TOUR REPORT : 13-Day Unforgettable Italy by Liz Warner
I just returned home from The Unforgettable Italy tour and had a fantastic time! The tour started in Rome and our first night there we joined the optional pizza party dinner along with just about everyone on the tour. The weather was great so we were able to eat outside at the restaurant, and the location was perfect – right across the street from the Colosseum. It was amazing to be in Rome and eating dinner as we watched the sun set behind the Colosseum! On our guided Rome sightseeing we saw all the major sites: the Vatican Museum, the Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s Basilica, the Colosseum, the Roman Forum and Circus Maximus. While all of these were impressive, I think my favorite part of Rome was after the very informative ‘Roman Passeggiata’ walking tour where we found a quaint little place for dinner outside of Piazza Navona. We enjoyed a delicious meal in a place filled with Italians rather than tourists and I truly felt that I was experiencing Rome. We left Rome to head down the coast towards the Bay of Naples. Along the way we visited the archaeological treasure of Pompeii. It is amazing how much they have been able to preserve of this city and it was a much bigger site than I had expected. The drive from there to Sorrento was absolutely gorgeous! I had enjoyed Rome, but it is a big city, so it was really nice to be in a smaller town with narrow streets filled with shops. To me, Sorrento had a quaint & cozy feel to it which I really enjoyed. It felt even more like home when, as part of our included tour, we were invited for dinner in the home of a local family – a great experience and a highlight of my trip. We also took a ferry to the Isle of Capri while in Sorrento and were able to walk around the island, enjoy the gardens and shops, and I even took a cruise around the island to view the beautiful grottoes. This was such a pretty part of Italy. On our way to Florence we stopped in the hilltop town of Orvieto, which had a gorgeous cathedral, then overnighted in Assisi right next to the Basilica of St. Francis. We also visited the lovely town of San Gimignano. I enjoyed seeing different kinds of smaller towns throughout Italy; they brought life to the way I had pictured Italy to be. Our next stop was Florence. We had an excellent local guide who took us on a walking tour and then that night we had our Dine-Around Dinner. The dinner was at a fabulous place and it was really nice to sit down and enjoy a glass of wine and some excellent food while getting to know my fellow travelers better. Florence was a great city and I especially enjoyed wandering around during our free time. Our second day in Florence started with a short drive to Piazza Michelangelo which is set up a bit higher on the other side of the river Arno and had perfect views of the city. From there we went back down to the main part of town and visited the Uffizi Gallery. We also enjoyed a gold demonstration and a leather demonstration which taught us what to look for when purchasing these fine items that Florence is known for. Another of my favorite experiences from the tour was the optional dinner at Restaurant Il Mulinaccio in the Tuscan Countryside. The setting of the restaurant is in an old mill and we enjoyed cocktails and antipasti on the outside terrace before going inside for an amazing evening filled with great food, good conversation and delicious wine. A truly memorable evening! We left Florence and headed to Venice, which had a completely different feel to it. I don’t know if it is because everything is on the water or because I felt I could get so up close and personal to the iconic sights, but I really loved Venice – I think it is my favorite city of all! We cruised the past the sights on the Grand Canal, took a gondola ride through the canals, walked the narrow streets, shopped, ate, and just enjoyed ourselves. We also went to a Murano glass blowing demonstration which I was very intrigued by. I have always loved blown glass, I think it is so pretty, but I’ve never seen it made before. We watched as first a vase was made and then next, much to our surprise, a glass horse was made – and so quickly that if you blinked you would miss it. It was really amazing to see the talent that they had to create such magnificent glass items all by hand. Soon enough we were leaving Venice and headed to the Lake District. We stopped in Lake Como on our way to Baveno, on Lake Maggiore. It was a very beautiful setting for our last night in Italy. We took a boat across the lake to Isola Bella, the island our restaurant for the farewell dinner was on. It was a nice cruise and we enjoyed a special last night with all of our fellow travelers. This tour visited a lot of different parts of Italy. I saw different landscapes, met all kinds of people, ate a lot of wonderful food – and made some great friends while on tour. I would highly recommend this tour to anyone interested in visiting Italy – it truly was Unforgettable! Click here to view pictures from my tour.
