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Half-day, full-day and day excursions from Rome by car or minivan with English speaking driver-guide |
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Half day
excursions
4-hour
tours to the highlights in the country near Rome:
Tivoli -
Castelgandolfo & Nemi - Ostia Antica |
Full-day excursions
8-hour
tours to the highlights in the country near Rome,
combining two half-day tours as you like: Tivoli -
Castelgandolfo & Nemi - Ostia Antica |
Day
trips
Day trips to
Florence,
Naples
and Umbria,
to see famous
Pompeii,
Amalfi Drive,
Positano,
Sorrento,
Capri,
Tuscany,
Siena,
Assisi,
Todi,
Orvieto |
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Rates for these tours include:
pick up and drop off at the hotel, full-day excursion (10 hr
approx.), driving guide, vehicle, motorway tolls and fuel.
Additional time, over
10 hours, will be charged 50 Euros per hour (any vehicle).
Rates do not
include:
Lunch, drinks,
personal purchases or any thing not specifically listed as included. |
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Half-day excursions
Four-hour
tours in the nearby surroundings of Rome.
Half-day round trip from your hotel in in the
city. |
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Tivoli
Visit Villa D’Este and,
eventually, also the ruins of the Emperor
Hadrian’s Villa.
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Tivoli is a beautiful little town located on
hill about 20 miles north of Rome, a forty-five
minute drive. In Tivoli the Cardinal Ippolito II
D'Este, once he was elected governor in the
1550's, had an incredible villa built for
himself as his residence with the most admirable
gardens liven up by almost four hundred
fountains. On the way to Tivoli, time
permitting; also a visit can be paid to the
ruins of Hadrian's Villa, which used to be the
winter residence of the Emperor built in the
second century A.D.. Also a short stop can be
made to admire the quarries of the Travertine
marble, which the Romans used for building the
Colosseum and most of their other important
buildings. |
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Driving time:
Rome to Tivoli: 40'
Tivoli to Rome: 40’
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Rates per vehicle
for this excursion:
sedan (1/4 persons) 295 €;
minivan (4 persons) 315 €;
minivan (6/7 persons) 355 €;
minivan (7/8 persons) 380 € |
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Rome's wine country, Castelgandolfo (Pope’s
Summer Residence) Nemi, Frascati. |
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You
don’t really see castles in the area we call
“The Roman Castles”; we call that a hilly area
south from Rome where few enchanting little
towns, famous for producing the refreshing white
wine we drink in Rome, are situated. Many of
those little towns where already villages before
Rome was founded but than became Roman colonies.
In the middle ages they were the strongholds of
the nobles of Rome and those castles they once
built to defend the land were later converted
into gorgeous palaces, where the descendants
used to spend their summertime away from the
heat of Rome. Just to have an idea of the beauty
of the area think that the Holy Father chose,
way back in the sixteen hundreds, to make of the
castle that once belonged to the Gandolfo
family, his Summer Residence. Also in the area
are two pleasant lakes that were originally
craters of volcanoes active five million years
ago. Of course it is enjoyable to have lunch in
one the many good restaurants in the area which
is what the Romans go there for today. For those
who may be interested, a visit to one of the
many wineries there can be arranged. |
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Rates per vehicle
for this excursion:
sedan (1/4 persons) 295 €;
minivan (4 persons) 315 €;
minivan (6/7 persons) 355 €;
minivan (7/8 persons) 380 € |
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Rates for these
tours include:
pick up and drop off at the hotel, full-day
excursion (4 hours approx.), driving guide,
vehicle,motorway tolls and fuel.
Additional time,
over the 4 hours, will be charged 60 Euros per
hour (any vehicle).
Rates do not
include:
Lunch, drinks,
personal purchases or any thing not specifically
listed as included. |
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Driving times:
Rome to Roman Castles: 40'
Roman Castles to Rome: 40’ |
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Ruins of Ostia
Excavations of
Rome’s ancient port-city and the Castle of Pope
Julius II. |
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Located at the mouth of the Tiber river, only a
half-hour drive from Rome, the visit of Ostia is
like the visit of Tivoli and the Roman Castles:
a relaxing trip. The ancient Roman writer Ennius
says king Ancus Marcius founded Ostia in the
seventh century B.C., in the fourth century was
a military fort, called Castrum, that guarded
the river mouth against sea borne invasions.
