Arrive in Naples on suggested flights and make your way to the hotel. Renaissance Tours or your travel agent can assist you with your flights and other travel arrangements, including travel insurance (a condition of travel), private hotel transfer, or accommodation before or after the tour.

At 18:00, join your tour leader Steven Miller and fellow travellers for a welcome briefing at the hotel, followed by dinner.

(D)

After a talk by Steven, spend the day exploring the historic heart of Naples, starting with a visit to the majolica-tiled cloister of the Poor Clare Convent. See the richly decorated churches of Gesù Nuovo and San Domenico Maggiore and visit Pio Monte della Misericordia, to admire Caravaggio’s masterful The Seven Works of Mercy.

In the early afternoon, explore the Sansevero Chapel, whose celebrated The Veiled Christ is considered one of the world’s most remarkable sculptures.

Return to the hotel and enjoy the remainder of the afternoon and evening at leisure.

(B)

This morning, depart Naples for the pretty hilltop town of Benevento, surrounded by the Campanian Apennines, between the rivers Sabato and Calore. On a private, guided walking tour explore the well-preserved Roman Theatre, the church of Saint Sofia and the Arch of Trajan, built of Greek marble – one of the finest of its kind.

Then, travel to Trani, a scenic port town that was once the possession of Venice, arriving in the late-afternoon.

Tonight, dinner is at a local restaurant.

(BD)

In the morning, enjoy a walking tour of Trani. Visit the cathedral, perched as a spiritual lighthouse on the edge of the sea and perhaps the finest example of the local Romanesque style, and visit the Synagogue Museum of Sant’Anna, built by the Italian-Jewish Community of Apulia during the Middle Ages.

After lunch at leisure, drive to Andria to visit the Castel del Monte, a defensive fortress built in the 1240s by Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II. On a private, guided tour learn about the UNESCO World Heritage-listed fortress and its unusual octagonal shape, with an octagonal tower on each of the castle’s eight corners. Legend has it that the main use of the castle was as an astronomy observatory.

Return to the hotel in the late-afternoon and enjoy the evening at leisure.

(B)

Today, enjoy a talk by Steven before visiting the charming city of Bari, which offers stunning views of the sea. Having been a major port during Roman times, Bari was brought within the political ambit of the Norman dominions in Naples and Sicily from the 11th century AD, and the mazelike old town retains much of the architecture of this period.

Admire the Norman-Swabian Castle, the Cathedral of San Sabino and the Basilica of St Nicholas, named after Saint Nicholas of Myra. The basilica was built to house the relics of Saint Nicholas, which were brought to Bari from Myra in 1087, an event commemorated each year in early May.

(BD)

This morning, depart Trani for the UNESCO World Heritage-listed town of Alberobello, famous for its quaint trulli, whitewashed houses built with conical grey drystone roofs dating from the 18th century. Like so many good stories, the history of the trulli begins with a clever act of tax avoidance: by not using mortar in the building of the roof, the owner of the house could avoid the application of the imperial building tax, either because the residence was deemed ‘temporary’ or because it could be dismantled when tax inspectors were in the area. There are around 1,400 trulli in the town – even the church is in the form of a trullo.

In the afternoon, continue to Lecce. Tonight, dinner is at the hotel’s restaurant.

(BD)

Following a talk by Steven in the morning, explore Lecce on a private, guided walking tour of its historic centre. Lecce’s abundance of Baroque sculptures has earned it the moniker ‘The Florence of the South’. Thousands of years of human habitation and a naturally workable honey-coloured limestone known as pietra leccese (Lecce stone) have graced Lecce with monuments including a Roman theatre, a 16th-century triumphal arch and several fine Mediaeval and 17th-century churches.

Enjoy the afternoon at leisure before dinner at the hotel’s restaurant.

(BD)

After breakfast, travel south to Santa Maria di Leuca, a picturesque town perched at the tip of the Salento peninsula where the Adriatic and Ionian seas meet.

