Cornelius Amann
October 06, 2026
5/5
Italy: Rome and Florence, a Slow Two-City Stay
7 days, two hotels: three nights in Rome for the Vatican, the Colosseum and Trastevere, then the fast train to Florence for the Uffizi, David, Fiesole and a Chianti lunch.
7 days · Rome to Florence · up to 12 guests
Florence and the Duomo from the hills south of the Arno Photo: Nikolaï POSNER, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Florence_-_Italy.jpg)
The facts
At a glance
- Length
- 7 days, 6 nights
- Start and end
- Rome to Florence
- Group size
- 7 to 12 guests
- Activity level
Easy
City walking on cobbles and stone floors, about 6 to 10 km and 3 to 5 hours on your feet on the Rome days and the Uffizi day, with a few stairs and the Palatine slope; museum visits are mostly standing. Every afternoon has a rest or free time, and any visit can be cut short.
- Meals included
- 6 breakfasts, 2 lunches, 2 dinners
- Room of your own
- + CAD 705 (estimated price)
- Season
- April to June and September to October
Highlights
Why this trip
- The Pantheon and the painted ceiling of Sant'Ignazio on the first evening walk
- The Vatican Museums at the first 8 am entry, with the Sistine Chapel before the corridors fill
- The Colosseum on the first timed entry, then the Palatine and the Roman Forum
- An evening walk and dinner in Trastevere
- The fast train to Florence and Michelangelo's David on a reserved slot the same afternoon
- The Uffizi at 8:15 opening with a local art guide
- Sunset over Florence from the hill town of Fiesole
- A long lunch at a Chianti winery, with Panzano and Castellina in Chianti
What makes this trip different
Free time is part of the plan
Free time and choices are marked on the days they fall.
Solo without the penalty
A room of your own is + CAD 705 (estimated price).
Day by day
Itinerary
Tap any stop on the map to open that dayClick any stop on the map to open that day
Arrive in Rome
Rome Fiumicino Airport to your hotel in central Rome, then the Pantheon and Piazza Navona
- Dinner
- Stay in Rome
- Drive about 45 min
Afternoon
Fly into Rome Fiumicino (FCO), about 30 km from the centre; plan to land by early afternoon. Our driver meets you in arrivals and takes you to the hotel, within walking distance of the Pantheon and Piazza Navona. At about 5 pm your See Sight Tours guide meets the group for a short briefing and an easy first walk. The Pantheon comes first, rebuilt under Hadrian with a concrete dome still open to the sky at its centre. A few minutes away is Sant'Ignazio, where the Jesuit painter Andrea Pozzo covered the ceiling with figures that seem to rise into heaven, and painted a flat canvas that passes for a dome.
Evening
We finish in Piazza Navona as the evening crowd comes out, around Bernini's Fountain of the Four Rivers, then sit down together to a welcome dinner of Roman dishes at a local trattoria.
Included
- Pick-up at Rome Fiumicino Airport (FCO)
- Welcome briefing with your guide
- Evening walk: the Pantheon, Sant'Ignazio and Piazza Navona
- Welcome dinner
Free time: Free until the late-afternoon briefing
Activity: About 2 km of easy walking.
The Vatican at the first entry
Your hotel to the Vatican Museums and St Peter's, then Prati
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Rome
We are at the Vatican Museums for the first entry at 8 am, with a licensed Vatican guide and quiet-guide headsets. The museums are vast, so the guide picks a route rather than trying to see everything: the Pinecone Courtyard, the Gallery of Maps with its painted map of every Italian region, the Raphael Rooms, and then the Sistine Chapel, where Michelangelo painted the ceiling from 1508 to 1512 and the Last Judgement more than twenty years later. The chapel is kept silent and photos are not allowed, so the guide explains what you are looking at before we go in. From there we cross into St Peter's Basilica for Michelangelo's Pietà and Bernini's bronze canopy under the dome.
Afternoon
Lunch is a sit-down meal in Prati, the quieter neighbourhood beside the Vatican. The afternoon is free: rest at the hotel, climb St Peter's dome, or walk along the Tiber to Castel Sant'Angelo.
Included
- Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel on the first entry, with a licensed guide
- St Peter's Basilica
- Sit-down lunch in Prati
Optional experiences
- Climb St Peter's dome
- Castel Sant'Angelo
More active option: Climb the 551 steps (or take the lift part way) to the top of St Peter's dome after the basilica.
Free time: Afternoon free in Rome
Activity: About 3 hours standing and walking in the museums, with stairs; covered shoulders and knees for St Peter's.
