Why Travel with us?

That’s it. Your fees to Explorica and Destination World cover everything else, from dinners and taxis to museum fees and flights.

We believe the more you dig in before visiting another country, the deeper and richer your experience will be while you’re there. So we’ll have three classes before we go. And you’ll have the option to take a site.  Research ahead of time and become our tour guide to a particular location within Rome, Pompeii, Athens, or Crete.   

Our stays are not only in great neighborhoods, they are themselves worth visiting. For example, in Greece, we stay in the refurbished dwellings of olive workers from the 17th through the early 20th centuries. And in Italy, we stay at an 18th century pensione with its own ancient ruins and orchards and a working convent. 

We don't try to fill up tour buses. We want to know the people we travel with, so we cap our group between 20-24 travelers.

Flights, ferries, buses, and any other transportation is carefully planned and chosen to maximize our time at sites and minimize our time in transition.

We don’t attempt to see all of Italy or all of Greece in 12 days - but we try to get a real feel for the  neighborhoods and environs we're in.  We breathe in as much of the personality of the place as we can in the time we're there without trying to check everything off the traditional tourist's "must do" list.

 Every time I visit Greece or Italy, something completely unexpected happens. Last time, it was an unexpected 3-hour hike through the mountains of Crete with a potter we met while looking in his ceramics shop. Once, it was a lasagna-and-ham sandwich that ranked in my top 5 sandwiches of all time. Another time, we stumbled onto a 2-hour long medieval parade in Pisa. 

Taste and smell and see and feel along the way.  Yes, tours can be given from the cozy seat of a tour bus.  But the world is still on the other side of the glass.  We'll get the dust on our shoes as we enjoy walking around the cities and through the archaeological sites.  We'll stand on Mars Hill and touch the walls of the Colosseum.  

We will eat the foods locals eat and drink the wines locals drink. And we’ll take the time to taste all of the flavors as we dine together each evening and regale one another with the adventures of the day.

 We stay in the heart of each city. Enjoy a late-night gelato or an early morning stroll. You’ll see world-famous sights (and some quaint ones, too) as you roam. 

 We can’t “do” Rome or Athens. But what we choose to do, we’ll do well. Instead of 6 itinerary stops each day, we usually have 3 or less, with a goal of finishing soon after lunch.  This gives you plenty of time to do your own exploring or take a siesta before we meet back up for dinner. 

We’ll teach you how to travel with only a carry-on and a backpack. And we’ll only stay in three (or four) hotels over 12 days, so you won’t have to repack every day.