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Please note: This expert may not be available for every date of this program.
Activity note: Hotel check-in from 3:00 p.m.
Afternoon: After checking in at the hotel and getting your room, take some time to freshen up and relax before our Orientation session. Orientation: 6:00 p.m. The Group Leader will greet everyone and lead introductions. We will review the up-to-date program schedule, discuss roles and responsibilities, logistics, safety guidelines, emergency procedures, and answer questions. Educational content will be provided by our knowledgeable Group Leader and local experts. Program-related travel will be primarily via motorcoach — requiring ascending and descending a few steps — unless specified otherwise. Meals and will include wine, coffee, and water with other beverages available for purchase. Periods in the daily schedule designated as “Free time” and “At leisure” offer opportunities to do what you like and make your experience even more meaningful and memorable according to your personal preferences. The Group Leader will be happy to offer suggestions. During the winter months, some stores are closed during the afternoon hours. Program activities, schedules, personnel, and indicated distances or times may change due to local circumstances/ weather conditions. In the event of changes, we will alert you as quickly as possible. Thank you for your understanding. We’ll then enjoy a welcome drink together before dinner.
Dinner: At a restaurant in Sorrento.
Evening: At leisure. Continue getting to know your fellow road scholars, settle in, and get a good night’s rest for the day ahead.
Activity note: Getting on/off a motorcoach; driving about 6 miles, approximately 1/2 hour. Walking about 2 miles throughout the day, approximately 2 hours; cobblestone paths.
Breakfast: At the hotel.
Morning: We will set out with a local expert on a walking field trip to explore Sorrento. As we go, we’ll learn about the history and the culture this Italian paradise by the sea, volcanoes, limoncello, Greek legends, and Italian traditions.
Lunch: At a farmhouse in Sorrento.
Afternoon: Next, we will ride to the comune of Piano di Sorrento with our local expert. We will explore a coffee roasting factory and the Villa Fondi di Sangro that was built in 1840 in neo-Classical style by the Prince of Fondi. Inside the villa, we will have a self-directed exploration of the Regional Museum of Archaeology of Sorrento Peninsula “George Vallet.” Returning to the hotel, the remainder of the afternoon will be free. This period of time has been set aside for personal independent exploration to see and do what interests each of us most. The Group Leader will be happy to offer suggestions. Please note that the period scheduled for free time is subject to change depending on local circumstances and opportunities for independent exploration.
Dinner: This meal has been excluded from the program cost and is on your own to enjoy what you like. The Group Leader will be happy to offer suggestions.
Evening: At leisure.
Activity note: Getting on/off a jet boat; riding approximately 2 hours. Getting in/out of mini-vans. Walking up to 1.5 miles, approximately 2 hours with stops; generally smooth, flat terrain.
Breakfast: At the hotel.
Morning: We will board a motorcoach, ride to the dock, and get into a jet boat that will take us to Capri. We will board the motorcoach and ride to Anacapri, where we will visit with our Group Leader the Villa San Michele. The Villa was built by the Swedish doctor Axel Munthe on the ruins of an ancient 10th century chapel dedicated to St. Michael We will then ride to a local farmhouse.
Lunch: At a farmhouse in Anacapri.
Afternoon: We’ll then ride to Capri and set out on a walking field trip in the historic town center of Capri, the Santa Teresa district. We will learn from a local expert about the Arabic-influenced history of this village resulting from the Amalfi Republic’s links with Byzantium and Jerusalem. Our expert will also tell us about the islands geology, history, and historical finds. We will visit the Giardini di Augusto, once known as the gardens of Krupp. The gardens are a series of flowered terraces. We will then return to Sorrento after our field trip.
Dinner: On your own to enjoy what you like.
Evening: At leisure.
Activity note: Getting on/off a motorcoach; driving about 60 miles, approximately 2 hours riding time throughout the day. Walking about 1.5 mile, approximately 2 hours; generally flat terrain, cobblestone paths.
Breakfast: At the hotel.
Morning: We will board the motorcoach and ride to Naples, where we will have an expert-led exploration of the Museo Archeologico Nazionale — the National Archaeological Museum. As well as containing findings of excavations at Pompei, the museum holds finds from the Graeco-Roman age as well as ancient Egyptian and Etruscan antiquities.
Lunch: At a restaurant in Naples.
Afternoon: Returning to the hotel, the remainder of the afternoon will be free.
