Journeys
South to north, one chain of trains, four cities that do not resemble each other.
This is the long first trip, for people who want to see four different Italies and not feel rushed doing it. You fly into Rome and out of Venice, so you never retrace your steps, and the route runs south to north so the trip gets calmer as it goes.
Naples is the surprise. It is loud and generous and the best-fed city on the route. We give it two nights, a day at Pompeii and a pizza that ruins you for every other one.
Day 1
Check in near the centre. At 17:00 we walk up to the Gianicolo for golden hour, then down to Trastevere for a welcome dinner.
Day 2
Early entry to the Forum, Palatine and Colosseum with our archaeologist guide. The afternoon is free.
Day 3
The Pantheon at midday, Piazza Navona and the lanes behind it, a coffee at one of the old roasters. In the evening, a free night with our list of places to eat.
Day 4
A morning high-speed train to Naples, about an hour and ten minutes. We walk the old centre and visit the Archaeological Museum, which holds many of Pompeii's finds. Dinner is pizza.
Day 5
A full day at Pompeii with a guide, travelling there on the local line, about 35 minutes. You return to Naples for a free evening.
Day 6
A high-speed train north to Florence. We walk to the Duomo and the old centre, and at dusk we go up to Piazzale Michelangelo.
Day 7
A morning at the Uffizi with a guide, then a half-day out of the city into the hills for a long lunch among cypress trees and vines.
Day 8
A morning train to Venice and a water bus down the Grand Canal to your hotel. The evening is for cicchetti in a Cannaregio bar.
Day 9
San Marco early, before the day-trippers, a visit to a working gondola yard, and a free afternoon for the islands or a long lunch. Farewell dinner together.
Day 10
A slow breakfast, then your transfer to Marco Polo airport or the station.
Your hotel in central Rome, Day 1 at 17:00
Hotel details sent on bookingWe send the hotel address, a welcome letter and the full day-by-day timings three weeks before you travel.
Open in mapsIt is the pace most first-time visitors tell us they would choose again: four cities, never more than a morning on a train, and a free afternoon in each. If you want it slower, our 7-day journey drops Naples.
Yes. Most people add a night or two in Rome. We can book it with the same hotel and the same guide.
That depends on your passport and changes. Our practical guide in the Journal lists what applies today and when we last checked it.
Journeys
from€3,150per personTwo nights in Rome, two in Florence and two in Venice, with high-speed trains, small-group guiding and plenty of unplanned afternoons.
Journeys
from€2,890per personRome's ancient centre, then south by high-speed train to Pompeii, Sorrento and the cliff-hung towns of the Amalfi Coast, with a day on the Path of the Gods.
