Life, Luxury & Leisure in Ancient Rome

B= Breakfast • L= Lunch • D= Dinner

Sunday, October 13, 2024: Fly to Rome, Italy

Monday, October 14: Arrive in Rome | Private transfer to hotel | At leisure
Upon arrival at Rome’s Fiumicino Airport (FCO) you are met for a private transfer to our hotel in Rome’s historic city center, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The balance of the day is free to relax and perhaps stroll around the neighborhood. (Recommendations for dining independently will always be provided.) Overnight at the 4-star Hotel dei Mellini for five nights.

Tuesday, October 15: Rome: Roman Forum, Palatine Hill, House of Augustus, Domus Aurea, Colosseum | Welcome dinner
Begin the day with a walk through the Roman Forum, the public center of ancient Rome where the popular assembly and senate met. Visit the Palatine Hill, centermost of the Seven Hills of Rome, standing above the Roman Forum on one side and the Circus Maximus on the other. From the time of Augustus, Rome’s first Emperor, imperial palaces were built here. Visit the House of Augustus, which reopened in 2008 after extensive restoration; its colorful wall paintings and mosaic floors are stunning. After some time at leisure for lunch we re-group to visit the Domus Aurea (“Golden House”) where, thanks to innovative multimedia and a site-specific immersive reality project, it is possible to relive the splendor of the residence built by Emperor Nero following the fire of A.D. 64. End the day at the Colosseum, Rome’s amphitheater, the largest ever built, which accommodated 50,000 spectators. Return to our hotel and gather this evening for a welcome dinner. (B,D)

Wednesday, October 16: Rome: Pantheon, Capitoline Museums, Baths of Caracalla, Circus Maximus
This morning we start with a short walk to the awe-inspiring Pantheon, built in the 2^nd century A.D. by Emperor Hadrian as a temple to all the gods. It remains the largest unreinforced concrete dome ever built and a testament to ancient Roman engineering. Continue on to the Capitoline Museums, the world’s oldest public museums, and view magnificent and iconic Classical sculptures as well as paintings by Caravaggio, Rubens, Titian, Van Dyck, and other masters. After lunch, we visit the Baths of Caracalla. Covering nearly 25 acres, the baths were the second largest in ancient Rome and had shops, libraries, gardens, and entertainment. Built by Emperor Antonius Caracalla and inaugurated in A.D. 217, the baths were used until the 6^th century. We end our day with a visit to the Circus Maximus, the first and largest chariot-racing and mass entertainment stadium in ancient Rome and the Empire. Dinner is at leisure. (B,L)

Thursday, October 17: Tivoli: Hadrian’s Villa, Villa d’Este | Rome
Enjoy a full-day excursion to Tivoli, a town hosting some of Italy’s top cultural treasures, less than one hour’s drive from Rome. Begin at the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Hadrian’s Villa (Villa Adriana), a 2^nd-century A.D. complex of buildings featuring marvelous pools, baths, fountains, gardens, theaters, and the Imperial Palace. After lunch we visit the Villa d’Este, another World Heritage Site and a Renaissance masterpiece with a breathtaking, 16^th-century Italian garden. Return to Rome for an evening at leisure. (B,L)

Friday, October 18: Vatican City: Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museums, St. Peter’s Basilica | Rome: PM at leisure
After breakfast at our hotel we drive to the Vatican and enter the ornate Raphael Rooms and Michelangelo’s masterpiece, the Sistine Chapel. We then visit highlights of the Pio-Clementino Museum, featuring Greek and Roman sculpture, and/or of the Gregorian Etruscan Museum. Next we enter the sumptuously decorated St. Peter’s Basilica, the largest church in the world, where we see Michelangelo’s wonderful Pietà and the gigantic bronze canopy by Bernini. After lunch, we return to our hotel in Rome for the balance of the day at leisure. There will be an option available (at additional cost) for those who are interested to visit the Via Appia Antica (Appian Way), the most famous and ancient of the Roman Roads, and the stunning Catacombs of San Callisto, where several early popes are buried. (B,L)

