DAY 1 -- Tuesday,  - NEW YORK / MILAN

Tour members are welcomed this evening at JFK International Airport, departing on Alitalia Airlines via widebody aircraft arriving in Milan the next day.  Meals served on board.

Day 2 -- Wednesday, - MILAN / VENICE

We will arrive in Milan and discover the beautiful Duomo, La Scala  theater and the Galleria .

Proceed toward Venice (2 to 3 hours drive). Upon arrival we will go to the Lido and check into our hotel for dinner and overnight

Day 3 -- Thursday, – VENICE

Soon after breakfast, transfer by coach and public boat  to central Venice. We will have a guided tour of the city, including San Marco’s Church and Square, visit Doges’ Palace Bridge of Sighs and Rialto bridge.

This afternoon is at leisure to walk and enjoy this magnificent city. Take a Gondola ride or shop in the quaint shops off the square.  Dinner and overnght will be at our hotel.

Day 4 – Friday - VENICE / FLORENCE

Early in the morning after breakfast, we will depart for our drive to Florence. Discover the cradle of the Renaissance, where one breathes art in the medieval streets, in the craftsmen's workshops, and in the Renaissance Palaces. Here the memories of the Medici family are united with the splendor of the works of illustrious artists such as Michelangelo, Da Vinci and Botticelli. You will visit   the Baptistry of St. John, the religious essence of the city, the Duomo with the Medici Chapel, the Church of St. Lorenzo, Piazza della Signoria, the Basilica of Santa Croce, a masterpiece of Gothic art.

This afternoon we will visit the Accademia Gallery, which hosts Michelangelo’s famous David. We will go to the outdoor Market of San Lorenzo which boasts leather products, and the Ponte Vecchio, covered since medieval times with goldsmiths' shops, is a must for Florence's other specialty, gold jewelry. Check into our hotel for dinner and overnight.

Day 4 -- Saturday,  - FLORENCE / ASSISI / ROME

This morning we will travel by coach to Assisi, the pilgrimage center where St. Francis tended the poor and sick and founded the Franciscan order. Visit to the Basilica of St. Francis with its Chapel, the Portiuncola, the rose bush and the cave where the Saint retired for prayer, and the Church of St. Clare, the foundress of the order of Poor Clares, to see the Saint’s incorrupt body.

This afternoon we will head to Rome. We will check into our hotel for dinner and overnight.

Day 4 -- Sunday,  - ROME / POZZUOLI

After breakfast, we will pick up the passengers that are coming from the U S with our escort and travel south to Pompei.  Visit this ancient city buried under a layer of volcano similar to what Paul walked. Paul knew the sin of the people. Romans 1, 26.

Board your bus and proceed to Pozzuoli, where Paul landed and after one day the south wind blew, and we came the next day to Puteoli. Acts 28:13. Check into your hotel for dinner and overnight.

DAY 1 -- Saturday,  - NEW YORK / ROME

Tour members are welcomed this evening at JFK International Airport, departing on Alitalia Airlines via widebody aircraft arriving in Rome the next day.  Meals served on board.

DAY 2 -- Sunday, - ARRIVAL / POMPEI / POZZUOLI

Upon arrival in Rome meet your escort and travel south to Pompei.  Visit this ancient city buried under a layer of volcano similar to what Paul walked. Paul knew the sin of the people. Romans 1, 26.

Board your bus and proceed to Pozzuoli, where Paul landed and after one day the south wind blew, and we came the next day to Puteoli. Acts 28:13. Check into your hotel for dinner and overnight.

DAY 3 -- Monday, - MINTURNO / FORO APPIO / THREE TABERNS / ROME

Depart Pozzuoli to Minturno to visit the ruins of this well-preserved  Roman  village. Continue north passing along the sites of Foro Appio  and  Tres Tabernaes  - Three Taverns , is the same place where an ancient Roman “posta”, was.  Here is where Paul met the Christian Communities: Acts 28:14  Travel the same route St Paul. Arrive in Rome and check into our hotel for dinner and overnight

Day 4 -- Tuesday, - PAUL’S SITES   /  ANCIENT ROME 

After breakfast, you will start your tour in the footsteps of PaulVisit INSULA DI SAN PAOLO ALLA REGOLA, Paul lived in this area during the years of his first imprisonment. The majority of the people living here were tanners and Paul  learned the trade. This area is called  “Contrada Pauli” ( Paul’s district). Visit the CHURCH OF SANTA PRISCA: The church dedicated to Priscilla  and Aquila. (Rom 16,1-23;  Rom 16, 3-5; Act 18, 1-3).

This afternoon go to the real core of Ancient Rome. Visit, Trajan’s Column, Apollodorus of Damascus, walk along the street of the Imperial Fora, the ruins of the fori, the Forum of Trajan and Capitoline Hill. Continue to see Michelangelo’s statue of Marcus Aurelius, Piazza del Campidoglio (best panoramic point) Walk through the Roman Forum, the Curia,  palaces of justice, the temple of Vesta, and the House of the Vestals. Romans 1, 23. Head to the Arch of Constantine. and the Colosseum an everlasting symbol of the greatness of Rome and the stage for the historical fights of the gladiators. Return to our hotel for dinner and overnight.

