WESTERN MEDITERRANEAN INCLUDING MALTA & SICILY ABOARD MSC WORLD ASIA with Turkish Airlines, 8 Nights - Including Hotel Accommodation

We meet at Istanbul New Airport 4 hours before departure and, after check-in, fly to Milan (MXP) Airport. Upon arrival, transfer to our hotel in Genoa. Guests may join the optional Genoa City Tour organised by the cruise ship. The capital of Liguria, Genoa undoubtedly deserves far more recognition than it currently enjoys. The city is the birthplace of pesto and Christopher Columbus, as well as a driving force behind Italian football. Its wealth of art, music, gastronomy, architecture and history earned it the title of European Capital of Culture in 2004. This historic city, a legacy of the Genoese, will surprise you.

After breakfast at our hotel, we transfer to MSC World Asia for check-in. Guests may join the optional Portofino Tour organised by the cruise ship. The capital of Liguria, Genoa undoubtedly deserves far more recognition than it currently enjoys. The city is the birthplace of pesto and Christopher Columbus, as well as a driving force behind Italian football. Its wealth of art, music, gastronomy, architecture and history earned it the title of European Capital of Culture in 2004. This historic city, a legacy of the Genoese, will surprise you. After exploring its magnificent mansions, streets, squares and historic sites, we travel by coach to Santa Margherita Ligure. From here, we take boats to Portofino, where we enjoy free time. Guests may walk up to the Church of St George to admire magnificent views of Portofino, or enjoy a drink and shop around its stunning natural harbour. There will be time for shopping. After the tour, we head to our ship. At our guide's discretion, the tour may begin in Genoa or Portofino.

After breakfast on board, guests who wish may join the optional Rome City Tour organised by our guide at an additional charge. On this full-day tour, we board the coach waiting for us at Civitavecchia Port and reach Rome after a journey of 1 hour and 15 minutes. We then take a panoramic coach tour, with sights including Castel Sant'Angelo, the Tiber River, Borghese Park, Via Veneto, Piazza del Popolo, Piazza della Repubblica, Via Nazionale, the Theatre of Marcellus, Circus Maximus and the Forum sites. We then explore Rome's famous squares on foot. Sights include Piazza della Rotonda, Piazza Navona and the Trevi Fountain, before we finish our tour at the Spanish Steps and enjoy a shopping break. At the end of our tour, we return to the ship. Dinner and overnight accommodation on board.

After breakfast on board, guests who wish may join the optional Savoca & Taormina & Messina tour organised by the ship. During our tour, we will see filming locations from the world-famous film The Godfather. Taormina, one of Sicily's most beautiful tourist resorts, is another delightful destination we will visit. We then head to Messina, known as the "Gateway to Sicily." Founded in ancient Greek times, this beautiful city is considered Sicily's spiritual capital thanks to its rich history. After an enjoyable tour of Messina, one of the region's most modern and vibrant cities, we return to our ship. Dinner and overnight on board.

After breakfast on board, guests who wish may join the optional Mosta & Valletta & Mdina & Marsaxlokk tour organised by the ship. Our first stop is Mosta, where we visit the Basilica of Santa Maria Assunta, which has the third-largest dome in Europe. The interior paintings of this vast basilica, whose dome has an external diameter of 56,2 metres, are primarily the work of painter Giuseppe Cali. We will see a replica of the 200 kg bomb dropped by Nazi German aircraft in 1942 during World War 2, which pierced the dome and lodged in the church floor without exploding, and learn about the church's interior and exterior architecture. We then visit Malta's former capital, Mdina, which served as a filming location for many scenes in the renowned series Game of Thrones. As we explore the narrow streets of this medieval town, known as the Silent City, we will see the magnificent Saint Paul's Cathedral, the 13th-century Falson Mansion built by the noble Maltese Falson family, the 17th-century Baroque Carmelite Monastery, Vilhena Palace and Mdina's historic houses. We continue our tour with a visit to the fishing village of Marsaxlokk. Do not miss the picturesque sight of the charming little fishing boats known as Luzzo, with their distinctive Maltese colours and designs. This lovely fishing village also hosts an open-air market. We will have free time here, allowing guests who wish to enjoy lunch at local restaurants serving fresh fish and seafood. After our free time, we depart for Valletta for our city tour. Valletta was selected as the European Capital of Culture for 2018 by the Council of Ministers of the European Union. During our tour, we will have the opportunity to view the city and its magnificent fortifications from the outside. Following our coach tour, we will explore the lively streets of the capital, Valletta, on a guided walk. Our first stop will be the Barracca Gardens, built on the upper section of the defensive walls surrounding this impressive city. Created by the Knights of St. John, these gardens also offer magnificent views of the Grand Harbour and the 3 old fortified cities. At the end of our tour, we return to the ship. Dinner and overnight stay on board.

We spend the entire day at sea, a perfect opportunity to enjoy this magnificent ship. You can enjoy breakfast, lunch and dinner at the buffet restaurant, offering a variety of dishes freshly prepared by dedicated chefs to suit every palate, or at your reserved seat in the à la carte restaurant. During the day, you can take yoga and fitness classes, play outdoor tennis, volleyball and basketball, or use the gym equipped with state-of-the-art Technogym equipment, including strength-training machines. After dinner, you can spend time in the ship's lively bars and cafés listening to live music, attend Broadway-style musical theatre shows or try your luck at the casino. Dinner and overnight on board.

After breakfast, guests who wish may join the optional Barcelona city tour organised by our guide at an additional charge. Our tour of Barcelona, one of Europe's most beautiful cities, begins with our private coach waiting at the port. Sights include La Rambla, the Christopher Columbus Monument, Maremagnum's artificial harbour, Barceloneta Beach, the Olympic area and port, Plaça de Catalunya, Passeig de Gràcia, where Gaudí's houses have transformed the avenue into an open-air museum, and his most significant work, the Sagrada Familia. During the tour, we will ascend Montjuïc Hill to take photographs of the views. After free time for shopping on La Rambla, we return to our ship. Dinner and overnight on board.

After breakfast on board, guests who wish may join the optional Aix-en-Provence & Marseille Tour organised by the ship at an additional charge. We begin with a 10-minute walk from Marseille port. After a coach journey of approximately 40 minutes, we reach AIX-EN-PROVENCE, one of southern France's most elegant cities, which has inspired many creative figures such as Paul Cézanne and Émile Zola. In this region famous for its lavender fields, we explore a city steeped in history, with beautiful buildings, flower-filled balconies and fountains that are works of art. After Aix-en-Provence, we return to Marseille and begin our city tour. Passing through the Old Port, we visit Notre-Dame de la Garde, one of the city's most celebrated historic landmarks, set on a high hill. Our second stop is Palais Longchamp. During our visit to this building, which houses the Museum of Fine Arts, we view its gardens and fountains from outside and stop for photographs. At the end of the tour, we return to our ship. Dinner and overnight on board.

After breakfast on board, we transfer to Turin (TRN) Airport. Guests who wish may join the optional Turin City Tour organised by our guide.