Known since ancient times as the “Finibus Terrae” (End of the Land), it has long been a strategic port and pilgrimage site. The town is famed for its stunning Baroque architecture, including the Basilica Sanctuary of Santa Maria de Finibus Terrae, the elegant Liberty-style villas along the waterfront and the iconic 19th-century lighthouse, one of the tallest in Italy.

Enjoy lunch at a local restaurant before continuing to Otranto, where the 15th-century Aragonese castle commands a port, which has been home to Greeks, Romans, Ottomans and Siculo-Normans across the millennia of its existence. Visit the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta, where an enormous 12th-century mosaic covering the entire floor has been described as ‘the Bayeux tapestry in stone’.

Return to Lecce in the late afternoon for an evening at leisure.

(BL)

Depart Lecce for Taranto in the morning and visit the archaeological museum, where one of the largest collections of artefacts from the Magna Graecia era is exhibited, offering vivid insight into the region’s ancient past.

Continue to Matera, a UNESCO World Heritage site famed for its ancient Sassi cave dwellings carved into limestone cliffs, arriving in the late-afternoon.

In the evening, enjoy dinner at a local restaurant.

(BD)

This morning, enjoy a private, guided tour of Matera, including the ‘Sassi di Matera’ (stones of Matera) – the most outstanding, intact example of a troglodyte settlement in the Mediterranean region. Houses, churches, monasteries and hermitages were dug into the calcareous rock, and these atmospheric caves have been inhabited since the Palaeolithic period.

Then, visit the Palazzo Lanfranchi, originally built in the 17th century as a seminary and now home to a rich collection of paintings and sculptures of medieval and modern art.

The remainder of the afternoon and evening is at leisure to relax or to further explore Matera at your own pace.

(B)

This morning, travel west to Paestum, on the coast of the Tyrrhenian Sea in Magna Graecia. On a private, guided tour learn about this major ancient Greek city with three of the world’s best preserved Doric temples, as well as a fascinating archaeological museum filled with millennia-old frescoes, ceramics and daily artefacts. Among these is the iconic Tomb of the Diver funerary fresco.

In the afternoon, continue to Ravello, situated on a rocky promontory and renowned for its serene gardens, medieval villas and spectacular clifftop views of the Amalfi Coast. This evening, enjoy dinner at the hotel’s restaurant.

(BD)

After breakfast, attend a talk by Steven before exploring Ravello on a walking tour. See the impressive cathedral, the venerable Duomo, dedicated to San Pantaleone whose blood is a treasured relic and supposedly liquefies every year, and wander through the manicured gardens of Villa Cimbrone, perched high above the clear blue sea.

After lunch at a local restaurant, return to the hotel for an evening at leisure.

(BL)

Depart Ravello and travel to Caserta, famous for its Royal Palace and fountain-filled gardens. Enjoy a guided tour of the palace, created in the 18th century by the Italian architect Luigi Vanvitelli as a Versailles-like residence (‘Reggia’) for the Bourbon kings of Naples and Sicily. Vanvitelli also designed the aqueduct, named after him, and opened in 1762 to supply the region with water.

In the early afternoon, travel back to Naples and enjoy the remainder of the day at leisure.

(B)

The morning is dedicated to the Capodimonte Museum, containing 13th- to 18th-century artworks by Masaccio, Botticelli, Rafaello, Bellini, Tiziano, Caravaggio, Vasari, Giordano, El Greco and Jacob Philipp Hackert. Marvel at the extraordinary collection on a private, guided tour and learn about Naples’ wealth and influence throughout the centuries.

The remainder of the day is at leisure to relax or to further explore Naples at your own pace.

In the evening, celebrate the conclusion of the tour with a special farewell dinner with Steven and fellow tour members.

(BD)

Tour arrangements conclude after breakfast.

For those returning home today, make your way to Naples airport for suggested flights to Australia or New Zealand. Renaissance Tours or your travel agent can assist you with your flights and other travel arrangements, including a private airport transfer, additional nights’ accommodation either before or after the tour and travel insurance (a condition of travel).

(B)