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Travelers Find Enriching Experiences to Enhance a Paradise Coast Vacation
September 3, 2008

Learn How to Make Wine or Pasta, Volunteer for a Worthy Cause or Become a Dolphin Naturalist for a Day in Naples, Marco Island and the Everglades

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Media Contacts:
JoNell Modys, jonellmodys@colliergov.net, 239-252-2425
Maria Sabale, BCF, msabale@boomyourbrand.com, 757-497-4811

Travelers Find Enriching Experiences to Enhance a Paradise Coast Vacation

Learn How to Make Wine or Pasta, Volunteer for a Worthy Cause or Become a Dolphin Naturalist for a Day in Naples, Marco Island and the Everglades

Naples, Fla. (September 3, 2008)
– To today’s travelers, a vacation means more than just relaxing on a beach or seeking thrills and adventure. A vacation is a chance to enhance one’s skills, pursue a new hobby or give back to the environment. Naples, Marco Island and the Everglades offers experiential activities that leave travelers feeling invigorated or with an enhanced sense of purpose, whatever their vacation desires may be.

Culinary Exploration
Wine-Making Classes at Big Cypress Market Place Winery – Discover how to make and bottle your own wine and create your own custom label at the new Big Cypress Market Place winery. This hands-on opportunity allows wine lovers to experiment with the fermentation process. Classes begin mid-September 2008 and are limited to up to 12 people. Cost is $99 per person, which includes class admission and six bottles of wine. For more information contact Jim Finnigan at 239-774-1690 or jim@basikdevelopment.com, or visit www.bigcypressmarketplace.com.

Pasta Kitchen Class and Dinner at Naples Tomato – By day, Naples Tomato, an authentic Italian restaurant, makes 150 pounds of homemade pasta on its pasta machine imported from Italy. At night, the restaurant offers a special experience in which guests may reserve the pasta kitchen for a private and tasty lesson on how to make authentic Italian pasta. Seating is limited to 10 people and these lessons are usually reserved several months in advance. The personal —pasta chef” takes the students through the antipasto course, a course on making noodles such as angel hair and pappardelle, a course on the secrets of ravioli and finally laughter and cheer during dessert. Guests order their wine from a Wine Spectator Best of Excellence awarded list or combine the pasta class with an educational wine tasting from a 48 bottle wine tasting system. Naples Tomato offers a $35 and a $50 per person option for the four course class and dinner held Friday nights at 6:30 p.m. For information and reservations, contact Naples Tomato at 239-598-9800. www.naplestomato.com

If you are a guest at The Ritz-Carlton Resorts of Naples, join the Naturally Nutritious Cooking Classes offered at The Ritz-Carlton Spa between January and April 2009 on Wednesdays from 10 am – 12 Noon. $45 per person for registered guests. www.ritzcarlton.com

Immerse Yourself in the Southwest Florida Environment
Become a Dolphin Explorer - Sea Excursions offers a —dolphin experience” cruise aboard the 28-passenger Dolphin Explorer that lets you volunteer as a citizen scientist dolphin researcher during your sightseeing cruise. Led by a certified naturalist and dolphin researcher, passengers participate in the Coastal Everglades 10,000 Islands Dolphin Project, a 5-year scientific research study to identify and track the movements of resident dolphins in the Marco Island and Naples areas. Children may complete tasks onboard that earn them entry into the Dolphin Explorer’s Club, with a survey patch, newsletter, and souvenir photography, and follow-up activities for after you return home from vacation. Group team experiences are available with advance notice, as are more intensive full day volunteer experiences. www.dolphin-explorer.com

Give Back Getaways by the Ritz-Carlton Resorts of Naples – The Ritz-Carlton, Naples, offers guests a unique opportunity to protect the dwindling habitat for the endangered Florida panther at the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge. Once each month, guest volunteers will join a representative from the Friends of the Florida Panther Refuge and clear trails of non-native and invasive plants at the refuge. Other activities include building trail markers, conducting bird, rare orchid or animal tracking surveys and building wood duck houses. Visitors to The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort, Naples, may assist hotel staff in an assembly line as they package 40-50,000 meals to be distributed locally to families in need in the Collier County area. www.ritzcarlton.com