Ostia later gained prominence as the domestic
landing for cargo boats. According to ancient
sources it was the oldest Roman colonia. Ostia
is easily comparable to Pompeii: you walk
through the ruins of a city that was abandoned
in the fifth century A.D.. It is in fact a
magical alternative to the crowded, and far from
Rome, Pompeii as well as it is complementary to
it. Ostia was for one thousand and five hundred
years a ghost town, covered by marshy swamp and
infested with malaria. |
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In
the early nineteen hundreds, the Italian
Government ordered the first systematic
archaeological excavations, and to this day,
with every unearthed stone, they add to our
knowledge and understanding of a city that once
stood next to Rome in grandeur. |
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Rates per vehicle
for this excursion:
sedan (1/4 persons) 295 €;
minivan (4 persons) 315 €;
minivan (6/7 persons) 355 €;
minivan (7/8 persons) 380 € |
Driving times:
Rome to Ostia: 40'
Ostia to Rome: 40’ |
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Full-day excursions
Combination of two
half-day excursions.
A wonderful day touring the countryside near Rome,
giving you also the opportunity to taste the renowned local wines
and foods. |
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Tivoli
& the Roman Castles
A relaxing day in the country. |
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We leave Rome in
the morning and drive to
Tivoli
to visit
Villa D'Este,
famous for its beautiful
gardens and
water fountains.
After visiting Villa D'Este we drive to the area we call “The Roman Castles”.
First we visit
Nemi
known for its beautiful lake and the particular strawberries they
grow there and than we go to
Castelgandolfo,
maybe the most charming of the hilltop towns in this area. This is
Rome's
wine country
and the Romans
like to come here to have their lunch accompanied by wines like the
famous "Frascati". You can enjoy a nice
typical lunch in
Castelgandolfo or in Nemi.
Depending on how the day goes and on your own interest along the way
we can also stop to see the
Travertine
Marble
quarries,
Hadrian's Villa
and/or a
winery. |
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Rates per vehicle for this
excursion:
sedan (1/4 persons) 525 €;
minivan (4 persons) 550 €;
minivan (6/7 persons) 600 €;
minivan (7/8 persons) 650 €. |
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Driving times:
Rome to Tivoli: 40'
Tivoli to Castelgandolfo: 45’
Roman Castles to Rome:
45’
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Ostia
and the Roman Castles
Excursion to
Ostia, lunch
in
Castelgandolfo (or Nemi),
visit
Nemi,
Frascati
and
Marino. |
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We go to visit
Ostia
first. We spend between one and a half and two hours in the
excavations and then stop at the
16th Century
Castle of Julius II.
At about noon we start driving towards
Castelgandolfo.
By the time we'll get there it will be time for lunch
and you'll
have the opportunity to try the local famous wines and foods in one
of the local restaurants. After lunch we continue to
Nemi
to wander around the charming little town and, willingly, taste the
particular strawberries. Then we drive to
Frascati
and
Marino,
two lovely little towns known for their wines. |
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Depending on the time and your own interest, we can also stop
include a stop at the
ruins of the
Jewish Synagogue in Ostia
(2nd Century A.D., the oldest in Europe), the
Abbey of San
Nilo in Grottaferrata
and/or a
winery. |
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Rates per vehicle for this
excursion:
sedan (1/4 persons) 525 €;
minivan (4 persons) 550 €;
minivan (6/7 persons) 600 €;
minivan (7/8 persons) 650 €. |
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Rates for these tours include:
pick up and drop off at the hotel, full-day excursion (8 hours
approx.) driving guide, vehicle, motorway tolls and fuel.
Additional time, over
the 8 hours, will be charged 50 Euros per hour (any vehicle).
Rates do not
include:
Lunch, drinks,
personal purchases or any thing not specifically listed as included. |
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Driving
times:
Rome to
Ostia: 40'
Ostia to
Castelgandolfo: 45’
Roman Castles
to Rome: 45’
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Ostia
and
Tivoli
Excursion to
Ostia,
and Tivoli.
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Located at the mouth of the Tiber
river, only a half-hour drive from Rome. We go there first, and after visiting
the excavations and stopping at the
Castle of Julius
II,
we get back on the motorway to drive to
Tivoli.
We can stop on the way to have lunch somewhere nice, Depending on
how we'll be doing time wise we could stop at a nice place called
"Sora Rosa"
on the
Old Appian Way
or even in
Castelgandolfo.
We return to Rome after visiting
Villa D'Este
in Tivoli.
