Board your overnight flight to Palermo today.

Welcome to Italy! Settle into your hotel in Palermo, Italy’s fifth-largest city and the capital of the island of Sicily. Then, gather with your Tour Director and fellow group members at a mixer before enjoying a welcome dinner, served with beer or wine.

This morning, embark on a guided tour of Palermo—a beautiful, bayside city on the shores of the Tyrrhenian Sea. With a local guide in the lead, you’ll wind through its historic center, passing UNESCO World Heritage Sites and baroque delights alike.

• Admire Palermo’s architecture as you pass the Quattro Canti. Officially known as Piazza Vigliena, this vibrant square features four matching facades—each decorated with ornate sculptures, fountains, and statues representing the four seasons, as well as the patron saints of the city.
• Step inside the Cappella Palatina, a 12th-century chapel that showcases Byzantine, Islamic, and Norman architectural elements. Gaze up at the intricate, three-dimensional design of its wooden muqarnas ceiling and spend time poring over the details of its elegant mosaic-adorned walls.
• Cap your walking tour with a tasting of a sweet local specialty like gelato or chocolate.

You won’t have to wait long for the obligatory sun and sips: After the morning’s tour, join us on an optional outing to seaside Cefalù, complete with a stop at a local vineyard. To fill your free afternoon on your own, head to the Villa Bonanno. A treat on its own, this public park also happens to stand near the ninth-century Norman Palace and the 140-foot-tall Porta Nuova triumphal gate.

Say goodbye to Palermo and drive south through the Sicilian countryside. Your first stop of the day: Agrigento, a hilltop city established in 582 B.C. Enter the Valle dei Templi—the UNESCO-recognized Valley of the Temples—and leave your bus to come face-to-face with Doric columns, ancient artifacts, and the legacy of the Greeks who settled the area all those years ago.

After getting your fill of Hellenic history, head southeast, tracing the coast all the way to Ragusa. Once you arrive, you’ll sit down as a group at a local restaurant for an included dinner, served with your choice of beer or wine.

Today’s late start gives you the chance to ease into the morning—maybe by sleeping in, maybe by lingering over a cappuccino at a quaint cafe. Whatever you choose, you’ll link back up with your group around midday and set out with a local guide. Together, you’ll tour the historic half of the City of Two Souls—Ragusa Ibla.

The lower town is Ragusa’s old core, a UNESCO-listed trove of stately palaces, Baroque churches, and brightly colored buildings. Explore its centuries-old streets before popping into the Palazzo Arezzo di Trifiletti. Now open to the public, this villa was once the private residence of its namesake family. Drink in the opulence of its majolica-tiled ballroom and vibrantly painted frescoes, then call it a day.

Interested in exploring more of the Val di Noto? Perfume your day with Baroque architecture and delicate fragrance by adding an outing to Scicli, complete with dinner at an aroma farm. (If you’re wondering what that is, check out our optional excursion!)

Otherwise, enjoy a free day. To round out your appreciation of the town, climb the staircase connecting Ragusa Ibla to Ragusa Superiore—the modern quarter, built higher up the hill in the wake of an earthquake in 1693—and admire the view from the understated Chiesa delle Scale. Known in English as the Church of St. Mary of the Stairs, it offers an unbeatable panorama of Ragusa Ibla below; take time to reflect and enjoy the vista before moving on.

After leaving Ragusa, you’ll spend your last day in Sicily by the island’s Ionian Coast. But before you unpack in the Catania region, make a slight detour further south to Modica. Different peoples have settled the areas since the Bronze Age—meaning the inhabitants of this small city have had plenty of time to perfect the art of chocolate-making.

Stop to visit Sicily’s oldest chocolate factory and sample some of its creative confections. (Jasmine? Red pepper? You could try chocolate flavored with both and more.) After, continue to a nearby ricotta farm to learn how the creamy cheese is made. Work up your appetite by hearing all the different dishes it’s used in—then dig into some of them at an included lunch prepared using homemade ricotta.

Finally, make the drive to the Catania region, check into your hotel, and relax during a free evening.

Transfer to Catania’s airport and board an early morning flight bound for Malta, an island nation whose small size belies its rich heritage. Touch down and travel to the capital of Valletta—a city first established in the 16th century by the Knights Hospitaller—where a local guide will show you its highlights.

• Step inside St. John’s Co-Cathedral, regarded by many as one of the best examples of high Baroque architecture in Europe. Frescoes, relics, and statues abound—and an original Caravaggio, The Beheading of Saint John the Baptist, hangs in the oratory.
• Stroll the Upper Barrakka Gardens. Set at the highest point of Valletta’s old defensive walls, its arch-lined terrace opens to reveal the Grand Harbour and Saluting Battery, a panorama that captures multiple eras of the city’s history.

Sightseeing complete, settle into your hotel before rejoining your group for an included dinner, served with beer or wine.

Today’s yours to do with as you please. To taste some of the island’s British-tinged culture, add our optional outing to enjoy a traditional afternoon tea with a Maltese twist. Looking for a recommendation? Go on a self-guided trip into the nation’s past: The National Museum of Archaeology, National Library of Malta, and National War Museum are all within roughly a kilometer of one another.

Please note: The Maltese Afternoon Tea excursion may take place on day 10 or 11, depending on availability.

From the Mediterranean coast, roll into the Maltese heartland on a day trip to a trio of destinations: the fortified city of Mdina, the neighboring town of Rabat, and the megalithic temples of Tarxien.

• Begin in Mdina. Now only home to fewer than 300 permanent residents, the stout walls of this settlement once protected the ancient capital of Malta. Today, you’ll find a town seemingly frozen in medieval times: Admire the fresco-adorned St. Paul’s Cathedral—the country’s oldest church—and walk the city’s old bastions.
• Continue to the edge of Rabat and enter the Domus Romana, an open-air museum encompassing the remains of a Roman aristocrat’s home. Several mosaics survived the ensuing millennia; check them out and learn about the property’s place in Maltese history.
• Marvel at the Tarxien Temples, a complex of three megalithic structures that were only rediscovered in 1914. The oldest of the group dates all the way to 3250 B.C., and the most well-preserved of the bunch still bears reliefs carved right into the stone.

There’s more to Malta than its eponymous island—and today’s optional excursion to neighboring Gozo shows another side of the archipelago. If you’d prefer a low-key end to your time on tour, make the trek to the village of Mellieha and spend a few hours lazing on the inviting sands of its beaches. (The crescents of Golden Bay and Ghajn Tuffieha, carved into the rugged coast, are just two of the ones you’ll find.)

This evening, enjoy a farewell dinner with your groupmates as you celebrate your trip.

Transfer to the airport for your flight home—or, if you’d like to squeeze a few more sips of wine or scoops of gelato into your trip, treat yourself to a few days in Rome. You’ll continue your tour of antiquity through romantic piazzas and mysterious catacombs with your Tour Director leading the way.