Italian Tapestry (LS) - 2013

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9 days from Venice to Sorrento

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Vacation Overview

Explore Italy’s most famous cities on this unique vacation. Start in romantic Venice and enjoy a welcome dinner at a local restaurant, guided sightseeing including visits to St. Mark’s Basilica and Doges’ Palace with its Bridge of Sighs, and a glassblower demonstration. On the way to Florence, enjoy a Leonardi Acetaia vinegar tasting near Modena. In Florence, admire Michelangelo’s David and sculpture-filled Signoria Square. In Siena, visit the impressive Piazza del Campo, and enjoy an exclusive lecture by a Contrada representative about the biannual, medieval-style Palio horse race. Via Pienza, continue to Rome, where guided sightseeing includes a visit to the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s Square and Basilica, the Colosseum and the Roman Forum. Next is Pompeii, where a guided walk takes you through the excavations of the Roman city both destroyed and preserved by an eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. End your vacation in the charming resort of Sorrento, where you will stay for two nights and enjoy an excursion to the Isle of Capri, and a special farewell dinner at a lemon farm.

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Receive a $200 per couple air credit on all 2013 Globus air-inclusive Europe vacations.*

*Book a 2013 Globus air-inclusive Europe (excluding Jordan) vacation to receive the $100 per person air credit. Must be booked, under deposit and discount applied between January 9 and June 25, 2013 for travel between January 9 and December 31, 2013. Not applicable on instant purchase air. Applies to coach class only. Air must be purchased through Globus in conjunction with a Europe tour. Air credit will apply to the per person air price and is non-transferable. Offers not valid with any other offer except Journeys Club Repeat Traveler benefit. Applies to new 2013 bookings only, and offer will not be applied to pre-existing bookings. An additional $300 non-refundable deposit is required for air booked in conjunction with a land vacation. Once airfare is confirmed and Globus has received your full air and land deposit, your air-inclusive price is guaranteed. Globus reserves the right to ticket passengers upon receipt of full land and air deposit; Any subsequent changes and/or revisions to airline reservations at your request after receipt of full land deposit are subject to revision fees and/or airline-imposed change or cancellation fees. These fees are a minimum of $300, and in some instances may be up to 100% of the ticket price. In addition, promotional discounts do not carry forward on changed air bookings. However, promotions in effect at the time of the change will apply. Total air price includes all government-imposed taxes and fees applicable at the time of booking. Air price, air tax and security fees are non-commissionable. Additional airline fees for baggage may apply. For the most current airline-imposed baggage fees, please check the following website, www.iflybags.com. Offer reliant on space availability. Full cancellation penalties will apply. Additional restrictions may apply.

VENICE
Welcome dinner with wine at a local restaurant; guided walking tour, visit St. Mark’s Square and Basilica, Doges’ Palace and the Bridge of Sighs; glassblower demonstration

MODENA
Leonardi Acetaia balsamic vinegar tasting

FLORENCE
Guided walking tour, visit Michelangelo’s David and Signoria Square

SIENA
Lecture on the Palio; guided walking tour, admire the Duomo and visit Piazza del Campo

PIENZA
Visit this UNESCO World Heritage Site

ROME
Guided sightseeing, visit the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s Square and Basilica, the Colosseum and the Roman Forum

POMPEII
Guided walking tour of the excavations

SORRENTO–CAPRI–SORRENTO
By jetfoil

CAPRI
Funicular ride; guided sightseeing

SORRENTO
Special farewell dinner with wine at a lemon farm

Headsets throughout the tour

DAY 1Arrive in Venice Island, Italy

Welcome to Venice! At 6 pm, meet your Tour Director and traveling companions for a special welcome dinner with wine at a local restaurant. (Dinner)

Venice is considered one of the most beautiful cities in the world

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DAY 2Venice Island

Highlights of your walking tour with a Local Guide are ST. MARK’S SQUARE and the Byzantine BASILICA, lavish DOGES’ PALACE and the BRIDGE OF SIGHS. Also watch skilled GLASSBLOWERS fashion their delicate objects in an age-old traditional manner. To enhance your stay, choose from our optional activities: a serenaded gondola ride or an excursion to the picturesque island of Burano. (Breakfast)

Bridge of Sighs

"The world’s most poetically-named bridge, Il Ponte dei Sospiri, the Bridge of Sighs, was built in 1614 so that prisoners of the Venetian state could be transferred in secret from the Doge’s Palace to the so-called Nuovi Prigioni, or New Prisons. The wistful name was actually conceived by the English poet Lord Byron in the early 1800s that imagined the horror of prisoners taking their last glimpse of Venice before going underground to captivity. "

