From The Colosseum To The Eiffel Tower With London Extension

2012 Season
Departs From: Rome

From 2,593EUR

Length:  12 days from Rome to London, or 13 days incl. travel

Overview

Discover Europe with your family! Start in Rome with a welcome dinner, and enjoy sightseeing with a Local Guide featuring visits to the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s Square and Basilica, and the Colosseum, where you get a family picture with a gladiator (if available). Next, travel via Pisa to take pictures of the Leaning Tower, and to the spa resort of Montecatini, where a special highlight dinner at a local agriturismo awaits you. In Florence, visit the Academy of Fine Arts with Michelangelo’s celebrated David, and admire the cathedral and sculpture-studded Signoria Square. Travel to Venice, enter in style by private boat, and have a pizza party at a local restaurant. The following day, enjoy a unique experience: create your own Venetian mask! In the afternoon, follow your Local Guide and visit St. Mark’s Square, Doges’ Palace, and the Bridge of Sighs. On to charming Stresa at Lake Maggiore for your overnight stay, then cross the Simplon Pass, ride a cogwheel mountain train, and arrive in car-free Zermatt at the base of the Matterhorn. Before continuing to Lake Geneva, you may wish to join an optional ride up the open-air railway on Gornergrat Mountain. From Lausanne, ride the famous high-speed TGV train to Paris, where visits to Notre Dame Cathedral and to the top of the Eiffel Tower are included. You can also try out a freshly made crepe. Finally, travel to London on the high-speed Eurostar train, and enjoy sightseeing and a ride on the London Eye, the world’s tallest observation wheel.

Duration:  12 Days

Schedule:

Start Date	End Date
10 June, 2012	21 June, 2012
10 June, 2012	21 June, 2012
17 June, 2012	28 June, 2012
24 June, 2012	05 July, 2012
01 July, 2012	12 July, 2012

City Highlights

Rome
Welcome Party & Dinner; guided sightseeing, visit the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s Square and Basilica, and the Colosseum; family picture with a gladiator (if available)

Pisa
Take pictures of the Leaning Tower

Montecatini
Tuscan dinner at a local agriturismo

Florence
Guided walking tour, visit the Academy of Fine Arts to see Michelangelo’s David, admire the cathedral and Signoria Square.

Venice
Private boat ride; pizza party; Venetian Carnival mask decorating; vaporetto ride; guided sightseeing including St. Mark’s Square, Doges’ Palace and Bridge of Sighs

Tasch-Zermatt-Tasch
Cogwheel mountain train

Lausanne–Paris
By high-speed TGV train (first-class)

Paris
Ascend the Eiffel Tower to the top floor; guided sightseeing, visit Notre Dame Cathedral; taste a crepe; Send-Off Celebration Dinner at a local restaurant

Paris-London
By high-speed Eurostar train

London
Guided sightseeing on a traditional double-decker bus; ride the London Eye; Host Service is included

Headsets throughout the tour (except London)

Note:

In the rare event that the TGV train or the Eurostar train is unavailable, alternative services will be provided.
TravelToe Family Travel vacations require at least one member of the traveling party to be under the age of 21.

Day 1   Arrive in Rome, Italy. Benvenuti a Roma! Welcome! Time to rest or start exploring the “Eternal City.” At 5 pm, get acquainted with your Tour Director and the other families, then enjoy an Italian WELCOME PARTY & DINNER at your hotel. (D)

Day 2   Discover Rome’s History. Your Local Guide will take you on a journey through Rome’s dramatic history. Start with a trip to the smallest country in the world, Vatican City, the papal enclave inside Rome. Visit the VATICAN MUSEUMS and SISTINE CHAPEL, famous for Michelangelo’s ceiling paintings. Continue to monumental ST. PETER’S SQUARE with its 83-foot-high obelisk and visit the impressive BASILICA that covers an area of almost 4 acres. Cross the Tiber River to the imposing COLOSSEUM, which could seat 50,000 spectators. Learn about life as a gladiator and get a FAMILY PICTURE WITH A GLADIATOR (if available). The remainder of the day is at leisure for an optional excursion. (B)

Day 3   The Leaning Tower of Pisa & Montecatini. Say arrivederci to Rome and make your way to Tuscany. Stop in Pisa to take pictures of the amazing Leaning Tower, 180 feet high and no less than 12 feet out of the perpendicular. In the afternoon, time to relax by the pool and explore the Tuscan spa town of Montecatini, where your hotel is located. This evening, enjoy a special HIGHLIGHT DINNER at a local agriturismo to taste the specialties of this famous region. (B,D)

