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WE ARE SORRY TO SAY, BUT WE WILL NOT BE OFFERING TOURS FOR THE 2009 SEASON. PLEASE CHECK
BACK WITH US AS TO THE NEXT AVAILABILITY OF TOURS
 We'll make you an offer you can't refuse!
You will be delighted as you visit vineyards and wineries,
observe family-owned olive oil manufacturers and cheese producers. Each day you will discover the diversity and excellence
of Abruzzo's unrivaled cuisine, enjoying traditional dishes in first-class restaurants or at country farms, specialized in recipes with home-grown ingredients and genuine products.
In addition to these culinary
activities, you will also visit places of natural beauty, contemplate medieval architecture and works of art, see Abruzzo’s
craftsmen practicing centuries-old arts like ceramic, lace, wrought iron and jewelry making.
To make your tour an experience you will treasure for years to come, we offer an exclusive opportunity for you to visit
your ancestral towns, and get in touch with your lost Italian family! We can arrange for you a free day visit during
the tour (there is one day at leisure) to see that dear, never forgotten place of your forebears, the landscapes that they
always kept in their hearts, and to perhaps meet, at last, the relatives of whom your parents and/or grandparents spoke!
Operating
Dates: 2008 Food and Wine Tour - JUNE: 7
to 16 June, 2008
- SEPTEMBER: 6 to 15 September, 2008
- OCTOBER:
4 to 13 October, 2008
- 10 Days, 9 Nights: 4 nights in L'Aquila, 4 nights in Atri, 1 night in Rome
- Fly on Friday,
arrive on Saturday, leave on Monday
Tour
itinerary: - Friday (in-flight)
From the airport of your choice, fly to Italy’s Rome Fiumicino. - Saturday (Day 1)
Features: Arrival, settle in, welcome
meal
Morning: Pick up in Fiumicino-Rome and transfer to the Hotel San
Michele in L'Aquila. Settle in and time to rest.
Late Afternoon: Guided orientation in the city center; followed by a special
"welcome dinner" in a local traditional restaurant – a great way to become familiar with the generous foods
of the region and … your new tour companions!
Meals
included: Dinner - Sunday (Day 2)
Features:
Gran Sasso mountain landscapes, Mussolini prison, cheese tradition, medieval villages, ancient churches.
Morning: Travel
around the rocky mountains of Gran Sasso and the Campo Imperatore plateu ("the little Tibet of Italy"), visit the
building where dictator Benito Mussolini was imprisoned during World War II. Transfer to a cheese farm/restaurant near Assergi
and learn how they produce a variety of great cheeses, following the ancient pasture tradition; guided cheese tasting and
noon meal.
Afternoon: Enjoy the steep alleys of Santo Stefano di Sessanio, a picturesque village where
time seems to have stand still in the medieval era; then onto L’Aquila to see the unique Fountain of the 99 spouts and
the Church of Santa Maria di Collemaggio in L'Aquila: each are authentic masterpieces of the Abruzzese art.
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch - Monday (Day 3)
Features: Abruzzo wines, confetti candies, cheese tradition,
pillow lace, women in typical costumes, National Park in Abruzzo.
Morning: Visit to the multi award-winning Pietrantonj winery, producing Montepulciano wines of Abruzzo
in the Peligna valley where great grapes are cultivated since 2,000 years ago, and enjoy a wine tasting with snacks. Transfer
to Sulmona, world capital of the "confetti" candies and “confetti” floral arrangements. Guided tour
of its historical center of town that is also famous as the birthplace of the Latin poet Ovid; include is a short visit to
the Pelino confetti factory and museum. Noon meal in a local "agriturismo" near Pacentro, to enjoy the delicious
home-grown food of the local area.
Afternoon: After a short bus drive along the impressive Sagittario Valley, walk the old
narrow streets of Scanno, a well preserved village also known for his active crafts and the old women still dressing with
traditional costumes. Don't miss a chance to take pictures at the shores of the nearby lake, immersed in the intact natural
environment of the National Park of Abruzzo.
Meals
included: Breakfast Lunch - Tuesday (Day 4)
Free Day: Let us plan together a personalized visit to your ancestral village and meet your relatives or
we can do a family research(*), or you can simply enjoy L'Aquila, with its morning market and its many surprising treasures
of art.
Meals included: Breakfast - Wednesday (Day 5)
Features: Ceramics and majolica, treasures
of art in Atri
Morning: Check out
from the hotel in L'Aquila. Visit to Castelli, an impressive mountain village worldwide famous for his beautiful ceramics:
see the local museum, follow closely an artisan during the laborious pottery processing and finally shop around the many nice
stores in town. Noon meal in town, with multiple coures. Transfer to Atri, and check in at the Hotel Du Parc.
Afternoon: Visit
to the gorgeous city center of Atri, including the newly restored Church of Santa Maria Assunta and its marvellous frescoes
by the Abruzzese artist Andrea di Litio, contemporary of Giotto. Back to the hotel and dinner.
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner - Thursday (Day 6)
Features: Olive oil, "arrosticini", Adriatic beach, shopping
Morning: Visit a local olive oil farm: this area is considered among
the best places in Italy for the quality of its extra virgin olive oil. Visit Loreto Aprutino and its beautiful center, see
the Church of Santa Maria al Piano, with frescoes on the life of St. Thomas the Aquinote and the magnificent Universal Judgement
Cycle. Noon meal based on "arrosticini", delicious spit-roasted meat sticks, typical of Abruzzo.
