Exclusive Best of Rome Tour

Escape the overcrowded cruise line tours on this exclusive Best of Rome excursion. With no more than 35 guests (and often less) on tour at at time, you will enjoy a very personalized experience that differs greatly from the 50-plus-person tours offered by the cruise lines. For groups of over 9 guests, headsets will be provided.

Your Rome tour begins when you are met at the cruise terminal. Here you will board your air-conditioned vehicle for the 80-minute drive to Rome. As you drive from the coast into the city, you will watch as the flat coastal area slowly disappears while you gradually climb up through farms and orchards to reach the City of Seven Hills. When you arrive in Rome, you'll see Capitoline Hill located between the Forum and the Campus Martius. Designed by Michelangelo, Capitoline Hill is one of the seven famous hills of Rome. It was the citadel of the earliest Romans and contains several ancient ground-level ruins, Medieval and Renaissance palaces and the Victor Emmanuel Monument.

Next up on your Rome excursion, you will visit the symbol of the Eternal City, the Roman Colosseum. Here, you will have time to take pictures and admire it from the outside. The Colosseum is one of the most recognized monuments of ancient Rome, where gladiators, Christians and wild beasts once battled to the death in front of 50,000 spectators. Nearby, the imposing triumphal Arch of Titus was erected in A.D. 81 by the Emperor Domitian in honor of the victories in battle of his brother and father in Judea.

You will then proceed to the Palatine Hill and Roman Forum, where you will be provided with skip-the-line tickets to explore the site that is widely regarded as the birthplace of the Roman Empire. To this day, it still preserves the remains of Iron Age settlements connected with the earliest core of the city of Rome, and you will see hundreds of ruins of imposing buildings that were created for high Roman society in ancient times. The hill was home to important civic cults and became the residential district of the Roman aristocracy, with elegant houses characterized by exceptional painted and paved decorations.

The Roman Forum or Forum Magnum, considered to be the heart of the Ancient Rome, was was the official meeting point for Roman citizens who went there to participate (or even simply to assist) in the administrative, political, economic and religious affairs that concerned the community to which they belonged. The Roman Forum was the true center of the entire Roman civilization.

Departing the Colosseum area, you will walk to the Palatine Hill, Circus Maximus, and the Victor Emanuel monument, all on your way to the old section of Rome. Continue your stroll, passing through the narrow, twisting streets to the Trevi Fountain, named after the area of Rome where it is found. The fountain stands 85 feet high, 65 feet wide, and is the largest Baroque fountain in the city. A traditional legend holds that if visitors throw a coin with one's right hand over one's left shoulder into the Trevi Fountain, they are ensured a return to Rome. You will also visit the Pantheon, an excellent example of ancient Roman architecture. It was built in A.D. 126 as a temple to all the Gods of Ancient Rome. If time permits, you will also see the Navano and Farnese Squares.

Then, time will be provided for a quick lunch on your own.

Next, your driver will take you to the world-famous Vatican City. Along the way, you will see the Castle of the Angels and Bernini's Bridge of the Angels. At St. Peter's Square, you will have approximately 45 minutes of free time to visit St. Peter's Square, St. Peter's Basilica (the largest church in the world), or browse for souvenirs. Since St. Peter's is extremely popular, please be aware that you may encounter lines to enter the Basilica.

After your visit to St. Peters, you will be driven back to your ship pier.

Please Note: This tour does not include an inside tour or tickets to the Colosseum, but you will have the opportunity to view the Colosseum from outside. Given the traffic in Rome, the itinerary may vary according to local conditions. Crowds are to be expected at all sites and lines for St. Peter's Basilica may exceed over one hour to enter. If fewer than nine people are on your tour, you will travel in a small vehicle with excellent access to all sights, and a guide who is also your driver will lead your tour. If more than nine people are on your tour, headsets will be provided, and you will have a driver to Rome, where you will meet your guide for the guided portion of the tour.

