TRAVEL WITH FRIENDS IN 2013

Islands of and Zeus

CYPRUS – RHODES –

with Christopher Allen 21 September–5 October 2013 (15 days) Tour Islands of Aphrodite leader and Zeus

Explore the history, civilisations and cultures of the most interesting of the islands of the Eastern Mediterranean: , Rhodes and Crete. Where East meets West, these four islands are rich in history, ancient and modern, from the great Minoan states to the early Christian saints, from the Byzantine emperors to the Knights Templar, from the Venetians to the British. With Mediterranean expert Christopher Allen enjoy an in depth exploration of 10,000 years of history, civilisation, archaeology, art and architecture. At the same time, you will also discover some of Europe’s most beautiful landscapes, natural and man made, and enjoy the relaxed lifestyle, delicious cuisine and Christopher Allen warm hospitality of these glorious islands. Dr Christopher Allen is an art critic and historian who graduated from the University of Sydney and lectured at the National Art School in At a glance Sydney. He is currently Head of Art at Sydney Grammar • Leisurely stays in Cyprus, Rhodes and Crete School. Christopher is the author of many books, his • Cross the ‘Green Line’ from Greek Cyprus into Turkish Cyprus most recent Jeffrey Smart: unpublished paintings 1940- • Visit the Minoan sites of Knossos, Gournia, Malia and Gortyn 2007 (Melbourne, Australian Galleries) was published in 2008. • See the mythical birthplace of Aphrodite He was art critic of the Financial Review and is now national art • Exclusive stay at Kapsialiana Village, a historic village converted into a hotel critic for The Australian.

Rhodes RHODES Lindos

Chania Kapsialiana Village Heraklion Kyrenia CRETE Nicosia CYPRUS Larnaca

Coach Flight Note: Map is just a guide. Itinerary

Fri 20 September 2013 Depart Australia Mon 23 Sep Limassol – Nicosia Suggested departure on Emirates via Dubai. Overnight in flight. After breakfast depart Limassol and travel to Nicosia, the capital of Cyprus. The city is divided between two ‘states’ – the north under Sat 21 Sep Arrive Larnaca – Limassol the domain of ‘Turkish’ Cyprus and the south, ‘Greek’ Cyprus. Late morning arrival in Larnaca on Emirates. Transfer to the hotel En route visit the Neolithic site of Choirokitia, a UNESCO World in Limassol. Limassol emerged out of two of the most important Heritage site. On arrival in Nicosia see the Farmagusta gate and ancient city kingdoms, Amathus, to the East and Kourion to the the Venetian fortification walls. Agios Ioannis (St John’s Cathedral) West. Today Limassol is a bustling holiday resort, the second largest was built in 1662 within the courtyard of the archiepiscopal palace city of Cyprus and the island’s main port. with 18 th century murals illustrating important moments in Cypriot Tonight join Christopher Allen and fellow travellers for a welcome religious history. briefing and dinner. D After lunch in Laiki Yitonia, a traditional neighbourhood within the Sun 22 Sep Limassol/Paphos city walls, enjoy free time to explore the area. Continue with a visit to the Cyprus Museum with its priceless collection of antiquities Start your exploration of Cyprus with an excursion to Paphos. Visit from the Neolithic Age to the early Byzantine period. the medieval castle of Kolossi and the archaeological site of Kourion, which was an important city kingdom, noted particularly for its Late afternoon check-in to your hotel in Nicosia. Evening at leisure. magnificent Greco-Roman theatre originally built in the 2nd century B L BC. The House of Eustolios consists of a complex of baths and a number of rooms with superb 5th century AD mosaic floors. Tue 24 Sep Nicosia/Kyrenia Today cross the Green Line (passports required) – the border Stop at Petra tou Romiou, the mythical birthplace of Aphrodite, the between the Republic of Cyprus and the Turkish Cyprus state. The Greek goddess of love and beauty. Green Line divides the two parts of the island and is permanently On arrival in Paphos visit St Paul’s Pillar, where St Paul was manned by UN forces. allegedly tied and scourged 39 times before he finally converted his Enjoy spectacular views as the road winds its way up and over the tormentor, the Roman governor Sergius Paulus, to Christianity. Pentadaktylos Mountains. After lunch at a restaurant in the old port, see the beautiful mosaic Bellapais, one of the island’s most mesmerising villages, features floors dating from the rd3 to the 5th centuries AD, depicting scenes the fascinating ruins of Bellapais Abbey, built in the 12th century by from Greek mythology, in the villas of Dionysos, Aion and Theseus. exiled Augustinian monks. See Kantara Castle, one of three castles Finish with a visit of Agia Paraskvi, a 9th century Byzantine thought to have been constructed by the Byzantines following the with beautiful wall paintings and a five-domed basilica in the form of Arab raids on the island. Kyrenia Castle dates back to Byzantine a cross. B L times and has served the Byzantines, Crusaders, Venetians, Ottomans and British. Return to Nicosia in the afternoon. B L D

