Italy
Winter in Italy: Taormina & Sicily’s Culture & Cuisine
Program No. 22850RJ
There’s no better time to experience Sicily than winter! Delight in local cuisine, discover Mount Etna and learn about the Roman and Greek history of Taormina.
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Itinerary
While we make every effort to ensure the accuracy of our published materials, programs are typically advertised more than a year prior to their start date.
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While we make every effort to ensure the accuracy of our published materials, programs are typically advertised more than a year prior to their start date. As a result, some program activities, schedules, accommodations, personnel, and other logistics occasionally change due to local conditions or circumstances. Should a major change occur, we will make every effort to alert you. For less significant changes, we will update you during orientation. Thank you for your understanding.
Duration
8 days
7 nights
What's Included
14 meals (
6B, 4L, 4D
)
2 expert-led lectures
8 expert-led field trips
1 hands-on experience
2 performances
An experienced Group Leader
6 nights of accommodations
Taxes and customary gratuity
Road Scholar Assurance Plan
Day
1
In Transit to Program
Location:
In Flight
Day
2
Arrive Catania, Check-in, Orientation, Welcome Dinner
Location:
Taormina
Meals:
D
Stay:
Hotel Continental
Activity Note
Hotel check-in from 3:00 p.m. Remember to bring your nametag (sent previously).
Afternoon:
After arriving at the hotel, check in and get your room, then take some time to unpack, freshen up, and relax. 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. We will learn from our Group Leader and local experts who will give lectures and lead field trips. All transportation will be provided by motorcoach unless specified otherwise. Periods in the 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. Please note there are 5 sets of stairs for a total of 104 stairs, spaced by terraces, from the Continental Hotel to the Duomo square in Taormina. You will need to manage these steps on Day 3 when we visit Taormina, in the evenings when we go to dinners, and during free time. 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. Before dinner, we’ll enjoy a welcome cocktail together.
Dinner:
At the hotel.
Evening:
At leisure. Continue getting to know each other, settle in, and get a good night’s rest for the full day ahead.
Day
3
Walking Ancient Taormina, Free Time, Concert
Location:
Taormina
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Hotel Continental
Activity Note
Walking about 2 miles on uneven terrain, approximately 3 hours; steps to climb at the theater. In the evening, for the dinner we will use approximately 104 short, wide steps from the hotel to the main square. Walking and other free time activities according to personal choice.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
Leaving the hotel, we will set out on a walking field trip exploring Taormina with our Group Leader. Walking through the city, we will head from the first main square to the Piazza Duomo, down Taormina’s elegant Corso Umberto, and ending with an on-site lecture at the ancient Greek theater. In order to properly experience the Greek theater, we will follow our expert halfway up the steps so that our on-site lecture can be enjoyed in the heart of the theater taking advantage of its spectacular acoustics. At the end of our field trip, we will have time to explore the theater or Corso Umberto on our own. The history of Taormina is shrouded in charm and mystery. According to ancient sources it was founded by the Siculi in 396 BC. A few years later, Dionigi, the tyrant of Syracuse, conquered it. In 358 BC, however, the survivors of the Greek colony of Naxos were welcomed here and Tauromènion was founded, a Greek city complete with agora, acropolis and theatre. It remained under Syracusan rule until the Romans declared the whole of Sicily a Roman province. After the fall of Rome, Taormina became a strategic point for the Eastern Roman Empire. In 902, it was conquered by the Arabs who reigned there for a long time. In 1078 the Norman Roger I conquered the city after having conquered the rest of the island. During the Norman period the city enjoyed long prosperity. Taormina was less fortunate under the rule of the Spanish and French, until it was rediscovered in recent times as a tourist destination full of splendor. The charm of this place is not only due to its streets rich in history and full of typical products, which allow visitors to breathe and touch the true Sicilian essence, or to the culture that still echoes in the Greek Theatre. No, the charm of this place lies in a unique, breathtaking panorama, dominated by Etna: the volcano named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2013, which dominates the scene and offers great emotions.
Lunch:
At a local restaurant.
Afternoon:
Free time. This period of time has been set aside for your personal independent exploration to see and do what interests you 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:
We will walk and use the stairs to dine at a local restaurant.
Evening:
We will attend an opera performance at the Nazarena Theater. Our program was planned far in advance when details of performances were not available. The detailed information about the concert will be presented during the orientation session. We will return to the hotel in the late evening.
Day
4
Cooking Lessons, Free Time
Location:
Taormina
Meals:
B,L
Stay:
Hotel Continental
Activity Note
Getting in/out of a minivan. Walking about 1 mile, approximately 1/2 hour.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
Leaving the hotel, we will walk through the city to meet our chef who will accompany us for the morning. Together, we will walk to the little outdoor food market of Taormina to learn what to look for when buying fresh ingredients including fish, meat, and produce. During our visit, the chef will purchase the ingredients that we will use in our cooking lesson. We will ride by minivan to the cooking school. We’ll be organized like a “brigata di cucina,” or a kitchen’s staff, with the aim of preparing a complete menu, including serving. In our small groups, we’ll be assigned particular dishes to prepare.
Lunch:
At the cooking school, we will enjoy the results of our cooking lesson along with other dishes prepared by the chef himself.
Afternoon:
Returning to the hotel, we will enjoy some free time.
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 and give directions.
Evening:
At leisure.
