Hidden Europe: unique experiences in Europe's cities
08/09/2020 · By Katie Shaw
Europe’s cities are treasure troves of culture, teeming with iconic, must-see sights to enthral even the most seasoned of tourists.
Read moreBook your 2021 holiday before 31st January and you can transfer your holiday for free - no questions asked. T&C's apply
2021 Tour code: RPS21
About the tour
Discover the colourful villages that cling to the dramatic coastline of the Italian Riviera, with the glittering Mediterranean delivering picture-postcard vistas as we explore the Cinque Terre and Portofino. We'll also visit the famous Leaning Tower in Pisa and the ancient walled town of Lucca.
Highlights
What’s included
Itinerary
We meet at our Departure Office in London St Pancras, and take the Eurostar to Paris, continuing by rail to Turin for the night.
On Day 2, you have a free morning to explore Turin, a city of French and Italian influence that boasts beautiful green spaces, spacious boulevards, and airy squares lined with grand buildings. We continue to Sestri Levante, a picturesque coastal town. Our base here is the elegant Grand Hotel Villa Balbi*, set in a 19th-century mansion surrounded by lush private gardens.
*On some departures you will stay at the Hotel Due Mari in Sestri Levante.
Additional information
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Reviews
4.2 / 5 · 19 reviews
Mr C Williams
Submitted 13 Jul 2019
The holiday overall was fine, as we had done this trip before, two years ago. The Villa Balbi is a very good hotel with excellent facilities and staff. The journey home was not something I would recommend to anyone. It was something that you, Great Rail, could not control; the total cancellation of our train from Sestri Levanti to Milan. We ended up in a coach, driven by someone who in my opinion, was dangerous, and had no knowledge of Milan and the location of our train station at all. We did, eventually, arrive at Mulhouse, after a couple of quick train changes, although rather later than was planned. The following day, when arriving in Paris we thought nothing else could go wrong. On getting ready to get on our Euro Star train we had a last minute alteration to all our tickets as the train had been changed, which meant that we were seated randomly in three different carriages, which spoilt the final journey home. Once again this was out of the control of Great Rail. Let me add that our tour manager, Rosie Sharp, was excellent in calmly dealing with all of the problems we encountered, and also, we were very lucky to have a gentleman on our trip who spoke fluent Italian. This was our thirteenth journey with Great Rail. I have never been superstitious before.?
Collected by Great Rail Journeys
Mr P Reeves
Submitted 11 Jul 2019
Everything was excellent from start to finish.
Collected by Great Rail Journeys
Mrs J Ward
Submitted 19 Oct 2018
None the hotels appeared to be aware of food allergies I had previously notified to GRJ and which GRJ had acknowledged
Collected by Great Rail Journeys
Mr W Bower
Submitted 18 Oct 2018
Very disappointing room size at the hotel for a gold customer
Collected by Great Rail Journeys
Mrs M Steel
Submitted 06 Oct 2018
Wonderful holiday - marvellous company. Accommodation and food good. Trips were well organised and interesting, but we also had enough free time.
Collected by Great Rail Journeys
Mr P Turner
Submitted 27 Sep 2018
The resort, hotel, weather and Tour Manager were all excellent. What more could you want!!
Collected by Great Rail Journeys
Europe & UK by Rail 2021
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