This great Italy vacation, The Sweet Life: Rome & Sorrento, offers so much to explore and enjoy together in the sunny south of Italy that you'll never want it to end! The highlight is certain to be the private, after-hours visit to the Vatican Museums where your family will view some of the world's most magnificent art treasures at your own pace, without the crowds! Other Rome highlights include a visit to the Colosseum where you can say ciao to a Roman Centurian; a visit to Rome's secret underground city, the ancient underground catacombs, where you'll learn all about a "secret language"; and a chance to find out what happens when you make a wish and throw a coin into the Trevi Fountain.

Pompeii reveals its centuries-old mysteries as you walk along its ancient stone streets and explore its excavated buildings. Sweet Sorrento is the gateway to both the fabled Amalfi Coast and the enchanted Isle of Capri. Drive along a road that twists and turns like a roller coaster on the Amalfi Coast and ride a jet foil to Capri. Try authentic Neapolitan pizza, savor gelato and try your hand at making paper. You family will discover that this Italy vacation is truly the sweet life, indeed!

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• Hotel accommodations for all nights
• First Class train ride from Rome to Naples
• 12 Meals as specified in the itinerary
• Motor coach transportation
• Special dinners
• Sightseeing
• Admissions
• Luggage handling
• Airport transfers
• Services of local guides and drivers
• All gratuities for restaurant and hotel staff and local guides

Night 1, 2 & 3:
The St. Regis Grand Hotel, Rome, Italy

Night 4, 5 & 6:
Hilton Sorrento Palace - Sorrento, Italy

Day 1 - Welcome to Rome!
Southern Italy vacation begins: 2:30 PM, The St. Regis Grand Hotel, Rome. Your family's Italy vacation begins with an included transfer from Rome's Leonardo da Vinci Airport in Fiumicino to The St. Regis Grand Hotel. You'll feel like royalty at The St. Regis Grand Hotel, a deluxe hotel located right in the heart of Rome; it's close to sights such as Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps and the Via Venato. First up today is a chance to play detective. And actually, make that ancient detective when you take a trip "down" to the city's ancient catacombs, found deep under the city in a complex series of underground tunnels. These catacombs have been used for many different things throughout many, many centuries - and one of the most interesting things you'll see is an ancient art gallery! Frescoes, sculptures, inscriptions - even graffiti - decorate these catacombs. Of particular interest are the signs and symbols, secret signs that revealed ideas of the day. This evening be sure to enjoy your welcome reception and dinner at a fabulous restaurant along the Appian Way - the perfect introduction to the great food you'll find on this Southern Italy vacation.

Meals: Dinner
Lodging: The St. Regis Grand Hotel, Rome

Day 2 - A walk on the ancient side
The first full day of your Italy vacation begins with a visit to the famous Colosseum, the place for all sorts of "entertainment" in ancient Rome. 55,000 amusement-seeking Roman residents could all find seats to watch gladiators battle each other, chariots race around and around, and even mock sea battles when the arena was flooded to provide the sea. Learn all about the political economic life of ancient Rome on a visit to its hub, the Roman Forum, then visit the Basilica of St. Peter and St. Peters Square. At the conclusion of today's sightseeing, the day is free for your family to do what they wish in Rome!

Meals: Breakfast
Lodging: The St. Regis Grand Hotel, Rome

Day 3 - Amazing after-hours private visit to the Vatican Museums
Day three of your Southern Italy vacation begins with a walking tour to Piazza Navona with its beautiful Fountain of the Four Rivers by Bernini, and Trevi Fountain. It's said that you're sure to return to Rome if you turn your back to the fountain and throw three coins into it over your left shoulder while wishing very hard. Visit the Gothic Santa Maria sopra Minerva Basilica as well as the Church of St. Ignatius, which was once the chapel for the Roman College and is today the site of important concerts and other festivities involving international orchestras and choirs. And then - later in the day you'll enjoy an after-hours, private visit to the Vatican Museums. Nothing compares to the special bond you'll feel with your family today; throughout the years you'll long remember this visit. Without crowds, without rushing, without pushing your way past a massive amount of people blocking your view of what you want to see most, you'll have a chance to explore the Candelabra Gallery, the Map Gallery and the Tapestries, and the Sistine Chapel. You'll look up at Michelangelo's amazing Sistine Chapel ceiling in relative silence - and without the noisy crowds, you'll find out that the floor is just as impressive as the ceiling! Your family will be able to contemplate the inspirational art treasures, think about the stories behind the famous paintings, and truly appreciate the exquisite architecture. A once-in-a-lifetime Italy vacation experience!

