RAIL-DRIVE
TUSCANY AND UMBRIA TOUR BY RAIL AND CAR
9 nights / 10 days From £ 1,875 per person
Umbria
FLORENCE • CHIANTI • UMBRIA
This touring holiday to Tuscany and Umbria by rail offers you two complementary regions. You also have one night in Florence. There are short drives in between all places, giving you time to explore in a leisurely fashion, stopping off in cultural gems such as Arezzo or Cortona.
DAY-BY-DAY ITINERARY
DAY ONE London to Paris and sleeper train to Milan You begin your rail touring holiday to Tuscany and Umbria by travelling out on an afternoon Eurostar service from London St Pancras to Paris Gare du Nord. Following a change of station in Paris, continue by Thello sleeper train overnight to Milan. We recommend the two bed sleeper compartments on the Thello train. There is a washbasin in the compartments and shared toilets in each carriage.
DAY TWO Milan to Florence Arrive in Milan in the early morning to change trains for the journey to Florence arriving at about 9am. You are transferred by private car to your hotel. You may want to pay to guarantee an early check-in, but you have the rest of the day to explore the beautiful city of Florence. You spend one night in Florence.
DAY THREE Florence to Panzano in Chianti Linger perhaps to spend the morning in Florence, before collecting your hire-car from a central Florence location and embarking on your tour into the Tuscan countryside, reaching your hotel in the afternoon when you can check-in. Your base in the countryside is in the Chianti region only about 40 kms from Florence but is an ideal location to allow for much exploration of Tuscany.
DAYS FOUR AND FIVE In the Tuscan countryside You have the next two days at your leisure to explore Tuscany. From your hotel you could travel south along the Chianti wine route, stopping off in the wine villages along the way, for example Greve, Radda and Gaiole. The countryside delights with its mix of fields and orchards, olive groves, vineyards and forested hills. There are villas and gardens to visit, as well as the picturesque, fortified town of San Gimignano and Tuscany’ s rival city, Siena.
DAY SIX Tuscany to Umbria The distance today is about 140 kms by the most direct route. However, to make the most of your time we would recommend driving south-east to the small city of Arezzo. It is an artistic and architectural gem with the painted vaulted ceilings of the cathedral, a 15th century fresco of Mary Magdalene by Piero della Francesca, the Basilica of San Francesco with more Piero frescoes and the Basilica of San Domenico with the 13th century Crucifix painted by Cimabue. There is also a Medici fortress. An antiques market is held here on the first Sunday of every month. Continue south through the rolling hills to the hilltop town of Cortona, rich in Etruscan history with substantial displays of Etruscan artefacts in the museum. Cortona is about an hour’ s drive and the route takes you along the shores of Lake Trasimeno. Hills clad in olive trees encircle about half of the lake, and dotted here and there are ancient, small towns and castles, many in ruins.
DAYS SEVEN AND EIGHT In the Umbrian Countryside From your base in the Umbrian countryside, a noteworthy circular excursion for a day( or split it into two days) is to visit the nearby cathedral and university city of Perugia. At the heart of this city, on a hilltop, is the Cattedrale di San Lorenzo, distinctive because of its original architectural style. Inside, the cathedral contains a huge collection of works of art. The Palazzo dei Priori, however, is a gothic 13th century palace that holds Perugia’ s main art gallery: the Galleria Nazionale dell’ Umbria. Take a walk along the Via dell’ Acquedotto, a converted aqueduct that navigates through the whole town, or, through the unnamed Etruscan gateway, enter the Rocca Paolina, a maze of underground tunnels that used to make up the mediaeval city, but now affords residents and visitors an intriguing and convenient way of getting from one part of the city to another. A favourite attraction in Perugia is the Perugina chocolate factory, which offers tours. To the south of Perugia is the wine-village of Torgiano. There is a wine museum, and you can visit the famous Lungarotti winery. From here you can follow the course of the River Tiber as it curls its way south towards Rome, and visit the hilltop
52 To speak to our specialist rail holidays team telephone 01392 441250 or see www. expressionsholidays. co. uk