Day 1 (Mon.) Board your overnight transatlantic flight.

Day 2 Arrival in Rome, Italy. (Tue.) Time to rest or start exploring the Eternal City. At 6 p.m. meet your Tour Director and traveling companions and leave the hotel for a welcome dinner in one of Rome’s lively restaurants. (D)

Day 3 Rome. (Wed.) Sightseeing with your Local Guide starts with a visit to the VATICAN MUSEUMS and SISTINE CHAPEL, world famous for Michelangelo’s ceiling paintings. 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. Afternoon and evening at leisure. (BB)

Day 4 Rome-Venice. (Thu.) A scenic day. Drive north across the Apennine Mountains and through the fertile plains of the mighty River Po to Venice, a powerful magnet for romantics and art lovers from around the globe. (BB,D)

Day 5 Venice-Florence. (Fri.) Enter in style by PRIVATE BOAT to meet your Local Guide. Highlights of your walking tour are ST. MARK’S BASILICA and SQUARE, lavish Doges’ Palace and the Bridge of Sighs. Also watch skilled GLASSBLOWERS fashion their delicate objects in an age-old traditional manner. A comfortable drive in the afternoon brings you to Florence, the splendid capital of Tuscany. This evening you might try the culinary delights of a fine Florentine restaurant. (BB)

Day 6 Florence. (Sat.) Follow your Local Guide to visit the ACADEMY OF FINE ARTS with Michelangelo’s celebrated David, the magnificent CATHEDRAL, Giotto’s Bell Tower, the Baptistry’s heavy bronze "Gate of Paradise," and sculpture-studded SIGNORIA SQUARE. Afternoon at leisure. You may wish to join your Local Guide for an optional visit of the Uffizi Gallery. (BB,D)

Day 7 Florence-Pisa-Nice, France. (Sun.) Focus on Pisa this morning for pictures of its amazing Leaning Tower, 180 feet high and 12 feet out of the perpendicular. Then a scenic drive past a string of Italian and French Riviera resorts to Nice. (BB)

Day 8 At Leisure in Nice. (Mon.) The day is yours to do as you please. You may wish to dabble in the blue Mediterranean or stroll along the elegant Promenade des Anglais. An optional excursion to Monte Carlo is available. (BB)

Day 9 Nice-Arles-Barcelona, Spain. (Tue.) Along the glittering shores of the Côte d’Azur past Cannes, famous for its annual international film festival to Arles on the northern edge of the Camargue alluvial plain. During your walking tour take pictures of the Roman Amphitheater before continuing across the border into Spain to Barcelona, the proud capital of Catalonia. (BB,D)

Day 10 Barcelona. (Wed.) Your Local Guide takes you to the Columbus Monument, elegant tree-lined Ramblas and Plaza de Cataluna, historic buildings along Paseo de Gracia, the Church of the Holy Family, a panoramic view of the city and harbor from Monjuich Hill, and a visit to the Cathedral of SANTA EULALIA. Afternoon at leisure. An optional excursion to Montserrat can be arranged. (BB)

Day 11 Barcelona-Saragossa-Madrid. (Thu.) Today travel through Catalonia and Aragon to Saragossa, then wind your way through three sierras to Madrid on the plateau of Castille. (BB)

Day 12 Madrid. (Fri.) Sightseeing with Local Guide in Spain’s capital features Puerta del Sol, Plaza de España with its monument to Cervantes, the Parliament, Cibeles Fountain, and a highlight visit to the PRADO MUSEUM. Afternoon at leisure, and tonight enjoy a farewell dinner to celebrate the success of your European vacation. (BB,D)

Day 13 (Sat.) Your homebound flight arrives the same day. (BB)