Meals: Breakfast, lunch
Lodging: The St. Regis Grand Hotel, Rome

Day 4 - The poignant story of Pompeii
Your Italy vacation continues as you travel from Rome to Naples by the very fast TAV train through the Italian countryside before going on to Pompeii. When mighty Mount Vesuvius blew its top on August 24th in 79 AD, the tons of pumice and hot ash that fell on Pompeii totally buried the city and everyone in it. Pompeii slept hidden under that "blanket" until it was rediscovered in 1748 and excavation began. Today, the streets of the city are very much like they were on the day before the volcano erupted; many of the buildings have been so wonderfully restored that it almost seems as if the residents have just stepped away for a minute. Your family will leave Pompeii with a very good sense of what daily life was like during the 1st century AD. Your family Italy vacation continues in Sorrento, a beautiful place nestled between the mountains and the sea with great views of the powerful volcano known as Mt. Vesuvius and the Gulf of Naples. Visit a family farm in the country and find out how cheese and other tasty treats are made. Then, try your hand at using that cheese as a professional chef shows you how to make your very own pizza for a special dinner. You'll have a chance to find out what Neapolitan music is all about - and you may just find some new tunes for your MP3 player! Finally, work off all those pizza calories as you learn to do the toe-tapping Tarantella, a dance thought to be a cure for a spider bite in the Middle Ages; it involves a lot of whirling around, and takes a lot of energy!

Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Lodging: Hilton Sorrento Palace, Sorrento

Day 5 - Captivating convertible cruising on Capri
Today, your Italy vacation takes you across the Gulf of Naples by jet foil to the enchanting Isle of Capri. Once there, you'll feel like the rich and famous when you take a fabulous ride in a private convertible along the cliffs of the road to Anacapri, ending in the town. A funicular (chairlift) takes you to the highest point of the island to get a good look at the beautiful Gulf and the town below. After lunch in the town of Capri, and some free time, take the funicular down to the pier to catch your jet foil back to Sorrento. From your Executive Room at the Hilton Sorrento Palace you'll be able to look out at the Gulf of Naples and in the distance, the infamous Mount Vesuvius. The evening is free to spend with your family - but you are encouraged not to miss the chance to take little trip to see how Italian ice cream - gelato - is made!

Meals: Breakfast, lunch
Lodging: Hilton Sorrento Palace, Sorrento

Day 6 - The amazing Amalfi Coast
If you like roller coasters, you'll love the drive along the Amalfi Coast today! The road seems to sometimes go straight up, sometimes straight down and careens around sharp corners at the edge of the cliffs. Take a walking tour in Positano, a cool town that seems to be holding on to its cliff-side perch for dear life, before climbing aboard a boat bound for Amalfi to look up at the cliffs of the Amalfi Coast now above you. There may even be time for a swim before lunch at a hidden cove if the weather is cooperative. In lovely Amalfi, you'll have time to check out the sights along the maze of winding streets. They have been making paper in this old medieval town since the 12th century - and you have an opportunity today to visit a paper mill and see it for yourself. Your Italy vacation concludes tonight with a barbecue farewell dinner - and you'll now be glad that you tossed that coin into the Trevi Fountain!

Meals: Breakfast, dinner
Lodging: Hilton Sorrento Palace, Sorrento

Day 7 - Journey home
Your Southern Italy vacation ends: Sorrento. Fly home anytime. Your family's Italy vacation ends with an included transfer from the Hilton Sorrento Palace to Naples International Airport. Please allow 2 1/2 hours for airport check-in formalities. Arrivederci!

Meals: Breakfast