Great Italian Cities-(by Mona Coulter.)
Trafalgar Tours was fantastic!!!!!!!!
We landed in Rome having connected in London’s Heathrow Airport. It went very smoothly and was very organized.
In Rome we stayed at a Boscolo First-Class hotel, not a 5-star but a nice 4 star-place. The hotel was in a very good location near the Coliseum. The rooms were big and clean.
On the 1st full day, we did the Vatican tour, which was wonderful, and we never had to wait in a line due to being part of a group.  It was unbelievable!! After the Vatican, we toured the Coliseum for a few hours. That night we had dinner at the hotel, the buffet food was adequate.
On our 2nd day, we traveled by bus to Florence, stopping in Assisi to visit St Francis Basilica and the church of  St Francis built in the valley below.  That was remarkable, a small church within a huge church built around it.  This was a must see for anyone who has a few extra hours—a highlight of my trip.
Florence was wonderful, the people were nice and the Hotel Mediterranean was in an excellent location. Some of the rooms were small, some were average size. It seemed very crowded when we were there, a popular meeting venue apparently. From Florence we stopped in Bologna for a few hours, this was another ‘must see’ if you have time.
Wonderful city, you can eat lasagna where it was invented (in the USA our version of lasagna is not the same). Theirs is more like a quiche dish, totally unique.  The history and architecture of the city were amazing and beautiful,  the 2nd highlight of my trip.
Day 3 saw us off to Venice. We had to park the bus and cross a bridge by foot with our carry-on luggage,  even though we had luggage service as part of a group. This is important to remember in case you are traveling alone or need special assistance. Luggage is an issue for Venice!!
Venice has changed a great deal since my last visit, 20 years ago. Our hotel was on the canal, Hotel Bellini,  but I had a very, very, very small room. My bathroom was actually bigger than my room.  The location, however, was perfect.We spent the morning touring the Murano Glass Blowing Factory and then we took a boat to the little island of Burrano (3rd highlight of my trip). It is a small fishing island and all the homes are painted in different, bright colors so the fishermen can spot their homes through the fog when they return at night.
In conclusion, Italy was filled with fabulous food, fun and some severe walking. We did a 12 day tour in 5 full days with little sleep but it was worth every second, in my opinion!