Select Italy
328 Linden Avenue - Wilmette, IL 60091-2877
Phone: 847-853-1661; Toll-Free: 800-877-1755; Fax: 847-853-1667
www.selectitaly.com; seth@selectitaly.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Select Italy to be Featured on Travel Channel’s “Trip of a Lifetime”
Episode Airs January 18 at 9:00 PM CST (10:00 PM EST&PST)

Chicago, IL January 11, 2007 -- Select Italy, a Chicago-based tour operator specializing exclusively in travel to Italy, will be featured on the Travel Channel’s new series, “Trip of a Lifetime” on January 18 at 9:00 PM CST (10:00 PM EST&PST). For each episode of “Trip of a Lifetime”, Travel+Leisure editors paired deserving travelers with expert tour operators specializing in the episode’s destination. As a Travel+Leisure “A-List Super Agent” for Italy, Select Italy was the natural choice to provide innovative and custom-tailored travel services for the Pellegrino family on this new program, a combination travelogue and reality show.

For the Italy episode, 29-year-old Lauren Pellegrino nominated her parents Franco and Patricia for a “Trip of a Lifetime”, citing her father’s love of art, her mother’s failing health and her own desire to repay her parents for the gift of a tour of Italy that they had given her a decade before. The Pellegrinos were selected from hundreds of candidates. The three Pellegrinos spent a week together in Florence, Chianti, and Venice.

"We were delighted to have the opportunity to show the Pellegrinos Italy’s best,” said company president, Andrea Sertoli, “Since the beginning of our agency, we’ve always translated our passion for Italy into unforgettable travel experiences for our clients. That we were able to participate in this exciting television project is a very gratifying sign that our hard work has paid off”.

Select Italy planned a set of hard-to-find and customized experiences for this trip to match the family’s interests in art and photography. Among other featured activities, the Pellegrinos enjoyed exclusive after-hours private access to Florence’s Accademia Gallery for some quality time with Michelangelo’s David, drove from Florence to Chianti in a cherry-red Ferrari and polished their photography skills with a professional photo coach in Venice. More information on the “Trip of a Lifetime” itinerary and a complete list of included services can be found at Select Italy’s website: http://www.selectitaly.com/tv.

The Italy episode of “Trip of a Lifetime” is the tenth and final episode of the season. It airs on the Travel Channel at 9:00 PM CST (10:00 PM EST & PST) on Thursday, January 18th and then again at midnight CST (1:00 AM EST & PST) on Friday, January 19th. For more information, please contact Seth Zurer at Select Italy – seth@selectitaly.com or by phone at (800) 877-1755.
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About Select Italy:
Select Italy is an award-winning tour operator founded in 1997, specializing in Italian travel experiences. Select Italy offers a wide array of products and services, which include customized itineraries, vacation packages, museum reservations, tickets to music & cultural events, privately guided services, transportation and accommodations. All of these are available for purchase online at www.selectitaly.com. Select Italy has been on the Travel+Leisure “A-list of Super Agents” for 5 years. In 2005, its website won an Ultra Web Award. In 2005 and 2006, Select Italy was nominated as a Webby Award finalist for Best Tourism Website. Company President Andrea Sertoli says, “Italy remains an unmatched destination with the warmth of its people, its heritage and its sheer physical beauty. With our specialized knowledge and inside information behind every travel plan we make, our clients enjoy everything Italy has to offer.” More information can be accessed through http://selectitaly.com/pressroom.php or by calling (800) 877-1755.