Art and History of Italy | Small Group Tour for seniors

We arrive in Rome at any time and make our own way to our hotel. We have a group meeting in the late afternoon, followed by a dinner together at a local restaurant.

(D)

After breakfast in our hotel we take a half-day coach and walking tour of part of the historic centre of Rome, visiting the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, and the Palatine Hill, home of the emperors and namesake of all the palaces in all the world. After lunch (for which we make our own arrangements) we visit an important private art gallery in the Palazzo of the Doria-Pamphilj family. The evening is free.

(B)

In the morning we make an early departure to beat the rush and visit the Vatican Galleries and the Sistine Chapel. After lunch we have a coach tour to the Emperor Hadrian’s enormous palace near Tivoli, then to the renaissance Villa D’Este in the town of Tivoli to explore both the house and its fabulous gardens and fountains.

(B)

Our tour of Rome continues with visits to the Spanish Steps and the Pantheon, an ancient temple first constructed during the time of the Emperor Augustus, rebuilt under Hadrian, and subsequently dedicated as a Christian Church. We shall also visit the church of Santa Sabina, one of the best preserved of the ancient Christian basilicas with its intact wooden screen featuring one of the earliest depictions of the Crucifixion. Finally we go to the Protestant Cemetery to pay homage at the graves of Keats and Shelley.

(B)

Today after breakfast we travel by coach to Florence, stopping at the hilltop city of Orvieto to visit the Duomo (cathedral) and see the frescoes of the Last Judgement by the Sienese painter Luca Signorelli. On arrival in Florence we check into our hotel and later have dinner together as a group.

(B,D)

After breakfast we take a half-day guided walking tour, of which the highlight will be the Convent of St. Mark, where we shall see the frescoes of Fra Angelico (painted 1438-45) and the Last Supper of Domenico Ghirlandaio (1480). In the afternoon we offer a choice of the Uffizi Galleries (one of the major collections of the world, though its crowds and the intense security arrangements are too daunting for many!) or the Bargello museum, a rich but more accessible assembly of important works including sculptures by Donatello. The evening is free.

(B)

We travel by coach to the glorious walled city of Siena where we have a guided walking tour of the main sights, including the Duomo and the Piccolomini Library. After leaving Siena we visit a vineyard outside San Gimignano for a wine tasting and a lunch of local cheeses and preserved meats (included). The evening back at Florence is free.

(B,L)

Today we have a full-day visit to Pisa and Lucca. Despite its popular fame, the so-called Leaning Tower is the least of the sites we shall visit in the “Field of Miracles” (the Campo dei Miracoli). The magnificent duomo and its adjacent baptistery are among the greatest glories of medieval Italy. After Pisa we stop at Lucca where we can visit the birthplace of Puccini. Here we will have an opportunity to walk around the fully intact city walls (it takes 50-60 minutes), or we can hire a bicycle. The evening in Florence is free.

(B)

This morning after breakfast we drive 220 kilometres to Padua. The rest of the day is free to begin our exploration of this charming city, but we gather in the evening for a group dinner (included).

(B,D)

The day begins with a visit to the Giotto frescoes in the Scrovegni Chapel. In the afternoon we have a guided walking tour of the city centre including Prato della Valle and the basilica of St. Anthony. The evening is free.

(B)

Today we have a full-day coach tour to the small city of Vicenza, where we shall see the Olympic Theatre (Teatro Olimpico), the Renaissance Basilica, and the Palladian Mansion known as La Rotonda (entries included). The architect Andrea Palladio (1508-1580) is the focus of this day’s travelling: he is probably the most influential individual in the whole history of architecture. The evening back in Padua is free.

(B)

In the morning we visit, on foot, the Palazzo Bo, which is the principal building of the University of Padua. Our tour will include the Anatomical Theatre, a purpose-built lecture room where dissections took place. In the afternoon we shall visit the Brenta Canal and see some of the villas of wealthy Venetians who maintained their country estates outside Venice on “terra firma.” The most spectacular of these is the Villa Pisani. In its time it hosted such tyrants as Napoleon, Hitler, and Mussolini, but its charm and the beauty of its gardens survive them.

(B)

Today we take an early train from Padua to Santa Lucia Station in Venice where a private boat will take us to our hotel. After settling in we shall have a guided walking tour to orientate ourselves, concentrating on the area between St. Mark’s Square (Piazza de San Marco) and the Rialto. There will be an early group dinner followed by our attendance at a production of Verdi’s La Traviata at La Fenice opera house.

(B,D)

Our exploration of Venice continues this morning with a walking tour to the Accademia Gallery and the church of the Frari. We will have an opportunity to become familiar with some of the principal painters who lived and worked in Venice, such as the Bellinis and Titian. In the afternoon we shall go by boat to the island of Torcello where we shall have free time to explore the lovely Romanesque cathedral and to absorb the authentic atmosphere of Laguna on which Venice was established.

(B)

We say farewell to La Serenissima today and drive to Ravenna, once for a time the capital of the Western Empire after Rome had fallen, to see the spectacular mosaics in 2 important churches, San Vitale and Sant’ Apollinare Nuovo (6th century), and in the mausoleum of Galla Placidia (5th century). We then continue to the handsome city of Verona. The group dines together tonight (included).

(B,D)

Today we have a walking tour of the city of Verona, including the Arena (the third-largest surviving Roman amphitheatre), the Piazza Erbe, and the 12th century church of San Zeno Maggiore, the patron saint of the city. You can also visit, if you wish, some of the sites allegedly associated with Romeo and Juliet. Be prepared for touristy schmaltz but do not let that interfere with your appreciation of a truly beautiful city!

(B)

Today we go to Lake Garda, the largest of the Italian lakes, and visit the peninsula of Sirmione where medieval ruins were long thought to conceal the site of the poet Catullus’s family home. Perhaps they do: Catullus wrote lovingly of Sirmione, his “all-but-island” (in Tennyson’s words), and certainly lived there. After Garda we press on to Milan, where we check in our hotel for our final night. We have our celebratory farewell dinner tonight (included).

(B,D)

Out tour concludes today after breakfast.

(B)