Explore Nature’s Wonders, an interactive exhibit at The Ritz-Carlton, Naples. Children and families are invited to explore the Nature’s Wonders activity center each day during Open House from 4:30 to 5:30 pm, or sign up for structured programs at other times. The Nature’s Wonders center is complete with nine aquariums, including two touch tanks where guests can hold live turtles and starfish. The remaining tanks bring to life the reef and offshore ecosystems, hosting live denizens of the deep including Florida spiny lobsters, jellyfish, baby alligators and an iguana. Inquisitive minds will also discover a small lab filled with microscopes, slides and Petri dishes – all the tools to help a budding marine biologist explore a world not seen by the naked eye. The Nature Vision Theater, where National Geographic specials, Discovery programs and Disney movies are shown, serves as a retreat where the entire family can take a break. The Nature’s Wonders program provides hands-on, interactive learning and fun in an assortment of nature-themed activities, all lead by a team of Florida Certified Master Naturalists. These daily programs include nature walks, boat rides, guest speakers and field trips. Samples of rotating topics include observing wildlife, the mangroves, sea turtle nesting, alligators, dolphins and beach combing. www.ritzcarlton.com

Volunteer at Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve – Volunteering your time to help restore coastal habitats with Rookery Bay staff can get visitors up close and personal with nature. Outdoor opportunities include invasive vegetation removal, mangrove seedling planting, trail maintenance and litter patrol. Participating in special events such as Earth Day, Estuaries Day and other events is another way to get involved. For more information or to fill out a volunteer application, visit www.rookerybay.org or call the volunteer coordinator at 239-417-6310 ext. 412.

Find Your Inner Artist & More
The Marco Island Center for the Arts has a variety of workshops, some just one or two days in length. On January 30 and 31, 2009, learn the art of Linoleum Block Printing. On February 23, 2009, learn how to make tribal masks from coconut palm fronds. www.marcoislandart.org.

In Naples, short workshops and monthly Lunch with the Arts lectures provide a good opportunity for visitors to explore the arts at the von Liebig Art Center. Travel photographer Brynn Bruijn conducts a fun one day course on Shooting Travel Photography Like A Pro on four different Saturdays from 9 am – 3:30 pm with visits to various area attractions. The dates are November 15, 2008 at Naples Zoo; December 13, 2008 at the Conservancy of Southwest Florida’s Naples Nature Center; February 7, 2009 at the von Liebig Art Center’s Family Day; and March 7, 2009 at the Art in the Park festival downtown. Cost is $105. The Jewelry Sampler is a two day session March 28-29, 2009 that lets you explore a variety of mediums and techniques in jewelry making. Create several finished jewelry pieces using resin casting, enameling on metal, beadwork and wire wrapping. Cost is $170 plus $35 for materials kit. www.naplesartcenter.org.

If you’re planning an extended vacation on the Paradise Coast, check into the many affordable classes offered by Collier County Adult Education. You’ll find everything from the visual arts to languages and even beginning saltwater fishing. Class sessions begin every six weeks, and new students must sign up on the beginning day of each session. The affordable cost, starting at $69 for six classes, makes even a partially attended class series worthwhile. www.collieradulted.com

Tap into Top Quality Golf Instruction
Hone your golf skills during your next Paradise Coast vacation with lessons from top PGA instructors. Golf instruction is available at several locations. The Faldo Golf School by Marriott has a 14-acre practice facility at The Rookery at Marco. 888-GO-FALDO. www.marcoislandmarriott.com/golf. The Rick Smith Academy at Tiburon Golf Club is located adjacent to The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort, Naples. 877-464-6531. www.tiburongcnaples.com. The Leadbetter Academy is located at LaPlaya Beach & Golf Resort. 239.254.5001. www.laplayaresort.com/laplaya_golfclub. Golf lessons are also available at the Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club 239-435-2475. www.naplesbeachhotel.com.

For more information on visiting Naples, Marco Island and the Everglades – The Paradise Coast, call 1-800-688-3600 for a free visitors guide or go at the area’s official visitor information Web site, www.ParadiseCoast.com.

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