Floor mosaics at Theseus House, Paphos Petra tou Romiou, Paphos Wed 25 Sep Nicosia – Larnaca – Rhodes Visit the 15th-century Church of St Katherine. During the 16th and th After breakfast transfer to Larnaca airport. Stop at one of the 17 centuries, this church housed the Mount Sinai Monastery most impressive sights in the town of Larnaca, the church of Ayios School, where Domenico Theotokopoulou is alleged to have Lazaros, built in the 9th century to house the reputed tomb of studied before moving on to Venice and Spain where he became Lazarus, the man raised from the dead by Jesus. known as El Greco. The church houses a small museum of icons, frescoes and woodcarvings. Afternoon flight from Larnaca to Rhodes. Transfer to the hotel located within easy walking distance of the old town of Rhodes. B D Visit the outstanding Archaeological Museum. Unique in its record of the Minoan civilisation, the museum houses the findings and Thu 26 Sep Rhodes treasures from all archaeological sites of Crete. B L This morning discover Rhodes’ old town on a walking tour. The Mon 30 Sep Heraklion UNESCO World Heritage Site is the oldest continuously inhabited medieval town of Europe. Walk along the medieval Street of the Today’s excursion will be along the north coast road with its Knights, which was constructed over an ancient pathway that led in ‘corniche’ type landscape and stunning views to Gournia. Here see a straight line from the Acropolis of Rhodes to the port. Visit the the most complete excavation of a Minoan town. This important Palace of the Knights and the Rhodes Acropolis. site dates from 1550-1450BC and consists of a town overlooked by a small palace. There are the remains of storage rooms, workrooms After lunch visit the Archaeological Museum of Rhodes, housed and dwellings. in the mediaeval building of the Hospital of the Knights. The most interesting galleries are those containing the collection of sculptures Continue to the large Minoan Palace site at Malia. First built around from the archaic, classical, Hellenistic and Roman periods. B L 1900BC it was destroyed around 1650BC before being immediately rebuilt on the ruins of the original palace. Fri 27 Sep Rhodes/Lindos Travel up to the mountain village of , one of the most Morning at leisure to further explore the old town of Rhodes. picturesque in Crete. The people of Krista still keep the old Cretan Afternoon/evening excursion to Lindos. See how this entire city is customs and traditions and the town is considered one of the most guarded by medieval walls which were constructed by the knights important centres of the Cretan folk and weaving art. Close by of St John in the 13th century. Within them stands the ancient is the ancient church of Kera, with its unique Byzantine Acropolis of Lindos, on the brink of a precipice 400 feet above the frescoes from the 14th and 15th centuries. B L sea. Proceed on foot uphill, to the great staircase leading from the Hellenistic Portico to the Acropolis and Temple of Athena. Tue 1 Oct Heraklion Enjoy dinner at a restaurant in Lindos before returning to Rhodes Morning at leisure followed by an afternoon visit to Knossos. city. B D The palace itself was a multi-story structure with many floors, innumerable corridors and colonnades, excavated and Sat 28 Sep Rhodes – Heraklion reconstructed by Sir Arthur Evans in 1900. It was the political, Morning at leisure. Afternoon transfer to Rhodes airport for the economic and religious centre of the glorious Minoan Dynasty. B flight to Heraklion. Crete is not just Greece’s largest island, but Wed 2 Oct Heraklion – Kapsialiana Village arguably its most fascinating and diverse. Its remarkable history is evident across the island. B D Excursion to the south of the island. Start with a visit to the remains of the city of Gortyn, which once rivalled Knossos and was later the Sun 29 Sep Heraklion chief town of the Roman province of Crete. Among the remains After breakfast embark on a walking tour of the old town of are an amphitheatre and a circus. Across the road are the ruins of th Heraklion. See the Morosini Fountain in Lion Square, the Venetian the Basilica of St Titus from the 6 century AD. Loggia (town hall) and the Church of Agios Titos, dedicated to the patron saint of Crete (Titus of the Bible), who introduced Christianity to Crete.