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Rates per vehicle for this
excursion:
sedan (1/4 persons) 525 €;
minivan (4 persons) 550 €;
minivan (6/7 persons) 600 €;
minivan (7/8 persons) 650 €. |
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Driving
times:
Rome to
Ostia: 40'
Ostia to Tivoli:
1 hr
Tivoli to
Rome: 45’
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Fiuggi,
Trisulti, Alatri and Fumone
A very special day off the beaten path! |
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You’ll not find many tourists in these
places. The area is called “Ciociaria” and the name
comes from the special shoes called “cioce” (practically sheep skin wrapped up
around the feet and tight by a string) that the local people used to wear. We leave from your hotel at 8:00 a.m. and drive to
Fiuggi. This is a lovely
little town famous for its mineral waters since the 14th
century, when they
healed |
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Pope Boniface VIII from his kidney stones. Later,
even Italy's most venerated artist,
Michelangelo
drank Fiuggi's water to get rid of "the only stone he couldn't
love". Fiuggi today consists of two different towns: the old
medieval town, once called Anticoli Campagna, on the hilltop and
the modern town in the valley, which developed to offer hospitality
to those who want to benefit from the springs, is called Fiuggi
Fonte. Fiuggi Fonte is a lovely, pleasant modern town which
really stands out amongst all the other places in the area. No
narrow streets or steps to climb, but rather wide, flat streets
sided by modern hotels, fashionable shops and outdoor cafés where
you can have some cappuccino
with the special cookies they
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From Fiuggi we drive up the mountains to reach the medieval
Abbey of Trisulti, once pharmacy, where the monks still make very good
liqueurs, honey and chocolate that people from the villages all around go and buy there.
We should try to get there no later than 11:30 am for they close at
12:00 noon. Than we come back down from mountains and normally there
is enough time to make a stop in
Alatri. This town is well known
for its
Cyclopean Walls. Walls which were built before the
foundation of Rome using no mortar, simply stacking up stone block
weigh several tons. |
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It's in
fact the weight and the size of the blocks that made the people in
the middle ages fantasize about the legendary one-eyed giants
building them! Finally we'll stop for lunch in
Fumone or in its
vicinity. Fumone is a splendid uncontaminated (except for a big
communication tower) medieval town which appears in front of our
eyes just like it did to the medieval pilgrim travel from to Rome to
visit the sacred places of Christianity. Fumone is dominated by its
millenary castle where the only Pope who ever resigned, Celestin V,
was imprisoned and then killed. The castle can be visited, but the
guide doesn't speak English and so I'll have to act as your
interpreter.We will finally drive by
Lake Canterno
on the way back to Rome.
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Rates per vehicle for this
excursion:
sedan (1/4 persons) 525 €;
minivan (4 persons) 550 €;
minivan (6/7 persons) 600 €;
minivan (7/8 persons) 650 €. |
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Driving times:
Rome to Fiuggi: 1hr
Fiuggi to Trisulti: 35’hr
Trisulti to Alatri: 20'
Alatri to Fumone: 20'
Fumone to Rome: 1hr |
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Day
trips:
excursions to
other famous cities and tourist attractions in Italy 10/12-hour
days |
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Rates for
these day trips include:
pick up and drop off at the hotel,
driving guide, vehicle, tolls and fuel.
Rates do not
include:
Lunch, drinks, personal purchases or any thing not specifically
listed as included. |
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These are excursion to other Italian
regions:
Campania,
Tuscany
and
Umbria, they
require a full, 10/12-hour, day. |
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Florence in one day
Drive to Florence from Rome to tour the cradle of the Renaissance. |
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Once in the city of Florence you will be taken to see all the major
highlights, such as
Piazzale Michelangelo
(panorama of the city),
Piazza della
Signoria,
The Duomo
(Cathedral),
Santa Croce
(the church where Michelangelo, Galileo, Dante and other famous
Florentines are buried and the famous leather school of Florence was
started by the Franciscan Monks), the
Accademia
Museum
(that's where Michelangelo's David is kept),
Ponte
Vecchio
etc.. Maybe you'll want to use your time in Florence to sightsee
and/or shop, but in case you like to taste the famous Florentine
cuisine and Chianti wine I'll be glad to suggest a good and handy
restaurant.
We'll leave Florence between 4:30 or 5:00 pm and will reach Rome in the
evening. |
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Rates per
vehicle for this excursion:
sedan (1/4 persons) 700 €;
minivan (4 persons) 750 €;
minivan (6/7 persons) 800 €;
minivan (7/8 persons) 850 €.
Each
additional hour: 58, 62, 66, 70 Euros. |
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Driving times:
Rome to Florence: 2hr 30'
Florence to Rome: 2hr 30'
Total for the day: 12 |
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Pompeii
One day excursion to Pompeii
from Rome. |
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We leave from your hotel around 8:00 a.m. and drive to
Pompeii. A stop can be made on the way there to visit a famous Cameo Factory and see the old artisans make cameos the same way the Greeks where making them 3000 years ago. This short stop also gives you the opportunity to stretch your legs and taste the famous Neapolitan Espresso coffee and the Sfogliatella pastry at the nearby coffee shop.
