THE BEST OF ITALY & FRANCE WITH LONDON EXTENSION - 2010

14 days incl. travel, or 13 days from Rome to London (HHT)

Return to France Vacations

Vacation Overview

This exciting vacation features 2-night stays in Rome, Venice, Florence, Nice, and Paris. Begin in Rome with guided sightseeing that includes the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s, the Colosseum, and the Roman Forum. Pause in Assisi to visit St. Francis’ Basilica, then to Venice for a private boat ride and guided walking tour that showcases St. Mark’s, Doges’ Palace, and the Bridge of Sighs. On to Ferrara to imposing Este Castle, then stop in Florence, the “Cradle of the Renaissance.” Here you’ll see Michelangelo’s David, the Cathedral, and Signoria Square. A scenic drive takes you to Pisa and its Leaning Tower, then along the Italian and French Rivieras to Nice for a stop at a local perfume factory and an included excursion to the famous artist town of St. Paul de Vence. Finally, board the high-speed TGV train and head to Paris, where guided sightseeing shows you the most famous sights: the Arc de Triomphe, Champs-Élysées, Notre Dame Cathedral, and a visit to the second floor of the Eiffel Tower. Continue by Eurostar train to London, and stay for two overnights and guided sightseeing with a visit to St. Paul’s Cathedral and the Changing of the Guard (if held).

Similar Vacations that may interest you:

The Best of Italy & France (HH)

Things to see on your vacation: View Vacation Photo Slideshow

A Vacation Story Pisa

"It was the most perfect experiment in the history of science. Holding both a cannon ball and a small musket ball, the 30-something Pisa native Galileo Galilei scaled the steps of his city’s famous Leaning Tower, and held them dramatically over the edge. Eight stories below, the town’s most learned scholars and priests were gathered as observers. They watched as the two balls dropped to the ground at the same speed – disproving, with a single stroke, the ancient idea that objects fall at different rates depending on their weight and size. This archaic concept, which had been espoused by the ancient Greek author Aristotle, had been accepted without question for more than 2,000 years, Galileo’s great innovation was to put it to a practical test of observation. Unfortunately, this famous story is probably not true. Galileo never wrote about it himself – it was recounted in a late biography penned by his secretary, Vincenzo Viviani. Most historians now believe that it was Galileo’s imaginative disciples who invented the Leaning Tower tale in order to make the theory so clear that even a child could understand it. "