2027 Vergilian Society Tours
The Vergilian Society is offering these tours for 2027
For more detailed information about a tour, please contact the tour director. Registration for the 2027 season is now open. Email vergiliansociety@gmail.com with any questions.
Greco-Roman Spain
December 28, 2026-January 11, 2027
This winter tour trip will visit Catalunya, Spain to explore the development and interaction of three distinct cultures, Iberians, Greeks and Romans. Iberia became part of the greater Mediterranean world with the arrival of the first Phoenician traders who came to the south of the peninsula in the late ninth/ early eighth century BCE. The first Greek traders were there by the middle of the eighth century. In the early sixth Greeks founded a small city on the northeastern shore, always called by the name which connotes its mercantile origin, Emporion. In the late third century BCE this city became the entry point for the Roman conquest of the Peninsula at the onset of the second Punic War. This tour will follow the Eastern coast of Spain south-westward from Barcelona to Valencia and Alicante. These latter cities are near the heart of the Iberian culture.
Furthermore, the tour will take place during the Christmas holidays, and Spain as a Catholic country will be adorned in full seasonal regalia. The day of the Epiphany, Jan 6, the twelfth day of Christmas or Dia de Reis in Catalan, is among the holiest of days.
Price: $3,275, Single Supplement $450
Director: Raymond Capra
Ancient Portugal
July 5-18, 2027
This tour will explore the westernmost part of ancient Europe on the edge of the Ocean, the end of the world in Classical thought. Portugal in antiquity was a mixture of native Iberians, successive waves of Iron Age Gallic immigrants, Phoenician traders, Carthaginian and Roman troops. The historical imprint and interrelationships of these cultures will be explored on this tour. The extensive coastline of Portugal forged a maritime people with a far-ranging vision. Highlights include the Roman ruins of Italica near Sevilla, the first Roman settlement in Iberia, and the equally impressive ruins of Conímbriga near Coimbra. We shall stay in Sevilla, Evora, Lisbon, Chaves, Braga, and Porto. The long and complex history of this country spans into the medieval and colonial periods as well.
Price: $3325, single supplement $550
Director: Raymond Capra
Roman Women: A Tour for K-12 Educators
July 1 - 12, 2027
This tour for K-12 educators (and others who may be interested) will focus on women in the Roman world and provide resources and lesson plans for teaching about this topic in the Latin classroom. Using current scholarly approaches and theory, we will draw on text and material culture to emphasize the complexity and breadth of women’s roles in ancient Roman society. The tour will combine classroom sessions and site visits to engage with these topics, examining relevant Latin texts (in the original and in
translation) at sites and museums. Some of the highlights: Rome, Ostia. Baiae, Oplontis,Pompeii, Naples.
Directors: Sarah Harrell and Ian Lockey
Price: $3400, single supplement $450
VOX POPULI: Rome & Naples – The Other 99%
June 21st-July 2nd, 2027
The Untold Story of Antiquity Beyond the handful of Senators, Emperors, and Scholars, how did the other 99% that made the Republic and Empire possible live? This isn't just a tour of ancient sites. It's an opportunity to encounter the people behind the texts we teach. You’ll return home with new stories, new sources, and fresh ways to make Rome come alive for your students. 12 Days of Immersive Discovery.
- Read Pompeian graffiti while standing on the exact street where it was written
- Visit Rome & The Via Appia, Ostia, Pompeii, Herculaneum & Cumae
- Gather classroom-ready sources that spark curiosity, invite questions, and stick with students long after assessments are over.
Price: $3500, single supplement $450
Director: Maureen Lamb
A Watercolor Retreat in Southern Italy
September 5 - 16, 2027
From coastal landscapes and ancient ruins to vineyards and cafes, this 12-day retreat invites you to experience the Bay
of Naples through the medium of watercolor painting.
$3800 (painting supplies included), single supplement $300
Director: David Sheehan. See David's website for additional information.
Teaching Through Italy: A Guide to In Situ Studies
December 28, 2027 - January 8, 2028
This workshop will directly address literature commonly read in classical education programs and how to integrate these literary works, read in Latin and in translation, with the material evidence bequeathed to us by the ancients to illuminate learning in the classroom. Primary focus: Vergil, Augustine, and Dante.
Price: $3500 (single supplement $550)
Directors: Karen T. Moore & Grant Horner
Kind Words from Students
Although very excited, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I departed for Campania. However, I had an amazing trip and my time at the Villa Vergiliana will undoubtedly influence my future teaching in a variety of ways.
Lottie Mortimer
“Tomorrow I will go home, and back at school, I will tell my fellow teachers about the Villa Vergiliana. We will try to work out some plans to involve a study trip in our program of internationaliz-ation at our school. I really hope this will be possible.
Marian Heesen
“I return to Oxford ready to evangelise about Villa Vergiliana and all it represents, and sincerely hope to return, this time bringing a school party so I can share with my pupils and colleagues what I have experienced.