We arrive in Pompeii to visit the famous excavations at about 11:00 a.m..
Unfortunately, though I would love to guide personally my clients
through the ruins, I am not allowed to do so. |
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They have local guides there and they are the only ones who have the
permit for guiding through Pompeii's ruins. The cost for hiring a local guide is about 100 Euros, for a group up
to 6 people, and the tour lasts nearly 2 hours. The alternative to
hiring a personal guide is the audio guide, a sort of portable CD
player that one takes along and activates once he arrives to the
spot marked on the map, that comes with, it and tells the story of
the particular site that moment he's looking at. After the tour and
eventually a lunch break at one of the local pizzerias, we return to
Rome. |
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Rates per
vehicle for this excursion:
sedan (1/4 persons) 600 €;
minivan (4 persons) 640 €;
minivan (6/7 persons) 690 €;
minivan (7/8 persons) 725 €.
Each
additional hour: 58, 62, 66, 70 Euros. |
Driving
times:
Rome/rest stop (Cameo Factory): 2hr
Cameo Factory
to Pompeii: 20'
Pompeii to
Rome: 2hr15'
Total for the
day: 10 |
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Pompeii
and Sorrento
One day excursion to Pompeii and Sorrento |
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We leave from your hotel around 8:00 a.m. and drive to Sorrento first. Sorrento is a lovely resort area at the tip of the homonymous peninsula which separates the Gulf of Naples from the Gulf of Salerno. The drive to Sorrento offers unforgettable panoramas. Driving along the winding road, built on spectacular overhanging cliffs, the isle of Capri, the city of Naples and the mount Vesuvius appear in front of your eyes.
On the way to Sorrento, we can make a stop to visit a famous Cameo
Factory and see the old artisans at work making cameos the same way
the Greeks where making here them 3000 years ago.
This short stop gives us the opportunity to stretch our legs and
taste the famous Neapolitan Espresso coffee and the Sfogliatella
pastry |
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at the nearby
coffee shop. Arriving in Sorrento about one hour can be spent
walking around its narrow streets and looking at the colorful shops
selling typical products like Limoncello liqueur, inlaid wooden
furniture, embroidery and ceramics. Sorrento is also a good place
for a nice, typical seafood based lunch by the sea in a good
restaurants right on top of the wonderful cliffs or down by the
seashore for a rather moderate price. Leaving Sorrento in the early
afternoon, we drive to Pompeii to visit the famous excavations.
Unfortunately, though I would love to guide |
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personally my clients
through the ruins, I am not allowed to do so. They have local guides
there and they are the only ones who have the permit for guiding
through Pompeii's ruins. The cost for hiring a local guide is about
100 Euros, for a group up to 6 people, and the tour lasts nearly 2
hours. The alternative to hiring a personal guide is the audio
guide, a sort of portable CD player that one takes along and
activates once he arrives to the spot marked on the map, that comes
with it, and tells the story of the particular site that moment he's
looking at. After visiting Pompeii we return to Rome to arrive there
in the early evening.
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Rates per
vehicle for this excursion:
sedan (1/4 persons) 700 €;
minivan (4 persons) 750 €;
minivan (6/7 persons) 800 €;
minivan (7/8 persons) 850 €.
Each
additional hour: 58, 62, 66, 70 Euros. |
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Driving times:
Rome to Cameo Factory (pit stop): 2hr
Cameo Factory to Sorrento: 40'
Sorrento to
Pompeii: 40'
Pompeii to Rome: 2hr15
Total for the day: 12
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Pompeii,
Sorrento and Capri
Only from June through September, when there's enough daylight...
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This tour is practically the same
as the one described above to Sorrento and Pompeii, but in the Summer we can manage to squeeze in a short excursion to the beautiful island of Capri. We drive to Sorrento and board the hydrofoil to
Capri, return to Sorrento in the early afternoon and stop to visit the
excavations of Pompeii on the way back to Rome. Return to Rome in the evening. In Capri I work in collaboration with a local Taxi Driver who has been able to perfectly upkeep a Vintage FIAT from the 60's, also a Stretch Convertible, which is very cute and much better suits the "Dolce Vita" atmosphere of the island, rather than a newer car. |
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He also speaks English, and is a nice courteous person. All the
other Taxi Drivers use a special FIAT Stretch Convertible New Car,
car for 7 passengers. Going to Capri, one thing you'll want to see
is the "Blue Grotto". Normally tourists are routed on a big boat
which from the Marina Grande goes to the Grotto, once they get to
the grotto they have to wait to be transported to smaller boats that
fit its entrance, and once they are done they are brought back to
the bigger boat to go back to the port. This takes a couple of
hours. |
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The best alternative
to go there by car, you save the time taking trip by boat and the
wait outside of the entrance to the Grotto. The charge for the tour
of the island is 150 Euros. You'll be driven to the different sites and picked up again at a set time than driven to the next place. Few people know you can drive to the Grotto and get tricked with the big boat, this way you can visit the grotto in 1hr rather than 2-3 without waiting a long time. Once you are done with the grotto, you will be taken to Anacapri and Town of Capri Itself. |
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Rates per
vehicle for this excursion:
sedan (1/4 persons) 700 €;
minivan (4 persons) 750 €;
minivan (6/7 persons) 800 €;
minivan (7/8 persons) 850 €.
