Along this 8 Day Italy Rail Circle Tour from and to Rome, you will visit some of the most beautiful cities in Italy – Rome, Venice, Pisa and Florence. You will also visit the scenic Tuscan countryside as well as the charming towns of Siena and San Gimignano.
Piazza del campidoglio © bruno_pek_
This beautiful vacation package includes second class Rail (For just US $ 149 per person the tour can be upgraded to 1st-class rail) all the way as well as excellent rated hotels (see the tableau this is already included in the price of your tour). Here you also find everything else that is included: transfers, rail tickets, tours and admissions.
Price per Person
| two sharing a double room | one in a single room | three sharing a triple room |
| US $ 2,119 | US $ 3,399 | US $ 1,859 |
Would you like to submit your personal information so we can check availability for your specific travel dates for this beautiful tour? On our BOOKING INQUIRY page you find a form which you may use to forward your personal information:
View 8 Day Italy Rail Tour (8R05) in a larger map
Day 1 – Rome
Depending on your arrival time in Rome, you may have free time for sightseeing in Rome City Center, where your hotel is located. From there many of the major sights in the City are within walking distance. Visit the Spanish Steps at Piazza di Spagna, the Piazza Navona with its many baroque attractions by Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Francesco Borromini, the Trevi Fountain and many more.
Fountain of the Four Rivers and Coloseum Rome © Fototeca ENIT, Vito Arcomano
Day 2 – Rome
Today you will go on a three-hour English-speaking walking tour which includes a visit to the Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine Hill. The tour will give you an overall impression of the most significant sights of Ancient Rome. The tour starts with the Colosseum and an in-depth discussion on the history of the Amphitheater. After a short break at the Arch of Constantine, you arrive at Palatine Hill, one of the famous Seven Hills of Rome. Walk on the Via Sacra (Sacred Way) to the Roman Forum and see the Temple which houses the altar where Julius Caesar was cremated. The tour ends at the Arch of Septimus Severus (within the Roman Forum).
After the tour you may want to have lunch at the Piazza Navona, a beautiful piazza with three fountains. Here you will find many restaurants with outside tables – a very nice place for lunch. After lunch you may want to take a short walk towards the Tiber. On the other side, you find Saint Peter´s Square within the Vatican.
Day 3 – Venice
Take the rail from Rome directly to Venice. Your hotel is in walking distance from the rail station. You have all afternoon and evening to see many of the highlights: the Rialto Bridge which is the oldest bridge across the Grand Canal in Venice, St. Mark´s Square the principal public square of Venice, the Doge´s Palace one of the main landmarks of Venice… and many more!
Rialto Brigde, Chanel and St. Mark’s Campanile Venice Italy © Elisabeth Giesick
Day 4 – Venice
One of the best ways to see the highly pedestrianized city of Venice is by foot, where most of the top attractions are easily within walking distance. You may want to join a free English-speaking Venice walking tour (information on how to reserve this tour will be provided). You’ll be escorted through the city’s most famous landmarks: St. Mark’s Square, Marco Polo’s House, the Cannareggio District and much more. Skip the line at St. Mark’s Basilica and uncover hidden Venice with your local, English-speaking tour guide. You’ll walk through history – from the city’s beginnings as a maritime power to the modern day sightseeing mecca Venice has become.
Palazzo Vecchio Florence, Vine Yards, Dumo and Leaning Tower Pisa © Fototeca ENIT Vito Arcomano; Gino Cianci; Paola Ghirotto;
Day 5 – Florence
After breakfast you take the Speed train from Venice directly to Florence, a Renaissance city in the heart of Tuscany, and home of Michelangelo, Botticelli and many more. Visit the Piazza della Signoria and Palazzo Vecchio, Il Duomo (Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore) where you can climb up the 463 steps to its top to have a marvelous view of Florence. Take a walk over the Ponte Vecchio (old bridge) which is still lined with shops selling gold and silver jewelry. From the bridge you’ll have a great view along the Arno River.
Day 6 – San Gimignano and Siena
In the morning you will travel by escorted coach through the delightful hills of the Chianti countryside for a visit of Siena and San Gimignano. Widely considered to be one of Europe’s best preserved medieval towns, Siena is situated in the heart of Tuscany. The prime tourist attraction in Siena is the Piazza del Campo, the city’s main square which houses the Palazzo Pubblico, Siena’s town hall and the adjoining Torre del Mangia. After your visit in Siena you take a ride through the beautiful Tuscan countryside to the city of San Gimignano. Here you can visit the Collegiate Church with its lavish Frescoes, or the Church of Saint Augustine, where you can see works by Renaissance artists. These are just two of the major tourist attractions of San Gimignano. You will be back in Florence in the evening, right in time to enjoy an Italian Dinner!
Day 7 – Pisa
Today you take an escorted coach tour to Pisa. A local guide will escort you on a walking tour of the “Square of Miracles”. The city’s most famous attraction, the leaning tower of Pisa needs no introduction. The Cathedral, another major tourist attraction, which also stands on the same Piazza, is one of the world’s greatest examples of Pisan-Romanesque architecture. The Cathedral is famous for the works of art that adorn its interiors such as the pulpit by Giovanni Pisano. In the afternoon the bus will take you back to Florence where your hotel is located. You will still have some more time for sightseeing in Florence in the late afternoon/evening that day.
