VACATION UNDER THE ITALIAN SUN

June 5-19, 2026 

Day 1. June 5. Fri. Fly to Italy

At 21:10 p.m. leave from Philadelphia with American Airlines and go to Rome, Italy. Dinner is served aboard. 

Day 2. June 6. Sat.  Land in Rome, connect for Palermo

At 11:20 a.m. land in Rome. First impression: Italian is spoken here!  While waiting for your connecting flight to Palermo, have a “cornetto” (croissant) and an espresso coffee or just begin to enjoy the delicious Italian food with a full meal (it is lunch time). Then go to the Gate for Palermo and, after one hour flight over the Tyrrhenian Sea, you land in Sicily, the magic land of legends! A private Bus will take you to your hotel. You are very tired, so relax in your room, but make sure you wake up on time for your first exquisite Sicilian dinner. Buona Notte! (Good Night!)   

Day 3. June 7. Sun. Visit Palermo

Palermo is a city of about a million people and the capital of Sicily. It is rich in history and culture. During the past 3000 years many nations conquered and ruled it: the Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Normans, Germans, Spaniards, and French. Their cultural influence is still evident in the highlights of the city. A local guide you will take you to see most of them. Then you will have plenty of free time downtown for lunch and to for some shopping. Same hotel

Day 4. June 8. Mon. Agrigento/ Campobello di Licata

Did man reach civilization only in our times? A journey to Sicily proves that he reached it more than 2000 years ago. In fact everywhere in Sicily one can find remains of the great Greek Civilization. Why Greek? Because the Greeks conquered and owned Sicily for many centuries; they built monumental temples and public buildings that are still standing. In Agrigento (old Akragas) you will see a profusion of that civilization. The so called “Valley of Temples” (the heart of old Akragas) still reveals what a beautiful and prosperous city it was. Alas, time, wars, earthquakes, fires and Akragas came to an end. Today farmers grow wheat, olive and almond trees where that city was. However, the temples, ruins and burial sites are still there and attract a large number of visitors. You will see and touch those ruins. A local guide will walk you through them and explain everything. Next, a country restaurant is waiting for you: you will eat antipasto, three kinds of Sicilian pizza and plenty of wine! Then you drive through central Sicily and arrive to your next hotel by Taormina.  

Today a few people, instead of visiting those temples, will go to the town of Campobello di Licata for their sentimental journey. Visiting the town of their family roots and meeting relatives will be a thrilling experience! 

Day 5. June 9. Tue. Taormina
Today you fill your mind and soul with the splendor of God’s creation. Located above the Ionian Sea with the smoking Mt. Etna on the back ground, Taormina is the most visited place in Sicily and one of the most breathtaking places of in Italy. The 3000 year old Greek Theater is still there and you must see it. After a short orientation tour, you will have the rest of the day free to stroll, eat and go on a shopping spree. Ladies, Yes, Taormina is a shopping paradise!  Same Hotel.

Day 6. June 10. Wed. Calabria

Arrivederci, Sicilia Bella! Leave Sicily, cross the Strait of Messina on a huge ferry boat and land in the Italian mainland, the Calabria Region. After traveling through mountains, high bridges and quaint villages on hilltops, you take a break for lunch near Cosenza. Then continue north through more of Calabrian scenic landscape and arrive to a very nice hotel in Paestum. It is a long day on the road, but smile: tomorrow will be a day of complete relaxation in Amalfi!

Day 7. June 11. Thu.  Amalfi

After a short drive to Salerno, you take a large boat going along the Amalfi Coast and to the city of Amalfi. What is so special with Amalfi? They say that when people of Amalfi die and go to Heaven, they look around and say: “Well, nothing new; it looks just like home!” Today, while on the boat and then in the city of Amalfi, you will see that those people are right. Breathtaking blue sea and sky, beaches, picturesque towns, good food, limoncello drinks, a super artistic cathedral and the tomb of the Apostle St. Andrew: what a fantastic place to visit! Oh, Yes, Ladies, this is another famous place where you can do a lot of shopping.  You will have the entire day free to enjoy that piece of heaven and to sing: “O Sole Mio…..!”  

While most people today will be in “heaven” in Amalfi, a few others will be in another kind of heaven: they will spend the day in the picturesque, remote mountain town of Campora, where they will walk on the footsteps of their ancestors!

