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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

Since 1988 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 and drinks with meals. 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
Sacred India: A tour of important Buddhist, Hindu and Islamic sites in India, March 2015
This tour was a demanding but immensely satisfying exploration of Buddhist, Hindu and Islamic sites in India. Every site we visited provided something new and of interest however if I had to pick the ones of particular note they would be the days spent in Varanasi, Khajuraho, Sanchi and Ajanta. In t...
*****
Retirementislife
22 Sep 2015
The perfect combination
A weekend break listening to and learning about excellent music played by one of our leading quartets (Elias Quartet playing a programme of mainly Beethoven) accompanied by informed and engaging pre-concert talks. All taking place in the striking venue of The Castle Hotel at Taunton, which looked th...
*****
GR
22 Nov 2021
Another unique experience !
Martin Randall Travel have fought their way back from the ravages of Covid to deliver holiday experiences of the highest quality
*****
rtstaffy
18 Oct 2021
erudite , cared for
On this trip we firstly received care and our needs were anticipated.
the guides were more than informed , rather immersed in a wide range of areas about St petersburg. art in particular and architecture combined with history. yummy
*****
Mrs R L 17
07 Oct 2017
Art in Holland
Martin Randall Travel. Hugely experienced and reliable. Expects the best from all providers etc. Services of a tour manager/
*****
Grif
01 Jan 2023
excellent venue, hotels, lecturer and tour manager
Been with Martin Randall on several holidays and they are all well organised and nothing but the best is acceptable to them
*****
Alf
29 Jun 2021
A cultural tour efficiently organised and faultlessly executed
We cruised on the Rhone between Lyon and Avignon, stopping at frequent intervals for guided visits to interesting local sites and buildings and to daily concerts to hear music in authentic surroundings.
*****
Dr M S 13
26 Oct 2013
Sicily, October, 2014 - Excellent for body and soul
Apart from confusion arising from communicating from Aus and London, very good
*****
Wijehaba
16 Dec 2014
A deeply moving and uplifting experience.
We heard many of the works of JS Bach played in the towns and places associated with him in Thuringia by the best musicians performing anywhere in the world today. Altogether a unique experience.
*****
Goring
20 May 2019
Valetta Baroque Festival
Planned and led by Juliet Rix who has also written a guidebook on Malta. Malta has such rich offerings in terms of history from many periods that it is quite a feat to incorporate a broad range of places to visit into one week while at the same time giving some time for the concerts as well as a tin...
****
Pie
31 Jan 2016
Walking the Thames from source to Hampton Court
I have been on a number of Martin Randall tours. They are always excellent.
*****
Veronica
25 Sep 2018
Our first visit to Madrid and a comprehensive tour of art galleries and museums.
We spent five days visiting several galleries and museums a day the company of an expert guide.
*****
Chris
13 Nov 2022

Joining a Martin Randall Cultural Tour

Between 10–22 participants can usually join our small group tours, though the upper limit can be lower dependent on the tour.

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