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Rome is a city of unique character and charm, and well worth an extended visit. Historic sites, stretching from Etruscan pre-history to the 21st century, are set among the ageless laneways and piazze of the old city. Our two-week tour begins with ancient Rome, source of the city’s pride and traditions. We then explore the pivotal medieval, Renaissance and baroque periods, brimming with fine art and architecture by masters such as Raphael, Michelangelo and Caravaggio, before turning our attention to impressive 20th and 21st-century sites. Accommodation is in the perfectly located four-star Hotel Ponte Sisto.
Discover
2,500 years of Western civilisation, a ‘living museum’ on display in the streets, piazze and palazzi of Rome
The complex legacy of ancient Rome in history and culture, especially from the Renaissance to the 20th century
Little-visited but wonderful sites tucked away in the heart of the city
La dolce vita: fine dining, excellent local trattorie, a symphony concert or opera
The masters of the Eternal City, from emperors and popes to Caravaggio and Bernini
HIGHLIGHTS
Private evening visit to the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel
Walking tours and gallery visits, exploring Rome from its earliest days to the 21st century
A full day surveying the remarkable art of Caravaggio
Visits to difficult to access sites, such as the home and studio of 20th-century artist Giorgio de Chirico and the Domus Aurea
Discovering Rome’s distinctive neighbourhoods, including Trastevere, the Spanish steps and the Ghetto
A day trip to Tivoli, visiting the splendid gardens of the Villa d’Este and Hadrian’s Villa
Airport Transfers
Tours begin either at the arrival airport or the first hotel, depending on the itinerary. If you have booked your international flights with Academy Travel and arrive before the tour commences, we will provide airport to hotel transfers to the closest main city on your arrival, and to the closest airport at the end of the tour. These may be either individual or group transfers.Return international/domestic air travel unless those flights take place during the tour
Special taxes and airport levies that can only be paid in cash at the destination. We will advise you of these charges (if any) before you depart
Costs involved in obtaining visas for countries visited, where required
Travel insurance. We require all participants to have comprehensive travel insurance. A typical policy for one of our tours will cost from $160 upwards, depending on your age, pre-existing medical conditions, the countries you are visiting and the overall length of your trip
Lunches and dinners not specifically mentioned as included in the itinerary
Personal expenses such as laundry and phone calls
Costs associated with any activity mentioned as “optional” in the itinerary, or any suggested free time activity
Day 1 : Arrive
The tour begins this afternoon when we meet in the Hotel Ponte Sisto. Please consult your individual travel documents for arrival at the hotel. After meeting Robert Veel, we undertake a walking tour of the neighbourhood surrounding the hotel. Tonight there is dinner in a friendly local restaurant near our hotel.
Day 2 : From Etruscans to Metropolis
Rome’s early history is a fascinating combination of myth, legend and history. This morning, after a talk in the hotel, we visit the National Etruscan Museum. The collection is housed in a Renaissance villa built by Pope Julius III and contains some of the most significant discoveries of Etruscan art, including the life size Apollo of Veii, the Sarcophagus of the Spouses and one of the earliest inscriptions in Latin. After a break for lunch in Monti – a thriving neighbourhood of boutiques and small restaurants in the historic Suburra district – we continue exploring Rome’s deep past at Palazzo Valentini. Beneath this baroque palace are the well-preserved remains of a Roman house, dating from the 1st century, which were discovered when the area was being rejuvenated in the early 20th century. After our visit, we continue our exploration of the layers of the ancient city with a walking tour of the Ghetto and Capitoline, which takes us from the legendary location where Romulus and Remus met the she-wolf to the great building projects of the Republic and early Empire.
Day 3 : The Arrival of Christianity
The transformation of Rome in the Middle Ages is most clearly felt in the changes to its art and architecture. While the spread of Christianity did bring new ideas to art and architecture it was, however, also a source for preservation and continuity. Today, after a talk in the hotel, we visit Sant’ Agnese fuori le mura, a complex comprising the ruins of a gigantic basilica from the period of Constantine, Christian catacombs from the 2nd-5th centuries, a 9th-century church with beautiful Byzantine-inspired mosaics, and Santa Costanza, a fourth-century mausoleum-church for one of Constantine’s daughters, with fine 4th-century mosaics. Returning to the city centre, we break for lunch, and then visit San Clemente, an 11th-century church, beneath which is a 5th-century church, a Roman house and a mithraeum, a place of worship for the arcane eastern cult of Mithras in Roman times. We conclude our exploration of medieval Rome at Santi Quattro Coronati. This little-visited church was originally a fortified abbey on the edge of the Caelian hill, and contains Carolingian-inspired architecture, 12th-century frescoes, and Rome’s oldest cloister. In the evening, we enjoy an Easter musical performance at the church of St Paul within the Walls.
Day 4 : Renaissance Walking Tour
The Renaissance came to Rome on the back of artists and architects from around Italy seeking glory through the restoration of Europe’s most famous city. We begin our day on the Janiculum Hill, visiting Bramante’s delightful ‘Tempietto’ of 1502, which marks the place where, according to legend, St Peter was martyred. The tempietto was sponsored by Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain. Nearby is the vast ‘fontanone’ of Paul V, flowing with water from a restored Roman aqueduct. We visit the Villa Farnesina, the magnificent riverside villa of Renaissance banker Agostino Chigi, where Raphael, Pope Leo X and other notables enjoyed life out of public view. Crossing the Tiber we visit Campo dei Fiori and view the fine Renaissance edifices of the Palazzo Spada, the Palazzo Farnese and the Cancelleria. The afternoon is at leisure, and you may wish to take in one of the excellent temporary exhibitions on display in the city.
