Catholic Highlights in Italy

This itinerary is the starting point for your tour, but it’s not set in stone. If there are days you would like to change, or specific places you’d like to go, we can work with you to create a personalized program that fits the needs of you and your students.

Day 1: Overnight Flight

Depart from the USA.

Day 2: Venice

Benvenuti in Italia! Upon arriving in Venice, the Queen of the Adriatic, you'll meet your ACIS Tour Manager and enjoy a fast and fun transfer by private motor launch to your hotel on the Lido. Then you're free to start exploring this magnificent city of canals and palaces with your 48-hour vaporetto transportation pass, which allows you to come and go throughout the city as you please.

Day 3: Venice

Your day begins with a guided sightseeing tour of Venice's highlights. Visit St. Mark's Basilica, which speaks to the rich history of the Catholic church while also representing one of the finest examples of blended Byzantine, Romanesque and Gothic architectures. Entrances are included to both the Pala d'Oro (Golden Altarpiece), which contains the remains of St. Mark, and the Loggia dei Cavalli, which affords a beautiful view of St. Mark's Square. In the afternoon, you're free to explore the city at your own pace, perhaps enriching your faith perspectives with visits to the Santa Maria del Rosario, built to encourage devotion to the rosary, or Santa Maria della Salute, one of the so-called “plague churches,” erected as symbols of thanks for the city's deliverance from the devastating disease.

Day 4: Florence

The morning starts with a drive to Padua to visit the Basilica of St. Anthony, which houses the saint's tomb and is designated by the Holy See as an international shrine, deserving of high veneration. Then continue on to Florence, known as the Cradle of the Renaissance.

Day 5: Florence

Guided sightseeing is the first order of the day as a local expert provides commentary via your personal headsets. Entrance is included inside Brunelleschi's splendid Duomo (formally, the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore) and the Baptistry. You'll also see Ghiberti's famous bronze Baptistry Doors, depicting scenes of the Old Testament, and the bustling Piazza della Signoria—the political center of this vibrant Renaissance city. Then breeze by the crowds with your timed entrance to the Accademia, the famous art gallery that houses Michelangelo's masterful sculpture, David. In the afternoon enjoy a Tuscan cooking lesson where an Italian chef will teach you how to prepare a three-course meal featuring local cuisine. Participants will aid the chef in the preparation and then everyone will enjoy a tasting.

Day 6: Sorrento

Journey this morning to the hill town of Assisi, one of Italy's most important and popular pilgrimage spots. At the foot of the hill you'll visit the ornately decorated Porziuncola Chapel, where young Francis of Assisi started the Franciscan movement. The roughly 18- by 10-foot chapel is an architectural oddity in that it stands fully inside the nave of the Basilica di Santa Maria degli Angeli. Then you'll head up into the town of Assisi for another reverential experience: a visit to the Basilica of St. Francis. Built on the slope of Mt. Subasio, you'll see both the upper and lower basilicas as well as have time to reflect at the crypt containing the beloved saint's tomb. Then, on the other side of the town, visit the Basilica of Saint Clare, dedicated to one of his most devoted followers. In the afternoon head south for Sorrento, stopping first just outside the town for a deliciously cheesy activity—a visit to a working farm where a local expert cheese maker demonstrates how their mouth-watering mozzarella is crafted and provides samples for everyone to taste.

Day 7: Sorrento

The day begins with a trip to the ruins of Pompeii, a city tragically buried—and left amazingly well-preserved—under up to 20 feet of volcanic ash after Mt. Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD. See the villas of ancient Roman holiday-makers and the chariot-grooved cobblestone streets. The afternoon takes a happier turn with a ride on the high-speed hydrofoil to jaw-dropping Capri. You'll see firsthand why it's called the Island of Dreams as you take a funicular, or inclined railway, past subtropical gardens and up to the town's charming main square with time for shopping in the artisan stores and sightseeing along its narrow lanes. Later, return to Sorrento.

Day 8: Rome

Drive north to Rome, the Eternal City. In the afternoon our local expert accompanies you first through the Vatican Museums, including the Sistine Chapel, which is home to Michelangelo's awe-inspiring ceiling frescoes that primarily depict nine scenes from the Book of Genesis. Then continue into St. Peter's Basilica, considered one of the greatest works of Renaissance architecture as well as one of the holiest Catholic shrines. The best part is that these are timed entrances, meaning you'll breeze right by the long lines facing other tourists.

Day 9: Rome

Your immersion in the Catholic faith and traditions continues this morning on an even deeper level with a private Mass at St. Peter's Basilica. A priest will talk about your school and address the homily, with translation, to the school. One student from your school will do the Gospel reading of the day at the altar. In the afternoon visit the iconic and historic Colosseum with a local guide (another line-avoiding timed reservation) and learn the many stories of this nearly 2,000-year-old Roman landmark that's considered one of the architectural wonders of the ancient world.

Day 10: Departure

Depart for the USA.



Optional Extensions and Extra Nights:

Enhance your experience with an extra night in Rome, including the services of your ACIS Tour Manager and further discovery of sites important to the Catholic faith: the other three of the four major papal Basilicas—St. Mary Major, St. Paul Outside the Walls, and St. John Lateran—plus the ancient Catacombs and the site of St. Paul's martyrdom.