Afternoon: walk off the meal down to the Pescara shore, where you will have these options: 1) guided visit to the Museum of
the Peoples of Abruzzo 2) stroll around the many shops of the city center 3) simply walk on the white sandy beach and (why
not?) swim in the tranquil warm waters of the Adriatic Sea. Last, but not least, taste a "gelato" at a locally renowned
gelateria. Return to the hotel and enjoy dinner.
Meals
included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner - Friday (Day 7)
Features:
Abruzzo coast, fishing tradition, Eucharist miracle
Morning: Spectacular trip along the southern "coast of the trabocchi" until beautiful Vasto, located on a breathtaking
hilltop just over the sea. Enjoy your sea food meal (Venerdì pesce!), based on the local fishing cuisine.
Afternoon: Visit to the
ancient city of Lanciano, where you will get to know about the Eucharist Miracle, officially recognized by the Church of Rome,
and never proved to be wrong by the scientists. Back to the hotel and dinner.
Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner - Saturday
(Day 8)
Features: goldsmiths, wrought iron, home made pasta, Abruzzese and Italian folk music
Morning: Visit to the impressive mountainous village of Pescocostanzo, see the Church
of Santa Maria del Colle and enjoy the traditional jewellery, the pillow lace and the ironworkers' shops. Noon meal at
Paolino, to experience the many specialties "della casa".
Afternoon: Back to Atri, some time to rest. Then, learn from chef Lidia at Podere San
Domenico some Abruzzese recipes (maccheroni alla chitarra, cavatelli, scrippelle) and how to make a perfectly home made pasta:
you'll even try your hand at making it! Finally, "farewell dinner" with songs and dances from the vast Italian
and Abruzzese folk music tradition!
Meals included:
breakfast, lunch, dinner - Sunday (Day 9)
Features:
Rome, Coliseum, Roman Forum
Morning: check out from L'Aquila and transfer
to Rome, right in the heart of the city center. Escorted walking tour to the Roman Forum and the Coliseum. After the hotel
check in, time to stroll around on your own to Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Piazza Navona, Spanish Steps, St. Peter Church and
the Vatican, etc. Note: All famous and well-known spots are walking distance from Via Nazionale). Meals
at leisure. In the Eternal City, there is the **embarrassment of choice!
Meals included: Breakfast - Monday (Day 10)
Hotel Miami check out. You arrange your own transportation to Rome Fiumicino
airport at your desired time **.
Meals included: Breakfast
Our
2008 Food and Wine Tour: included
9 night hotel
accommodations based on double room occupancy in
- L'Aquila; 4 nights at the
3-star superior Hotel San Michele, in the city center
- Atri; 4 nights at the 3-star Hotel Du Parc, in the city center
- Rome; 1 night at the 3-star Hotel Miami, in the city center
For your convenience all hotels have fully equipped rooms with private bathroom and shower and many
other facilities (check the hotel websites for all details). - Rich continental breakfast daily
- 10 authentic traditional Abruzzese meals
- Abruzzese cooking lesson
- Wine tasting with appetizers
- Extra virgin olive oil tasting with appetizers
- Cheese tasting
- Evening with music and dancing
- All
touring as described per day-by-day itinerary
- Experienced tour guides and staff will escort the
group throughout the tour. Our guides have knowledge of the Abruzzo area, all shopping, cultural sightseeing and dining venues
you will be visiting
- All transfers by air-conditioned minibus throughout the tour, including pick
up at Rome's Fiumicino Airport at your arrival time
- Paid entrance inclusive to all activities,
sites and museums
- Land insurance coverage for health, accident and liability
- Abruzzo
guide book, maps and handouts inclusive for all visits
- 1 day at leisure
Our
2008 Food and Wine Tour: not include: - Airfares; contact your travel agent, or get the
best rate on the Internet. Note: just let us know your flight details; we will pick you up at your arrival
time in Rome.
- Single room: 250 Euros additional charge.
- Meals on the Free Day at
leisure, and when not expressly mentioned.
- Personal transport costs (car rental, taxi, trains, etc.);
phone calls; hotel laundry service, etc.
- Individualized assistance during the Free Day at leisure *
- Rome transfer to the airport for your scheduled flight
back home **
- Anything not specified
above
Tour
Information and Travel Tips *FREE DAY.
We can provide you with a car, a driver and a guide/interpreter at a very special rate, according
to the mileage traveled (round trip). As an example: Consider a 350 Euros fee for a 200 km (124 miles) total mileage. Meals are not included. As a suggestion. For your assurance, book this *Leisure
Day Service well in advance;
this is due to the limited availability of our team members. Also, tell us in advance
in the event you would like us to make a family research and/or pre-visit contact your relatives, in order to arrange family
reunions.
** Rome Transfer. Due to the difficulty in arrange a single group transfer; i.e.,travelers' flights
are at different times. You will need to book your own taxi (a transfer Rome-Fiumicino is about 50 euros)
or take a train (11 euros per person); the Hotel Miami is 10-minute walking time from the Rome Central Station, where regional
trains to Fiumicino airport are available every 30 minutes; trains stop right into Rome’s Fiumicino airport).
Tour
Price:
Euros 1,990
Per Person, in double room occupancy (Click here for the exchange rate)
- Single room supplement: Euros 250
- Reservation deposit: Euros 290
Deposit
non-refundable unless the tour is cancelled. Balance (1,700 Euros) due no later than 60 days before tour starting day.
In case you will not be able to join the tour at the last minute due to an unforeseeable event, we will refund you
that balance amount.
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