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Expert-led small-group tours

This video was filmed on our Footpaths of Umbria tour in June 2023 and gives a flavour of what to expect on one of our holidays.

Exploring Italy on a cultural tour

We also offer fresh perspectives on old friends, using art historians, not musicologists, on our opera tours of Verona and seeing Florence, Padua and Bologna through the prism of science and medicine as well as art. We bring you Puccini at the maestro’s lakeside villa, the mosaics of Ravenna and the frozen worlds of Pompeii and Herculaneum.

We dine finely in Piedmont, throw light on the Dark Ages in the northern Adriatic and stand at the crossroads of European civilisations in Sicily. We gaze up at Michelangelo’s David and down at Etruscan tombs. We give you Italy, packaged in a gilt-edged portfolio.

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Cultural tours in Sicily

Whether it’s on a private tour of Palermo’s Palatine Chapel or a guided walk on Etna with an expert vulcanologist, you will be fully immersed in dazzling cultural inheritance.

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Cultural tours in Venice

With special, out-of-hours access to the Basilica di San Marco - as well as on-the-spot insights by our expert lecturers - we give you an unrivalled view of La Serenissima.

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Cultural tours in Florence

Special access is a feature of our Florence tours: visit the vast baroque Palazzo Corsini al Parione, dine at the Palazzo Corsini al Prato, and gaze across the city and Appenines beyond from Palazzo Gondi.

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Cultural tours in Rome

From the underground chambers of the Colosseum to Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel frescoes viewed in tranquil solitude, we uncover both Rome's cultural triumphs and lesser-known masterpieces.

Browse Italy tours by theme

Why travel with us?

Leading expertise

For 36 years we have been the most influential organisation in the field of cultural travel, offering an unequalled range of tours and events. Pioneering and innovative, we have led the way with ideas and itineraries and by setting the benchmarks for customer service and administration.

Privileged access

Special arrangements are a feature of our tours – for admission to places not generally open to travellers, for access outside public hours, for private concerts and extraordinary events. In innumerable ways, we lift our clients’ experience far above standards which are regarded as normal for tourists.

First-rate speakers

Expert speakers are a key ingredient in our tours. Academics, curators, writers, broadcasters and researchers, they are selected not only for their knowledge but also for their ability to communicate clearly and engagingly to a lay audience. Their brief is to enlighten and stimulate, not merely to inform.

Holiday protection

We provide full financial protection for our package holidays which include international flights, by way of our Air Travel Organiser’s Licence (ATOL); and for those that do not include a flight, by way of a bond held by ABTOT – The Association of Bonded Travel Organisers Trust Limited.

Personal service

We aim for faultless administration from your first encounter with us to the end of the holiday, and beyond. We want you to come back again and again – as most of our clients do. We can provide options without international travel if you prefer to make your own arrangements.

Award-winning

Five consecutive years as Best Special Interest Holiday Company at the British Travel Awards (2015–19) reflects our commitment to excellence. With a remarkable 99% satisfaction rating from more than 1,100 independent reviews, our attention to detail and client care is unmatched.

Most of our tours run with between 10 and 20 participants. Our travellers are self-selected by common interests and an endorsement of our ethos. You are highly likely to find yourself among like-minded companions, whether travelling solo (as 50% of our clients do) or with a travel partner.

Value for money

The price includes nearly everything, not only the major ingredients such as hotel, transport and the costs of the lecturer and manager but also tips, drinks with meals, and airport taxes. The price published is the price you pay. You can secure your booking today with a 15% deposit.

What do others say about Martin Randall Travel?

Showing 2184 reviews
Fantastic exploration of South German Baroque and Rococo
The holiday was enormously enhanced by an outstanding lecturer and an equally fine tour manager. The whole was planned and executed with the greatest professional skill, truly meriting Martin Randall Travel's reputation as the world's greatest cultural tour operator.
*****
Rococophile
22 Aug 2018
Stimulus to Discover More
I have never been disappointed by the Martin Randall tours and weekends I have enjoyed. They are expensive, but the quality is definitely worth paying for.
*****
Art Lover
20 Feb 2017
Opera at Glyndebourne and Garsington
I have been on several Martin Randall tours, none of which disappointed
*****
Chota
26 Jul 2018
Invigorating for body and mind
They offer a wide range of special interest holidays and I've thoroughly enjoyed all the ones I've been on. The attention to detail is impressive and the choice of tour managers and lecturers is good.
*****
jet
03 Nov 2022
Bach in East Germany
A series of sublime concerts following in the footsteps of Bach
*****
Susie
20 May 2019
relaxed, very well organised,
sailing Dalmatian Coast, with Martin Randall Travels
*****
FEdT
22 May 2022
A perfect St Petersburg itinerary with emphasis on time spent at the Hermitage.
St Petersburg is a wonderful destination in itself. The city has an abundance of magnificent buildings, churches, and, of course, palaces and palace gardens. Some of the churches and palaces have the "wow" factor although the amount of gold was almost overwhelming. The wide boulevards and ...
*****
Lyn
16 Jun 2016
Oman, Landscapes and Peoples
We had an excellent holiday in Oman with Martin Randall Travel. We were looked after and given a very good tour of Oman. The tour gave us a good understanding and knowledge of this rapidly developing nation, its landscapes and peoples.
*****
Wendy
17 Jan 2018
iron curtain
A coach ride down the old iron curtain, Baltic to Adriatic - a free route now with barriers largely disappeared. However enough remains to give you an idea of what was - and still is in parts of the world. Inevitably you can't but bump into other history on the way - Luther's accommodation...
*****
paradise lost
26 Sep 2014
Divine Office
17 concerts in the chapels of the Oxford colleges. During one 24 hr period we attend one event every 3 hours in a monastic style. The concerts are performed by outstanding choirs, musicians and singers. A truly amazing experience - outstanding music in beautiful locations
*****
Azalea
04 Oct 2021
Martin Randall Travel review
The brochure is comprehensive, informative and enticing. The office is friendly, helpful and efficient. The tour leaders and managers the best of their kind.
*****
Jayron
18 Oct 2016
Art in the Netherlands - A visual Masterpiece!
Martin Randall made sure that we had a great experience - took all the worry out even when there were unexpected situations
*****
Paul 724
05 Jun 2015

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