TourCrafters offers off-season Market Packages to Paris, Nice, Sicily, Madrid and Istanbul

LIBERTYVILLE, IL – Want something more than museums and old churches on a European trip? TourCrafters comes to the rescue with a series of affordable off-season “market packages” that focus on local color, authentic food, and real people. Most are 5-days/4-nights and all include round-trip air from New York, fuel surcharges, hotel accommodations, daily breakfast, and more. They are valid from November 1, 2010 to March 31, 2011, except during the Christmas-New Year period.

The Paris Marché des Enfants-Rouges package (from US$868), for example, encourages travelers to wander in the City of Light’s oldest (1615) covered market, located in the picturesque Marais quarter. Here there are gorgeous displays of flowers, vegetables, and charcuterie, as well as traiteurs who sell delicious freshly-prepared dishes that can be eaten at nearby tables for an inexpensive lunch or early dinner.

The Istanbul package (from US$999) includes visits to the Grand Bazaar, one of the world’s largest covered markets, with thousands of shops selling Turkish carpets, gold jewelry, and pottery, not to mention a dozen restaurants and two hamams, and the Spice Market (or Egyptian Bazaar) where everything from peppercorns to green tea is for sale in convenient take-home packages. Sitting in one of the Grand Bazaar’s cafés, watching the world pass by, is a great way to recapture the romantic atmosphere of old Istanbul.

There are also packages to Sicily (the Palermo Vucciria Market package, from US$965), to Nice (the Nice Marché aux Fleurs package, from US$835), and Madrid (the Madrid Mercado de San Miguel package, from US$904). In addition, Paris/ Nice and Paris/Istanbul have been combined into longer packages that include a free stopover in Paris and up to two free hotel nights on specific dates.

All prices quoted are per person, double occupancy, are subject to availability, and do not include airport taxes that can be as high as US$116. Reservations must be paid for within 72 hours of booking. Add-on air fares are available for departure cities other than New York.

For additional information about these special market packages, as well as Thanksgiving and Christmas getaways, visit www.tourcrafters.com . For reservations, call 800-482-5995.