Ancient Rome early, Trastevere at night
The Colosseum, the Palatine and the Roman Forum, then Trastevere
- Breakfast and dinner
- Stay in Rome
Morning
We are at the Colosseum for the first timed entry of the morning, before the tour coaches arrive, with a licensed archaeological guide. Inside the amphitheatre, opened in AD 80, the guide shows how around fifty thousand spectators were seated by rank and how animals were raised into the arena from the passages under its floor. Then we walk up the Palatine, the hill where the emperors built their palaces, for the view down over the Circus Maximus, and come down into the Roman Forum along the Via Sacra, past the Arch of Titus and the Senate House.
Afternoon
Lunch is your choice in Monti, the old neighbourhood behind the Forum, and the afternoon is free to rest.
Evening
In the early evening we cross the Tiber into Trastevere, walking its ivy-hung lanes to Santa Maria in Trastevere and its gold apse mosaics, then sit down to dinner: cacio e pepe, carciofi in season, saltimbocca.
Included
- The Colosseum, the Palatine and the Roman Forum on the first timed entry, with a licensed guide
- Evening walk in Trastevere and Santa Maria in Trastevere
- Dinner in Trastevere
Optional experiences
- Capitoline Museums
- Galleria Borghese (timed tickets sell out weeks ahead)
Easier option: Skip the climb up the Palatine: your guide leads a level route through the Forum and meets the group at the Arch of Titus.
Free time: Afternoon free in Rome
Activity: About 3 hours on foot on uneven ancient paving and the Palatine slope; bring a hat and water in summer.
Fast train to Florence and David
Rome to Florence by fast train, then the Accademia and the centre
- Breakfast
- Stay in Florence
- By train
Morning
After breakfast we check out, and our vehicle takes the group and bags to Roma Termini for a reserved fast train north at about 10 am, about an hour and a half through the hills of Lazio, Umbria and Tuscany. At Firenze Santa Maria Novella the driver meets us and takes the bags to the hotel near the Duomo.
Afternoon
We arrive by about midday; after lunch on your own near the Duomo, we go to the Accademia on a reserved mid-afternoon slot with a local guide, to see Michelangelo's David, more than five metres of marble carved from 1501 to 1504, and the unfinished Prisoners in the gallery that leads to it. Then a first walk through the historic centre, a UNESCO site since 1982: the Baptistery doors, Brunelleschi's dome on the Duomo, Piazza della Signoria and the Palazzo Vecchio, and out onto the Ponte Vecchio as the goldsmiths' shutters close.
Evening
The evening is free; dinner is your choice.
Included
- Transfer to Roma Termini and from Firenze Santa Maria Novella, with your bags
- Reserved fast train, Rome to Florence
- The Accademia and Michelangelo's David, with a local guide
- Walking tour of the historic centre: the Duomo, the Baptistery, Piazza della Signoria and the Ponte Vecchio
Optional experiences
- Climb Brunelleschi's dome (separate timed ticket)
More active option: Climb the 463 steps to the top of Brunelleschi's dome on a timed ticket we can book for you.
Free time: Evening free in Florence
Activity: About 1 h 35 to 1 h 50 on the train; about 2 to 3 hours on foot in the afternoon.
The Uffizi at opening, Fiesole at sunset
The Uffizi in Florence, then up to Fiesole
- Breakfast
- Stay in Florence
- Drive about 30 min
We are at the Uffizi for the first entry at 8:15, before the corridors fill. A local art guide takes us through the rooms in order, so the Renaissance reads as a story: Giotto's Ognissanti Madonna, Botticelli's Birth of Venus and Primavera, Leonardo's Annunciation, and the view up the Arno from the top-floor corridor. Small groups wear quiet-guide headsets, so we never crowd a painting.
Morning
By late morning you are free.
Afternoon
Lunch is your choice, and the Mercato Centrale food hall near San Lorenzo is a good place to start; the afternoon is yours for the Pitti Palace, the Boboli Gardens or a long rest. In the late afternoon our vehicle climbs about 8 km to Fiesole, the hill town that was here before Florence. Walk the Roman theatre and the Etruscan walls in the archaeological area, then watch the city below turn gold from the terrace by San Francesco.
Included
- The Uffizi Gallery at 8:15 opening, with a local art guide
- Fiesole: the archaeological area with the Roman theatre and Etruscan walls
- Sunset from the San Francesco terrace in Fiesole
Optional experiences
- Pitti Palace and the Boboli Gardens
- The Medici Chapels
Easier option: Stay on the main square in Fiesole with a drink while the group walks up to San Francesco.
More active option: Walk back down to Florence from Fiesole by the old lanes through San Domenico, about 5 km and an hour, mostly downhill.
