TourCrafters Offers One-Week Escorted Tour of Southern Italy

Libertyville, IL, August 27, 2013—Sometimes overlooked by tourists, Southern Italy is, in fact, the fascinating  region to which many Americans trace their ancestry. You won’t have time to find any second cousins, but TourCrafters is offering a one-week, land-only Jewels of the South escorted tour for $2,109—with four departures in September and October--that takes in the southern highlights.

The $2,109 price includes arrival transfer, seven nights accommodation in 4-star  hotels, daily buffet breakfast, six dinners, two lunches, transportation, a visit to Capri’s famous Blue Grotto (weather permitting), an English-speaking tour escort/guide and local guides in Palermo, Agrigento and Pompeii.

The tour departs from Rome, stopping in Naples for a tour of pizza’s hometown, and in Pompeii to see the ruins of the Roman city destroyed by a volcanic eruption in 79 A.D. Then it’s on to the popular resort town of Sorrento for dinner and overnight at the Grand Hotel Vesuvio.  In the morning, a steamer takes the group to the gorgeous island of Capri for a visit to the Blue Grotto, to Anacapri and to the Augustus Gardens for a view of the Faraglioni (photogenic offshore rock formations).  Back to Naples for dinner and overnight.at the Hotel Naples.

Heading south, the tour stops to see the Doric temples at Paestum, the bronze Greek statues in the museum at Reggio di Calabria and Rende, known for its 11^th-century Norman castle.  After dinner and an overnight in Reggio at the Hotel Altafiumara, the tour departs for Sicily and an excursion to Mount Etna, the highest active volcano in Europe.  Then there’s time to enjoy the sophisticated shops and cafés, not to mention the wonderful views from the Greek Theater in Taormina.  After dinner and overnight in Siracusa at the Hotel Jolly Aretusa, there’s free time to visit the archaeological zone and the historic Baroque center of the city,  Then it’s on to Piazza Armerina to visit the Roman Villa del Casale and its mosaics and to Agrigento for an overnight at the Hotel Kore.

On the last day, the tour visits Agrigento’s Valley of the Temples with its well-preserved Greek temples; Palermo, to see the Cathedral, as well as the Palatine Chapel in the Royal Palace; and Monreale to visit the Cathedral and Cloister.  After a last night at the Hotel Cristal in Palermo, the tour ends after breakfast.

All prices quoted are per person, double occupancy, and are subject to availability.  Prices do not include air fare, drinks during meals, entrance fees, departure transfer, city tax (which is paid directly to the hotels), tips and extras..  For morel information about the land-only Jewels of the South package, visit. http://sales.tourcrafters.com/tour.lasso?ID=205.   For reservations, call 800-482-5995.

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