Day 8 – Rome
After breakfast you take the high-speed train back to Rome where your tour ends. If you would like to extend your stay in Rome please let us know. We will be happy to arrange post-tour accommodation in Rome for you.
Would you like to download an overview of the 8 Day Italy Rail Circle Tour (8R05) as a pdf to print it out or to forward it to a friend? Please download it right here:This is already included in the price of your tour
| Day 1 - Rome | Hotel Napoleon (or similar if not available), located within 10 walking minutes from Rome Central Station | ||
| Day 2 - Rome | no train ticket needed | Hotel Napoleon (or similar if not available), located within 10 walking minutes from Rome Termini Station | Buffet breakfast at your hotel in Rome, 3 hr Rome walking tour |
| Day 3 - Rome to Venice/ Venice | Train ticket - from Rome directly to Venice (travel time about 3:45 hrs) | Hotel Abbazia (or similar if not available), located within 10 walking minutes from Venice Santa Lucia Station | Buffet breakfast at your hotel in Rome |
| Day 4 - Venice | no train ticket needed | Hotel Abbazia (or similar if not available), located within 10 walking minutes from Venice Santa Lucia Station | Buffet breakfast at your hotel in Venice |
| Day 5 - Venice to Florence/ Florence | Train ticket - from Venice directly to Florence(travel time about 2:05 hrs) | Embassy Hotel (or similar if not available), located within 10 walking minutes from Florence Central Station | Buffet breakfast at your hotel in Venice |
| Day 6 - Day Trip to San Gimignano and Siena | no train ticket needed | Embassy Hotel (or similar if not available), located within 10 walking minutes from Florence Central Station | Buffet breakfast at your hotel in Florence, Escorted coach tour to San Gimignano and Siena and back to Florence |
| Day 7 - Half Day Trip to Pisa | no train ticket needed | Embassy Hotel (or similar if not available), located within 10 walking minutes from Florence Central Station | Buffet breakfast at your hotel in Florence, Half day coach tour to Pisa |
| Day 8 - Florence to Rome/ Rome | Train ticket - from Florence directly to Rome(travel time about 1:40 hrs) | Buffet breakfast at your hotel in Florence |
Your tour package includes all tickets, vouchers and information necessary to enjoy a great independent tour. The tour package also contains tour information sheets (20-35 pages) with general information about the tour and a day by day itinerary which you can download from our website once your booking is confirmed.
This is not included in the price of your tour
- Airfare from/to your origin to/from Rome International Airport
- all meals other than breakfast (which is included)
- gratuities (tips)
You have booked the tour already and would like to download the to-europe tour information package for this tour now? Please download them right here:
(ADJUSTED) 10-DAY CENTRAL EUROPEAN RAIL TOUR Hi Thomas, I meant to send you an email yesterday right after I came back from the vacation but I was tied up with other things – few pending business related work from my company. Both my wife and I really enjoyed European vacation trip you arranged for us. All extra activities you arranged for us such as dinner cruse on evening, city bus tour, etc. were very good and all choice of the hotel in different cities were excellent. Train ride between cities was also very smooth and good. In overall, we had a really good time and very satisfied with your services. Thank you! – In Don B., Vancouver, BC, Canada
We are fortunate to have travelers from all over the world on our pre-packaged tours and we would love to have your feedback! If you have been traveling along this tour with us please leave us a review below – we greatly appreciate your time! (your Email address will not be displayed)
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Excellent trip, well organized. The itinerary Michaela put together was very detailed and thorough. Hotels were very clean and close to everything. I would suggest a maybe a different hotel in Rome. It was centrally located which was good but the cleanliness wasn't up to par and the breakfast was not very good. I guess we were spoiled from the hotels which were excellent!
We will definitely do this tour again and have already referred friends to you. Thank you
Excellent trip! Hotels were all great with the exception being Rome. Greatly enjoyed traveling to Venice and Florence on the train. Bus tours were well organized and tour guides were great.
Thank you for a wonderful time!
Great trip! Weather was very hot, 35C most days. We added two days in Naples & visited Pompeii & Mount Vesuvius which was very thrilling. The trip was very well organized with the trains, hotels and tours working out just great.
We enjoyed all of the cities and saw so many wonderful historical sites.
Many thanks to To-Europe for another great trip!
From Beginning to end our holiday was a breeze. I would like to thank Michaela, Petra and Thomas for their planning and answering any questions that we had. Would highly recommend them and will use this organisation for my next vacation. Thank you.
We absolutely loved our 8-Day Italian Tour! We got to experience Rome, Venice, and Florence while staying at some amazing boutique hotels. Traveling between cities on the high-speed rail system was very enjoyable - better than flying! We recommend upgrading your train seats to first class. The pre-arranged bus tours were top-notch with knowledgeable tour guides and professional drivers making everything a joy to experience! There is a lot of free time on this tour for arranging your own sight-seeing experiences as well. We can't stress enough how important it is to buy your entry tickets to the various sites in advance (e.g., the Coliseum, the Vatican, museums, etc.) The ticket lines for many of these sites are VERY long! Buying tickets in advance allows you to skip the line so you spend more time enjoying the sites. Finally, when in Venice, although rather expensive, splurge for the gondola ride. It's worth it!
Matt and Denise N.
Atlanta, GA USA
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