Vinyasa Yoga and Wine Retreat in Tuscany and the Italian Riviera | PRLog

Vinyasa Yoga and Wine Retreat in Tuscany and the Italian Riviera | PRLog

Genoa, a restored northern city and seaport of the Italian Riviera

Genoa, a restored northern city and seaport of the Italian Riviera

  
  Genoa’s old port, also known as the Porto Antico, is now a renovated tourist friendly spot with cafes, restaurants and even a biosphere suspended over the water. For those who fancy wine bars try Taggiou (Vico Superiore del Ferro 8; 39-010-27-59-225; taggiou.it) for red and whites in variety. You can sample a plate of 'i salumi' or an assortment of popular cheeses  with a glass of wine reasonably priced.

Taggiou's Wine list:

Vini Rossi
Rossese (Liguria)
Dolcetto di Dogliani “Il Mandolone” (Piemonte)

Vini BianchiFalanghina
Pinot Grigio
Traminer
Pigato

    Genoese are not fans of brunch. Try one of the many pasticcerias around this medieval city. At Tagliafico (Via Galata, 31 R; 39-010-56-5714) there are display cases with homemade croissants, bignés (cream puffs) and chocolates. An espresso and a couple of pastries cost around 5 euros.

 Frecciabiancagoes from Milan to Rome with a stop in Genoa and Pisa along the way. It  follows the coast down the northwestern side of Italy, then inland via Pisa. There are night trains that connect travelers from France to Italy on Thello as well.

www.hitherandthitheradventures.com
Twitter and Pinterest @hithernthither

South of France Tour

Are you a Gallophile?

Bonjour!

Tours to Nice, Eze, Monte Carlo, Provence, and Saint Tropez available now for $1,200 USD at

Hither & Thither Adventures

 
  Tell us all your travel requirements and we will handle your travel related logistics!  We are able to customize the trips listed below for you at the fantastic prices listed below.  If you prefer to stay in a villa, apartment, castle or hotel, let us know and we will create an incredible holiday for you!


​
*The price noted above excludes airfare and is based on rates per person, double occupancy for 7 blissful days Pricing and availability subject to fluctuation.

New Yoga getaway in Tuscany for holiday this May

To accommodate travelers at the museums in Florence there are alternate opening and closing days so that not all museums are closed on the same day. (read full article on www.visitflorence.com/florence-museums/)

Reserve tickets in advance to avoid lines for museums and arrive early.

Uffizi Gallery Opening Times:  Tuesday - Sunday: 8.15 am - 6.50 pm

 "The highlights are the famous “Madonna enthroned” by Giotto, the “Battle of San Romano” by Paolo Uccello, the double portrait by Piero della Francesca, “Federico da Montefeltro”, the “Birth of Venus” by Botticelli , in addition to three works by Leonardo, one by Michelangelo, a few by Raffaello and many by Tiziano. All paintings have been displayed chronologically, so it is possible to fully appreciated all the innovations in art throughout the centuries."

A list of popular museums in Florence to visit.

Uffizi Gallery: Piazzale degli Uffizi - Firenze
Accademia Gallery: Via Ricasoli, 60 - Firenze
Palatina, Gallery & Modern Art Gallery: c/o Palazzo Pitti, Piazza Pitti, 1 - Firenze
Medici Chapels: Piazza Madonna degli Aldobrandini, 6 - Firenze
Bargello Museum: Via del Proconsolo, 4 - Firenze
San Marco Museum: Piazza San Marco, 1 - Firenze
Archaeological Museum: Piazza Santissima Annuziata - Firenze
Boboli Gardens: Piazza de' Pitti, 1 - Firenze
Palazzo Strozzi: Piazza Strozzi - Firenze
Palazzo Vecchio Piazza della Signoria - Firenze
Ponte Vecchio Ponte Vecchio - Firenze
Santa Maria del Fiore: Piazza Duomo - Firenze

European vacation packing tips

Italian lemons!

Vacation packing tips for Europe

• Compare airfare on several sites for a while before purchasing tickets e.g. on cheaptickets.com

• Fly into one city and out of another to save yourself a train ride at the end of the trip   

• Make copies of all travel documents and store copies in at least two different places

• Buy local currency before departing or upon arrival for transportation, gratuities, meals, transfers

• Consider getting short term travel insurance

• Buy train tickets 2-3 days in advance of holiday weekends

• Pack extra camera memory cards and charger

• Upload complete itinerary in case baggage is lost

• Only pack comfortable shoes and lightweight clothing that will dry easily overnight

• Check local weather conditions and travel alerts for your destination(s)

• Purchase an international phone card before departing, store information/number in travel pouch

• Keep a journal of travel memories, favorite places visited and new friend contacts

• Buy postcards at grocery or discount stores instead of street vendors

• Bring a list of addresses and pre printed address labels for sending postcards

• Pack light, roll up clothes to take up less space, and prepare a carry on bag one week ahead (this size fits overhead bin  9" × 22" × 14")

