Take a walk past Rome's most beautiful and unusual Baroque fountains. At the foot of the Spanish Steps, elegant cafes surround the central fountain. The water pressure here was so low that the artist had to sink the fountain into the ground to get any water going through it, so he went ahead and designed the fountain to look like a sinking ship. There's no shortage of water pressure at the nearby Trevi Fountain, a Baroque extravagance designed by master sculptor Bernini.

View the Trevi Fountain, where it is traditional to toss a coin into the fountain to ensure a safe return to the Eternal City.

We will spend some time in the Piazza Navona area. Built on the foundations of Domitian's Circus, this magnificent square was designed by Borromini in 17th century. It is full of life and is highlighted by one of Rome's most spectacular fountains, the Four Rivers designed by Bernini. The square is often filled with local artists. The surrounding neighborhood is also one of the best places in Rome to get a tasty tartufo or gelato ice cream

The ultimate symbol of Ancient Rome, the Colosseum still dominates the modern city. Tour the amphitheatre with your local licensed guide. Built by the emperor Vespasian in A.D. 72, the structure held almost 50,000 spectators but was so well organized that the entire place could be emptied within 15 minutes. Inside, the spectacles varied from gladiator battles to immense naval contests to wild beast shows, in which thousands of exotic animals like giraffes and ostriches were popped into the stadium through trap doors and left to fight Roman hunters. See the system beneath the floor that operated the trap doors and housed the animals, then continue on to the relative calm of the Forum. Ancient Rome’s commercial, religious and political center, the Forum held markets, temples and the Senate House. Near the Rostra, or speaker’s platform, you can still see game boards scratched into the marble by bored politicians--anyone up for a game of tic tac toe?

Tour the ruins and excavations of the Roman Forum, which features the remains of magnificent temples, basilicas, and triumphal arches that once formed the heart of the Empire.

Visit St. Peter’s Basilica, with its vast colonnades that seem to embrace the world. Inside, admire Michelangelo’s soaring dome, rising 452 feet above the ground, and his renowned Pietà. Then step into the Sistine Chapel, where the artist reluctantly painted frescoes that today stand among the world’s greatest masterpieces. Please note that the Sistine Chapel portion of the visit is unguided and will be explored independently.

This Gothic cathedral was started in 1263 to commemorate the "miracolo del sangue", a miracle witnessed by a priest in nearby Bolsena. He was celebrating Mass when blood began to drip from the Host he was consecrating, and today the cathedral is one of the most celebrated in Italy. The façade is a riot of sharply carved marble, colorful mosaic, and bas-relief. Many of the carvings feature disturbing stories from the Bible, including a vivid image of the Inferno, where the sinners writhe and suffer in lifelike detail.

Greet six renaissance giants including Giotto, Galileo, and Isabella d’Este, and debate who made the greatest impact on civilization.

Immerse yourself in the charms of old-world Firenze. The birthplace and focal point of the Italian Renaissance, Florence still has the masterpieces to prove it. Brunelleschi’s monumental cupola (dome) atop the city's renowned Duomo dominates the skyline. Your local licensed guide will take you to Giotto's Bell Tower and the aptly named Gates of Paradise, the bronze east doors of the Baptistery that spurred the burgeoning Renaissance. Don’t overlook the tombs of Michelangelo, Galileo, and Machiavelli at the Chiesa di Santa Croce, or Florence’s amazing leather goods. You can check them out when you visit one of the area’s famed workshops!

Spend time in the Piazza della Signoria, the political stage of Renaissance Florence and an open-air museum of sculpture.

Stroll along the Ponte Vecchio, the oldest of Florence's six bridges and one of the best-loved sites of Florence. Lined with numerous shops, visitors often do not realize they are on a bridge until the reach the center arches that look out over the Arno.

Stop in Pisa to see the famous leaning bell tower. It was already partly finished when builders realized that -- surprise! -- the ground beneath was too soft to support it. They tried to correct the tilt by putting a slight bend in the structure, but the extra weight just made it tilt more. Famous as it is, the leaning tower is just one component of Pisa’s Campo dei Miracoli (Field of Miracles). Rising from an immaculate green lawn, the baptistery, duomo, and tower are fine examples of Pisan Romanesque architecture. All three are clad in intricately carved black and white marble, and on bright summer days their brilliance can be blinding.

