NOTE: This trip has been canceled due to Coronavirus.
Please read carefully
Information about the trip:
- We will be sailing on Road Scholar's exclusive Aegean Odyssey, a 350-passenger ship designed to navigate smaller, harder to reach ports. Only Road Scholar participants will be aboard—this means there will be many similar-minded people for RC 10 members.
- The ship has seven decks for passengers and 15 different levels of cabin comfort, ranging from a deluxe suite with a balcony to inside cabins. Aboard ship, there is a well-stocked library, a spa, salon, small pool, and a full fitness studio. There are several lounges and plenty of outdoor seating, the perfect locations for socializing with your fellow Road Scholars or taking in lectures from expert faculty. The ship has two restaurants and a variety of menus inspired by the fresh local ingredients of the areas we visit, with an open-seating policy and complimentary wine with dinner in both dining areas.
- You only unpack once—all excursions are from the ship.
- We will arrive in Athens with 2 nights in port, 7 nights in ports of call including Hydra, Santorini, Mykonos, Samos, Kusadasi (Ephesus), and ending in Istanbul, with departure from there.
- 10 breakfasts, 9 lunches, 10 dinners plus complimentary wine at evening meal
- AIRFARE, tours, lectures, all port taxes and ship staff tips are included
- In additional to 11 field trips, there are on-board lectures and cultural activities
- With Road Scholar, there are no hidden or optional costs
- Included is the Road Scholar Assurance Plan, which includes 24-hour assistance for medical and other emergencies. There is an optional trip protection plan available. See www.roadscholar.org/about/protection-plan. The Board of RC 10 strongly suggests purchasing travel insurance.
- Per RC 10 travel policy, the Board of Directors suggests checking Travel Advisories from the State Department at https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories.html/.
- At the present time, the commission received by Retiree Council 10 from Road Scholar will be used to pay the stipends to the event planner(s). A portion of the commission may be rebated to the travelers.
Just for RC 10:
We have reserved 32 spaces for RC 10 members in the middle range of cabin costs. Depending on availability, you may choose a different cabin range in a higher or lower category. We tried to group our cabins together in the middle range. Cabins will be held for RC 10 until November 1—after that date, we will have to check availability with Road Scholar.
We will be flying from either Newark or Boston as two groups with an RC 10 leader for each group. Once we are aboard the ship, the two RC 10 groups will be blended into one, having our own excursions and our own Road Scholar trip leader for the entire tour (dependent on 30 participants). So we will maintain an RC 10, more intimate feeling. Our group will be at the Keep the pace/level for the excursions (we will be walking—not hiking, climbing stairs, covering several mles throughout the day). There is a more moderate level of group activity (more bus excursion time and slower pace) and arrangements may be made ahead of time, if you chose this level.
- Please visit www.roadscholar.org/23587 for full program details and a daily schedule with inclusions.
Additional Costs:
- Transportation from Albany to departure airport will be arranged for the group after flight information (in late November) is available. This will be an additional cost.
- Travel insurance is optional and price through Road Scholar is based on which cabin level you chose. The Board of Directors of RC 10 suggests purchasing travel insurance.
- If you are a solo traveler and would like a roommate, please add a note to your registration form. We will try to put single travelers in touch with one another to determine if they would care to share a room. There are only a limited number of single only rooms held for RC 10 (at level 6) although Road Scholar may have additional ones available when you call. Single supplements range from $1,000 to $1,300 extra.
- Cost is determined by cabin level. There are 12 levels of cabins and RC 10 has 4 cabin levels (6, 7, 8, 9) in the middle cost range on hold. They are all outside cabins. When you register with Road Scholar, you may wish to check out other levels of cabins for availability and book one of those cabins if they are better to your liking. In order to get the “free air” option, we have an October 30 deadline to be registered with Road Scholar. When you call Road Scholar, if your preferred cabin price is not available or if you cannot find another price you are willing to pay, your pre-registration check will be refunded. This is conditional that you enroll within a week of being notified to register.
To see ship details go to: https://www.roadscholar.org/aegean-odyssey/ship-details/
PROGRAM/AIR/CABIN COST
- RC 10 has reserved level 6, 7, 8, and 9 cabins (they are the middle price range, other levels are available). I will keep track of the cabin availability but sometimes participants may change the level cabin they want when they book with Road Scholar or chose another levels. Please be patient—it is a difficult process booking a group when there are so many level choices.
- Accommodation level, airfare, and program prices:
- Accommodation 6–3 cabins double occupancy available to accommodate 6: $5,399 (single available for additional $1,000)
- Accommodation 7—2 cabins double occupancy available to accommodate 4: $5,099
- Accommodation 8—8 cabins double occupancy available to accommodate 16: $4,899
- Accommodation 9—4 cabins double occupancy available to accommodate 8: $4,699
To see ship configuration: https://www.roadscholar.org/globalassets/reusable-content/travel-guides/aegean-odyssey/ao_deckplans_jun18.jpg
Use this to convert letter category to number on the ship deck plan webpage
- Accommodation 6 is Category F
- Accommodation 7 is Category G
- Accommodation 8 is Category H
- Accommodation 9 is Category I
IMPORTANT: How to register: Please note this trip is filled. Do not send in the registration form. Contact Karen via email or phone to get on waitlist.
- Send your RC 10 pre-registration form (linked below) to Karen Maher. Enrollment will be honored by postmark date. You will then receive direct instructions from Karen via email on how to enroll with Road Scholar in the RC 10 group. You will be given a special group number for this. Please do not enroll with Road Scholar without confirmation from Karen. Independent enrolling will not guarantee you air with the group, designated RC 10 cabins or the exclusive RC 10 tour group. RC 10 also has an extension for the enrollment date on the air included offer.
A note from Karen (RC 10 trip planner)—after researching MANY companies for Greece trips, this by far, is the best value and the offer of free air made it much more affordable. RC 10 has done many trips with Road Scholar and they have always had an outstanding program, high standards, and decent pricing. The fact that everything is included and there are no additional costs beside optional travel insurance and the bus to either Newark or Boston makes the trip very appealing. Reports from other RC 10 members is that the itinerary is outstanding, and we have had members on other Aegan Odyssey trips and rated the ship 5 star.
Karen Maher: kmaher2@nycap.rr.com, (518) 477-6746.
Second group leader: Patti Bligh, patbligh@gmail.com