• Bring an extra travel pouch or day pack for walking tours, hiking, outdoor activities

• Once you arrive locate a laundry mat or ask hotel about in house laundry service

• Hotels will usually store luggage and documents for you

• Other items to pack: insect repellent, small flashlight, toiletries, dry shampoo, laundry detergent,   luggage lock, earplugs, eye mask, stain remover wipes, hand sanitizer, first aid kit, medicines, vitamins, plastic bags, travel pillow, sewing kit, mini pack of tissues, glasses, contact lenses, sunglasses, travel alarm clock, day pack, note paper and pens, travel size air freshener for linens/pillows, jacket, scarf, hat, sun visor, sunscreen, flip flops, small towel/washcloth, poncho or small umbrella

• If your U.S. passport is lost or stolen while you are overseas, report it immediately to the local police and to the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate. A consul can issue a replacement passport, often within 24 hours. Links to contact information for U.S. Embassies and Consulates may be found at http://usembassy.state.gov.  More information is available at http://travel.state.gov/travel/tips/emergencies/emergencies_1197.html.  

 Visit our Youtube channel for upcoming tours and promos Travel - 2013 Tours of Europe

Tuscan Retreat, Winery Tour, Yoga, and more!

Here is a picture of the bountiful breakfast prepared daily by the hotel chef.

Tuscan travelogue

Although some would prefer to stay closer to Florence a great way to see the area by train is to stay in a smaller town. Biking, golf, skiing, spa wellness and horseback riding are popular activities in Pistoia. Little did we know what would await us at breakfast. The highlight was the chef prepared tart made with a delicious fruit jam, decorated with a lattice criss-cross design, cooked in the stone oven, and sprinkled with powdered sugar.  The staff was very accommodating and will prepare individual lunches to go upon request. If on a tour with a full day then an early evening antipasto plate with wine for guests is also available since Italian dinner time starts at 8pm. A pool is being built on the hotel grounds which upgrades the allure of spending a week there this May! Yoga, a winery tour, relaxation, spa treatments, Florence, local cuisine, and more fresh tarts await. And we do mean fresh as in tasty homemade goodness!

Our upcoming Tuscan tour will have daily yoga and a regional winery tour to enhance the week of Italian lifestyle immersion. Yoga mats will be provided, wine pairings with group dinners, optional activities include spa treatments, golf, biking, cooking classes, photography, and painting.

www.hitherandthitheradventures.com

*Dates and prices are subject to fluctuation

Il dolce far niente

Yoga Retreat and Winery Tour Promotion

Join us for an Italian lifestyle immersion this May! We will travel throughout the Tuscan region.

Tours to a regional winery and visit Tuscan towns for an Italian lifestyle adventure.

www.hitherandthitheradventures.com

Vinyasa Yoga & Wine Retreat: Tuscany, Italy

Vinyasa Yoga & Wine Retreat: Tuscany, Italy

A Tuscan thermal spa just a train ride from Florence

Grotta Giusti was discovered by chance in the mid 1800’s while miners were digging on the grounds where today stands a prized resort in the Tuscan countryside.  The spa is only a 45 minute train ride from the Florence city center station.  One or two days here is a relaxing vacation treat after a long plane ride or busy city tour.

The Giusti family is related to the Italian patriotic poet Giuseppe Giusti who was considered a genius noting his poem called La Ghigliottina (the guillotine) that established him in literary circles. "The eighth wonder of the world", it was referred to by Giuseppe Verdi during his frequent visits to the thermal spas. 

Because of wanting to preserve it in its natural state the grounds were maintained with the grotto and mineral waters along with the stalactites and stalagmites in a vision shared by the family to market natural healing and longevity.  There is no real need to have to rent a car in this town unless you want to explore Lucca or the ski town of Pistoia that hosts an annual Blues festival. The town is small enough to walk around in a couple of hours and there are several good restaurants including a fancy hotel spa restaurant with a bar and tearoom.

Grotta Giusti waters contain healing minerals of bicarbonate, sulphate, chloride, magnesium and calcium with temperatures ranging from 34-35°C. There are three levels or so called zones to visit during your stay that are suitably called "Paradise", "Purgatory" (Limbo), and "Hell". The humidity in the air serves as the strongest healing property in the grotto besides the heat. Common ailments can be treated here including degenerative arthritis, chronic rheumatism, gout, bronchitis and inflammatory diseases of the upper and lower respiratory tract, even if caused by allergy, diseases of the skin (chronic eczema, sebaceous dermatitis, psoriasis). 

In addition to the healing waters and grotto is a menu of healing treats that include nutrition consultation, Asian massage disciplines, face and body treatments, and skin care products. There is also a walking trail, gym with equipment, tennis court, outdoor swimming pool with 750 square meters of thermal water, waterfalls, massage pressure showers, and underwater hydro-massages.  An 18 hole golf course is just a few kilometers away. As Giuseppe Giusti believed it is truly a natural wonder being right in the heart of Italy where a traveler can go to enjoy the Italian life like the locals.

