Florence & Venice: Where Power & Beauty Reign



Freya’s Florence has worked in collaboration with Ciao Darcy for the creation of this wonderful week-long tour. Freya from Freya’s Florence has planned the tour itinerary in both cities to maximise your artistic and historical understanding of both incredible republics & will accompany your group for the duration of the tour. Darcy from Ciao Darcy has worked out all the logistics of the itinerary to make it smooth sailing in every aspect & will accompany your group to oversee all details throughout the week.

We offer this tour as a private tour & so the dates can be planned around what works best for you! If you are traveling in a large family group or maybe a group of friends and wish to visit both these magnificent cities well, then this itinerary is the perfect option for you. We take care of all bookings and logistics in terms of transport between the cities (high speed trains & transfers) , the booking of hotel accommodation , the tours in both cities (led by Freya Middleton) & a countryside day to experience the Tuscan landscape. We help you organise your free time to maximise sightseeing when wandering the streets and alleys of the two places.

In both Florence & Venice we visit museums and have walking tours of their historical centres to understand their incredible history and understand the world renowned artistic tradition. One day when staying in Florence will be spent heading out in the countryside for a lovely day-trip with a private driver and in Venice we will not only walk the alleys but experience the city from the true Venetian way, on the water in a gondola.

We organise all the ticket reservations in the busy major museums so as to not wait in the long unreserved public lines and organise  individual headsets to hear the guide better in the busy, bustling cities.

All aspects have been carefully thought through to offer a week where you relax, enjoy, learn and absorb the endless and varied delights that both Florence & Venice offer.

The expert guiding in Florence & Venice by Freya and the seamless organisation offered by Darcy, ensure a memorable and once-in-a-lifetime experience.

 

ITINERARY 

TOUR DATES:  TBC

Day 1 

Arrive this afternoon at the hotel and settle in. We start off our week with a peek into the city, we learn all about the wealthy merchant families and how they lived during the 1300’s and 1400’s. We’ll visit Palazzo Davanzati, the most perfectly preserved merchant home in Italy and visit the Medici-Riccardi Palace, home of Lorenzo the Magnificent, then it’s off to discover Tuscan food and wine with a fabulous dinner at a local family run restaurant.

Dinner included

Day 2 

Our morning is dedicated to the famous Florentine sculptor, Michelangelo. We get to see his amazing work such as the David, as well as some of his unfinished sculptures, then onto Piazza Signoria and the Palazzo Vecchio, as well as other medieval and renaissance streets and a few local artisans who perfectly embody the Italian essence of creativity and style.

Breakfast and Dinner included

Day 3 

Today we travel into the countryside of Tuscany. We visit a wonderful hill town and have a wine tasting, cellar tour and lunch at a local family-run organic winery. You have the evening free to discover more of Florence’s wonderful restaurants!

Breakfast, Wine Tasting & Lunch

Day 4 

Your morning is free to relax, perhaps visit the mercato centrale to watch the locals do their shopping or take a morning stroll through one of the lovely gardens nearby. We meet mid-day for lunch then visit the beautiful Santa Croce church, where you can find the tombs of some famous Florentines. We then make our way up to the 1000-year old monastery, San Miniato al Monte, which has been described as one of the finest Romanesque structures in Tuscany and one of the most scenic churches in Italy. You will also find one of the best views of the city from here. As we stroll back down to Florence, exploring the wonderful little streets, we visit a fabulous jewelery maker like no other!

Breakfast and Lunch

Day 5 

This morning we travel by train to Venice. Once settled into our new home and after lunch together, we start our exploration of this city with a visit to the center of Venice and the most important church, St. Mark’s Basilica. The church, with its gold floor mosaics and opulent interior, was the chapel of the Doges for most of its history but in 1807 it became the cathedral of Venice. After our visit to the church, we have a relaxing gondola ride before arriving to the Peggy Guggenheim Collection. The gallery was once her home and is located along the Grand Canal. The view from here is spectacular! Then of course its time for a Spritz!

Breakfast and Lunch

Day 6 

This morning we visit a fabulous bead making artisan jeweller for a demonstration on how she makes her beautiful jeweley then onto the Scuola Grande di San Rocco, with its lavish meeting hall and beautiful paintings.  We will also explore the Rialto fish markets and then you have the rest of the day to relax or do some serious shopping!

Breakfast

Day 7 

Today brings us to two amazing and very different islands in the lagoon. We visit both Murano (glass factories) and Burano (originally known for its lace making but now more noted for its very colorful homes). We meet this evening for our farewell dinner together.

Breakfast and Dinner

Day 8

Our fabulous week long tour concludes today after breakfast.

Breakfast

Cost:

TBC

Tour Includes:

  • 7 nights double occupancy lodging
  • All breakfasts
  • 3 lunches (food and local wine)
  • 3 dinners (food and local wine)
  • All entries to museums
  • All city tours
  • Wine tasting in Tuscany
  • Gondola ride in Venice
  • All ground transportation

Tour does not include:

  • Air transportation
  • Transfers to and from your hotels at the beginning and ending of the tour.
  • Hotel tourist tax – this local tax must be paid on site to the hotel – the rate is usually 1 euro per hotel star per person per night, so a four star hotel will usually be 4 euro per person per night.

MORE INFORMATION

The Venice & Florence trip is conducted by Freya Middleton & Darcy Hemstreet. All tours are conducted by Freya. Darcy and Freya will be present for all tours, activities and meals.

 

TOUR DATES 

  • Saturday 9th May – Saturday 16th 2020  – Spring time!
  • Thursday 3rd December – Thursday 10th December 2020 – Winter with lights!

(maximum group size 10 persons)

 

TOUR DETAILS

Tour begins: In the afternoon on Day 1 at 4:00pm in our hotel in Florence

Tour concludes: After breakfast on Day 8 at our hotel in Venice

 

HOW TO BOOK

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