I'm back from my tour to Italy that included visits to Rome, the Amalfi Coast, Florence, the Tuscan hill towns of Monterrigioni an Castellina, and Venice. We had a small group tour of about 12 travelers, from all over the United States and Canada join us. The weather was unpredictably cool, but delightful. In our two weeks in Italy, we only experienced one day of inclement weather and even that day was not so bad. Read the blog post to find out more about our tour to Italy.
The Traveling Professor is off to Italy with a small group of 12 adult travelers. It will be The Professor's last small group Italy tour of the year. On the itinerary is Rome, the Amalfi Coast, Florence, and Venice. Our tour to Italy will be about 2 weeks in length. What I enjoy most about our tours to Italy are the great people on our groups. No slow big bus tours for us! We always have energetic travelers who like to see and do a lot. Our small group size lets us move around quickly and efficiently. The hotels are all in central locations. For more on our small group tour to Italy itinerary, see my blog post.
Europe is different from North America. That's one of the reasons why we travel there. One difference travelers will see when traveling to Paris, for instance, and even more so in Italy, are in the hotel rooms. When staying in the historic district of Florence for instance, most of the buildings are hundreds of years old, built long before modern plumbing and electrical systems. Therefore, these rooms needed to be retro fitted to accommodate these modern conveniences. For that reason, travelers won't find many "cookie-cutter" type of rooms in the big, old cities of Europe. Read my blog post to find out more in regards what to expect in European hotel rooms on your next tour to Europe.
Taking a tour to Paris involves walking, a lot of walking. Whether it be on one of The Traveling Professor's small group tours to Paris or traveling on my own, I like to take a break in the middle of the day and do something relaxing. A cruise down either the Seine or the Canal St. Martin is always on my list of things to do in Paris. Take a look at the blog post to find out more about taking a day cruise in Paris.
The Traveling Professor flies to Italy 4-6 times per year. Airfare makes up a considerable portion of my tour expense and if I can save anywhere from $200-$400 per flight, that amounts to significant savings. As you probably know, I use the website matrix.itasoftware.com to search for flights whether it be for my personal trips or helping those going on my small group tours to Italy. But there are some other tips for getting the best airfares to Italy. Read my blog post to find out how to save money on flights to Italy.
On our small group tours we love to eat. Over the years I have found the best authentic dining spots in Italy, Paris, Spain and Peru. In this blog post I will tell you about my favorite eating spots, places we always go on my Traveling Professor tours. Two of the best dining spots are in Italy, and I have listed one each in Paris, Peru, and Spain. Come join me on a Traveling Professor tour and see what I am talking about.
I got back late last night from leading another small group tour to Italy. We visited Florence, Padua, Verona, Venice, Vicenza then headed down to Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast for a few days. We traveled with as many as 12 adults and as few as six. The weather was terrific, the food was out of this world, the places we visited were glorious and the friendships we made will last for a long time. Read my blog post and find out the highlights of our tour of Italy.
Whenever I am on a tour to Italy, especially Florence, I like to go into the countryside. The hills are filled with olive trees and grape vines. Bicyclists go up and down the hills. It seems like on every distant hilltop sits a small fortified town. Read my blog post to find out more about my tour of the Chianti region.
One of the most popular Traveling Professor tours is our tours to Paris for ladies only. It is a week full of luxury, art, culture, shopping, and fun. We start the trip off with a private limo pickup at the Paris airport. We stay at a wonderful 4 star hotel in the heart of the authentic Latin Quarter, our small group size lets us move around Paris quickly and efficiently, we have professional tour guides leading us on a wonderful itinerary. Chocolate tasting, wine tasting, fashion and shopping sites are all on the plan. Join us for a tour of Paris for ladies only. Read the blog post for details.
A tour to Paris is not a tour to Paris without a visit to a market. Paris has a wide variety of markets selling flowers, food, antiques, toys, pets, and just about anything else you can think of. Take a look at The Traveling Professor's blog post to find out more about the best markets in Paris.