Free time: Late morning and afternoon free in Florence
Activity: About 2 hours standing in the Uffizi; the lane up to San Francesco in Fiesole is short but steep. The Fiesole visit's timing is set by season, as the archaeological area can close before sunset in autumn and winter.
A Chianti lunch day
Florence to Panzano in Chianti, a winery and Castellina in Chianti, then back
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Florence
- Drive about 2.5 h
Morning
A slower morning, then we leave Florence at about 10 am in our own vehicle and drive about 50 minutes south on the old Chiantigiana road through olive groves and vineyards. In Panzano in Chianti we stop for coffee and the view over the Conca d'Oro, the bowl of vines below the village.
Afternoon
Then on to a family winery in the Chianti Classico area for the day's centrepiece: a walk through the vines and the cellar with the family, then a long Tuscan lunch with their wine and olive oil. Nobody needs to drive afterwards. Mid-afternoon we go on to Castellina in Chianti, walking its covered medieval street, the Via delle Volte, and the Etruscan tomb mound of Montecalvario just outside town.
Evening
We are back in Florence by about 6 pm, and the evening is free.
Included
- Panzano in Chianti and the Conca d'Oro view
- Family winery visit with a cellar tour and tasting
- Long winery lunch with wine
- Castellina in Chianti: the Via delle Volte and the Etruscan tomb of Montecalvario
Easier option: Stay in Florence for a free day; the vehicle leaves from the hotel, so you can decide that morning.
Free time: Morning until 10 am and the evening free
Activity: About 2 and a half hours of driving in three short legs; easy walking in the villages and the vineyard.
Leave from Florence
Your hotel to Florence Airport (FLR) or Santa Maria Novella station
- Breakfast
Morning
A last breakfast in Florence, and the morning is yours until your transfer. If you have time, the San Lorenzo market lanes and the Mercato Centrale open early, and a last espresso standing at a bar costs about the same as anywhere in Italy. Our driver takes you to Florence Airport (FLR), about 6 km and 20 minutes from the centre, or to Santa Maria Novella station if you are continuing by train. Florence airport mainly serves European routes, so if your long-haul flight leaves from Rome Fiumicino, you can add a fast train to Roma Termini at your own cost, about an hour and a half, and from there the airport train takes about 32 minutes; we help you book both.
Evening
Your guide checks everyone's onward times the evening before and plans the transfers around them, so nobody waits hours at a station or rushes for a flight.
Included
- Transfer to Florence Airport (FLR) or Santa Maria Novella station
Free time: Morning free until your transfer
Activity: Book a flight from Florence after about 11 am, or a long-haul flight from Rome Fiumicino after about 3 pm.
- Rome3 nights
- Florence3 nights
- Overnight stop
- Day trip
- By boat or train
Wildlife and weather: Spring and autumn are mild and the best months. July and August are hot and busy, so we keep sightseeing to the mornings and leave the middle of the day free; November to March is cooler and quieter, with shorter days and some rain.
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Before you book
Right for you?
Good for you if you want
- First-time visitors who want Rome and Florence without rushing
- Travellers who prefer to unpack once per city
- Art and history lovers who want the big museums at quiet hours
- A mix of guided mornings and free afternoons
Not for you if you want
- Travellers who want Venice or the Amalfi Coast on the same trip (see our three-city trip)
- Step-free access: Rome and Florence mean cobbles, stairs and ancient paving
- Travellers who want every meal arranged
Book flights after we confirm your seat.
6 nights
Where you'll stay
Your hotels are named in your trip confirmation.
- Rome3 nights
- Florence3 nights
One price
What's in the price
Included
Accommodation
- 6 nights: 3 in Rome and 3 in Florence
- Central hotels of a 3-star-plus standard with private bathrooms, within walking distance of Piazza Navona or the Pantheon in Rome and the Duomo in Florence; we name each hotel when we confirm your dates
- Hotel city taxes
- Rooms shared, or your own for a supplement
Transport
- Pick-up at Rome Fiumicino Airport (FCO) on day 1
- Transfer to Florence Airport (FLR) or Santa Maria Novella station on day 7
- Reserved fast train, Rome to Florence
- Our own vehicle and driver for the station transfers with your bags, the Fiesole evening and the Chianti day
Your guide
- A See Sight Tours guide with the group from the day 1 hotel briefing to day 7
- Licensed local guides at the Vatican, the Colosseum, the Accademia and the Uffizi
- Quiet-guide headsets in the museums
- Tips for local guides and drivers
Activities
- Rome: the Pantheon, Sant'Ignazio, Piazza Navona, the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel, St Peter's, the Colosseum, the Palatine and the Roman Forum, and Trastevere
- Florence: Michelangelo's David at the Accademia, the Uffizi and a walking tour of the historic centre
- Fiesole: the archaeological area and sunset over Florence
- Chianti: Panzano, a winery visit with a tasting and Castellina in Chianti
- All entrance fees for included sights, on timed entries where the site offers them
Meals
- 6 breakfasts
- 2 lunches: in Prati near the Vatican and at a Chianti winery
- 2 dinners: a welcome dinner in Rome and dinner in Trastevere
Not included
- International flights to Rome and from Florence
- Visa or travel authorisation fees, such as ETIAS once it applies
- Travel insurance
- Meals not listed
- Drinks, apart from wine with the winery lunch
- A tip for your See Sight Tours guide, at your discretion
- Optional activities such as the St Peter's or Duomo climbs, the Galleria Borghese or the Pitti Palace
- Train to Rome Fiumicino on day 7 if you fly home from Rome
- Personal expenses
Extras
- Room of your own
- CAD 705 (estimated price)
When you can go
Dates and prices
Pick your start date when you request to book. We check that date and confirm it in your quote.
