ITALY TRIP UPDATE

 

      In early August we will be listing the particulars concerning our next trip to Italy, please be on the lookout for that posting on this site. As you know we have arranged for the trip to be organized by ABC Tours as vendor. They have over forty years experience in the industry and hosted our group's last trip to Italy in 2006. This trip is not a fundraiser and neither our organization or any individual member of the Lodge receives any compensation regarding the endeavor. Reservations and payment is strictly with ABC Tours so those wishing to reserve a place must pay careful attention to the tour number, scheduled deadlines and contact information which will be provided in early August. The ultimate cost of the trip will be effected by the number of reservations received. The minimun number for a group is twenty, but the more people going, up to forty, the less expensive the trip and the saving will be passed on to those going.  The cost reduction is the result of the deminishing cost per person for the Italian tour bus, our  land mode of travel, the more people on the bus the less the bus costs per person. As a result depending on the response we may cut off enrollment at forty, bus capacity, so sign up early. The reservation period will run from August 6th thru September 25. If enough people respond we will consider two buses with an eighty person limit but that will be determined by response.

 

    Regarding the trip we have attempted to create a tour schedule which will offer unique experiences to both the seasoned traveller and those going to Italy for the first time. The tip will be for twelve days with departure from Newark airport on April 25, 2011. The intial three nights will spent in the town of Melfi which is regional to San Fele and will provide easy access to the sights and experiences of Melfi, Venosa and San Fele, the center of our group's point of ancestral origin. We also will be taking a half day trip to the shrine of San Angelo on the East coast of Italy at Gargano. This initial part of the trip will offer access to the non tourist real culture of rural southern Italy, the culture that connects to the ancestry of probably half of the Italian American population. The remainder of the trip will bring us to the experiences of Amalfi, Sorrento, Naples, Rome , Florence and Venice. Looking forward to providing further details shortly.