Grand Highlights of Italy & Slovenia

Arrive at Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport. If your cruise/tour package includes a group arrival transfer or if you have purchased a private arrival transfer, you will be greeted by a Uniworld representative and transferred to the InterContinental Ljubljana.

In the pedestrian city center of Ljubljana, a little capital city with outsized charm, you’ll find a postcard in the making everywhere your eyes turn. Pastel buildings, attractive architecture—and no cars or throngs of tourists getting in the way of it all.

A popular day trip destination from Ljubljana, Lake Bled offers a beautiful natural landscape with unique character. Surrounded by forest-covered mountains—upon which the imposing Bled Castle is perched—the expansive, strikingly blue lake feels preserved from the outside world. Sitting in the center of the lake is its iconic island, barely large enough for the little church whose tower pokes out from amongst its greenery.

En route to Venice today, stop for a visit at the Postojna Caves, a breathtaking subterranean world of stalactites and stalagmites.

With your early morning arrival at Doge’s Palace, you’ll be able to marvel at the estate in total peace. Wander through a Venetian neighborhood and experience daily life in an authentic Venetian residential quarter. Later in the evening, cap the day off with a private once-in-a-lifetime experience at an after-hours lighting ceremony inside St. Mark’s Basilica without the crowds.

Start your morning in one of two of the Veneto region’s UNESCO World Heritage cities, Vicenza or Padua. In the afternoon, you'll reboard the ship for scenic sailing across the lagoon as we head towards Mazzorbo and Burano. In the evening, you may wish to take your free time to stroll into town to appreciate this charming island when most of the tourists have left for the evening. Burano’s brightly painted fishermen’s cottages are an artist’s dream —hot pink, chartreuse, orange, lemon yellow, and more.

Spend the day exploring the northern lagoon of Venice and its captivating islands. Start with a visit to Torcello's famous basilica with an art historian, then stroll through the agricultural island of Mazzorbo and the rainbow-hued island of Burano during your free time after lunch. Alternatively, you can take the afternoon to see the renowned glassblowing artisans of Murano at work.

Today, you’ll admire the greatest sites of charming and coastal Chioggia, including a stop at the local and lively market.

This morning, join a sailing excursion where you’ll explore the Po Delta where the Po River and the Adriatic Sea meet. Later, during lunch, we sail back to Venice.

As your water taxi glides past narrow side canals and the Canal Grande, you’ll arrive in style at the Rialto Bridge. The iconic stone arch bridge sits at the narrowest point of the Canal Grande and holds numerous shops and restaurants.

After disembarking the ship this morning, we’ll make our way by train to the capital city of Rome. Check into the Anantara Palazzo Naiadi Rome hotel (or similar) and, if you’d like, you can join an Orientation Walk of the neighborhood around the hotel with your Local Host.

From the Roman Empire to the Renaissance, Rome has stood at the center of Western culture many times throughout history. While eras come and go, no period of this remarkable city’s past has disappeared from its landscape. As you embark on your panoramic tour of Rome today, you’ll discover some of the greatest marks on this timeline, including the 18th-century Trevi Fountain, the 2nd-century Pantheon, and the Roman Forum, whose roots stretch back to the 8th century BCE.

Today, you technically step out of Italy and into the smallest country in the world as you enter Vatican City, where you’ll marvel at the extravagant frescoes of the Sistine Chapel and see St. Peter’s Basilica, the largest church ever built.

Check out of your hotel this morning. If your cruise/tour package includes a transfer, you’ll be taken to the airport to return home.