Full day guided tour to admire the Royal Palace of Caserta. In his memoirs, the architect Vanvitelli says it was the king who designed the Royal Palace. This may have been adulation, or perhaps Charles III knew what he wanted, to emulate his favourite models, the Buen Retiro in Madrid and Versailles in France. Vanvitelli drew inspiration from the former for this quadrangular 1,200 – room structure, which was finally completed in 1852.

After visiting this spectacular Palace, and some of its Lush rooms, we then take you to the Hill top town of Cassino, and to the abbey of Monte Cassino, perhaps the most famous monastery in the world, it stands on a hill some 400m above the town of Cassino. The abbey was founded by St Benedict of Norcia in 529 after he had left Subiaco guided by three tame ravens. Rebuilt to its actual splendour, as it was destroyed several times throughout its history, and the tragedy of 15th February 1944 when the abbey was bombed by the Allies, was the fifth time.

Visit victim and culprit all in one exciting day!

A real history fest, this tour takes place in Pompeii, the city that lay buried for centuries when back in AD 79 Mount Vesuvius blew its top and covered it in choking ash. A walking tour through the city stars the day, then off to the mighty fire mountain itself! This one’s up alongside Krakatoa in the notoriety stakes. And it’s the only active volcano on Europe’s mainland. As you can imagine, the views from the top are out of this world!

In ancient times Vesuvius was simply “the mountain,” covered with vegetation and vines. The first person to understand its volcanic nature was the Greek geographer, Strabo (AD 19), who suggested that its rocks had been burned by fire. In AD 79 an almighty eruption smothered the cities on its foothills and greatly altered the surrounding landscape.

Today, the volcano inspires both fear and fascination and it is constantly monitored for activity. Join us on a half day coach tour with an expert guide who will escort you towards the peak of this magnificent mountain, and give you an insight on the tragedy that struck the cities of Pompeii covered by ash and debris  and Herculaneum, buried by a landslide of  thick mud.

An earthquake in AD 62 which shook Pompeii and some of its buildings, was merely a prelude to the tragic day in AD 79, when Vesuvius erupted, engulfing the city and its inhabitants with a terrible storm of cinders and ash. When the remains of Pompeii were discovered in 1750 it looked as though a spell had been cast to freeze all life. The bodies of people were unearthed along with their houses, temples, works of art and everyday objects. The first archaeologists removed the most important finds, which became part of the royal collection and were then transferred to the National Archaeological Museum in Naples.

Come on a walking tour of this city and discover what remains, and what modern day archaeologists are still uncovering to this day. On route: House of Vetti carefully restored and its interior walls are adorned with splendid paintings. House of the Faun, the name comes from a bronze statue situated in the middle of the pond in one of the atria.

Via dell’ Abbondanza the liveliest street in Pompeii was lined with shops selling a wide range of goods. The Amphitheatre and Great gymnasium (80 BC) with a swimming pool in the middle are in an outlying area between the Nocera and sarno gateways. The Amphitheatre was used for gladiatorial combat and is the oldest one of its kind in existence.

This excursion is a scenic coach ride to the world famous Amalfi coast.
Suspended between sea and sky, state road 163 which twists and turns along the full length of the Amalfi coast, offers stunning views at every corner. Until the 19th century, this stretch of the coast could only be reached by going up difficult mountains paths by mules. By the early 1900s, this area began to attract travellers. Visitors of all kinds were drawn to steep-stepped Positano, clinging to tall cliffs; Amalfi with its glorious past as a marine republic; and Ravello, which Wagner chose as “magic Garden of Klingsor” the setting for his opera Parsifal.

We will travel through most of its towns, and on route, will include visits to the Paper Museum, and in the main square of Amalfi, we visit the Duomo of Saint Andrea founded in the 9th century, rebuilt in Romanesque style in the 11th century. The façade and atrium date from the late 1800s but the carved bronzed doors were cast in Constantinople around the year 1000. The campanile (1276) is decorated with Arabic style interlaced arches typical of southern Italy Romanesque.

half day tour
english speaking guide
lunch included

The first illustrious residents in Capri were the Roman emperors Augustus and Tiberius. Despite this noble history, the island saw few visitors until the 19th century, when a poet named August Kòpish found the Grotta Azzurra. Tourism began to flourish and Capri became the haunt of many a famous intellectual from Alexander Dumas to Oscar Wilde to name but a few.

We will take you on a guided tour from when you land in the port of the Marina Grande, a colourful village with seafood restaurants and some Roman and Byzantine remains. From the famous “Piazzetta “,In the heart of the town, is an outdoor sitting room, crowded day and night packed with café tables buzzing with gossip ! From here, the guide will take you to visit the Certosa of St Giacomo founded in 1371, is now occupied by a school and the Diefenbach Museum which has paintings and historical objects.
Next stop will be to the top of the island, Anacapri, to visit Villa San Michele, once the home of the Swedish physician Axel Munthe. After the tour we take you back to the piazzetta for some free time for shopping or if you wish you can choose to visit the Grotta Azzurra by boat (not included in the tour price).