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DAY 3Venice Island–Modena–Florence

Enjoy a special treat today: a Leonardi Acetaia VINEGAR TASTING near Modena. Continue through the fertile Po area and the Apennine Mountains into Italy’s most popular province, Tuscany, and arrive in Florence, “Cradle of the Renaissance.” Time for independent sightseeing and browsing through the shops. Florentine leather goods and gold jewelry sold by the ounce are attractive buys. Tonight is your chance to join an optional dinner to try out Tuscan specialties. (Breakfast)

Tuscany is known for its landscapes and its artistic legacy

See the vineyard covered hillsides of Tuscany

Visit stunning Florence and the Ponte Vecchio

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DAY 4Florence–Siena

This morning, follow your Local Guide to the ACADEMY OF FINE ARTS to see Michelangelo’s celebrated David. Also admire the magnificent marble cathedral, Giotto’s Bell Tower, the Baptistry’s heavy bronze “Gate of Paradise,” and sculpture-studded SIGNORIA SQUARE. Next is Siena, Italy’s best-preserved medieval town, enjoy an exclusive LECTURE by a Contrada representative, one of the city subdivisions that regularly competes in the biannual Palio, held in the center of town. Lively stories of past races will bring this one-of-a-kind event to life! (Breakfast)

Admire the detailed craftsmanship of Michelangelos David

La Piazza Della Signoria

"What’s the best vantage point to ponder the most illustrious town square in Florence, the Signoria? An outdoor table in the venerable Caffè Rivoire – preferably over a delicious, if not painfully expensive cioccolata con pane, a dark and mud-thick hot chocolate. Late at night, when the crowds have gone, you can search the long shadows and imagine that very little has changed here since the 1400s. The Signoria is the most elegant sculpture garden in Europe. Masterpieces include the splendid Neptune Fountain by Ammannati, Hercules and Cacus by Bandinelli and a precise copy of Michelangelo’s David, all strategically poised in front of the Palazzo Vecchio. This grand public space has been the centerpiece of Florence since the 15th Century, the golden age when the city was established as the most beautiful in Europe. Eminent merchants in their ostentatious finery met here to discuss business in the midst of Florence’s raucous daily life."

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DAY 5Siena–Pienza–Rome

Your guided walking tour takes you inside its historic ramparts to the duomo and to the PIAZZA DEL CAMPO, where the Palio is held. Next, join the Via Cassia, named after the antique road leading to Rome, and stop in Pienza, famous for pecorino cheese. This picturesque town has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, thanks to a member of the Piccolomini family who became Pope Pius II in the 15th century and redesigned the town in perfect renaissance style. Tonight, in the “Eternal City,” an optional dinner with local specialties is available at one of Rome’s famous restaurants. (Breakfast)

Enjoy the beautiful architecture in Rome

Siena

"Siena’s Piazza del Campo is a town square shaped like an oval slopping gently down to the Palazzo Pubblico and the Torre del Mangia, it is divided into sections representing the city’s nine rulers in the 1400s, known (bluntly enough) as the Council of Nine. But the Piazza’s striking medieval ambiance is not only due to the surrounding architecture – but for a race. For most of June, July and August, the entire city is devoted to Il Palio, a series of horse races held in the Piazza whose ancient passions makes the Kentucky Derby seem like a fly-by-night event. The festival’s contours have not changed since the 1100s, when members of the city’s 17 contrade, or town districts, began to compete with one another in track events. The two central races are held every July 2 and August 16, but the pageantry and excitement dominate Siena for the entire summer. "

The World Heritage List includes over 800 properties with cultural and/or natural heritage of global significance.