Day
5
Syracuse, Isle of Ortigia, Free Time
Location:
Taormina
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Hotel Continental
Activity Note
Getting on/off a bus and motorcoach; driving about 60 miles, approximately 1.5 hours riding time. Walking about 3 miles throughout the day on uneven terrain. Walking and other free time activities according to personal choice. To get to dinner, we will use approximately 104 short, wide steps from the hotel to the main square.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
Departing the hotel, we will board a bus that will take us to our motorcoach for the day for our field trip to Syracuse, declared world heritage site by UNESCO, is a town with timeless charm. Greek origins, homeland of Archimedes, capital of the Byzantine empire, then Norman county, Spanish fortress and baroque jewel. Syracuse has a thousand-year history that has continuously rewritten its beauty, layer by layer. Syracuse encompasses the timeless beauty of Sicily. Ancient Greek ruins spill over into baroque squares and medieval streets with eye-popping decorations leading to the crisp blue sea. It's hard to imagine now, but in its heyday, this was the largest city in the ancient world, even larger than Athens. . Almost three millennia later, the ruins of that new city constitute the Archaeological Park of Neapolis, one of the largest archaeological sites in Sicily. Syracuse with the close by Ortigia, treasures of Sicily, are like pages of a history book open before our eyes. These enchanted cities are imbued with an ancient charm that captures the imagination of anyone who visits them. br> Arriving in Syracuse, we will visit the archaeological park Neapolis with a local expert. We will then return to the motorcoach and continue on to the island of Ortigia. Our day continues with an exploration of the island of Ortigia, the oldest part of Syracuse. We walk through the beautiful back streets of the island and stroll our way up to Piazza Duomo, one of the highlights of the island and we will visit the Duomo.
Lunch:
At a restaurant in Ortigia.
Afternoon:
We will return to the hotel in Taormina for the remainder of the afternoon to explore on your own to see and do what interests you most.
Dinner:
We will walk and use the stairs at a local restaurant.
Evening:
At leisure.
Day
6
Mt. Etna, Zafferana, Mount Etna Lecture
Location:
Taormina
Meals:
B,L
Stay:
Hotel Continental
Activity Note
Getting on/off a bus and motorcoach; driving about 50 miles, approximately 1.5 hours riding time. Walking about 2 miles on uneven terrain, approximately 1.5 hours.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
We will board our motorcoach and ascend the south-eastern side of Mount Etna. Its entry into the list of UNESCO Heritage sites is given by the fact that the mountain is considered testimony to life, geological processes, and terrestrial developments. Throughout a millennial history, which sinks its roots well before the advent of any noble and aristocratic family, Mount Etna has been at the center of fantastic stories and myths that have significantly shaped the Sicilian cultures. The Volcano, an essential naturalistic element of the island, has always imposed its presence and inspired stories and songs by the nineteenth-century bourgeois class. The noble families admired it, fearing catastrophic events such as the eruption that in 1669 threatened to damage the Ursino Castle, during the reign of Viceroy Charles II of Sicily, while the bourgeois and peasant classes drew food and economic sustenance from it. The fertile properties of the volcanic soil in front of Mount Etna have always been a source of boundless wealth. As we ride, we will gain an understanding of the volcanoes’ vast terrain and its importance for Sicilian agriculture. We will stop at the Sapienza refuge, at 2000 meters above sea level where the lush tree line of the forest of Mount Etna ends. We will get used to the high elevation. We will then continue our ride to the Silvestri Craters, which they formed during an 1892 eruption. They are spent but they are positioned under the southeast crater which is alive and active. We will descent back down to Zafferana Etna, which the highest community of Mount Etna. We will visit a family of beekeepers that have kept bees for three generations. We will see how honey is extracted from the honeycombs and taste their production. We will continue our ride to a small family-owned farmhouse (caseificio) that produce ricotta cheese. With an expert, we will learn how to make ricotta!
Lunch:
At the small family-owned caseificio, we will enjoy some of the regional cuisine.
Afternoon:
Returning to the hotel, a local volcanologist will join us for a lecture on Mount Etna.
Dinner:
On your own to enjoy what you like in Taormina.
Evening:
At leisure.
Day
7
Catania, Local Market
Location:
Taormina
Meals:
B,D
Stay:
Hotel Continental
Activity Note
Getting on/off a bus, driving about 35 miles, approximately 1 hour riding time. Walking about 1.5 miles throughout the day.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
We will ride to the Catania, Sicily’s prominent eastern port on the southern foot of Mt. Etna. Catania is a Sicilian jewel that allows to breathe the authenticity of life in contact with the sea and nature. Like the phoenix that is reborn from its ashes, Catania has also been able to rise again from nine events which, in the course of its history, destroyed it: the last one was the famous earthquake of 1693. The reconstruction, which took place subsequently, shaped the city as we know it today, but when wondering what to see in Catania it is important to say that there is not only baroque architecture to discover in this city. Catania, in fact, is full of life, picturesque corners and natural wonders, one of which is Etna. We will visit the historical museum of the landing in Sicily. The Museum is an eye opener to what occurred during the War. You will experience sound and visual effects that are moving and touching . The museum was made in collaboration with American Military Base Of Sigonella together with the Italian Military. We will then visit the Piscaria, the famous open-air fish market located in the center of the city. With our Group Leader, we will explore the city market that has been in the same exact place in the exact same way since the 900s. In addition to the diverse options brought to the market by local fishermen, there are also a variety of local meats, fresh fruit, vegetables, cheeses, and prepared foods.
Lunch:
On your own to enjoy what you like in Catania.
Afternoon:
We’ll return to the hotel and the remainder of the afternoon is on your own to enjoy what you like.
Dinner:
At a local restaurant with folk music. Share favorite experiences and enjoy camaraderie with new Road Scholar friends.
Evening:
At leisure. Prepare for check-out and departure in the morning.
Day
8
Program Concludes
Location:
In Flight
Meals:
B
Activity Note
Hotel check-out by 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!
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