the Candelabra, of the Maps and of the Tapestries, the Sistine Chapel

Pinecone Courtyard, St. Peter’s Basilica and.

At the end, exit on the St. Peter’s Square and enjoy the magnificent view of the imposing Cathedral.

You will return to your hotel to relax after a challenging morning.

Late afternoon meet your tour leader for a walking tour of the Baroque Town with Piazza Navona, Pantheon, Spanish Steps, Piazza di Spagna, the Italian Parliament and the fascinating narrow streets of ancient Rome.

Return to hotel with your tour leader or enjoy a dinner in the very heart of the eternal city.

Overnight in Rome

Day 3: Rome

Meals: Breakfast

Today will be free at leisure.

This tour has been designed to offer the best of each city visited combined with some free time to customise your travel experience as well as to take some time to relax.

There are many available experiences, if you want continue the exploration of this area.

Among these, we like to suggest to explore the Imperial Rome with Colosseum and Fori, to visit one of the most beautiful art collection in Europe at Palazzo Borghese or reach the near Tivoli where you will find the astonishing Villa Hadriana, built by the Emperor Hadrian and Villa d’Este, masterpiece of Italian gardening.

Alternatively, you may want visit Capri or Pompeii taking advantage of the new high speed trains connecting Naples and Rome in just 1hr or enjoy a wine tour in Viterbo area.

Overnight in Rome

Day 4: Experience True Tuscany

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Accommodation: Gallery Hotel Art, Palazzo Castri 1874 or similar

Today we will continue to Tuscany our tour.

Meet your tour guide at hotel in Rome and transfer to Florence by coach with an en route stop in Siena.

The ride itself is a magnificent opportunity to enjoy the beautiful Tuscan hills, the view of small enchanting villages as well as the vineyards and castles the pointed the region.

Upon arrival in Siena, enjoy a wine & food experience in the heart of the old town.

In the ancient times, there was only one city that competed against Florence for power, wealth and artistic beauties: Siena.

Here you will enjoy a walking tour to discover Piazza del Campo, the main central square where the famous Palio horse race takes place every year, as well as exploring quieter backstreets and learning everything about the Contrade, the 17 medieval city districts that compete against each other in the Palio.

Continue to Florence where you will arrive later afternoon. Time permitting, en route stop in Monteriggioni.

Overnight in Florence.

Day 5: Magnificent Florence between Food & Arts

Meals: Breakfast

Start your exploration of Florence from the unknown and most picturesque sides of the city: visit the market of San Lorenzo where it’s possible to see the food arriving  from the Tuscan countryside. It’s a chance to taste lots of varieties of local cheeses, fruits, vegetable, and breads. If you”re still hungry, there’s free time for lunch.

In the afternoon, meet your guide in the hotel and get ready to explore the heart of the town.

Lorenzo de Medici transformed Florence into the cradle of the Renaissance by attracting the best artists, architects and writers of the time; Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo and Botticelli who he commissioned to produce various works of art and architecture. We’ll visit Piazza della Signoria, walk by the Palazzo Vecchio, , the Duomo with Giotto's bell tower ( from outside), Ponte Vecchio. Our walk through Florence will end with a visit to the Accademia to admire, among the many masterpieces, the jewel of Michelangelo: the statue of David. Overnight in Florence

Day 6: Cinqueterre

Meals: Breakfast and Lunch

Today discover a spectacular corner of Italy, famous for its panorama, its wine, its food, beautiful sea and hiking opportunities. Leave Florence early morning with your guide driving to North West Riviera with a comfortable air-conditioned minivan. During the ride, you will enjoy the view of Tuscan Hills till the moment you will see the Southern part of Alps, that divide Tuscany from Liguria.

Once in Cinque Terre National Park enjoy the most astonishing views either from land and sea, as we stroll along the national park by boat, train, and walking fabulous trails on the cliff.

Your experience include a delicious full lunch with wine tasting in a local restaurant on the sea where you will enjoy incredible fresh seafood cooked the Ligurian way, accompanied by some great white wines typical of this region.

Return to Florence late afternoon. Overnight in Florence

Day 7: Wine & Oil Experience with dinner in Chianti

Meals: Breakfast and Dinner

Wine & Oil Experience with dinner in Chianti

Today your morning is free at leisure, the day to Cinqueterre was a long one and this morning you will have some additional time to relax. 

In the afternoon, meet your tour guide and start your Chianti experience. With a 25 minute ride, a comfortable van will shuttle you to the rolling hills of the Chianti Wine Region till you reach a noble Villa with a Boutique Winery on top of a hill.

The landscapes is marvellous with beautiful vineyards and olive groves that surround you.

Once there, a wine expert will welcome you and take you for the 500-year-old cellar visit, still used today for a very small, selected wine production and ageing, listed in the top 100 on Wine Spectators.

You will taste all the different product of this boutique winery while you will learn the sophisticated techniques of winemaking and teach you to distinguish the different and various scents and flavors that each wine presents.

At the end, you will enjoy a fine dinner

The dinner will be served in a charming restaurant, where you will also learn how to pair different wines with specific dishes. You will enjoy 4 different wines, including the world renowned Supertuscan of the estate. Plus, a sweet typical dessert wine.

You will also taste the region's finest olive oil with typical unsalted Tuscan bread.

The fine dining includes local charcuterie and a cheese selection, paired with different jams and balsamic vinegar, a selection of two pasta dishes and a main course made of a traditional meat dish. A Tuscan dessert is then served with local sweet wine. Coming back to Florence, you will stop at Piazzale Michelangelo belvedere, for a breath-taking view of Florence, admiring all the lights of the city.

Day 8: Departure

Meals: Breakfast

Independent departure transfer