Tours available tailored to your travel needs by Hither & Thither Adventures www.hitherandthitheradventures.com

Italy in Summer and flowers!

Italy in Summer (click for more photos)

Mopheads (Hydrangea macrophylla)

Hydrangeas are the Italian flowers that besides the sunflower have been widely photographed for travel memories, wedding planning, festivals, botany, and more. Used often in bouquets they are as versatile as roses and other locally grown Italian flowers. You'll find them next to a garden trellis, down a meandering path, in flower boxes and centerpieces. Hotels, restaurants, estates and spas have them in gardens growing heartily. If you love hydrangeas there is even an Italian Hydrangea festival in late June every year that takes place in Bolsena, Italy. Another city on the bucket list!

Assisi Firenze, Roma, Naples & Sorrento - May/June 2012 Slideshow | TripAdvisor™

Assisi Firenze, Roma, Naples & Sorrento - May/June 2012 Slideshow | TripAdvisor™: TripAdvisor™ TripWow ★ Assisi Firenze, Roma, Naples & Sorrento - May/June 2012 Slideshow Slideshow ★ to Assisi, Madrid and Rome. Stunning free travel slideshows on TripAdvisor

Italy for the love of summer frills

Italian market - tomato varieties

There are places in Italy that have small town charm ever inviting travelers back with memorable warm hospitality. This is a guaranteed travel frill that can not be found in a brochure or redesigned any time of year. And then there are the tomatoes that have been the thread of Italian culture and cuisine forever. Once when travel was less cumbersome you could bring back a tomato with the vine attached. You could even pick a token of fennel growing wild on the side of the road where the cows wandered outside of their pasture. The Mama Leone Italian tomato is as authentic as it gets. A great tomato used mostly for fresh summer sauces and making paste for the rest of the year. It is an heirloom tomato that was brought from Italy to New York. With this recipe below you can create a popular Tuscan salad known for its use of tomatoes.  

Panzanella*, is a Tuscan salad combining oil, basil, vinegar, tomatoes, cucumber, minced onion, and stale Italian bread soaked in water, then squeezed dry. Mamma mia!

*Italian, from pane ‘bread’ + zanella ‘small basket’

www.hitherandthitheradventures.com

The Famous "Oyster Bar"

If you are looking for a place with some famous Big Apple history, rustic ambiance and reasonable seafood prices this is definitely one to add to a day tour of NYC. Established in 1959 and run by the same family since day one when its doors opened. Here you will find yourself hanging with the locals in true NYC fashion.

The selection of oysters here is impressive. If you like surf and turf they have it! A lobster dinner promo was $28.95 in March during the weekend of the New York Times Travel Show.

I spotted this restaurant relic in its own right on my way back from MOMA about 10 minutes away. If you want a great museum to check out on a city trek be sure to stop here. The Google Art Project is featured on their website where you can create a virtual album of your own favorites from museums around the world.

http://www.moma.org/

http://www.googleartproject.com/

Happy travels!

Oyster Bar 

842 7th Ave
New York, NY 10019
Neighborhood: Midtown West

Phone: (212) 586-6525

http://www.yelp.com/map/oyster-bar-new-york

Serves Lunch and Dinner

by Thither

www.hitherandthitheradventures.com

Benvenuti Estate!

• Soccer obsession . . . while waiting for the train to Naples one day there were some young kids with a mini soccer ball at the train station. One guy was kicking it and doing tricks just a few feet from the train track platform with perfect ease. Summer had begun. An international soccer match lured tourists all the way from Great Britain who enjoyed the Italian way of sporting while taking a vacation in Southern Italy, and boasted of enjoying nightly restaurant hopping trying to find the finest local cuisine la cucina raffinata. They were a couple who very much loved to travel and had visited Sardinia the summer before. They probably decided to try the South of Italy once more on the mainland. Not a bad way to spend a week holiday.

Plan your next holiday at www.hitherandthitheradventures.com
We create small group tours with customized travel plans for adventurers alike.

Follow this blog

Have you ever been to Sorrento, Positano, Ischia, Capri and Pompei?

When it is time to plan your vacation where do you start? So many of us plan it months or even a year ahead to fit in our already busy schedules. 

Let's start by describing a day in the dream of a vacation you will have with Hither and Thither Adventures.

You arrive at your hotel greeted warmly with a reception for the tour guests. After a long plane ride and jet lag you have found yourself in your home away from home. The best of Italy awaits.

• Day 1 - Enjoy your breakfast with incredible views of the Mediterranean sea. After a leisurely breakfast, take a walking tour of the city of Sorrento where you will find quaint shops and artisans in the center of town. After some walking and shopping have lunch at a restaurant famous for its delicious and locally harvested produce on the menu. If you like, enjoy some time lounging on the beach. Or join an afternoon walking tour of the city and discover the beauty of Sorrento. Dine in the early evening with the group and end the day enjoying the sea breezes at sunset. 

If you have not yet made your vacation plans for summer visit:

 

Hither and Thither Adventures