For more information about our 13-day Unforgettable Italy tour, including the day-by-day itinerary, accommodations, and dates & prices, click here. At GET we strive to provide our clients with accurate and current information about our tours. In order to do this we invest significantly in our staff, sending them out on tours so that they can share their stories and experiences with you, our clients, upon their return. Our Marketing Services Coordinator, Liz Warner and her husband Mark, recently joined our 13-Day Unforgettable Italy tour. We hope you enjoyed her report. |
hi, my name is jenny, and have been lucky enough o have travelled to italy a few times. i was debating on whether to go again, or try somewhere new. after reading this letter, i think i’m italy bound again! thanks for your wonderful memories!
i cannot wait to check out the latest brochure! ( i do have it),
jenny
we did this tour in ’05 and had to miss Capri because of weather; also some art in Uffizi was on loan so we missed it. The hotel at Lake Maggiore was a highlight for us. Always a reason to return. I agree that Venice was beautiful. People-watching from a hotel sidewalk cafe was fun. GET has a good tour to Spain as well.
How are the hotels that yo stay in on this tour? Are they close to the city centers?
I found most of the hotels on the tour to be near the city centers. The Rome hotel wasn’t walkable to much, but did offer a free shuttle right into the heart of the city & near the Vatican which ran every hour. The hotels in Sorrento, Assisi, & Florence were right in the city centers and we could easily walk places. The Venice hotel was on the island of Lido and you could easily walk to shops & restaurants on Lido or take the waterbus to the main part of Venice. Generally speaking for the most part the hotels are quite centrally located on all of our tours. You can always give us a call to get more specific info on the hotels scheduled for each tour and their location.
I am tempted to take one of these tours, but feel like I will spend endless hours on buses and then be herded around and rushed through sites. Apparently, you did not feel that way.
I didn’t feel that way at all. I think our tours are built very well and offer a good balance of scheduled sightseeing and free time to explore on my own. Travel days are the days that you will spend the most time on the coach, but it is broken up so that you are off the coach sightseeing at places along the way rather than spending a few hours all at once on the coach. I encourage you to call in and talk to one of our Travel Specialists – it is likely someone in the office has been on the tour you are thinking of and they can let you know what they thought of the amount of time on the coach along with everything else on the itinerary. We hope to see you travel with us!
Hi,
I’m thinking about this tour with our 13 year old grandaughter. However my wife walks with the aid of a walker and/or cane. Therefore, she needs a bit extra time in general and to negotiate on/off a bus.We have been to italy several times so it won’t be necessary for her see some of the more difficult sites such as Pompei. I assume she could wait on the bus most times if necessary or sit a t a cafe’. Would appredcite your comments on this. Also would our grandchild be able to room with us? I think she would feel safer that way. Perhaps adjoining rooms?
Hi- we could certainly accommodate your granddaughter on a rollaway bed in your room. However, I would encourage you to call and speak to one of our Travel Specialists (1-800-552-5545) about your wife’s mobility as they could provide specific information to you about how that might affect her tour and the best options for your family.
Hello Liz,
First of all, thank you so much for the information! My wife and I are from the Bahamas and we a seriously looking taking this trip….; however, I’m a bit skeptical.. I’ve visited a number of sites with various itineraris that very appealing but not sure which company to use! Can you please assist with the following questions :
1)What are the pros & cons of this tour
2) Age of the group
3)Rate hotels
4) Rate transportation
Regards,
Aaron
Hi Aaron-
I’m glad that you found my tour review helpful in your trip search. In case you didn’t know, I do work for Grand European Tours and I thoroughly enjoyed this tour of Italy. For me, a really big plus for this tour is the balance between guided sightseeing and free time. You get to go with the group to all the ‘must-see’ sites – and get special group entrance to go into places like the Vatican before the general public. Then you’ve got time to either join optional tours or to be on your own.. I did a mix of both – some optionals, and some sightseeing and meals on my own – which was the perfect balance for me. The average age is around 65, but it varies tour to tour, especially in the summer when more families and grandparents/grandchildren travel with us. Generally the hotels are about the same standard as a 4-star hotel here in the US; so good quality, clean, private bathroom in your room and good location. The motorcoaches that we use are great, they are late model Mercedes, Volvo and similar with air conditioning, panoramic windows, and an experienced driver.
Several of my coworkers (our expert Travel Specialists) have also been on this tour (and others) and would be happy to answer any questions that you have – 1-800-552-5545. Also, if you didn’t see it, I blogged almost daily on this tour and you can read those beginning with my arrival in Rome, here: http://www.getours.com/blog/welcome-to-the-eternal-city-rome/ .
Again, thank you for your interest. I hope to see you on tour soon!