Prefer to travel without a group or guide? Ask us about arranging hotels, transport and city tours for you to travel independently.
Before you book
Booking terms
Nothing is charged now. Full terms and the cancellation schedule come with your quote, before you accept.
Business addresses
See Sight Tours Trips (USA): 3172 N Rainbow Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89108, United StatesSee Sight Tours Trips (Canada): 5305 50 Avenue, #1091, Red Deer, AB T4N 4B6, Canada+1-888-961-6584Guest reviews
What guests say
Reviews from guests on our day tours.
Jane
October 06, 2026
5/5
Susan
October 06, 2026
5/5
Tom L
October 05, 2026
5/5
MandL83
October 05, 2026
5/5
Darren O
October 05, 2026
5/5
Good to know
Questions
What does the price include?
Six nights in central hotels with city taxes, 6 breakfasts, 2 lunches and 2 dinners, airport and station transfers, the fast train to Florence, your See Sight Tours guide throughout, licensed local guides, and timed entries to the Vatican Museums, the Colosseum, the Accademia and the Uffizi, plus Fiesole and a Chianti winery lunch.
How big is the group?
The small-group trip runs with 7 to 12 guests. That is small enough for one table in a Trastevere trattoria and for the guide to be heard through quiet-guide headsets without blocking a museum corridor.
Who leads the trip?
A See Sight Tours guide travels with the group from the hotel briefing on day 1 to your transfer on day 7. At the Vatican, the Colosseum, the Accademia and the Uffizi a licensed local guide leads the visit, as those sites require.
Why only Rome and Florence, without Venice?
Because three nights in each city is the pace most first-timers say they wanted afterwards. You unpack twice, see the big sights at quiet hours and still have a free afternoon in each. If you want Venice too, our 10-day Venice, Florence and Rome trip adds it.
How fit do I need to be?
An easy level suits most people who can walk 3 to 5 hours a day with breaks. The Rome days mean cobbles, stairs and the Palatine slope. Each demanding day has an easier option, such as a level route through the Forum, and every afternoon has rest time.
I am travelling solo. What is the single supplement?
A room of your own is from CAD 705 more, a guaranteed single room in the same hotel, not a smaller room in another one. Dinners and outings are shared with the group, and your guide makes sure solo travellers are never left at the end of a table.
When is the best time to go?
April to June and September to October bring mild days for walking. July and August are hot and crowded, so we sightsee in the mornings and keep middays free. Winter is quieter and cooler, with shorter days and some rain.
How does booking work?
Pick your start date and request to book. We confirm your place within 24 hours, and no payment is taken until then. The small group starts from CAD 4,145 per person sharing, with taxes. Museum tickets are issued in your name, so we ask for passport names.
Can we travel privately or on our own dates?
Yes. Besides the small group, the trip comes as a private trip for your party only, on a date you choose, from CAD 7,460 per person. If you would rather travel independently on your own dates, ask us from the dates section for a separate quote.
Do I need a visa for Italy?
Canadian, US, UK and Australian passport holders do not need a visa for stays up to 90 days in any 180 in the Schengen area. ETIAS, the EU's travel authorisation, has no start date yet; we tell you what applies when you book.
Which airport do I fly home from?
The trip ends in Florence, and we drop you at Florence Airport (FLR) or Santa Maria Novella station. Florence mainly has European flights, so for a long-haul flight from Rome Fiumicino you can add a fast train back at your own cost, about two hours to the airport in total; we help you book it.
See Sight Tours has been providing travel services across North America since 2006. Operating in 20 cities across Canada and the USA, the company specializes in small group tours that offer personalized, high-quality experiences for travelers.
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