In fair Verona shall we lay our scene. The setting for Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” still glows with romance. See Juliet’s balcony, tenderly draped with climbing ivy and overlooking a golden-hued statue of the young mistress herself. As you gaze out and contemplate the power of love, don’t get too swept away -- remember that while Shakespeare based his characters on Verona’s real-life feuding families, both Romeo and Juliet were, in fact, fictional.

Brush up on your Shakespeare before visiting Casa di Giulietta, where you can look up at the balcony long associated with the story of Romeo and Juliet. Learn how many versions of this tragic tale existed well before Shakespeare gave it its most famous form. From this legendary setting of star-crossed love, continue on to Verona’s Roman Arena, a remarkably preserved 1st-century B.C. amphitheater. Still used for performances today, it is the third-largest arena of its kind in Italy.

Bubbling up on more than 100 islands in a lagoon off the Adriatic, Venice is an absolutely unique and unquestionably beautiful city. Step into Piazza San Marco, an airy expanse of arches, sunlight, and pigeons. The multi-domed Basilica on one end, completed in 1094 but decorated for centuries afterward, is the final resting place of the apostle St. Mark, Venice’s patron saint. The mosaics beneath the basilica’s outside arches depict the arrival of St. Mark’s body, stolen from Egypt in 828 by Venetian traders. The frothy Venetian Gothic Doge’s Palace stands next door. Continue on to a glass-blowing demonstration. Venetian glass has long been considered the best in the world, and its production was such a state secret that during the Middle Ages, any Venetian glassblower who attempted to ply his trade outside the city was immediately arrested.

Stroll through St. Mark's Square. Bordered by Venice's greatest historic buildings, St. Mark's Square is the center of both the city and its water transportation system, as well as a popular tourist attraction.

Discover the Doge’s Palace, once the seat of government and justice in the Venetian Republic. Its lavish rooms, monumental artwork, and intricate architectural details reveal the wealth and influence that defined Venice at its height.

Line up to climb to the top floor of this iconic landmark for a spectacular birds-eye view of the glittering City of Light.

See the city from the water on an hour-long cruise along the River Seine. The Seine cuts right through Paris, dividing the city in half. See the Eiffel tower rising up on the Left Bank, the walls of the Louvre on the Right Bank. A guide will point out other monuments and architectural marvels as you pass, many of which are illuminated by clear white light at night.

This city was made for walking. Stroll grand boulevards with sweeping views of the city, pristine parks with trees planted in perfect rows, and narrow streets crowded with vendors selling flowers, pastries and cheese. Then head to the Île de la Cité, a small island in the Seine, to see Notre Dame Cathedral.

View the Notre-Dame Cathedral. Work began in 1163 on a spot that had been a holy shrine since Roman times. Over the centuries, the cathedral has been the scene of some of France's most momentous occasions, including the coronation of Napoleon.

What's that huge white arch at the end of the Champs-Élysées? The Arc de Triomphe, commissioned by Napoleon in 1806 after his victory at Austerlitz. Your licensed local guide will elaborate on this, and other Parisian landmarks. See some of the most famous sites, including the ornate 19th-century Opera, the Presidential residence and the Place de la Concorde, where in the center you’ll find the Obelisk of Luxor, a gift from Egypt in 1836. Spot chic locals (and tons of tourists) strolling the Champs-Élysées. Look up at the iron girders of the Eiffel Tower, built for the 1889 World's Fair to commemorate the centenary of the French Revolution. See Les Invalides (a refuge for war wounded) and the École Militaire (Napoleon's alma mater).

The ultimate palace, Versailles was built by Louis XIII, and housed the royal family and its groveling court from 1682, when the Sun King moved in, to the French Revolution. Everything in Versailles is worth a look, from the 250-foot-long Hall of Mirrors, with themed salons-"war" and "peace"-on either side, to Marie Antoinette's faux country hamlet. When being a queen became too much to bear, she would pretend to be a commoner, tending her sheep and wearing peasant clothes. (Please note Versailles is closed on Mondays.)

This small town in France, was the site of the First and Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux during the First World War in 1918. The heroic recapture of this town and the sacrifice of the young Australians will forever be remembered. Today, the Australian flag still flies over Villers-Bretonneux and memorials and cemeteries pay tribute to the twelve hundred Australian soldiers who tragically lost their lives.