Day 8. June 12. Fri.  Sorrento

Sitting high atop cliffs, Sorrento is a charming coastal town overlooking the Bay of Naples. A winding and narrow road makes it hard to get there; but then the place steals your heart once you arrive. It is a very popular tourist destination, with picturesque piazzas, shopping streets and breathtaking sea views. As you wander through the streets you smell the fresh citrus of the nearby lemon and olive trees. The famous “limoncello” drink is produces there. San Cesareo Street is a lovely and bustling place filled with wine bars, restaurants, souvenir shops, artisan shops, limoncello makers, leather crafts, ceramics, vegetable stands, musical box shops, and people everywhere.  It is a slice of Sorrento’s life you must not miss. And no, you will not miss it, because you will spend most of the day free in that enchanted town. Late afternoon drive to the next hotel by Rome.

If today a few people, instead of Sorrento, prefer to go to Pompeii, that will be possible. But there is no way to go to both Sorrento and Pompeii.


Day 9.  June  13. Sat.  Rome

As far you have enjoyed relaxing in places away from crowds, but these next two days you have to compete for space with people from all over the world coming to Rome, the Capital of the World, the Center of Christianity, the land of the Roman Caesars, and the Cradle of Western Civilization.
Tourist busses are not allowed downtown Rome, thus the only way to discover it is to do like Romans do: walk. Yes, you will go on a slow walking tour of downtown the Eternal City of Rome. We begin by visiting the famous “Spanish Steps” and “Via Condotti”, where the rich and famous people go shopping. Next, you see the celebrated “Trevi Fountain” where you toss your “three coins in a fountain…” The 2000 year old “Pantheon” is a breathtaking wonder of the glory that Rome was. “Navona Square” is the most beautiful and most romantic square in the city. You will see also Piazza Venezia with the huge monument to King Victor Emmanuel who united Italy in 1870. The Americans call it “Wedding Cake”. There is also Palazzo Venezia, which was the Headquarters for Fascists. Next, going towards the Coliseum, you will walk through the Roman Ruins: 2000 years ago that was the heart of Rome. Then, right in front of you stands the majestic “Coliseum”. People remain speechless in seeing it! It could sit 80,000 spectators. Just think of thousands of gladiators and Christians who died there for the enjoyment of the Romans! Next to the Coliseum stands the well preserved Arch of Constantine, the emperor who in the year 312 granted freedom of religion. Yes, this will be the hardest day on your feet, but what an educational experience you will have gained! Rome was not founded in a day, but you will have to discover it in one day! Same Hotel. 


Day 10.   June 14.  Sun.  Vatican City

This morning you go “abroad” to Vatican City, the smallest country in the world. Let’s begin by walking into St. Peter’s Square: what an impressive place! It is today Sunday, therefore, at noon from his window the Pope greets the huge crowd of people and gives them the Apostolic Blessing. Then you may follow your group and go inside St. Peter’s Basilica. It is the largest and most famous of all the Christian churches. There you will see the famous “Pieta’’ of Michelangelo, the tomb of St. Peter and the tomb of many popes, including that of the Polish Pope John-Paul. There is so much to see in that Basilica that one should spend an entire day there, admiring its breathtaking pieces of art and learning about the history of the Christian church. You will also visit the Catacombs (the Church’s basement) where you can see the tomb of many other popes.
As you come out of the Basilica you will see two “Swiss Guards” by one of the Vatican’s main entrance gates; every hour on the hour there will be a “Change of Guard”. Then, you will have time for lunch in one of those numerous restaurants on Borgo Pio, next to the Vatican Colonnade. This is the day also to shop for religious souvenirs in the shops around St. Peter’s Square. Not only, but you can manage to find time to see the famous Vatican Museum with its renowned Sistine Chapel. Late afternoon drive to the next hotel in Assisi.


Day 11.   June 15. Mon.  Assisi

Assisi is an enchanted medieval town located on a hillside, below a mountain. It has been preserved just as it was more than 1000 years ago. The town is known as “Center of Spiritual Renaissance”, because, after a long period of spiritual relaxation, the Christian spirit was revived there by St. Francis and St. Clair about 800 years ago. They founded the religious order of Franciscans. You will walk through the same streets they walked and preached; you will see their tomb and basilica. Pilgrims from all over the world go there to retrace the steps on which those two saints walked; they go there to find their “spiritual renaissance”. Tourists love Assisi! Same hotel. 
Time permitting, we will visit a local Winery or something similar.