Dinner: On your own to enjoy what you like.
Evening: At leisure.
Activity note: Getting on/off a motorcoach; driving about 30 miles, approximately 1.5 hours. Walking about 2 miles, approximately 2 hours; cobblestone paths, no benches along the way.
Breakfast: At the hotel.
Morning: We will board the motorcoach and ride to Pompeii for an expert-led walking field trip through the most significant remaining example of Roman civilization. It provides us an amazing opportunity to understand the life of normal Romans, frozen in time. We will ride back to Sorrento. Our Group Leader will give us a onsite lecture on canzone napoletana — Neapolitan song.
Lunch: At a restaurant in Sorrento.
Afternoon: We will return to the hotel where we’ll have the pleasure of hearing music performed by a local guitarist. Free Time.
Dinner: On your own to enjoy what you like.
Evening: At leisure. Prepare for check-out and and transfer in the morning.
Activity note: Getting on/off a motorcoach; driving about 10 miles, approximately 1 hour throughout the day. Walking about 1.5 miles, approximately 2 hours throughout the day; hill trail, uneven terrain, some steps with no railing. Getting on/off a ferry; riding approximately 1 hour. Getting in/out of mini-vans.
Breakfast: At the hotel.
Morning: After checking out of the hotel, we’ll board our motorcoach and transfer to Maiori, where we will check in at our hotel. We will stop en route at Positano on the beautiful Amalfi coast. The city dates back to the Roman era and was the center of what developed into the Maritime Republic of Amalfi in 839 CE. It was annexed to the Kingdom of Sicily in 1131. We will also encounter remnants of ancient Amalfi by walking off the beaten path through the narrow streets of the Arab quarter. The remainder of the morning will be free.
Lunch: On your own in Positano.
Afternoon: We will get into a ferry that will take us to Amalfi for an expert-led walking field trip through the town narrow streets and Arabic districts. We will visit the Chiostro del Paradiso with its beautiful garden and cloisters. We will then get into a ferry and transfer to Maiori and check in to our next hotel.
Dinner: At a local restaurant.
Evening: At leisure.
Activity note: Getting on/off a motorcoach; driving about 160 miles, approximately 3.5 hours throughout the day. Walking about 2 miles, approximately 1.5 hours throughout the day; uneven terrain, some steps with no railing.
Breakfast: At the hotel.
Morning: We will board the motorcoach and ride to Padula for an expert-led walking field trip of town. We will visit the Certosa, founded in 1306. It is the large Carthusian Monastery in Southern Italy. It comprises three cloisters, a garden, a courtyard, and a Church.
Lunch: At a farmhouse in Padula
Afternoon: Returning to the hotel, the remainder of the afternoon will be free.
Dinner: On your own to enjoy what you like in Minori.
Evening: At leisure.
Activity note: Getting on/off a motorcoach; driving about 80 miles, approximately 2 hours throughout the day. Walking about 2 miles, approximately 1 hour throughout the day; uneven terrain, cobblestone.
Breakfast: At the hotel.
Morning: We will board the motorcoach and ride to Paestum. We will stop en route at a local cheese factory and learn how to make the "mozzarella di bufala", It follows a mozzarella cheese tasting. We will then ride to the Masseria Eliseo for a cooking demonstration of traditional recipes of Campania with the Baronessa Cecilia Baratta.
Lunch: At the farmhouse, we will enjoy the meal we observed being prepared.
Afternoon: We will ride to Paestum for an expert-led walking field trip of the archaeological site. Paestum was a major ancient Greek city on the coast of the Tyrrhenian Sea, it comprises three of the best-preserved ancient Greek temples in the world. We will ride back to Maiori.
Dinner: At a local restaurant. Share favorite experiences with new Road Scholars friend during our farewell dinner.
Evening: At leisure. Prepare for check-out and departure in the morning.
Activity note: Hotel check-out 11.00 a.m. See your program’s GETTING THERE information regarding transfers.
Breakfast: At the hotel depending on departure time. This concludes our program.
Morning: If you are returning home, safe travels. If you are staying on independently, have a wonderful time. If you are transferring to another Road Scholar program, detailed instructions are included in your Information Packet for that program. We hope you enjoy Road Scholar learning adventures and look forward to having you on another rewarding program in the future. Don’t forget to join our Facebook page and follow us on Instagram. Best wishes for all your journeys!