DAY 6Rome

Morning guided sightseeing features visits to the VATICAN MUSEUMS and SISTINE CHAPEL, world famous for Michelangelo’s ceiling paintings; monumental ST. PETER’S SQUARE and BASILICA; and the COLOSSEUM and ROMAN FORUM, where Roman legions marched in triumph. To make the most of your stay, join our optional Roman Highlights excursion, and see the sites and squares of medieval Rome made famous in the movie Angels and Demons. (Breakfast)

Vatican Museums

"In the early 1500s, Rome was full of neglected ruins from the days of the ancient Empire, which still contained artworks buried amongst the rubble. The Renaissance had seen a sudden growth of interest in all things classical, and the popes – cultivated men who were in touch with the intellectual currents of the day – were the richest art collectors in Italy. They began offering substantial cash rewards for any sculptures, until Rome was scoured by freelance treasure hunters on the hunt for pagan masterpieces. The most dramatic discovery occurred in 1506, when a Roman father-and-son team of excavators reported a promising find near the ruined Baths of Titus. The artist Michelangelo himself excitedly hurried over to help with the work, followed by the pope’s official agent, Guiliano da Sangallo. When the excavators brushed away the dirt of 1,000 years, they found an enormous marble sculpture, perfectly intact, of a muscular Trojan hero being attacked by giant snakes. Guilano cried out in amazement, “This is the very Laocoön described by (the ancient Roman author) Pliny!” The sculpture was carted off to the Vatican Museum."

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DAY 7Rome–Pompeii–Sorrento

A scenic drive southwards along the Highway of the Sun. Arrive in fascinating POMPEII, the Roman city both destroyed and preserved by an eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. Your Local Guide will walk you past patrician homes, public baths, and commercial districts that strikingly recall day-to-day life when Rome was at the apex of her power. Overnight in the charming, bayside resort of Sorrento. (Breakfast)

Pompeii

"While wandering the superbly-preserved streets of Pompeii keep an eye out for the cauponae or early fast-food restaurants beloved by the ancient Romans. Located on several corners and looking like open-air bars, these one-room establishments were where busy citizens could grab a quick meal and glass of wine on the run. They were identified by colorful signs over their doors (one place excavated in Pompeii had a Phoenix, another, an elephant and pygmy). And like modern coffee bars in Italy today, customers stood at an L-shaped brick counter to order. There were jars full of hot and cold food, as well as amphorae of wine, which they could consume on the spot or take out to a few wooden seats provided on the street or, in some cases, a small back garden."

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DAY 8Sorrento. Excursion to Capri

Speed across the glittering bay by JETFOIL to the world-famous Isle of Capri. Ride the FUNICULAR to Capri village for a guided visit of this beautiful town. Free time to explore the little shops on the pretty piazzetta before returning to Sorrento. The remainder of the day is at leisure, and this evening, a special farewell dinner with wine at a local agriturismo has been arranged to celebrate the success of your Italian vacation. (Breakfast, Dinner)

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Capri

"Rising like a whale from the ocean, the spectacular island of Capri has held a particular attraction for celebrities trying to “get away from it all” over the centuries. In former times, it lured the writers Goethe, Oscar Wilde and Graham Greene; these days, it attracts American stars like Leonardo di Caprio, Harrison Ford and Mariah Carey. But Capri first became famous in 26 AD, when the Roman Emperor Tiberius “dropped out” here to escape the political in-fighting in Rome. For 16 years, he ruled the Empire from his luxurious cliff-side palace – flashing his orders to the mainland via a lighthouse. Protected by 500 foot cliffs, Capri had only one landing point, and his villa, located on a remote headland offered sweeping 300 degree views of the ocean. B"

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DAY 9Sorrento

Your vacation ends with breakfast this morning (the nearest airport is Naples). (Breakfast)

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Transportation

Private boat ride in Venice; motorcoach with free Wi-Fi; jetfoil; funicular ride in Capri

VENICE ISLAND Palazzo Selvadego (F)
FLORENCE Grand Hotel Mediterraneo (F)
SIENA Garden (F)
ROME NH Villa Carpegna (F)
SORRENTO Michelangelo (F)

Full buffet breakfast daily; 2 three-course dinners : a special welcome dinner with wine in Venice and a special farewell dinner with wine in Sorrento

Four Ways Globus Eliminates the Hassles

VIP Access
Skip the lines and get special treatment at the must-see attractions.

Perfect Hotels
We’ve done the work to find just the right hotels in just the right locations.

Tour Directors
Take your heads out of the guidebook and let expert guides make every destination fascinating.

Transportation
Leave the navigating to us – and just sit back and enjoy the ride.

View Offer

Receive a $200 per couple air credit on all 2013 Globus air-inclusive Europe vacations.*

UNESCO World Heritage Sites

The following UNESCO World Heritage Sites can be seen or visited on the Italian Tapestry:

Vatican City
Archaeological Site of Pompeii
Historic Centre of Florence
Historic Centre of Rome
Historic Centre of Siena
Historic Centre of the city of Pienza
Venice and its Lagoon

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