DAY 5 -- Wednesday, - VATICAN MUSEUMS  / PAUL’S SITES

This morning we head to the Vatican Museum. Enter the Belvedere Palace, see the Greek Cross Room walk through the Galleries of the Candelabra and Tapestries, continue to the Apostolic Palace. See the apartments of Julius II, splendidly decorated by Raphael, and then the Sistine Chapel, one of the greatest masterpieces of art: the Genesis and the Last Judgement by Michelangelo, Leaving the Sistine Chapel and going down the Royal Stairway, projected by Bernini, go to the Basilica of St. Peter, to see the Pietà by Michelangelo and

St. Peter’s  Square.

The afternoon visit John di Lateran  and the Holy Cross of Jerusalem. Continue to the Appian Way to Mamertine prison, the Domine Quo Vadis, to the CATACOMBS OF SAN SEBASTIAN. Here is where the bodies of Apostle Paul and Apostle Peter were kept during the Christian persecution of Valeriano ( 253 – 260 AC). There are a lot of “grafiti” in Latin and Aramaic in the catacombs  and in the Basilica of San Sebastian, as well.  Visit the ABBEY OF THE THREE FOUNTAINS, place of Paul’s martyrdom, where tradition has it that  three different springs gushed out at each spot touched when Paul’s head fell down. Continue to ST PAUL OUTSIDE THE WALLS, Visit the Basilica where the bones of Paul have recently been found. Return to hotel for dinner and overnight

DAY 6 -- Thursday, -  LEISURE DAY / OVERNIGHT TRAIN / MUNICH

Today is leisure but if you wish you can visit other places in Rome that we did not have time to see and discover the Baroque center of Rome on your own or relax in a coffee bar or do shopping in the fashion district around via Condotti.

In the late afternoon, transfer to the Central Railway Station of Rome to catch the 7:10PM train for our overnight trip to Munich. Dinner and sleepers will be arranged.

DAY 7 -- Friday, MUNICH / OBERAMMERGAU

You arrive in Munich at 06.30 AM and board your bus for a guided tour of the city.  Munich is the ancient capital of Bavaria.  The center of the city is Marienplatz named after Mariensaule a Marian column which celebrates the end of the Swedish occupation. Proceed with the Frauenkirche ( Church of Our Lady) with its distinctive onion-topper towers, is the residence of the Bishop of Munich.

Munich has been a great  European cultural centre and the domain of many prominent composers including Orlando di Lasso, W.A. Mozart, Richard Wagner, Richard Strauss,.

Then visit Nymphenburg Castle the  former summer residence of the rulers of Bavaria is located in the west part of the city in the middle of one of Munich’s most beautiful parks.

After a break for  lunch, board your bus and drive south towards Oberammergau This holiday resort is world-famous for its Passion Play. Yet the numerous house-wall paintings, called Lüftlmalereien, and the artistic wood carvings are themselves worth a visit. Upon arrival, time at leisure to stroll through the village or to visit local sights such as the Oberammergau Museum,  or the  Pilatus House.  Transfer to our accommodations for dinner and overnight

Day 8 -- Saturday, - OBERAMMERGAU / PASSION PLAY

This morning you will have time to walk around the small village of Oberammergau. There are shops cafes, and lunch will be served by the village.

The Passion Play begins at 2.30 p.m.You will be served dinner during the 3 hours interval in a restaurant At the end of the Play ( approx. 10.30 p.m.)  return to your accommodationsl for overnight.

Day 9, -- Sunday, - ETTAL / LINDERHOF / NEUSCHWANSTEIN / MUNICH

After breakfast, depart Oberammergau for a full day excursion to the fairytale castles of the Bavarian King Ludwig II. First stop will be  the Monastery of Ettal. It is the idyllic location of the Benedectine Monastery, built by Emperor Ludwig the Bavarian in 1330.

The legend of the fairy-tale king lives on, for Bavaria and guests from all parts of the world the King, often described by his ministers as being out of touch with reality, withdrew more and more into the fantastic dream-worlds of his palaces in the wild solitude of the mountains. In only two decades on the throne, new and ever bolder plans emerged. Some –for example, Falkenstein Palace – never materialized. Others were turned into reality and are admired to this day by visitors from all over the world: the rococo Linderhof Palace, built in the French style inspired by Versailles and, as a climax, the famous fairy-tale castle Neuschwanstein, modelled on the medieval Wartburg. Continue to Munich. Check into our hotel for dinner and overnight.

Day 10 -- Monday, - MUNICH / NEW YORK

Early morning transfer to the airport for the return flight to the USA

Day 10 -- Monday – MUNICH / DACHAU

This morning we board our bus and go to historic Munich. We will through the old city with its famous buildings and squares including the Marienplatz with the town hall and its “Glockenspiel” and the “Frauenkirche” (Church of our Lady) with its distinctive onion-topped towers then visit the Olympic Park.

This afternoon we will drive to Dachau and visit the site of Germany’s first Concentration Camp, a memorial site and museum. We will have a guided tour through the museum with its reconstructed barracks and crematorium.  Return back to Munich for dinner and overnight.

Day 11 -- Tuesday,  - MUNICH / LAKE CHIEMSEE

This morning we will drive to Lake Chiemsee, also known as the “Bavarian Sea” situated in the beautiful Bavarian Alps and surrounded by unspoiled nature.

This afternoon take a short boat ride to the “Herreninsel” to visit the splendid Herrenchiemsee Palace. Never completed, this impressive castle, built by Bavaria’s King Ludwig II, was intended to become the “new Versailles.” Return to Munich for dinner and over night at our hotel.

An optional extra: For those that would like to have a traditional Bavarian dinner and music will be available. It will be approximately 3 hours in duration.

Day 12 -- Wednesday, - MUNICH / NEW YORK

Early morning transfer to the airport for the return flight to the USA