Greece, Croatia and Italy - Fall 2022

After returning from Cairo to the US in February 2022, along with a mild case of COVID, we're getting ready for more international travel in Fall 2022. This trip was originally scheduled for 2020 and 2021 but was rescheduled due to the pandemic. 

Our trip will start with a few days in Athens, transition to a Mediterranean cruise and end with apartment stays in Florence and Rome.  

While in Athens, we have tickets for a visit to the Acropolis Museum. This museum opened in 2009 and replaced the first Acropolis Museum. The first museum was constructed in 1874 and located on the Acropolis. In 2009, the new Acropolis Museum was opened. It is located on the southeastern slope of the Acropolis hill. The museum extends over 226,000 square feet of interior space and the collection has over 4,200 pieces.

From Athens, we board a moderate sized cruise ship (less than 1,000 guests) and start our daily stops at Corfu, Kotor and Katakolo, We then move onto Croatia for port visits to Dubrovnik, Split and Sibenik. The ship makes several port stops in Italy before a disembarkation in Civitavecchia, Italy.

From this Italian port city, we board a train to Rome, connecting to Florence. This will be our first Italian rail experience and it looks fairly straight forward. From Civitavecchia, we board a train to Rome and, from Rome, it's a direct rail trip to Florence. The train trip will take about three hours to complete.

Once in Florence, we've planned several museum visits. Besides the Uffizi, we hoping to get tickets to walk the Vasari Corridor. This enclosed elevated pathway was built in 1565 to carry carriages. The half-mile passageway runs between the Palazzo Vecchio, the seat of government at the time, and the residential Palazzo Pitti, crossing over the River Arno at Ponte Vecchio. The walkway was used by the de'Medici family in 1565 and allowed family members to move unnoticed and safely between the two residences.  The walkway has been closed for 18 months for safety improvements. Reopening of the Vasari Corridor is scheduled to open at the end of May 2022.

We're also looking into a Vespa tour of Tuscany. We had this scooter tour planned for 2021, before the trip was cancelled.

When we return to Rome, we have tickets to visit the Mausoleum Augustus. This large circular tomb was built by Emperor Augustus, the first Roman Emperor, in 28 BC. The mausoleum was unmaintained for many years and fell into disrepair. It has been closed to the public for the last 14 years. After  comprehensive restoration work, the site reopened in March 2021. Entry is limited to ten visitors at a time and a visit takes about an hour. So, advance tickets are a must.