Day 4   Michelangelo’s David in Florence and a Venetian Pizza Party. This morning, explore Renaissance Florence with your Local Guide, including a visit to the ACADEMY OF FINE ARTS to see Michelangelo’s celebrated David. Admire the magnificent cathedral, Giotto’s Bell Tower, the Baptistry’s heavy bronze “Gate of Paradise,” and visit sculpture-filled SIGNORIA SQUARE. Later, drive across the Apennine Hills to magical Venice, and enter the city in style by PRIVATE BOAT. This evening, an included PIZZA PARTY will top off your day. (B,D)

Day 5   Create a Carnival Mask & Discover Venice. Walk through the narrow streets to an original Venetian workshop and enjoy the unique experience of decorating your own VENETIAN CARNIVAL MASK. When your mask is finished, use the included vaporetto ticket to return to the hotel or to find a cozy trattoria for lunch. In the afternoon, meet your Local Guide and visit ST. MARK’S SQUARE, DOGES’ PALACE and the BRIDGE OF SIGHS. Try an optional dinner on Burano Island this evening. (B)

Day 6   Journey to Stresa on Lake Maggiore. Travel to the heart of the Italian Lake District, the beautiful resort town of Stresa on Lake Maggiore. Afternoon at leisure to explore, relax at the hotel pool, or join an optional excursion to the baroque palace and peacock gardens of enchanting Isola Bella. (B,D)

Day 7   Cogwheel Mountain Train to Zermatt, Switzerland. Drive over the impressive Simplon Pass to the Swiss canton of Valais. In the village of Täsch, board the COGWHEEL MOUNTAIN TRAIN to climb the last few miles up to Zermatt. Time to explore the car-free mountain town on your own or join an optional excursion to famous Gornergrat mountain at 10,269 feet above sea level. In the late afternoon, continue on to your Lake Geneva area hotel. (B,D)

Day 8   TGV Train to Paris, France. Notre Dame Cathedral & Top of the Eiffel Tower. Drive to Lausanne, where you board the high-speed TGV TRAIN (first-class) to the “City of Light.” Upon arrival, meet your Local Guide and explore the city where Remy, from the movie Ratatouille, discovered French cuisine. Admire some of the most famous sights: the Opéra, Arc de Triomphe, Champs-Elysées, and visit NOTRE DAME CATHEDRAL, the setting for Hugo’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Also ride the elevators to the TOP OF THE EIFFEL TOWER and, later, try one of France’s specialties—a freshly made CREPE. (B)

Day 9   Explore Paris. All day at leisure for exploration on your own. An optional excursion is available to further immerse your family in Parisian history and culture. This evening, enjoy a French SEND-OFF CELEBRATION DINNER at a local restaurant to celebrate the success of your European vacation. (B,D)

Day 10   Ride the Eurostar to London, England. Board the high-speed EUROSTAR TRAIN to London, arriving in the afternoon. Tonight, maybe a theater performance at London’s West End? (B)

Day 11   See Big Ben & Ride the London Eye. Sightseeing with a Local Guide on a traditional London double-decker bus includes all the famous landmarks: the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben beside the River Thames, Westminster Abbey, Whitehall’s mounted horseguards and the Prime Minister’s Downing Street, Piccadilly Circus, and Buckingham Palace. A special highlight is a “flight” on the LONDON EYE, the world’s tallest observation wheel with stunning views of the city. (B)

Day 12   London. Your vacation ends with breakfast this morning. (B)

Meals:  Full buffet breakfast (B); 6 three-course dinners (D), including a Welcome Party & Dinner in Rome, a pizza-party dinner in Venice, and a Send-Off Celebration Dinner in Paris

Hotel Information:  ROME Starhotels Michelangelo (SF), TUSCANY Settentrionale Esplanade (F) at Montecatini, VENICE All’Angelo (F), LAKE MAGGIORE Grand Hotel Bristol (F) at Stresa, LAKE GENEVA Eurotel Riviera (F) at Montreux, PARIS Novotel Paris Tour Eiffel (F), LONDON Park Plaza Westminster Bridge (SF)


Terms and Conditions

Note: Flights are NOT included with the Tour and unless otherwise stated above transfers are also NOT included.

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