The Palace of the Grand Master of the Knights of Rhodes Lindos Castle, Rhodes Kapsialiana Village Hotel In a peaceful spot in the hilly countryside of Crete, a tiny hamlet has been transformed into a stylish small hotel. Few of the houses were standing when architect Myron Toupogianis fell in love with it back in the 1980s. The hamlet’s raison d’être had been an olive press worked by the monks, close to the famous Arkadiou Monastery, but after in 1955 the press stopped operating, most people left. Myron bought the ruined press, and little by little acquired the plots of land and houses around it and started rebuilding them. It was a process that took many years, but the result is a hotel that combines history, nature, Cretan traditions, culture and hospitality in the best possible way. All 17 rooms share the same distinctive decor: stone walls, floors and arches, wooden beamed ceilings, chunky wooden furniture with private terraces and bathrooms boasting turquoise and jade tiled showers. Meals are served in the charming restaurant and there are two sitting rooms - one is in the old olive press which doubles as a small museum. Outside, you will find large terraces, an inviting pool and views stretching all the way to the sea. www.kapsialianavillage.gr

View from the terrace

Kapsialiana Village restaurant Kapsialiana Village

Superior double room, Kapsialiana Village Kapsialiana Village at dusk Also visit ancient Phaistos, a city founded by King Minos and destroyed during the 2nd millennium BC. At the east end of the hill, laid out in terraces, is a palace similar to the one at Knossos. Built soon after 1650BC, this palace was destroyed by an earthquake in Tour Prices about 1450BC, and only fragments survive. Per person twin-share AUD 7,950 The day will end at Kapsialiana Village, your home for the next Single supplement* AUD 800 three nights. Kapsialiana Village is a 300-year old hamlet set amid Deposit per person AUD 500 the vast olive groves of the Arkadi Monastery holdings. It has been converted to one of Crete’s most distinctive hotels, with stylishly Final payment due 23 July 2013 appointed rooms, welcoming lounges and an excellent dining room, Tour code AG1313 all fashioned out of beautiful old stone houses, and positioned, as if in a painting, in a quintessentially Cretan landscape. B D *Single travellers may request to share. Please advise at time of booking.

Thu 3 Oct Kapsialiana Village/Chania Fitness level Above average Full day excursion to Chania. En route visit the ancient city of Aptera. With its highly fortunate geographical situation, the city-state was Please see terms & conditions for fitness level definitions. powerful from Minoan through Hellenistic times, when it gradually declined. It was destroyed by an earthquake during the 7th century. Suggested Airline Emirates Stop at the British and Commonwealth War Cemetery at Suda Aegean Airlines fly from Heraklion to Athens connecting Bay before visiting the monastery of Aghia Triada (‘Holy Trinity’), with Emirates flights to Australia. perched atop a slender pinnacle and accessible only by 140 steep steps. Hermit monks may have lived here beginning in the 14th Please contact Renaissance Tours for fares and assistance century, but the present monastery was built between 1458 and with flight reservations. 1476. Continue to the tomb of the famous Greek statesman Eleftherios Venizelos with an uninterrupted view of Chania. Tour prices include Finish with a visit to the Archaeological Museum of Chania housed • Accommodation in centrally located 4-star hotels with in the former Venetian Monastery of Saint Francis. The museum private facilities and daily breakfast ( B ) galleries host antiquities recovered from the city of Chania and the • Meals as per itinerary ( L =Lunch, D =Dinner) including wider region of western Crete, from the Neolithic to the Roman special welcome and farewell dinners. Wines with dinners. periods. B D • Comprehensive sightseeing, visits to galleries and attractions with Christopher Allen including entrance fees Fri 4 Oct Kapsialiana Village as per itinerary Day at leisure. Enjoy the facilities of Kapsialiana Village and explore • Comfortable air-conditioned coach transportation the surrounding area. Tonight join Christopher Allen and fellow • Arrival transfer in Cyprus if travelling on suggested flight travellers for a farewell dinner. B D • Economy class flight from Larnaca – Rhodes – Heraklion incl. taxes (20kg luggage allowance) Sat 5 Oct Kapsialiana Village – Depart Heraklion • Lectures and talks with your tour leader throughout Transfer to Heraklion airport for the flight to Athens (not included • Gratuities for local guides and drivers in tour price) connecting with the Emirates flights to Dubai and • Hotel porterage (one piece per person) Sydney. B Tour price does not include Please contact Renaissance Tours for a quote for an optional • International airfares extension to Santorini. • Flight Heraklion to Athens at the end of the tour • Drinks with lunches • Items of a personal nature, including telephone, laundry, taxis etc. • Airport porterage • Travel insurance

Your hotels     Limassol – Londa Boutique Hotel Nicosia – Holiday Inn Nicosia Rhodes – Mediterranean Hotel Heraklion – Atlantis Hotel Kapsialiana Village Hotel, near Arkadi, Crete NB. Hotels of a similar standard may be substituted

