Search results for: Golden Day Ten (Page 4)

10 REASONS WHY WOMEN LOVE GOLDEN WEEKS IN ITALY: For Women Only 1. Small group tours (14 max). You get personal, caring attention every step of the way. 2. Custom-designed and led by author Susan Van Allen. You’ll have a fun-loving savvy traveler girlfriend with you all week to lead you to hidden treasures. 3. Full immersions into a destination, with Femme Friendly Focus. Staying in one spot for a while gives you the chance to deeply know it, and focusing on the HERstory of its culture and art deepens our personal connection to Italy. 4. Entertaining local guides share their expertise and insider’s perspective.Read More →

These beautiful summer days have me dreaming back to days on the island of Ponza, aka The Roman Capri…The 7km squiggle off the coast of Lazio may look minor on the map,… but Ponza has long been a major summertime paradise for pleasure-seeking Romans. Its port is one of the most enchanting in the Mediterranean, where travelers can hop on boats for rides around a dramatic rocky coastline, stopping to sun and swim at dreamy beach coves and indulge in fresh seafood at rustic eateries. Unlike Capri and so many other popular Italian summertime destinations, Ponza remains truly Italian, folksy, and budget-friendly. Spicy history adds to itsRead More →

Each of us have special things in our lives that rock our worlds. For me, it’s when I meet my readers in person or get an email like this one, telling me how my advice brought joy to their trip to Italy. Katy and Mark are travelers I met at the New York Times Travel Show in January. They bought 100 Places in Italy Every Woman Should Go, followed my Golden Day advice on their recent trip to Venice…and had an extraordinary, personal experience–even at the height of tourist season! Here’s what they wrote… We took your suggestions and visited Santa Maria Della Salute, takingRead More →

On a hilltop in the southeast corner of Basilicata, sits the medieval village of Bernalda… I became intrigued by this spot in 2012. That’s when Francis Ford Coppola opened his newly-renovated 5-star Palazzo Margherita here. Coppola’s grandfather Agostino was born in Bernalda, and left in 1904, never to return. I’m grateful to have a friend who visited– Kathy McCabe, Editor of Dream of Italy newsletter, and Producer/Host of the fabulous PBS Dream of Italy TV series. She’s here to share her experience of this extraordinary place… “The town itself is like being in Italy in the 1950s,” she says. Coppola calls it “the real Italy.” The unassuming Palazzo Margherita entranceRead More →

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PREMIUM Golden Week: For Women Only – Florence and the Italian Riviera May 7 – May 16, 2022 A luxurious 8-night adventure, in 2 extraordinary locations, custom-designed and hosted by author Susan Van Allen, for women to enjoy Italian pleasures to the max! Rates Coming Soon Small Group Tour: 14 guests maximum To reserve your space, or for more information, contact Irene today at: support@italyvacations.com or 1-800-482-5925 “Susan Van Allen infuses her tours with enthusiasm, engagement and enchantment! She is exceptional in her knowledge of the areas we visited and ensured we felt both part of a group yet individually independent. We had the tripRead More →

Outside Acerenza’s historic center, grazie to Salverio Cancerllera and Antonella D’Andria, I met some of the village’s finest artisans…In a cave at Le Cantine del Grillo.. There was rich, soulful Aglianico…straight out of the barrel… Next was Il Re dei Panettoni=King of Panettone, Vincenzo Tiri, at his humble, family run bakery… Vincenzo rocked the Panettone World, twice winning the Grand Prize in Milan for this Christmas time sweetbread…a triumph for this young, 35-year old baker in a remote southern region, AND quite a surprise, as Panettone is a specialty of the north… Making Vincenzo’s parents in this family run bakery, (since 1957), very proud… Tiri’s panettone is a taste bud revelation. He’s a genius/master,Read More →

Last May, I had the great pleasure of discovering Acerenza, Basilicata…AND to meet the mayor=Sindaco Fernando Scattone! The hilltop treasure is one of a group of villages designated by I Borghi Piu Belli d’Italia=The Most Beautiful Villages in Italy, which includes small hidden places up and down the boot that have maintained their architectural, cultural, and culinary traditions over the centuries. The Roman lyric poet Horace, born near Acerenza, described this spot as “an eagle’s nest”, perched above fertile plains, olive groves, surrounded by rivers. I can walk from one end of the walled medieval village to another in about ten minutes… But it’s so pleasant toRead More →

As amazing as it is to see the side of Matera that has been continuously inhabited and is being revitalized…on the other side of the ravine is the chance to see the Prehistoric Caves of Matera… Especially with Michelantelo Camardo, who lives in the Sassi and is passionate about the exploration of this natural treasure… Along with us was Antonella and expert guide Cesare, who opened the door to this church built into the rock, Cristo La Selva..where musical concerts are held during the summer season… And further along was this fantastic grotto…and place for a picnic… AND if you’re looking for a great B&BRead More →

To discover Matera is delving deep into Italy’s rich history. Deep, as in going back to the Paleolithic Age, when cave settlements began in Matera’s hillside rocks. What’s amazing is the area, in southern Basilicata, has been continuously inhabited since then–through classical Greek and Roman, medieval, baroque, and modern times, Matera’s Sassi=communities of dwellings built into the stones, grew and continue to change styles and shapes. In 1993 UNESCO recognized these Sassi as a World Heritage Site. And Matera has been named a European Capital of Culture for 2019. It’s a stunning place to experience a Golden Day. Mine began with meeting a native guide,Read More →

  Valerie Fortney-Schneider is a freelance writer with years of experience in the travel industry, and a history degree, who returned to her roots and created the company, My Bella Basilicata.  She guides travelers through the region and is also the woman to go to for genealogy research. Guests rave about the memorable vacations she creates for them, where they can go beyond finding birth or death records, to the villages where their ancestors were from, walk the streets and talk to the natives, sometimes find the houses where their grandparents lived and even distant relatives. Her writing showcases her passion for Basilicata, in various publicationsRead More →