We meet at our local pickup point for our transfer to our local major airport and check in for our flight to Italy. We will be served dinner and can watch a movie during our overnight flight.  (In-flight meals)

Day 2 — Spoleto
Perugia - Spoleto: 44 miles

We arrive today at Perugia airport, after we clear customs we will be met by our tour escort who will be with us for our entire stay in Italy; we will then transfer by private coach to our hotel in Spoleto. Take some time to rest.

In the afternoon we will have a guided city tour of Spoleto to show us around in the city that will be our home for the next 7 days. Spoleto, home of the Festival of Two Worlds, has been a cultural center for centuries. Arriving on the Via Flaminia, you can't miss the Rocca Albornoz, a gloomy medieval castle that looks very un-Italian. But once in town, you are back in the land of warmth and harmony. Seen from outside, the cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta is unforgettable, with its terra cotta-paved piazza, symmetrical bell tower and golden Byzantine mosaic. Inside are Fra Filippo Lippi's frescoes, possibly Michelangelo's inspiration for the Sistine Chapel. The magnificent 10th-century church of Sant'Eufemia was the court church of the Dukes of Spoleto, hence its soaring vault. In the municipal cemetery, the church of San Salvatore has a very rare 4th-century facade.
The city tour will be followed by a welcome diner in your hotel. (D)

Day 3 — Spoleto
Spoleto – Rome: 81 miles

Today we will enjoy a full day guided sightseeing of Rome. We will leave early in the morning to visit all the highlights of this ancient capital of Italy. You will see the Roman Forum. The remains of the Roman Forum, the religious, political and commercial centre of ancient Rome, reflect the 12 centuries of history which created Roman civilisation. The forum was excavated in the 19century and the 20th century. We will continue our tour to the Colosseum, one of world’s biggest ancient amphitheatres. In the Colosseum there was space for about 50.000 spectators. Fights between men and beasts, gladiatorial contests, races and mock naval battles took place in the arena. The excavations revealed an underground warren where the wild animals and gladiators waited before being brought to the surface by a system of ramps and lifts. After lunch you will continue your tour to St. Peters Basilica, the largest and most famous cathedral in the world. In the evening you will return to your hotel in Spoleto for dinner and overnight. (B, D)

Day 4 — Spoleto

After breakfast we can enjoy a sightseeing tour of the surrounding areas of Spoleto by private deluxe coach. This tour brings us through the dark woods of the Valnerina to the rugged peaks of the Monti Sibillini National Park. In this unspoiled part of Umbria there’s an almost spiritual, timeless atmosphere. Small churches, hermitages and chapels mark the ancient pilgrim routes. Summers are long and the mountain air is clean and crisp. Not only the landscape is worthwhile enjoying, on this tour you’ll find time to taste the traditional Umbrian food, specially flavored with the ‘tartufo nero’ that is found in the hills of the Valnerina and of course the excellent red Montefalco wines. On your way to the mediaeval town of Norcia, birthplace of San Benedetto, you’ll visit the Roman abbey of San Pietro in Valle, climb the Monte Coscerno and walk on one of Italy’s natural phenomena’s ‘the Piano Grande’. The Piano Grande ("Great Silence") is a big plain located in Umbria, near Norcia, on 4200 ft.  This mountain plateau is surrounded by the highest peaks of the Sibillini mountains and forms literally and figuratively the highlight of this tour. During spring- and summertime you will find here millions (!) of blooming flowers.... After a visit to the old town of Norcia the coach will bring you back to Spoleto. (B, D) 

Day 5 — Spoleto

Breakfast at the hotel and then a Full day of leisure – you may have an optional excursion back down to Rome via a private deluxe coach or just spend the day shopping in the Umbria region, dinner will be on your own today. (B)

Day 6 — Spoleto
Spoleto – Assisi: 31 miles

Today you will spend in Assisi. Assisi is still one of Italy’s top sights, ranking with the Colosseum, Pompeii and Venice’s Canals. It preserves the remarkably intact portico of a Roman temple on its main square, one of the better-preserved Albornoz Roccas with sweeping views and a two story basilica hulking at one end of town that’s a festival of frescoes. The basilica showcases the talents of the greatest geniuses of the early Renaissance, both Sienese and Florentine. The town is still recovering to some extend from damage caused by the 1997 earthquake, but Papal intervention has helped speed the recovery of many of the primary sites.

You will start your guided tour by visiting the Basilica di San Francesco. This Basilica is a treasure trove of paintings by such masters as Simone Martini, Pietro Lorenzetti, Cimabue, Giotto and many others. You will continue to Duomo di San Rufino. First built as early as the 5th century, this historic church features the baptismal font of St. Francis, St. Clare and Emperor Frederick II. Then on to Rocca Maggiore, at the top of town, dating back to the 12th century, this grand castle fortress dominates the region since it is perched atop a walled hilltop overlooking the city of Assisi and surrounding countryside. The fortress dominates the city and it is the monument that visitors first see, after the Basilica of St. Francis, as they approach Assisi. From the square in front of it, you can get a glimpse of the city centre below, with one of the finest views of the entire Spoleto valley. A visit of the inside and exterior of this former military structure gives a better idea of the stateliness of this building. It has recently been restored and many elegant and impressive rooms can be visited. Until a definitive decision has been made on how to it use it, it often hosts exhibits and art shows.

The afternoon can be spent at leisure. Visit one of the museums, stroll through the old small streets and taste the atmosphere of this very old city, before we return to Spoleto. (B, D)  

Day 7 — Spoleto
Spoleto – Orvieto: 51 miles

Rising 1000 feet straight up from the plains around it, Orvieto has been a stronghold for centuries. Orvieto is a pleasant city with a wealth of historic buildings and it enjoys a particularly remarkable site on the top of a plug of volcanic rock. You will enjoy a guided sightseeing tour of this city by foot. After spending your time exploring the narrow streets including the Duomo, which rises above all other buildings in town, you sit down to a relaxing lunch and wine tasting at a local restaurant. After lunch you will pay a visit to the cellars of Orvieto. As Orvieto lies on a bed of volcanic earth it is worth visiting the ‘cellars’ of Orvieto, to understand the history and structure of the city. The majority of the underground chambers (already present in Etruscan times) which have been dug out of the hill are in fact cellars. A visit to these caves (of which more than 1000 are officially listed) will reveal medieval niches for funerary urns, the foundations of a 14C oil mill and the 6C BC base of a well with steps to enable ascent and descent. The rest of the afternoon can be spent at leisure in Orvieto, before our return to Spoleto. (B, L, D)  

Day 8 — Spoleto
Spoleto – Perugia: 44 miles

Today will be your last full day in Italy. After breakfast you will leave for Perugia. Perugia has become the most cosmopolitan medieval city in the world. It is home to one of Italy’s largest state universities as well as the Università per Stranieri, the country’s most prestigious school teaching Italian language and culture to foreigners. Local industry’s biggest name is Perugina, purveyor of Italy’s finest chocolates and the city stages an urban and stylish passeggiata stroll every evening and one of Europe’s most celebrated jazz festivals every summer. You will have a guided sightseeing tour of Perugia and you will visit the National Gallery, one of central Italy’s top museums, which houses the largest and finest collection of Umbrian art in the world, including plenty of Perugino paintings.

The afternoon can be spent at leisure to do your last souvenir-shopping before returning back to Spoleto for a Farewell dinner and overnight. (B, D)

Day 9 — Spoleto

After breakfast transfer from the hotel to the airport for your flight back home. (B, in-flight meals)