Fodor's To Europe!
Discover the Italian Renaissance
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Fly into: Milan
Fly out of: Rome
Total Duration: 11 days
The Italian Renaissance, a golden age of art and culture, celebrated beauty, innovation, and mathematical proportion. You can read it in Dante, see it in Michelangelo, and be engulfed by it when you walk into a Renaissance church. This tour highlights key Renaissance sites and masterpieces in eight different locales, including the major cities of Milan, Venice, Florence, and Rome, as well some more remote, less frenetic destinations.
- Natural Beauty
- Food and Wine
- Art and Culture
- Shopping
- Nightlife
This Trip's Top Experiences:
Day 1
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1 Milan
Masterpieces and More
- Make a beeline for Leonardo's damaged but still moving Last Supper in the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie
- Visit the Brera museum, home to masterpieces by Mantegna, Raphael, and Piero della Francesca
- Don't miss the exquisite Duomo in all its Gothic splendor
Days 2-3
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2 Venice
Pastel Palaces
- Take a boat ride down the spectacular Grand Canal
- Hang out in the gracefully spacious Piazza San Marco before visiting the Basilica, with its shimmering mosaics
- Bask in the Bellinis and other Venetian masterpieces at the marvelous Galleria dell'Accademia
Day 4
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3 Ferrara
Through the Mist
- Tour the gargartuan Castello Estense, home to the ruling d'Este family; don't miss the dungeon
- Walk by the glittering Palazzo Diamante, and go in if there's a special exhibition running
- Check out the lively 15th-century frescoes by Cosmè Tura in the Salone dei Mesi at Palazzo Schifanoia
Days 5-7
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4 Florence
Heart of the Renaissance
- Make reservations in advance to visit the Uffizi, the world's greatest collection of Renaissance art
- Visit the Duomo, admire Brunelleschi's groundbreaking cupola, and climb to the top if you have the stamina
- Visit the Accademia and marvel at Michelangelo's David, his Slaves, and his St. Matthew
- Experience convent life while contemplating the tranquil paintings by Fra Angelico, housed in Museo di San Marco
Day 8
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5 Arezzo & Cortona
Frescoes and Stunning Views
- Don't miss Piero della Francesca's inspiring fresco cycle of Legends of the True Cross in the Basilica di San Francesco in Arezzo
- Check out Arezzo's oddly-shaped Piazza Grande, and the 16th-century loggia designed by Giorgio Vasari
- Make sure to see two very moving works by Fra Angelico in the Museo Diocesano in lovely Cortona
Day 9
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6 Orvieto
Major Duomo For the Day
- Before going inside to see Luca Signorelli's riveting Last Judgment fresco, admire the façade of the Duomo, with its delicately sculpted figures by Lorenzo Maitani
- See works that inspired the Renaissance with a visit to the Museo Archeologico Claudio Faina
- Experience underground Orvieto on a tour of the city's tunnels and caverns
Days 10-11
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7 Rome
City of Ancient Wonders
- Queue with the masses to visit the Sistine Chapel and the rest of the massive Musei Vaticani
- Take a "Caravaggio tour" of churches with works by the temperamental master
- View stunning sculptures by Bernini, as well as works by Raphael, Coreggio, and Titian at the Villa Borghese
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