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Day 1: Reliving the Renaissance in Florence
A twisted maze of narrow alleyways...and Tuscany travel days begin. Florence's Renaissance heart makes yours beat a little faster as you ramble through it with your Florentine guide. Walk along the Arno and check out Santa Maria del Fiore, the Duomo. See, touch and feel the mark of Michelangelo and Brunelleschi in stately palazzi, beautiful basilicas, even arrogant monuments built by the Medicis to themselves. Cocktails and canapes offer a warm and tasty Culturious welcome tonight. Hotel: Gallery Hotel Art, Florence, Italy. Dinner Activity Level: Today's exploration of Florence is on foot, on flat sidewalks and at a leisurely pace, with many stops.
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Day 2: Inside a City of Secrets
Michelangelo's shadow looms large in Firenze. But how... why... where? Getting up close and personal with Botticelli's Birth of Venus or Michelangelo's Doni Tondo - in a frame designed by the Master himself - can't help but touch your soul and the artist lurking within. Next up is a visit to the Galleria dell'Accademia, home of Michelangelo's famed David. Hotel: Gallery Hotel Art, Florence, Italy. Meal - Breakfast Activity Level: Moderate amounts of walking today, with many steps.
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Day 3: Living the Florentine Life
In the Tuscan hills overlooking Florence, take a walk that begins in the village of Fiesole. With a local guide, stroll through Florence's Mercato Central, where you might try sampling traditional Florentine street food - lampredotto sandwiches, fresh fruit... porchetta, gelato, Take a walk along the cobbled streets of the Oltrarno, its Renaissance palaces harboring salacious scandals and murky intrigues, Dine as you please on your own this evening, perhaps a taste of vino and local cheeses at an enoteca; now that's amore... Hotel: Gallery Hotel Art, Florence, Italy. Meal - Breakfast Activity Level: Today includes an extended hike on hilly footpaths (about 90 minutes), easy walking on flat streets and sidewalks.
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Day 4: The Way to Cinque Terre
The road winds and twists and turns as you travel toward the Gulf of Genoa. Take a winding road deep into a mountain to see where celebrated Carrara marble, considered the finest on earth, has been quarried since Roman times. In a hidden gem along the way - the old Toscana village of Colonnata. Colorful houses cascade along a hillside against the azure sea, the black-and-white-striped Gothic church of San Pietro perched above... images captured as you cruise Portovenere to the Cinque Terre village of Monterosso - and not soon forgotten... Hotel: Hotel Porto Roca, Monterosso al Mare, Italy Meals Included: Breakfast and dinner Activity Level: Minimal walking on a hillside paved with stones
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Day 5: Discovering 'The Five Lands'
Gazing over the sea from your hotel perched above Monterosso al Mare, life is beautiful. Perhaps a dip in the sea from the private beach of Porto Roca. Dotted with lemon trees and calla lilies, Monterosso is one of five remote fishing villages strung like jewels along the coast - Cinque Terre, 'the five lands.' They're now linked to the outside world by rail, but for centuries were accessible only by sea or on foot. If you wish, take one of the world's most spectacular coastal hikes, through terraced vineyards overlooking the sea from Monterosso to Vernazza - the 'pearl of Cinque Terre.' If not, you'll travel by train, which is an experience unto itself. The remainder of the day is free to do as you please, find your own pursuits... and what could be better than that. Hotel: Hotel Porto Roca, Monterosso al Mare, Italy Meals Included: Breakfast Activity Level: Today includes fairly strenuous walks on uneven terrain between the villages; those who prefer not to walk can take the train
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Day 6: Tasting Tuscany
If you're wondering if Tuscany is all about the food, a hands-on lesson with experts in the art of making fresh pasta at Fattoria Colle Verde, one of the region's foremost wineries and olive oil producers, may shed some light. After a little testing and a little cooking, cap your pasta-making debut with a little virgin olive oil tasting, a little Tuscan wine tasting,g and more than a little pasta tasting at lunch. Hotel: Hotel Ilaria, Lucca, Italy Meals Included: Breakfast and lunch Activity Level: Today includes moderate walking through olive orchards and hills, and along irregular dirt paths.
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Day 7: A Feast for the Senses in Lucca
Medieval Lucca's red-brick walls shut out traffic and the modern world' leaving a peaceful community that still revolves around its original Roman street plan. And because it's topographically flat - unlike most Tuscan towns - Lucca is a cyclist's dream. One of the best ways to explore to explore this colorful, elegant, historically powerful and culturally rich city is by bike. And if you're not interested in bicycling, there's so much to see and do in town: a local winery just outside of town is the perfect venue for tasting local wine, sipping prosecco, sampling a canape... perfect for reflections on a week well spent. And to finish it off, a memorable dinner of Tuscan specialties in an absolutely magical spots under the setting Tuscan sun. Hotel: Hotel Ilaria, Lucca, Italy Meals Included: Breakfast and dinner Activity Level: Today includes a bicycle tour of approximately three miles, along terrain that is mostly flat and paved, with frequent stops.
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Day 8: Arrivederci, Tuscany
As you return to Florence through those magical hills for your journey home, the rich flavors of Tuscany travel, Culturious-style, linger in your memory. And there they'll stay warm and inviting till your next visit. Meals Included: Breakfast