Saturday, October 19: Terracina | Sperlonga | Naples
We depart Rome this morning and drive south to Terracina, where we visit the Temple of Jupiter Anxur, with a breathtaking view of the Tyrrhenian Sea from the top of Mount Jupiter. After lunch, a short drive takes us to the cave of Emperor Tiberius in Sperlonga. Visit the local museum with magnificent sculptures recounting the deeds of Odysseus that were carved by the same sculptors who produced the statue of Laocoön and His Sons that we saw in the Vatican Museums. We continue driving south to Naples, where we check-in to our lovely seaside hotel. Enjoy dinner at a local restaurant tonight. Overnight at the 4-star Grand Hotel Saint Lucia for two nights. (B,L,D)

Sunday, October 20: Baiae | Cumae | Naples
Today we explore two archaeological sites that are off the regular tourist trail, Baiae and Cuma Archaeological Park, both of which were built on the Cumaean Peninsula in the Phlegraean Fields, an active volcanic area. Baiae, summer seat of Imperial Rome, benefitted from thermal springs for bathing establishments and was a fashionable coastal resort with many summer villas such as those of emperors Julius Caesar, Nero, and Hadrian (who died there). Enjoy a boat excursion into the submerged Bay of Baiae, which sank about 2,000 years ago due to a seismic phenomenon. From both above deck and below, through windows below sea level, we will be able to observe the remains of villas, statues, mosaics, and other submerged finds. After lunch we continue on to Cumae, which was founded by Greeks in 750 B.C. and is probably best known as the legendary home of a sibyl (a Greek prophetess) who resided in a cave and played a role in Aeneas’ journey into the underworld. Cuma Archaeological Park includes the Cave of the Sibyl as well as Temples of Apollo and Jupiter. Return to our hotel in Naples for an evening at leisure. (B,L)

Monday, October 21: Naples Archaeological Museum | Villa Poppea | Sorrento
This morning we enjoy an in-depth visit of the Naples Archaeological Museum, which houses one of the world’s finest collections of Greco-Roman artifacts, including celebrated bronze and marble statues as well as ancient paintings and important artifacts from Pompeii, Herculaneum, Cumae, and Baiae. After lunch we drive toward Sorrento, stopping along the way to visit Villa Poppea (Oplontis), an ancient seaside villa with superb wall paintings, which was probably owned by Emperor Nero. Upon arriving in Sorrento we check-in to our lovely seaside hotel and gather for dinner at the hotel’s restaurant. Overnight at the 5-star Hotel Parco dei Principi for three nights. (B,L,D)

Tuesday, October 22: Herculaneum | Pompeii | Sorrento
Today is dedicated to visiting two of the three sites included in the UNESCO World Heritage Site of “Pompeii, Herculaneum, and Torre Annunziata.” (Torre Annunziata includes Villa Poppea, which we visited yesterday; and Villa Stabiae, which we may visit tomorrow.) Spend this morning at Herculaneum, where excavations reveal the customs, habits, and art of an ancient holiday resort for wealthy Romans. Among the most important buildings are the theater, the basilica adorned with marble and paintings, the spa with gym, and the House of Argos. After lunch, we continue on to Pompeii, one the world’s most fascinating archaeological sites. In A.D. 79, the catastrophic eruption of Mount Vesuvius buried and thus preserved the ancient city under tons of ash, pumice, and lapilli. Excavations have revealed life in this prosperous ancient Roman city, and highlights of our tour may include the House of the Faun, Villa of the Mysteries, the brothel, Garden of Fugitives, and more. Return to our hotel in Sorrento for an evening at leisure. (B,L)

Wednesday, October 23: Paestum | Sorrento | Farewell dinner
Drive along the winding roads of the Tyrrhenian seacoast to the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Paestum, the most impressive Greek site in all of mainland Italy. Founded in the 7^th century B.C., Paestum has three magnificent and massive Doric Greek temples. After lunch we visit the on-site museum with artifacts and frescoes from nearby tombs such as the famous Tomb of the Diver. On our way back to Sorrento we may stop (time permitting) for a visit to the ancient seaside Villa Stabiae. The town, with its two primary Villas of Arianna and San Marco, was buried in heavy ashfall from the A.D. 79 eruption of Mount Vesuvius, but some of the town’s most striking remnants are fine mosaics and wall paintings that are comparable to those from Pompeii and Herculaneum. Gather this evening for our farewell dinner at a local restaurant. (B,L,D)

Thursday, October 24: Private transfer to Naples Airport | Fly home
You are met at the hotel for a private transfer to Naples International Airport (NAP) in time for flights homeward. (B)