MARCHE AND REPUBLIC OF SAN MARINO

1° Day Pesaro

Your group arrives at your hotel in Pesaro late morning, where you will have lunch. In the afternoon a sightseeing tour of the city, famous as the birthplace of the composer G. Rossini. The old part of Pesaro has many historical and artistic remains; strarting at the main square on the sea front, where you can see the characteristic, liberty style Villino Ruggeri, as well as the “Sfera Grande” (Large Sphere) by Pomodoro, you get to the old part where the house where Rossini was born is. Your tour continues with a visit to the Cathedral and its precious mosaics, Piazza del Popolo with the Palazzo Ducale and the “Pupilla di Pesaro” (Pupil of Pesaro), the fountain that has always been the symbol of the city, The Civic Museums, the Sanctuary of the Madonna delle Grazie, and Rocca Costanza. Return to hotel for evening meal and accommodation.

2° Day Urbino - Gradara

Breakfast in hotel. Departure for a sightseeing tour of Urbino that even today has a typical Renaissance atmosphere. The old part, with its typical medieval parts consisting of red-brick narrow alleys and large Renaissance squares with magnificent buildings, has numerous museums and monuments: the Duomo, Piazza del Rinascimento, Church of San Domenico, Piazza della Repubblica. The most important museum in the city is the Palazzo Ducale, for centuries the political and artistic centre of the duchy of the Montefeltro, and today home to the most important art collection in the region: the National Gallery of the Marche, with works by Piero della Francesca, Paolo Uccello, and Raffaello Tiziano. Return to hotel for lunch. Departure for the small, medieval town of Gradara in the early hours of the afternoon, with a visit to the Rocca Malatestiana, a magnificent fortress built in the XIII century by the Malatesta family of Rimini, theatre of the famous love story between Paola and Francesca. Return to hotel for evening meal and accommodation.

3° Day San Leo - San Marino

After breakfast in the hotel, departure for San Leo with its perfectly geometrical Renaissance Fort looking down over the inaccessible sheer drop to the Valley of the Marecchia. A visit to the fortress, well known because the famous Conte of Cagliostro stayed there for a certain period of time, to the medieval part with its Romanesque parish church, the Dome and Piazza Dante. Next destination San Marino, where you will stop for lunch in a restaurant. In the afternoon a short visit to the Republic.