North entrance of Knossos Palace, Crete Terms & Conditions

How to Book minimum tour participant numbers). Except for MODERATE Complete, sign and return the Booking Form available force majeure, we will not cancel a tour less than 60 for the overall benefit of the group, all tour members from Renaissance Tours with your deposit and page days before departure. No further compensation must possess a moderate level of mobility, including one of your passport. will be paid in the event of cancellation by the ability to: Renaissance Tours. A full refund of monies paid for • negotiate airports and railway stations without Deposit / Final Payments tour costs will be the full extent of our liability. Your deposit is due at the time of booking and is wheelchair assistance used to pay hotel, airline, performance tickets and/ Cancellation and/or amendment fees may apply • use combined shower/bath facilities (it is or other deposits. It is non-refundable in the event for additional travel arrangements booked by impossible to guarantee walk-in shower facilities) of your cancellation. Renaissance Tours. • undertake walking tour of 1-2 hours duration, Final payment is due 60 days before departure. Passports, Visas and Vaccinations including using stairs, walking over cobblestones Failure to make the final payment by the due date All travellers must be in a possession of a valid and other uneven surfaces may result in cancellation of your booking and loss passport – most countries require a 6-month • stand for long periods in museums and other of deposit. validity from your date of entry or exit. For some sites countries (e.g. China, Vietnam, India, Russia), visas Payments are accepted in cash and by cheque, • embark / disembark coaches, trains and other are included in the tour cost and will be arranged methods of transportation without assistance bank transfer, American Express, Diners Club, by Renaissance Tours prior to travel. For other MasterCard and Visa. A 3% service charge applies countries, it is your responsibility to ensure you have • handle your own luggage for payment by American Express and Diners Club. the appropriate visa(s). ABOVE AVERAGE Cancellation & Refunds In addition to the above, tour members must also You are also responsible for obtaining all necessary be able to: a) Cancellation by You - Cancellation charges will inoculations and preventative medicines as may be be applied as shown below, calculated from the required for the duration of the tour. • Undertake walking tours of 2 – 3 hours day written notification is received by Renaissance • climb staircases of 100 or more steps Tours. In addition to cancellation fees for tours Travel Insurance operated by Renaissance Tours as shown below, It is a condition of travel that you are covered by CHALLENGING airlines, hotels and other third parties may impose comprehensive travel insurance for international In addition to the above, tour members must also up to 100% cancellation charges. tours. Your travel insurance can be arranged by be able to: Renaissance Tours. • Handle extremes of temperature (e.g. below 0 60 days or more Forfeit of deposit or above 35 degrees) 59 – 45 days 25% of tour cost Fitness and Participation Most of our tours require a MODERATE level of • handle extremes of altitudes (e.g. 4000 metres 44 – 31 days 50% of tour cost fitness. and above). 30 – 15 days 75% of tour cost However, in certain destinations (e.g. Silk Less than 15 days 100% of tour cost Road, Central Asia, Outback Australia, tropical You can find the full terms & conditions on the The above cancellation charges include applicable destinations) or in certain seasons (eg. mid-winter, Renaissance Tours booking form. GST. mid-summer) or because of the nature of travel (eg. They can also be found at remote rail), certain tours will require an ABOVE www.renaissancetours.com.au/booking-conditions/ In addition to the above, cancellation charges AVERAGE or CHALLENGING level of fitness. or we would be happy to post you a copy on may apply for additional arrangements booked request. by Renaissance Tours, such as air tickets, hotels If you (or we) have any doubts about your level and travel insurance premium. If the reason for of fitness, you may be required to have a doctor’s cancellation is covered by the insurance policy, you appraisal. This would require your doctor to read may be able to reclaim these charges. the itinerary of your chosen tour, including the fitness level, and provide you (and us) with a written b) Cancellation by Us - We reserve the right to confirmation of your ability to participate. cancel a tour for any reason (such as failure to reach

Fresco at the south entrance of the Knossos Palace, Crete Fishing boats at the coast of Crete, Greece TRAVEL WITH FRIENDS IN 2013

Front: Ruins of an ancient temple, Lindos, Greece Back: Aghia Triada Monastery, Chania, Crete

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Renaissance Tours Level 4, 47 York Street, Sydney NSW 2000 GPO Box 5068, Sydney NSW 2001 ABN 14 069 591 448 Lic. 2TA4526 Toll Free (AU) 1300 727 095 Toll Free (NZ) 0800 403 621 t (02) 9299 5801 f (02) 9299 5805 e [email protected] w www.renaissancetours.com.au Brochure effective November 2012