When in Rome… go to gladiator school! Our family-friendly tour of Italy brings Roman history into focus as you visit ancient ruins, learn gladiator skills and wander underground catacombs. A guided visit to the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel with your family is memorable. Pompeii reveals its mysteries as you walk its ancient streets and excavated buildings. And how sweet it is to see Sorrento, where you'll take a pizza-making class on a family farm… hop aboard a high-speed ferry to the enchanting Isle of Capri for further exploration via convertible and funicular… and break for gelato!

Our 8-day journey brings extraordinary experiences, from nature to knowledge. Bicycling atop the walls of Lucca... or walking through the medieval alleys of Siena. It's laughter. It's sharing, such as vino made from grapes in the vineyards you've just explored. It's about becoming a part of day-to-day Italy... learning to cook Italian-style... savoring the extraordinary beauty of nature from Portofino along the Mediterranean's Italian Riviera... exploring villages of Cinque Terre National Park, overlooking the sea... and going off-the-beaten-path for an Italian cultural connection unlike any other.

Featuring accommodations in the Leading Hotels of the World, this new all small group trip takes guests on a weeklong excursion that ensures an authentic look at la dolce vita sunrise to sunset. Enjoy sea view rooms at a historic hotel in Naples that Enrico Caruso once called home, embark on a day's excursion to Ischia via high-speed ferry, spend two nights indulging in Mediterranean island pleasures in a former villa on Capri, and stay in a cliffside hideaway in Amalfi with the splendors of one of the most beautiful coasts in the world right outside your door.

Traveling by high speed train from Venice to Florence and Rome reveals Italy's history in just one week... etched into art in the Uffizi... poured in Tuscan wines aged in a 4th-century abbey cellar... sculpted in timeless antiquities and architectural masterpieces... and frescoed with astonishing splendor in the Vatican Museums. Take a walking tour of Venice with a local guide. Meet Leonardo da Vinci, Botticelli and other Renaissance artists at the Uffizi Gallery during a private after-hours visit. Attend a wine-pairing lunch, with a taste of locally produced olive oil and cellar-aged Sangiovese wines. In Rome, go to the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel after hours – no lines, no waiting...

Imagine ancient Rome on a drive through the heart of the city to see real-life relics of times past... picture Michelangelo painting frescoes on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel during your special after-hours visit... go underground in hidden Etruscan caves... meet famous Renaissance paintings and statues in the famed Galleria dell'Accademia and Galleria degli Uffizi... taste the magic of gelato, strike a pose beside the famous Leaning Tower of Pisa and make your own authentic pizza... stay at an award-winning hotel on a private island in the Venetian Lagoon, and cruise past opulent palaces on the Grand Canal in Venice...

Spend two nights in the elegant capital city of Turin, birthplace of the Fiat and inviting with refined architecture, tree-lined boulevards and culinary treats of chocolate, Barolo wine and more. The house of Savoy and centuries-old palaces welcome you to Venaria Reale, dating back to Roman times and opulent with treasures royally inspired, and a slow food lunch, truffle hunting and wine tasting celebrate the bounty of the Langhe landscapes. Enchantment awaits in Stresa, nestled on the shores of Lake Maggiore in the Gulf of Borromeo, where private cruises showcase opulent villas and a feast of freshly caught seafood for Tauck guests only.

Discover bella Italia on one of Tauck's most popular journeys... in scenic Tuscan hill towns, centuries-old cities and countryside villages, and along the Amalfi Coast… in the treasures of Florence, coloring an era of enlightenment with a rich palette of paintings and architecture by Renaissance luminaries like da Vinci, Botticelli and Brunelleschi... along saltwater roads in Venice lined with magnificent palaces frozen in time... in sun-dappled Tuscan villages, medieval icons reigning over vineyard-draped landscapes that produce wines and foods that are regionally inspired, locally flavored and ultimately delizioso... and on a guided visit to the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel, you'll have an extraordinary look at ageless masterpieces during your three-night stay in the Eternal City...

Walk with us to places immortalized with local color, sip and savor wines masterfully crafted, toast traditions and tales fondly shared, and become part of the stories, past and present, that make your vacation memories last lifetimes. Guided visits and shore excursions choices include revered UNESCO World Heritage sites as you cruise between Venice, the Dalmatian Coast and Montenegro. Discover the architectural masterpiece that is Venice... the Gothic Cathedral of St. Lawrence in Sibenik... the ancient Roman Palace of Diocletian in Split... the walled city of Dubrovnik, renowned for its Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque monasteries, palaces, fountains, and churches... the stunning harbor town of Kotor... and the lavender-scented island of Hvar, where Stari Grad Plain astounds with its intact ancient Greek land system. Your elegant ship is perfectly sized and ideally suited for island exploration where the bigger ships can't go, charts a course for destinations of scenic serenity like the Bay of Kotor in Montenegro, where private shore excursions reveal maritime treasures and seaside settlements worthy of leisurely discovery. Two nights at a premier hotel in Venice bring the aura of daily life amidst architectural masterpieces, ancient squares and the ever-present lacework of canals.