Roman Spring of Tennessee Williams Italy

Arrival Rome from your overnight flight; be met at FCO Rome Airport and be transferred to your Rome hotel.

This afternoon, approximately 4pm, meet your guide in the lobby of your hotel for a short orientation walking tour of the city followed by welcome drinks in one of Tennesse Williams' favorite places, our hotel! (subject to availability)

ON: Marriott Grand Flora (subject to availability)

Full guided day around Rome, our day will focus on the ancient attractions, haunts of Mr Williams and those of his literary contemporaries. Places to include: Forum, Coliseum, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Villa Borghese gardens, Via Veneto and more.

The Colosseum of Rome is without doubt the most renowned symbol of Rome all over the world. For the enjoyment of the inhabitants of Rome, it hosted fights between gladiators or against wild animals and fabulous spectacles as „naumachie”, real naval combat in the arena filled with water, were organized. Under the arena of the Colosseum were numerous corridors and rooms used for housing the gladiators and the ferocious beasts that could be brought to the center of the arena thanks to a series of elevators and ramps. The Roman Forum was in ancient times a marsh. From the end of the seventh century B.C., after the drainage of the marshes, the Forum was constructed and this served as the center of the public life in Rome for over a millennium.

Stroll along Via del Corso, that connect Piazza Venezia to Piazza del Popolo, where you will find a lot of shops and café, and also the directions to reach the Trevi fountain Spanish Steps on a side, and the Pantheon and Navona square on the other side.

Optional group dinner included or have the evening at leisure

ON: Marriott Grand Flora (subject to availability)

Free day to explore Rome as individuals choose. Your guide is on hand for assistance and advice but how you spend your day is up to you!

ON: Marriott Grand Flora (subject to availability)

This morning, visit around Vatican City. The Vatican Museums boasts one of the most impressive art collections in the world. Some of the most famous works of art on display here include the wall and ceiling paintings of the Sistine Chapel, the Stanze of Raphael, the Laocoön statue and the Apollo del Belvedere. The St. Peter’s Basilica is the most important church in the world, with its magnificent altars and monuments inside, amongst all the works by sculptor/architect Gian Lorenzo Bernini and also Michelangelo’s Pietà.

This afternoon, a featured chat on the Roman Life of Tennesee Williams and your choice of special activity, either a cooking class or a cocktail making session.

ON: Marriott Grand Flora (subject to availability)

Day trip to Herculaneum and Pompeii

Today a day trip south to two spectacular ancient cities, preserved by volcanic ash. The ruined Roman city of Herculaneum was destroyed by an eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in AD 79, the same eruption that destroyed neighboring Pompeii. Both a UNESCO World Heritage Sites. See a wealth of archaeological finds, homes of ancient Romans, tradesmen and military, full of a variety of daily life articfacts, ancient advertisements, several stylish and well preserved mosaics as well as carbonised furniture and the horror captured in 'terror-struck' skeletons.

ON: Marriott Grand Flora (subject to availability)

Departing Rome, explore the hilltop villages of Umbria, including St Francis’ Assisi into Tuscany.

Tonight we stay in Greve in Chianti (subject to availability.) This attractive village is at the very centre of this famed wine and olive producing area. At night, the village centre is left to residents and you'll love the atmosphere, sitting at a table at one of the small café bars overlooking the piazza, with a glass of local wine in hand. Bello!

Dinner included at the hotel tonight.

ON: Greve in Chianti, Tuscany; Villa Le Barone or similar (subject to availability)

Full day in Florence.

Making our way to the artist haven of Florence, we park up and spend much of our day on foot around this charming city. The day will include a visit to the Accademia, home of Michelangelo’s David and the Palazzo Vecchio, the town hall of the city. It overlooks the Piazza della Signoria with its copy of Michelangelo’s David statue as well as the gallery of statues in the adjacent Loggia dei Lanzi. Originally called the Palazzo della Signoria, after the Signoria of Florence, the ruling body of the Republic of Florence, it was also given several other names: Palazzo del Popolo, Palazzo dei Priori, and Palazzo Ducale, according to the varying use of the palace during its long history. The building acquired its current name when the Medici duke’s residence was moved across the Arno to the Palazzo Pitti. Enjoy a typical lunch at a local restaurant, then meet again your guide to continue the tour visiting the New Opera del Duomo museum, that reopened at the end of October, 2015 after a long period of renovation. The ticket allow you to visit also the Giotto’s Bell Tower, Brunelleschi’s dome, the Baptistery and the crypt inside the Cathedral.

ON: Greve in Chianti, Tuscany; Villa Le Barone or similar (subject to availability)

Day around Tuscan town of Lucca, Pisa and Pistoia.

Once arrived in Lucca, take your rental bikes for a morning guided tour of the city. Famous all over the world for its perfectly preserved medieval walls, Lucca is a city rich in history and culture. Traces of Roman origins are still visible today, such as the Piazza del Anfiteatro Romano, where building construction in the Middle Ages closely followed the oval shape of the former Roman Ampitheater.Free time for lunch on your own then board on your private car to come back to Florence, with a stop to the town of Pistoia. Although it is not yet as visited as other towns in Tuscany, Pistoia presents a well-preserved and charming medieval city inside the old walls. The large Piazza del Duomo is lined with attractive original buildings, and is the setting (in July) of the Bear Joust (Giostra dell’Orso), when the best horsemen of the districts of the town tilt with lances at a target held up by a dummy shaped like a bear. During the day, enjoy a photo stop in the home of the 'leaning tower' in Pisa.

Today or tomorrow, possibly another themed Tennessee Williams chat if the group is so inclined.

ON: Greve in Chianti, Tuscany; Villa Le Barone or similar (subject to availability)

Siena and Tuscan wine and cheese

Siena’s heart is its central piazza known as Il Campo, known worldwide for the famous Palio run here, a horse race run around the piazza two times every summer. The Campo is dominated by the Palazzo Pubblico and its tower, Torre del Mangia, and few steps away you will find the Cathedral, a great Gothic building filled with treasures by Pisano, Donatello and Michelangelo as well as frescoes by Pinturicchio.

Montalcino is one of the loveliest little wine villages in Italy. Home to the famed Brunello di Montalcino, where you can enjoy a visit to a farm wine cellar, following wine tasting and local products. Before heading to Montepulciano, make a stop to Pienza, a tiny Tuscan town with outsized Renaissance architecture and the best pecorino cheese in Italy.

This afternoon return to Rome OR base tonight along the coast for an easy journey to the airport

Farewell dinner together tonight.

ON: Rome OR Fregenae

Tomorrow is an optional airport transfer or continue your stay in Rome independently.

Please note: All attraction opening times are correct at time of printing this website. While we will do our utmost to include all of the properties mentioned as central visits, we reserve the right to change an attraction should it become impossible to deliver a planned visit due to changes in opening days or times beyond our control.

Please note that your final day to day itinerary may fluctuate to accommodate variable opening times/days for listed attractions, special events and places of interest. Please discuss your needs with us for an individual itinerary with rate quote.

Oft imitated, never duplicated! This is an original SGT itinerary, property of Special Group Tours and to be used only with express permission/in conjunction with SGT.