Day 12.  June 16. Tue. Siena

You have heard about the beauty of the “Tuscan country side”. Smile, because today you drive through it as you go to the magic city of Siena, known as “A pearl among the Tuscan hills”. It is one of Italy’s most visited tourist places and one of the greatest art centers. It has a profusion of fine architecture and numerous medieval churches and palaces. The entire historical center is the same as it was some 1000 years ago. Piazza del Campo, the Tower rising above the city, the many quaint old streets, its 800 year old Cathedral, the cozy restaurants and shops: what an interesting place to spend some time! The famous “Pallio”, a picturesque parade in medieval costumes and horse race, takes place in Siena every year. Seeing Siena is going a step back to medieval Tuscany. The best way to enjoy Siena is to walk at easy through its medieval streets and palaces. Have a camera ready, brows in every shop, sit in an outside café and watch people go by. Hotel by Florence.

Day 13. June 17. Wed. Florence

Florence is the cultural “Renaissance City of Europe”, because, after about 1000 years of “dark ages”, western civilization was born there again. The greatest artists lived, worked and are buried there: Dante, Michelangelo, Macchiavelli, Donatello, Rossini, Galileo, etc. Highlights like Uffizi Gallery, Gorgeous David by Michelangelo, Ponte Vecchio, Piazza Signoria, Duomo, Gates of Heaven, Giotto’s Campanile, Santa Croce, etc. will make you feel as if you were living during the Renaissance time!  You will have the entire day free city for visiting and having your shopping spree. Ladies, this is the day you have been waiting for: shop, shop, shop! Late afternoon drive to your next hotel by Venice.

Day 14.   June 18. Thu. Venice

After breakfast you board your Bus and drive to the famous city of Venezia (Venice). You might have seen it in books and on TV, but today you see and touch that fairy city entirely built on water. It is one of the world’s greatest tourist attractions. It is a city with a network of canals, narrow alleys and hidden plazas linked by 450 quaint bridges. For more than a thousand years Venice was the capital of the famous Venetian Republic. Its fleet dominated most of the Adriatic Sea. After an orientation walking tour of the city’s highlights, you will have the rest of the day free to discover on your own that city of dream: ride the Gondola, shop for souvenirs, eat in a romantic restaurant by a canal and have fun.San Marco’s Square: what a fantastic place, how people and pigeons! You will be in a real Wonderland! Remember that the only way to convince your friends you were in Venice it is to show pictures of you in the Gondola! Same hotel.

Day 15.   June 19. Fri. Return Flight

“And now the end is here…..” At 12:15 p.m. you leave Venice Airport and fly back home. It is true that your wallet is almost empty, but, see how much life experience you have gained and how much fun you have had! Because of the delicious food you ate everyday in Italy, from now on pasta and wine will be part of your life! Mamma Mia, I love Italy! Arrivederci, Bella Italia! I shall return!       

Dates of the tour:  June 5-19, 2026

Cost of the Tour:   $4950 per person 

Tour cost includes: round trip air fare from Philadelphia to and from Italy, air fare from Rome to Sicily, all land transportation in Italy by private, deluxe bus, all hotel rooms (double occupancy) in first class hotels, all breakfasts and all dinners, sightseeing, tour escort at all time, local guides in a few places, tips and taxes.

Tour cost does not include: lunches, entrance to the Valley of Temples, entrance to any museum,  boat to Amalfi. Why not included? Because often a few people choose to be free and not go to those places. Thus: pay only if you go. If you go to all those places it should cost a total of about 150 euros (based on 2025 cost).   

Miscellaneous 

– If you are not from the Philadelphia, your airfare might be different.
– A deposit of $500 per person is required to join the tour. 
– If you stay in a single room, like a king/queen, it costs 600 extra.
– When you sign up for this tour you will receive a confirmation  
   letter containing all information you need to get ready for 
    your memorable tour. 
– To sign up for the tour use a personal check (no credit card). 

                                               Make the check to:

                                            Italian Heritage Tours

                                                   and mail it to

                              P.O. Box 174. Reynoldsburg Oh. 43068

                              For more information, please contact:
                                              Remo or Eva Faieta
                                                         at
                                        The Italian Heritage Tours

                                       Phone: 1-614-833-5716

                                        www.italianheritagetours.com                       
                                                italiantours@aol.com                                            

                                                            or

                                      Yonnie Niebel: 1-814-238-6977

                                       Email: niebel6569@gmail.com