Each additional
hour: 58, 62, 66, 70 Euros. |
Driving times:
Rome to Cameo Factory (pit stop): 2hr
Cameo Factory to Sorrento: 40'
Sorrento to Capri by
boat: 30' each way
Sorrento to Pompeii:
40'
Pompeii to Rome: 2hr15'
Total for the day: 12 |
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Pompeii,
Sorrento and Positano
Another tour for the High Summer, when
you have more daylight! |
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This is almost exactly the same
as the tour to Sorrento and Pompeii but, in this case, before going to Sorrento we do a little side trip on the famous Amalfi drive. We reach as far as Positano and spend some time there. After visiting Positano we
drive to Sorrento to be there in time for lunch. In the early afternoon we leave Sorrento and stop to visit the
excavations of Pompeii on the way back to Rome. Return to Rome in the evening. |
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Rates per
vehicle for this excursion:
sedan (1/4 persons) 700 €;
minivan (4 persons) 750 €;
minivan (6/7 persons) 800 €;
minivan (7/8 persons) 850 €.
Each additional
hour: 58, 62, 66, 70 Euros. |
Driving times:
Rome to Cameo Factory (pit stop): 2hr
Cameo Factory to Positano: 40'
Positano to Sorrento: 30'
Sorrento to Pompeii: 40'
Pompeii to Rome: 2hr15'
Total for the day: 12 |
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Assisi
and Umbria
One day excursion to Assisi from Rome
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Visit the famous city of St. Francis in the heart of
Umbria. Gorgeous countryside.
Return to Rome in the evening. |
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The trip to
Assisi is a great opportunity to see the famous
Umbria, the region of Italy that rivals with Tuscany for the beauty of the countryside. The drive to Assisi from Rome takes about two hours and one gets to see
some breathtaking panoramas. Umbria, the green heart of Italy they call it and it really is lush! Assisi was, in the pre-roman age influenced by the nearby Etruscans. Asisium was its name as it became a Roman
municipality. The martyr Rufino introduced the Christian faith the 3rd century A.D.. After the fall of the Roman Empire,
Assisi was sacked by the Goths and later recaptured by the
Byzantines. Subject to Spoleto, it flourished again during the 11th
and 12th centuries as an independent township, though it was
troubled by wars. Subdued by Barbarossa, it was here that Federico II was educated. St. Francis and St. Claire were born here
during this period (St. Francis 1181, St. Claire 1193).
From the 16th century to 1860, except for the brief Napoleonic period, it was part of the Papal States.Stone-cutters and masons gave Assisi an incomparable appearance, and time seems
to have stopped before its beauty. Its narrow streets between buildings built with in the typical local stone called Pietra
Subasia with their red tile roofs make you think |
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you’ve been traveling in a
time-machine, rather than in a in normal car, to get there. Arriving in Assisi we stop to see the Church of Santa Maria degli
Angeli, which is
at the bottom of the hill, and than climb to the town to visit St. Claire’s . After lunch we visit
St. Francis’. Wanting to see more of Umbria in one day, the visit of Assisi can be limited to the church of St. Francis and
a stroll through the typical streets, so the rest of the day can be spent visiting Deruta, famous for its ceramics, Todi and Orvieto. |
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Rates per
vehicle for this excursion:
sedan (1/4 persons) 630 €;
minivan (4 persons) 665 €;
minivan (6/7 persons) 700 €;
minivan (7/8 persons) 750 €.
Each additional
hour: 58, 62, 66, 70 Euros. |
Driving times:
Rome to Assisi: 2hr
Assisi to Rome: 2hr
Assisi to Deruta: 20'
Deruta to Todi: 20'
Todi to Orvieto: 30'
Orvieto to
Rome: 1hr 10'
Total for the day: 10 |
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