Italy Switzerland France Tour Packages
10 Days Florence to Paris.
Highlights Include: Florence, Verona, St. Moritz, Glacier Express, Zermatt, Gornergrat, Klein Matterhorn Glacier Paradise, Paris
A 10-day special interest itinerary taking in the highlights of Italy, Switzerland and France.
Italy, Switzerland & France
DAY 1 ARRIVE FLORENCE, ITALY: Morning arrival in Florence. Transfer to your hotel. This afternoon, meet your expert local guide who will lead you on a walking tour along the banks of the Arno to the Ponte Vecchio, a bridge that is one of the most iconic sites in Europe. From here, you will visit the nearby Uffizi Gallery where many of the most celebrated works of art from the Florentine Renaissance are housed. Time permitting, you may also wish to visit the Accademia Gallery, where the magnificent statue of David by Michelangelo is displayed. The evening is yours to spend at leisure.
Hotel Name: Hotel Savoy.
DAY 2 FLORENCE: This morning, your guide will lead you on a further walking tour of historic city center focusing on its many churches. You will see the cathedral clad in multi-colored marble, and Giotto’s Campanile. Admire the graceful classical architecture in San Lorenzo and see the Massacio fresco of the Trinity in Santa Maria Novella. The remainder of the day is yours to spend independently.
Hotel Name: Hotel Savoy.
DAY 3 FLORENCE / VERONA / ST. MORITZ: Leave Florence this morning and follow the highway through the Appennines, and over the vast plain of the Po River to Verona, a city that preserves monuments from Roman times, the Middle Ages, and the Renaissance. Upon arrival meet your city guide and depart on an orientation walking tour of the city center. You will see the churches around the Piazza dei Signori, and the Piazza delle Erbe on the site of the Roman Forum. You will also pass the Capulet House, said to have been the inspiration for Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. You will continue your journey north into the Alps along the banks of Lake Iseo, one of the smaller Italian Lakes en route to the Italian-Swiss border. Once you cross into Switzerland, you will pass some dramatic glacial landscapes around the fabled Bernina Peak. The road from here will bring you down to St Moritz, arguably the most famous winter resort in the world. The evening is yours to spend at leisure.
Hotel Name: Carlton Hotel.
DAY 4 ST MORITZ / GLACIER EXPRESS / ZERMATT: This morning transfer to the train station, where you will board the Glacier Express train, possibly the best-loved scenic rail journey in the world. From your reserved seats in a first-class coach, sit back and enjoy the alpine panoramas that unfold around every bend in the track. Lunch will be served as you travel. The journey takes around 7½ hours and brings you right into the center of Zermatt. Here you will be met and transferred by electric vehicles to your hotel. (Your luggage will be awaiting you in your rooms having been transferred by road from St Moritz). The evening is yours to spend at leisure.
Hotel Name: Grand Hotel Zermatterhof.
DAY 5 ZERMATT AND GORNERGRAT: This morning walk to cable-railway station and board a train that winds its way up the hillside to the village of Gornergrat. From here you will enjoy the most spectacular views of the Matterhorn, the most instantly recognizable mountain in all of Europe. After lunch return to Zermatt and spend the remainder of the day at leisure.
Hotel Name: Grand Hotel Zermatterhof.
DAY 6 ZERMATT AND THE KLEIN MATTERHORN GLACIER PARADISE: Today take a gondola up to the Furi station where you transfer to a cable car to travel further up to Trockener Steg. From her the highest cableway in Europe transports visitors up past giant crevasses to the Matterhorn glacier paradise and into a breathtaking mountain landscape of glaciers and permanent snow. It is even possible to go into the permanent ice. From the Matterhorn glacier paradise station an elevator takes you down nearly 50 ft where you walk through an ice tunnel into a glacier palace which contains ice sculptures. The more adventurous can make their exit through a glacier crevasse. After lunch return to Zermatt.
Hotel Name: Grand Hotel Zermatterhof.
DAY 7 ZERMATT / LAUSANNE / PARIS: Return by electric vehicle to the train station and take a shuttle train to Täsch, where you will board your private motorcoach and proceed to Lausanne. Upon arrival enjoy lunch in a restaurant in the attractive Old Town. Later transfer to the station and take a high-speed TGV to Paris. Upon arrival at the end of the afternoon transfer to your hotel and dine this evening independently.
Hotel Name: Hospes Lancaster.
DAY 8 PARIS: NOTRE DAME AND VERSAILLES: This morning meets your local guide and depart to visit Notre Dame Cathedral for Mass. After lunch, drive out of Paris to Versailles, where you will visit the royal chateau of Louis XIV, and the celebrated gardens. Tour the staterooms of the palace, including the magnificent Galerie des Glaces, where the outside is reflected in a myriad of enormous mirrors. Also take time to wander in the gardens where, schedule permitting, you will be able to see the magnificent spectacle of the Grands Eaux Musicales. The impressive fountains that were created for the palace present one of the finest water displays in existence. Return to Paris, where this evening, you will enjoy an entertaining dinner cruise watching the sights of the Paris slip past serenely as you enjoy a delicious meal accompanied by atmospheric local entertainment.
Hotel Name: Hospes Lancaster.
DAY 9 PARIS: THE LOUVRE, THE EIFFEL TOWER AND THE PARIS LIDO: Accompanied by your local guide depart for a full day city tour beginning with a visit to Musée du Louvre. Housed in a former royal palace in Paris, this museum preserves one of the finest collections of ancient artifacts and Old Master Paintings in existence. Among many treasures are the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci, and the Greek sculpture of Venus de Milo. This afternoon, travel across the river to the Eiffel Tower, arguably the most iconic structure in Europe. Take elevators up to the highest level, from where you will obtain a magnificent view of the city.
This evening, you will be transferred to the Paris Lido, home to one of the world’s longest running and best-loved revue shows. You will enjoy a sumptuous dinner before the glittering and colorful spectacle that will form a wonderful memory of Paris.
Hotel Name: Hospes Lancaster.
DAY 10 DEPART PARIS: Transfer to Charles de Gaulle Airport to board your home-bound flight.