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Educational Travel Tours - High School and Middle School Trips for Teachers and Students | Questions? Call 1.888.310.7120
| Day 1 Start Tour | Day 2 Ciao Rome | Meet your Tour Director and check into hotel |  | Rome city walk Baroque-en hearted? Revive your spirits with a walk past Rome's most beautiful and unusual Baroque fountains. At the foot of the Spanish Steps, elegant cafes once favored by visiting Brits and Americans surround the central fountain. The water pressure here was so low that the artist had to sink the fountain into the ground to get any water going through it, so he went ahead and designed the fountain to look like a sinking ship. There's no shortage of water pressure at the nearby Trevi Fountain, a Baroque extravagance designed by master sculptor Bernini. At the Pantheon you'll see the largest concrete dome ever constructed. An oculus, or hole, in the dome lets sunlight into the beautiful temple, dedicated to all the gods. , Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Piazza Navona |
| Day 3 Rome Landmarks | Rome guided walking sightseeing tour with Whisper headsets Gods and gladiators, glory and gore. Ancient Rome lives on in its spectacular monuments, flavoring the frenetic present with tastes of the past. Don a space-age Whisper headset to get the inside scoop on the most spectacular, the Colosseum, a grisly battle arena that seated more than 45,000. An enormous retractable roof awning system kept spectators cool on sunny days. The nearby Forum provides a glimpse into everyday ancient life, with markets, meeting places, and temples all combined into one vast space. Move into Christian Rome at St. Peter’s Basilica, the triumphal Renaissance church flanked by rows of columns radiating outward like welcoming arms. Within the church Michelangelo’s masterpieces are on display, the “Pietà” in the main church and the recently restored ceiling frescoes and “Last Judgment” in the Sistine Chapel. Continue your trek through time at Piazza Venezia, site of the enormous monument to Victor Emmanuel II, Italy’s first king, and of the Palazzo Venezia, where Mussolini set up his headquarters and from whose porch his mother was said to eavesdrop on citizens below. (The Sistine Chapel is closed on most religious holidays and Sundays, except for the last Sunday in each month). , Sistine Chapel visit, St. Peter’s Basilica visit, Colosseum visit, Forum Romanum visit, Piazza Venezia |
| | Day 4 Rome--Sorrento | Day 5 Sorrento--Bari | Travel to Bari |  | Overnight cruise to Patras |
| Day 6 Patras--Tolo | Travel to Tolo via Olympia Once one of the most important sites in Greece, the former locale of the Olympic games now has some of the most picturesque ruins in the country. Surrounded by shady olive trees and flowing rivers, the stones of the original temple and stadium still inspire awe – and the occasional victory lap. , Olympia site guided visitOnce one of the most important sites in Greece, the former locale of the Olympic games now has some of the most picturesque ruins in the country. Surrounded by shady olive trees and flowing rivers, the stones of the original temple and stadium still inspire awe – and the occasional victory lap. |
| Day 7 Tolo--Athens | Travel to Athens via Epidaurus & Mycenae More than your usual roadside attractions. The route to Athens is paved with history, literally. Stop and see the sacred precinct of Epidaurus, a former health clinic and spa with a 4th-century BC amphitheater. Continue to Mycenae. Framed by twin mountains and looking out over the plains, Mycenae was a palace, a workshop and a grave. Gold cups, jewelry, bronze armor, swords and daggers, as described by Homer, were discovered here. Walk up to the remains of the citadel. Look out over the rolling hills. Imagine the bonfires blazing in all directions, signaling that Troy had fallen to Agamemnon. Continue on for a photo op at the Corinth Canal. |  | Epidaurus site guided visit |  | Mycenae site guided visit |  | Corinth Canal |
| Day 8 Athens Landmarks | Athens guided sightseeing tour Not just another crowded dusty city, Athens has developed from the birthplace of democracy to a bustling modern metropolis. With a local licensed guide, start your time travel at the ancient hot spots of the first Olympic site and the sprawling Acropolis, classical Athens’ religious and civic center. The awe-inspiring Parthenon -- a temple dedicated to Athens’ patron saint Athena -- is the obvious centerpiece, but take time to examine the building next door, where sculpted women hold up the roof with their heads, and the amazing view of modern Athens below. Jump back to the present in Syntagma Square, the center of the modern city, to see the Parliament building and the British-style changing of the guards ceremony. (There’s a rather un-British flair to it, however -- the Greek guards wear white skirts, head scarves, and shoes and knee bands adorned with pom-poms.) Continue to Omonia Square, Athens' other main meeting point, to relax by the splashing central fountain ringed with palm trees. , Parthenon, Acropolis visit, Temple of Athena Nike, Omonia Square, Syntagma Square, Olympic site |  | Athens city walk You’re never more than a few steps away from the past in Athens. Accompany your Tour Director to the Plaka, the historic district that borders the Acropolis. In its twisting narrow streets you’ll catch glimpses of an older city, from wrought-iron balconies bursting with geraniums to traditional Greek dancing in basement tavernas. Continue on to the Temple of Olympian Zeus, begun in the 6th century B.C. and finished in A.D. 132 by the emperor Hadrian. Its enormous columns provide a sense of the scale of the original temple. Nearby, the elaborate Hadrian’s Arch separated the ancient and imperial sections of the city. , Plaka district, Temple of Olympian Zeus, Hadrian’s Arch |  | Greek dinner in Plaka |
| | Day 9 End Tour |
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