Day 5 : Baroque Masterpieces & the Domus Aurea
More than any other period, the baroque architecture of the 17th century left its mark on the city of Rome. After a talk in the hotel, we explore a range of sites this morning, from Bernini’s St Terese of Avila, to the highly innovative churches on the Quirinal Hill built by Bernini and his rival Borromini, and the Trevi Fountain. After a break for lunch, we visit the Galleria Doria-Pamphilj, where one of Italy’s great families display their art collection ― with works by Titian, Caravaggio, Bernini, Velazquez and Raphael ― as it would have been seen in the 17th century. In the later afternoon, we turn to one of the great sources of inspiration for High Renaissance and Baroque artists: the Domus Aurea. Since its discovery in the late 15th century, the underground remains of Nero’s palace have been a pilgrimage for artists, looking to understand the style of the Roman emperors for their own works on the walls of the nobility. Return to the hotel; evening at leisure.
Day 6 : The Capitoline Museums
This morning we walk to the Capitoline Museums, located on the hill of the same name. This was the world’s first public museum, designed to show off the Pope’s celebrated collection of ancient Roman art and history. Housed in fine renaissance buildings, these museums contain some of the most famous pieces of Roman sculpture, such as the Capitoline Wolf, the equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius and the Capitoline Venus. The museum is located above the site of the ancient temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus which sat above the forum, and recent renovations have made the foundations of the temple visible. This afternoon has been set aside to visit an exhibition at one of Rome’s leading galleries, such as the Quirinale Stables, the Victor Emmanuel Monument or Bramante’s Cloister. If you would prefer to attend an Easter mass today or tomorrow, your tour leader will be happy to help with your arrangements.
Day 7 : Pasquetta at Tivoli
Easter Monday ― Pasquetta in Italian – is one of the country’s most important public holidays and is usually celebrated by feasting, strolling and enjoying the country life. Today we make our way to Tivoli to visit the 16th-century gardens of the Villa D’Este. Thwarted papal candidate Ippolito D’Este retired in style, commissioning Rome’s greatest antiquarian to create a pagan fantasy world of grottoes, fountains and gardens. For centuries these were the most famous gardens in Europe and they influenced rulers from Paris to St Petersburg. We then stop for lunch at Ristorante Sibilla, overlooking a famous ancient sanctuary and temple of the Tibertine Sybil. After lunch, we visit Hadrian’s Villa, created in the 2nd century CE. The villa reflects the emperor’s love of luxury, his extensive travel and his refined taste, and today its ruins are among the most romantic, set among olive groves with views across the valley. Return to Rome in the late afternoon; evening at leisure
Day 8 : Caravaggio & Villa Borghese
Caravaggio is perhaps the best loved of Roman painters, combining Renaissance ideals with a closely observed humanity, realised with a superb technique and a radical, theatrical style. This morning we first visit key Caravaggio paintings in the churches of San Luigi Dei Francesi and Santa Maria del Popolo. We then head to the Galleria Borghese, containing another five works by the master. The Galleria Borghese is set in the Villa Borghese Gardens, today Rome’s principal public park. Here Cardinal Scipione Borghese and later generations of his family amassed a fine collection of ancient sculpture, which sits side by side with some of Bernini’s earliest sculptural masterpieces, such as his Apollo and Daphne. Return to the hotel, evening at leisure.
Day 9 : Romantic to Modern
By the 18th century, Rome had become a major destination for the artists and writers of northern Europe, who sought firsthand knowledge of the ancient world and the relaxed Mediterranean lifestyle that came with it. Today we explore the centre of Rome’s literary and artistic culture at the Spanish Steps. Our tour includes visits to the house museums of Goethe, Keats and Shelley, and Giorgio de Chirico, each of whose works helped shape how we understand the city today. In the afternoon, we visit the Galleria Nazionale di Arte Moderna. Little visited by tourists, this excellent museum contains masterpieces of 19th and 20th-century Italian and European art. Return to the hotel; evening at leisure.
Day 10 : From the Palatine to the Papal Apartments
“Go thou to Rome, — at once the Paradise
The grave, the city, and the wilderness”.
― Percy Bysshe Shelley, Adonais, 49.
Few places live up to the writings of romantic poets as Rome does, with the beauty of its ruined past and the greatness of its seemingly never-ending reinventions. This morning we visit the Palatine Hill to wander among the ruins of the imperial palace, and the history of settlement that extends back to the legendary foundations of the Eternal City, and for a guided stroll through the Roman Forum. The afternoon is free to relax, shop or individual sightseeing. In the early evening we have a private visit to the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel, so that we can fully appreciate the glory of Renaissance Rome in the masterpieces of Raphael and Michelangelo without the perennial crowds. After our visit, we enjoy a farewell dinner at Antica Pesa, a fine historic restaurant in Trastevere.
Day 11 : Departure
The tour ends this morning after breakfast in the hotel. Transfers to Rome’s airports and railway stations are available for those who have booked their international flights with Academy Travel. Please consult your individual travel documents for details of your continued journey.
Payment Terms & Methods :
* Some Advance Percentage of total booking amount
* Airfare/Transport fare to be paid full at one time in advance.
Cancellation & Refund Policy :
* Upon cancellation, refund will be made after deducting the Retention Amount.
* Retention Amount varies as per the number of days left before your package start date.
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