Exclusive Snapshot of Malta

Escape the 50+ person mob tours the cruise lines offer with this group tour of never more than 30 guests (and oftentimes less). Leaving the port, you will be driven to Mdina. Approximately 30 minutes away and Malta's first capital, Mdina dates back to before Roman times. Together with the guide, you will stroll through the quaint winding streets, admire the beautiful palazzos still used as homes by Malta's oldest families, and enjoy the view from the bastions of the 'Silent City'. The total walking time with stops is approximately 45 minutes.

After leaving Mdina, you will have a short photo stop outside the Mosta Dome Church, the third largest dome in Europe. In 1942, the church had 300 people inside when a bomb pierced the dome and miraculously failed to explode.

Arriving in Valletta, you will begin your approximate 90 minute walking tour of the capital city of Malta. You will visit the Upper Barrakka Gardens for a panoramic view of Malta's natural harbors and the historic cities of Senglea, Cospicua and Vittoriosa in the distance.

Continuing through Valletta's main streets, you will walk to St. John's Co-Cathedral, the 16th century knight's own church. Revealing a staggering display of Baroque art, it houses some of Malta's finest art treasures. The two masterpieces by Caravaggio, "The Beheading of St. John the Baptist" and "St. Jerome," hang in the Oratory.

At the end of the tour, you will walk past various important buildings before reaching your transport, which will be waiting to return you to the port below. Guests wishing to remain in town may do so, but are responsible for getting themselves back to the cruise pier at their own expense.

Please Note: For tours on Saturday afternoons, Sundays and public holidays, the St. John's Co-Cathedral will not be open to the public. In such instances, visits to the cathedral will be substituted with a visit to the National Archaeology Museum in Valletta and free time (approximately 30 minutes) in one of the cities. The same would apply in case of any last-minute closures of St. John's Co-Cathedral. The order in which the sites are visited may change according to the logistical needs of the day.

Exclusive Taormina and Messina

After meeting your professionally trained guide, set out on the one hour drive to Taormina. Perched on the side of a hill overlooking the sea, this town has a delightful character. Upon arrival, your walking tour will begin with a brief exterior visit to the famous 15th-century Palazzo Corvaia. This building, indicative of the architectural style of the period, is adorned with classic double windows.

Your guide will take you to scenic lookouts of Mount Etna and the Bay of Naxos, point out the municipal buildings and the maze of staircase "streets" that intertwine in this predominantly pedestrian only hillside town.

You will then have approximately one hour of free time to grab a coffee or hot chocolate or explore the many shops that line Corso Umberto, Taormina's main street. As well as being a resort town with boutiques of European fashion, you will also see many shops that offer the local Sicilian pottery.

For guests up to the climb, during the free time, your guide will lead an optional tour of the impressive Greek Theater, known for its stunning location. This Roman-style theater was reconstructed in the 2nd century AD. It has marvelous acoustics which allow performances of classical plays to still be held in the theater. To reach the theater requires climbing several uneven, steep stone steps. To access the upper part of the theater also involves climbing uneven steps. For those willing to do it, you will be rewarded with impressive views. Guests wishing to visit the theater are responsible for their own admission which is approximately 10 EUR.

After free time, you will meet your guide at the designated location and walk back to your vehicle. From here, you will drive back to the city of Messina for a brief orientation. With a history dating back to the 8th century B.C. Messina has been sacked, seized, or conquered by Carthaginians, Memertines, Goths, Arabs, Normans and English to name a few, but their spirit was never defeated. In more recent times, the city was almost entirely destroyed by an earthquake and tsunami in 1908, which killed over 60,000 people and destroyed most of the ancient architecture. Further damage was added by the massive Allied air bombardments of 1943, which caused thousands of deaths.

Your driver will take you along Messina's main street, the Via Garibaldi. You will see the Vittorio Emanuele Theater, the Town Hall, the church of Catalani, the Court and the university. Before returning to the ship, a photo stop will be made at the Cathedral Square to view the church, the Orion Fountain and the world's largest Astronomical clock, with more than 33,000 gears and moving parts. Guests wishing to remain in the downtown area will be responsible for their own transportation back to the pier.