The Australian National Memorial, located behind the Villers-Bretonneux Military Cemetery honours the Australian soldiers who fought in France and Belgium, and who lie under the battlefields. The memorial commemorates the 10,719 Australian casualties who died in France and who have no known grave.

The Sir John Monash Centre tells Australia’s story of the Western Front in the words of those who served. Set on the grounds of the Villers-Bretonneux Military Cemetery in northern France, the Sir John Monash Centre is designed so visitors gain a better understanding of the journey of ordinary Australians, told in their own voices through letters, diaries and life-size images and connect with the places they fought and died. The centre is a moving experience that leaves a lasting impression.

Travel twenty metres below the streets of Arras to the Wellington Quarry, where thousands of soldiers hid underground before a surprise attack on the German front lines on April 9, 1917. Learn about the Battle of Arras and the troops who built and lived in the tunnels below the town. Discover the military strategy behind the tunnels and how it helped win the First World War.

This is a significant site commemorating one of the Australian Imperial Force’s greatest victories during World War I. Located near Peronne, this memorial honors the 2nd Australian Division, which played a crucial role in capturing Mont St Quentin from German forces between August 31 and September 2, 1918.

The Battle of Fromelles took place on 19 and 20 July 1916. It was a fierce confrontation, with nearly 8,500 victims in less than 24 hours. The bodies of many of those killed on the battlefield were never found until 2009, when a team of archaeologists unearthed the bodies of 250 British and Australian soldiers. A major identification campaign began, and with each new identity, the story of soldier came to light.

Buried in this cemetery near the museum are the bodies of the 250 British and Australian soldiers found in 2009 in Pheasant Wood, Fromelles.

V.C. Corner is the only exclusively Australian First World War cemetery in France. Four hundred Australian soldiers killed in the Battle of Fromelles are buried here. As none of the bodies were able to be identified, instead of individual gravestones a memorial was erected bearing the names of all the Australian soldiers killed on the battlefields around Fromelles with no known grave. Some were identified following the discovery of the mass graves in 2009 and have since been buried in Pheasant Wood Cemetery.

Throughout the First World War, hundreds of thousands of soldiers fought in the muddy landscapes that are now known as Flanders Fields. Today, thousands of those men still rest in Flanders Fields, Belgium, far from their homelands. They are remembered in the monuments, cemeteries, and places of learning that serve to commemorate their sacrifices.

During the Battle of Messines, the work of Commonwealth tunnellers played a significant role in not only battle, but in physically changing the landscape of Flanders Fields. In the summer of 1917, 19 massive underground mines were detonated, the largest non-nuclear explosions in history. Evidence of these massive explosions can be seen at the Caterpillar Crater (Hill 60).

The artificial hill from 1850 lies about 60 meters above sea-level, hence the name. Countless soldiers worked in the cold and the dark of the mine tunnels. Some of them have never left. In this sense, Hill 60 is their cemetery.

Before joining the Battle of the Somme, Canadian troops fought hard to defend this area, a small part of Belgium still controlled by the Allies. The advances made by these troops were an unqualified success, according the official British historical reports, but Canada suffered 8,430 casualties in the process.

In Flanders Fields Museum presents the story of the First World War from the invasion of Belgium, to 4 years of trench warfare and peace in the region since. Visit the Museum and honor over 600,000 who fell

The Last Post, the traditional final salute to the fallen, is played by the buglers of the Last Post Association in honour of the memory of the soldiers of the former British Empire and its allies, who died in the Ypres Salient during the First World War (1914-1918).

In Polygon Wood, the group is expected to reach the other side of Polygon Wood independently via four locations. However, they do not have a ready-made itinerary. In small groups they need to use codes, carry out hands-on tasks and use British, Australian or New Zealand identity cards of fallen soldiers to find their way. Please note: Activity is only logistically feasible with a minimum of 20 participating students.

Step into the new immersive experience ‘Passchendaele 1917’ and find yourself right in the middle of the landscape of 1917. By means of powerful visualizations, appropriate music and historical images projected several metres tall, the Battle of Passchendaele is presented chronologically. A total experience in which young and old are completely immersed in the story and landscape of 1917.