ITINERARY

Day 1 – London – Paris

We meet our Tour Director at the Holiday Inn Kings Cross/Bloomsbury, before crossing picturesque Kentish farmlands en route for the port of Dover where our Calais ferry awaits. We then follow the Autoroute across the battlefields of northern France where names like the Somme and Arras evoke memories of 1st World War fighting. We arrive in the French capital in the late afternoon. Tonight you may wish to join a Paris illuminations tour? Hotel: Novotel Porte D'Asnieres.

Day 2 – Paris Sightseeing

Sightseeing with a local guide this morning shows us the highlights of the city, including the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, Opera House, Invalides and the immense facades of the Louvre Palace. We also see the 13th century Gothic cathedral, with its memories of the tale of Quasimodo, the hunchback of Notre Dame. This afternoon is at leisure to shop in the great department stores, ascend the Eiffel Tower, or perhaps to visit the superb collections of the Louvre Museum? Tonight, maybe enjoy dinner in a typical Parisian bistro? (B)

Day 3 – Paris – Lake Lucerne

Our journey today takes us via the vineyards of Burgundy, and across the Rhine at Basel. We enter Switzerland, with wonderful scenery of snow-capped mountains and tranquil lakes, en route to Lake Lucerne. Hotel: Postillon (Buochs). (B,D)

Day 4 – Lucerne Sightseeing

This morning we admire the Lion Monument, carved into a limestone cliff to commemorate those Swiss Guards who lost their lives during the French Revolution. Then we can stroll along the Chapel Bridge, before time at leisure to relax and do some shopping or perhaps take a thrilling cable-car ride up a nearby mountain? (B,D)

Day 5 – Lake Lucerne – Florence

After a truly spectacular drive through Switzerland and one of Europe's longest tunnels, we arrive in Italy amidst the splendours of the Italian Lake District. We glimpse beautiful Lake Como and continue southwards past Milan, the heart of the Italian fashion world. The smooth highway carries us across the fertile plains of the Po Valley and into the wild Apennine Mountains. We then make our way into the heart of Tuscany to the Renaissance city of Florence.

Hotel: West Florence Hotel. (B,D)

Day 6 – Florence – Rome

Our sightseeing starts with the superb view over Florence from Piazza Michelangelo. Then we walk with our Tour Director to the Santa Croce area for a leather working demonstration. Then there is time to explore the cathedral, Ghiberti's 'Gates of Paradise', and the Signoria Square, political centre of old Florence and a living museum of Renaissance Art. Now we take the 'autostrada' south, through the province of Umbria, to the 'Eternal City'. Rome comes alive at night, the Via Veneto - scene of the Dolce Vita, the cosmopolitan squares like the Piazza Navona and the beautiful fountains. Hotel: Grand Hotel Fleming. (B)

Day 7 – Rome Sightseeing

Our city tour with an expert guide begins with the Vatican City. We visit the impressive St. Peter's Basilica to admire Michelangelo's 'Pieta' and splendid dome. There is also time for an optional to visit the Vatican Museum to see the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Then our local guide unfurls the history of the empire at the Imperial Roman Forum and we see the magnificent Colosseum. (B)

Day 8 – Rome

Our tour ends after breakfast with a transfer to Rome Airport. (B)