Description:

Thur 31 May
Depart Perth
Friday 1 June
Arrive Rome

Make your own way to the Globus hotel ( ***NOTE a transfer may be added for an additional $25 per adult )
At 5pm, meet your Tour Director and travelling companions and leave the hotel for a special welcome dinner with wine at one of Rome's lively restaurants.

Sat 2 June

Sightseeing with your Local Guide starts with a visit to the VATICAN MUSEUMS and SISTINE CHAPEL, world famous for Michelangelo's ceiling paintings and The Last Judgement. Continue to monumental ST. PETER'S SQUARE and BASILICA. Cross the Tiber and visit the COLOSSEUM and the ROMAN FORUM, where Roman legions marched in triumph. Time for independent activities and exciting optional excursion possibilities.

Sun 03 June
ROME-PISA-LUCCA. This morning, head north along the Tyrrhenian coastline through an area where many a town was founded at the very beginning of recorded history by the mysterious, highly civilized Etruscans. Stop in Pisa for lunch and to take pictures of its Leaning Tower, 55 metres (180 feet high) and no less than 3.6 metres (12 feet) out of the perpendicular. Then, continue to Lucca, and enjoy an orientation walk and time to explore this pretty town on your own.

Mon 04 June
LUCCA-SIENA-SAN GIMIGNANO-FLORENCE. A scenic day in Tuscany. This morning visit Siena and walk through ancient narrow lanes to beautiful PIAZZA DEL CAMPO, theatre of the biannual Palio, Siena's spectacular medieval-style horse race. Next is hilltop San Gimignano, the most picturesque of Italy's perfectly preserved medieval towns. In the afternoon, drive along the Chianti Road leading north to Florence. Next is the highlight of the day: stop at splendid VERRAZZANO CASTLE to hear about the fine art of blending four types of grapes to obtain the famous Chianti. Enjoy a WINE TASTING followed by a light dinner of local specialties.

Tue 05 June
FLORENCE. During your walking tour with a Local Guide, visit the ACADEMY OF FINE ARTS with Michelangelo's celebrated David and the magnificent cathedral. Admire Giotto's Bell Tower, the Baptistry's heavy bronze "Gate of Paradise," and sculpture-studded SIGNORIA SQUARE. Afternoon free for independent sightseeing and browsing through the shops. Leather goods and gold jewellery sold by the ounce are attractive buys. Why not try the culinary delights of a fine Tuscan restaurant tonight?

Wed 06 June
FLORENCE-VERONA-VENICE. Stop in Verona, setting of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet to see Juliet's balcony and the Arena, an incredibly well-preserved pink marble Roman amphitheatre. Built in the 1st century AD, it is now the magical venue for world-famous opera performances. Arrive in Venice, a powerful magnet for romantics and art lovers from around the globe. Tonight is your chance to sample the city's fine restaurants.

Thu 07 June
VENICE. Enter in style by PRIVATE BOAT and enjoy morning sightseeing with your Local Guide featuring 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. Then, enjoy Venice at your own pace or join an optional gondola ride.

Friday 08 June
VENICE-RAVENNA-ASSISI. Along the coastline of the Adriatic Sea to Ravenna. Here, see the famous mosaics in the 6th-century BASILICA of ST. APOLLINARIS IN CLASSE. In the afternoon, arrive in Assisi. During your walking tour with a Local Guide, visit ST. CLARE'S CHURCH and ST. FRANCIS' BASILICA, the hub of a religious order devoted to the ideals of humility, forgiveness, simplicity, and love for all God's creatures. Hear about monastic life and admire the priceless frescoes adorning the walls of the church.

Saturday 09 June
ASSISI-ORVIETO-ROME. Following the Tiber Valley, reach Orvieto, perched high atop a volcanic rock. Access, denied to many a would-be conqueror through the ages, is easy for you. Ride a modern FUNICULAR right through the forbidding ramparts. Time for lunch, browsing through tempting shops in the lanes off Piazza del Duomo, and finding the right angle for a picture of the fabulous gothic CATHEDRAL with its San Brisio Chapel. In the late afternoon, return to Rome. This evening, enjoy a farewell dinner with wine at a local restaurant to celebrate the success of your vacation.

Sunday 10 June
ROME. Your Globus tour ends with breakfast this morning.
An additional night is booked at the Globus Hotel

Monday 11 June
After breakfast check out of the Hotel

Make your way to the port of Rome at Civitavecchia

** NOTE - a transfer may be added from the Celebrity Hotel in downtown Rome or the airport for $95 additional per adult

Date.........................Ports of Call.............................Arrive.......Depart....................

Mon 11 Jun 2012 Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy 05:00 PM Boarding
Tue 12 Jun 2012 At Sea
Wed 13 Jun 2012 Santorini, Greece.....................02:00 PM 10:00 PM Tendered
Thu 14 Jun 2012 At Sea
Fri 15 Jun 2012 Istanbul, Turkey.......................07:00 AM Docked
Sat 16 Jun 2012 Istanbul, Turkey.......................01:00 PM Docked
Sun 17 Jun 2012 Kusadasi (Ephesus), Turkey....10:00 AM 07:00 PM Docked
Mon 18 Jun 2012 Athens (Piraeus), Greece.........07:00 AM 06:00 PM Docked
Tue 19 Jun 2012 Mykonos, Greece....................07:00 AM 06:00 PM Tendered
Wed 20 Jun 2012 At Sea
Thu 21 Jun 2012 Naples, Italy............................07:00 AM 06:30 PM Docked
Fri 22 Jun 2012 Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy .....04:30 AM Departure

** NOTE - a transfer may be added from the Pier to Rome airport for $95 additional per adult

Fri 22 Jun
Depart Rome 10.00 pm arrive Dubai 5.50 am 23 June
Depart Dubai 10.05 am arrive Perth 00.55 am