Luxury Italian Holiday: Venice, Tuscany, Rome and Amalfi

Your Italian journey begins in Venice, a floating jewel of piazzas and palazzos boasting some of the most iconic architecture in Italy. You’ll make the most of Venice’s stunning location with a half-day cruise on the Venetian Lagoon on board the Eolo: an historic bragozzo (wooden sailing boat) which has been updated to modern standards of luxury. Your hotel is the regal Gritti Palace, a marble-hewn former Doge’s palace which has played host to the great and the good throughout its long and distinguished history. A great way to get to know the real Venice is an off-the-beaten track tour with a local expert, who will take you to some of the lesser-visited squares and churches via minor canals, rarely visited by tourists, where the day-to-day life of this extraordinary city plays out.

Departing Venice, you’ll travel in style on the cherry red Ferrari train to Florence. The cradle of the Renaissance and one-time home to Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo, the Tuscan capital is a treasure trove of artistic and architectural masterpieces, from the Titians and Raphaels on display in the Uffizi Gallery to the picturesque Duomo and Ponte Vecchio. Your itinerary includes an extended and immersive guided tour of the Uffizi, followed by a guided walk along the outside of the famous Vasari Corridor across the Ponte Vecchio to the Piazza Pitti, the palatial former seat of the influential Medici family. An in-depth tour of the lavish residences and art galleries of the Palazzo Pitti itself is also available. Your home for two nights in Florence is the stylish JK Place, which combines Florentine classicism with contemporary elegance in a central location in the Piazza Santa Maria Novella.

After two nights in Florence you’ll be transferred to remote village of Palazzetto in the Tuscan countryside, where you’ll spend two nights at the Borgo Santo Pietro. An historic 13^th century villa surrounded by private gardens, this is the perfect place to experience a slice of traditional Tuscan life, from bespoke local wine tasting with the hotel’s award-winning sommelier to truffle hunting and private cooking lessons with the restaurant’s chefs. Nearby attractions include the medieval hill town of San Gimignano, the walled village of Monteriggioni, which is described in Dante’s Inferno, and the vineyards of Montalcino.

A transfer back to Florence will see you board the Ferrari train once again for your onward journey to Rome, Italy’s iconic capital. Your home for two nights is the beautiful Portrait Roma, a contemporary boutique hotel housed in a former palazzo. Your time in Rome includes a time-travelling visit to the nearby town of Tivoli, the traditional summer retreat of Roman elites. A personal guide will take you around Hadrian’s Villa, for a time the seat of the entire Roman Empire, where today the fascinating ruins of a theatre, temples and state rooms can be seen. A passeggiatta, or traditional leisurely Italian stroll, will see you learn more about the history of Tivoli before a long lunch, after which your tour continues at the Villa d’Este. This 16^th century villa is the former home of the Cardinal d’Este and is beautifully preserved, particularly famous for its ornate fountains. One of these powers an astonishing hydraulic organ, which has been painstakingly restored and today once again plays Renaissance music for visitors every day. The rest of your time in the Eternal City is at your leisure, with no shortage of incredible sights from the Coliseum and Forum to the Catacombs and the Appian Way. Guided tours of all these can be arranged, as can exclusive experiences such as gelato making and vintage Vespa tours.

Travelling by train to Naples, you’ll then be transferred to the stunning Amalfi Coast and the town of Ravello, the final stop on your Italian adventure. You’ll spend three nights at the grand Belmond Hotel Caruso, where frescoed bedrooms and terraced gardens provide an impossibly elegant base from which to explore the Amafli Coast. You’ll do just that in style with a private boat excursion on board the hotel’s very own traditional wooden vessel, the Ercole, with the option of a morning sightseeing coast tour or an atmospheric sunset cruise. For the ultimate stylish Amalfi Coast experience, follow in the footsteps of Jackie Kennedy with a guided vintage car tour, taking in traditional fishing villages and Ravello’s Piazza Duomo. The famous ruins of Pompeii and Herculaneum, not far north of Ravello, are well worth a visit while you’re here. After three nights in Ravello, your Signature Italy journey is over, and you’ll be transferred to Naples for your flight home.