Traveling Well Includes… • All gratuities to Tauck Director, ship staff and local guides • Private Tauck Shore Excursions – $1,025 Value! • Walking tour of Valletta, Malta, a UNESCO World Heritage Site • Exclusive after-hours visit to the Vatican Museums & the Sistine Chapel – without crowds • Nighttime sailing by the continuously erupting volcanic island of Stromboli • Bar & restaurant beverages throughout the day aboard ship, including house wines & spirits • Airport transfer upon arrival; airport or train station transfer upon departure • 27 meals, service charges, applicable fuel surcharges, taxes and porterage
Splendid islands & a sparkling sea... are reason enough to embark on Tauck’s gracious Le Ponant, a three-masted schooner with no more than 60 guests aboard, but there’s also... Valletta, a walkable UNESCO World Heritage Site, Ortigia’s 6th-century Temple of Apollo, meandering along Corso Umberto from one ancient Taormina gateway to the next, the Doric columns of Tempio Segesta, the splendor of Villa Rufolo... and two nights in Rome – a city of domes and works of genius.
1. ARRIVE MALTA Tour begins: 6:30 PM, Phoenicia Hotel Malta. A transfer is included from Malta International Airport to your hotel, surrounded by gardens and featuring many paintings by Maltese artists. Join us this evening for a welcome cocktail reception and dinner to meet your fellow cruisers. Meals D
2. EXPLORE MALTA / EMBARK LE PONANT Your introduction to Malta begins with a drive around colorful St. Julian’s Bay and a walking tour amongst the medieval and Baroque palaces in ancient Mdina, once home to the city’s nobility. After lunch, you’ll be joined by a guide for a walking tour of Valletta, Malta’s capital city, a UNESCO World Heritage Centre, and “one of the most concentrated historic areas in the world.” At the 16th-century Palace of the Grand Masters, go inside the elegant residence built for the head of the influential Knights of St. John – today the Maltese president’s office and Parliament. Embark ship this afternoon. Meals BLD
3. SIRACUSA, SICILY Le Ponant docks at Porta Marina on Ortigia Island this morning for a visit to Siracusa, on the Sicilian mainland. From here a drive to Neapolis Parco Archeologico brings you to visit its 15,000-seat Greek Theatre and the Latomia del Paradiso, an ancient limestone quarry that is resplendent today with gardens
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of orange and olive trees. Back on Ortigia, take a walking tour of the 6th-century Temple of Apollo – transformed over the centuries as a Byzantine church, a Muslim mosque and then a Norman church – and the Baroque duomo. Enjoy lunch back onboard, or perhaps on your own along seaside Passaggio Adorno, before cruising continues later this afternoon. Join us this evening for the Captain’s welcome dinner. Meals BLD
4. EXPLORE TAORMINA Views of mighty Mt. Etna astound as Le Ponant approaches the town of Taormina, set on a rocky promontory above the Ionian Sea. Ride to shore on a Zodiac for a visit up to the town’s Greco-Roman theatre, then stroll along the main thoroughfare, Corso Umberto, before cruising continues. Meals BLD
5. CRUISE TO PALERMO Spend the morning at sea en route to Sicily’s capital city, Palermo, viewing it first while enjoying brunch aboard Le Ponant. Palermo sightseeing includes the cathedral, a fascinating
The Temple of Segesta, an unfinished beauty
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