“Benvenuti in Italia”… Welcome to Italy!
Italy takes the marks as one of the top customized band trips. If you’re interested in Italy or other locations, check out our custom travel page!
The ten-day “Performing Italy Tour” is one of the most remarkable international customized band trips, choir trips, and orchestra trips offered by EDT. Starting in Rome, students embark on an adventure through historic sights, including world-renowned religious meccas and architectural wonders. They may even participate in a live performance during a mass at St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican.
Adventure, Art, and Architecture
Adventure is highlighted on this custom band trip during the exploration of Mount Vesuvius and Pompeii… Some of the iconic sights you will see include iconic architectural sights such as the leaning tower of Pisa, the Pantheon and the Colosseum. Furthermore, students will view the works of Michelangelo, da Vinci, Botticelli, Ghiberti, Donatello and Raphael – just a few of the masters who called the towns and cities of Italy home during the Renaissance. The quaint and medieval town of Sienna, and the capital city of Tuscany, Florence, bring a touch of romance to the customized band trips itinerary. An exchange performance with a local school, a concert collaboration with Livorno Conservatory at Livorno Castle or a performance at St. Marks Church are all performance options in Florence.
Unique sites, activities and tours include the Doge’s Palace Secret Itineraries tour. The Secret Itinerary through the Doge’s Palace covers the rooms and chambers where the intricate work of some of the most important bodies in the Venetian administration was carried out. These spaces offer an interesting insight into and acknowledgement of the civil and political history of the Venice Republic, its public organizations, and its institutional bodies deputed to government and justice.
Mount Vesuvius and the History of Pompeii
Since exploding into history in AD 79, Vesuvius has blown its top more than thirty times. The violent outburst in AD 79 pushed the coastline back several kilometers and destroyed much of the mountain top creating two new peaks and a caldera. The most recent explosion occurred in 1944. This fact adds a bit of excitement to the thirty minute hike up the mountain.
Pompeii was a prosperous village with a population of about twenty-five thousand. The eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79 caused twenty feet of ash to cover the entire city of Pompeii. Excavations began in 1748 revealing Pompeii’s wide diversity of building materials and techniques. Preserved to this day are artifacts of the daily life of the Roman residents of the city through the contents inside their houses and shops. The houses still contain furniture, ornaments, gold and silverware, work tools, kitchenware, and foodstuffs of all kinds. Furthermore, intact stores include workshops for manufacturing cloth, smithies as well as grocery outlets selling fruit and vegetables.
The Floating City
You can’t have a trip to Italy without seeing the floating city of Venice. Students on customized band trips explore Venice on a walking tour with a local guide. Also, they’ll occasionally hop on a Vaporetto (water-taxi) or gondola to navigate the city through the canals. Furthermore, we can arrange a public performance in the evening before dinner in Santa Maria dei Miracoli or San Moise Church. The trip concludes with an Italian feast with delicious authentic Gelato dessert!
Choosing Customized Band Trips
Italy is one of the most popular destinations for custom band trips, and for good reason. You’ll have a hard time finding a place with richer history. Make Italy your next stop with your students, or contact us to learn about other destinations for your customized band trips.
SOURCES
ENIT – Italian National Tourist Board
MiBACT – Ministry for Cultural Heritage and Activities and for Tourism
