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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
Excellent week
Martin Randall regularly provides stunning holidays. He mostly gets the weather right too.
*****
M
29 Dec 2017
An unexpectedly rich Christmas holiday
Our tour was to Munich at Christmas, and we were amazed by the richness of the art collections and other sights in the city. The tour leader and tour manager were very highly skilled and the pacing and planning of the holiday was excellent. We were in a small but very friendly group whose company wa...
*****
RJB Cheshire
08 Jan 2017
perfect
Everything was well taken care of, price versus quality, lecturer and touroperator. I certainly will book again with Martin Randall
*****
Cobus
28 Jul 2016
A pamp;ering weekend of first class music and very comfortable accommodation, meals etc.
An excellent antidote to the grey post Christmas days. MRT organise their tours meticulously and the hotel chosen for the venue (~Castle, Taunton) is a well run privately owned comfortable place to stay.
*****
Mrs C M 18
13 Mar 2018
Gardens and Villas of the Italian Lakes
Martin Randall seem to go by reputation as "the best" but I would see them as good and well organised. The leaders are pleasant and well organised, but a little regimented.
Their knowledge was good, but communication could have been more lively rather than tedious endless lecture.
****
EDG
30 Sep 2016
Music in Venice superb
The baroque music was of the finest quality. The meals provided much less so.
****
Jo
19 Nov 2022
Spanish food and culture
Well planned and organised trip. Interesting meals, hotels and visits.
*****
tropdevin
17 Mar 2019
Perfect marriage of culture (the literature of the area) and the practical - walking in relevant places.
Considerable care goes into planning these holidays. The places to visit are well chosen and often have good local guides to expand on any given subject. The tour lecturer and manager are chosen to be very well informed and efficient at dealing with any difficulties that may occur. Buses arranged to...
*****
Mrs C M 16
02 Jul 2016
Music in Florence
I have done several tours with Martin Randall Travel down the years and they have always been meticulously organised to interesting locations.
*****
Miss J E 17
21 Mar 2017
Fabulous culinary tour to Valencia, Spain
We had a series of wonderful experiences ranging from a paella demonstration and meal to a wine tasting and lunch at the home of a noted winemaker to several Michelin one star meals to an over the top 3-star lunch to an almost everyday tapas lunch at a local bar. Everything was well organized, the t...
*****
JauntingJ
17 Nov 2016
A unique and memorable experience
This was a unique and imaginative programme, brilliantly organised so that the complexities of travel and timing passed by smoothly. There was always a member of staff on hand to advise and direct discreetly.
*****
RJB
11 Jul 2023
Fantastic!!
This was a study tour of Pompeii and Herculaneum led by Dr. Nigel Spivey for Martin Randall. It was an incredible week!! The weather was fabulous which was really icing on the cake. We visited Paestum, Cumae, the theatre of Pozzuoli, a fabulous museum at Bacoli, Pompeii, Herculaneum, Oplontis, and t...
*****
A Happy Canadian Tourist
09 Oct 2017

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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