Registration for the Great Slow Travel Gathering 2008 is now open!
Mark your calendar and plan to be in Savannah, Georgia with other Slow Travelers April 4, 5 and 6, 2008. Our one-year countdown has begun! Finally all this wonderful Slow Travel energy together in one place. Just imagine the laughs and hugs on Friday evening when so many of us finally meet in person for the first time.
With the help of Pauline, we’ve set up a Slow Travel webpage about the Gathering. Information about the weekend and links to other Savannah resources are posted there and should be an easy reference for everyone. We will be adding to this webpage, so check it regularly. We’ll continue to use the Gathering Forum on the Message Board to post and update information, ask and answer questions, coordinate plans, and get excited. And keep watching for the weekly Countdown posts to learn more about Savannah and help plan your trip.
Friday night (April 4) – The festivities officially begin with our Kickoff Party, including a heavy hors d’oeurves buffet and open bar. We’ll gather at the Gingerbread House, a very unique house in the Victorian District.
Saturday night (April 5) – You won’t want to miss Fun at the Fort, a very special evening at Old Fort Jackson, a restored pre-Civil War fort on the banks of the Savannah River. We’ll enjoy regional food, beer and wine, music and other entertainment in this special historical setting, traveling as a group to and from the Fort by trolley.
Sunday brunch (April 6) – We’ll gather one last time for a delicious brunch at Vic’s on the River, located in a restored warehouse above River Street in the Historic District.
Read more about the events and the locations here.
In addition to these group events, other small group activities and get-togethers will be planned by Slow Travel members and coordinated on the Gathering Forum. Savannah offers abundant opportunities for carriage rides, shopping, visits to historic mansions, riverboat rides, day trips to neighboring coastal towns—and then there are restaurants! There's some great golfing in this area, and we already have a volunteer to organize a golf outing. We’ll organize some kind of get-together on Thursday evening for those who arrive early for a longer weekend. Think about coming to Savannah early and getting a head start on the fun—or stay on a few extra days.
Who’s Invited?
Registered members of the Slow Travel message board and their immediate family members. Registration is limited to 150 people.
What’s the Cost?
Your registration fee covers food, drink and entertainment at the three Gathering events (Kickoff Party, Fun at the Fort, and Sunday Brunch), including transportation by trolley to and from the Fort. We are not able to take reservations for individual events. Prices are in US dollars.
Adults $175.00 Young Adults (ages 13-21) $150.00 Children (12 and under) $ 75.00
An initial deposit of $35.00 per person is due upon registration. This deposit will be used to pay required deposits for our events and is not refundable.
The balance is due on or before February 1, 2008.
If for some reason you are not able to attend after you have paid the full balance, you may receive a refund (less the $35 deposit) up to March 15, 2008. No refunds may be made after March 15, 2008.
Payments may be made by personal check, money order or bank draft. Click here for more information about the registration process and where to send your deposit.
Where Is Everyone Staying?
Everyone will make their own arrangements for accommodations. We visited many hotels and B&Bs in Savannah and have identified five varied properties in the same general area of the Historic District as our “Recommended Accommodations.” We hope people will consider these properties or other hotels and B&Bs in this same area to make it easier to spend time together, but there are many options for places to stay in the Savannah area. There are also several possibilities for rental houses and apartments for a long weekend stay.
See here for more information and links about accommodations, including our recommended accommodations.
Post here on the message board if you would like to connect with a roommate(s) or housemate(s) for the Gathering.
What Next?
Registration is now open!
Sign up here using our internet registration form. Space is limited, so sign up soon!
Then post here to let others know that you’re definitely going to Savannah! We’ll update the list of attendees on a regular basis on the Gathering website.
See you in Savannah April 4,5 and 6, 2008 for the Great Slow Travel Gathering 2008!
Kathy
This message has been edited. Last edited by: kaydee,
I know everyone worked very hard in organizing this event but it is a long way to travel from my location in Arizona. I will have to pass on this one with the hope that a more central location be found for the next one. Thanks, Germaine
Hi Germaine, yes, unfortunately Savannah will be a long way to travel for many people - the United States is a very big country! When planning this event we knew that no matter where the Gathering was held, some people would precluded from attending because of distance. The choice of Savannah was based on the initial survey results.
Hopefully everyone will have such a wonderful time that it will become a regular event, held in a different location each time.
In the meantime, for those who are not able to go to Savannah there will be the usual local GTG's which are always great fun.
Sheena
Posts: 2259 | Location: West Vancouver, B.C. Canada | Registered: 28 February 2004
The GTG is for all the slow travellers from around the world. Respectfully, there is no location on the globe that is central to all. Members of ST were asked to vote on a location and we did so - hence Savannah. I can't wait (even though Savannah isn't Central to me in Canada at all!!!)
Jerry
The traveler sees what he sees. The tourist sees what he has come to see. ~G.K. Chesterton
I voted for Savannah because I wanted to go there for a vacation. For me, it is a direct flight from Albuquerque to Atlanta, pickup a car and drive a few hours. Plus Savannah seems very well setup for a big gathering - several vacation rentals in the historic center, plus good hotels and B&Bs.
If this one goes well, and we decide to have one every two years or so, we can do a west coast one next time. California 2010!!
Checking in from the West Coast, I will raise a glass to California in 2010.
I think Pauline and I were on the same wavelength in that besides supporting the concept of this large GTG, Savannah is someplace we have wanted to visit on vacation.
I am very impressed with the organization/plans that have been presented to us today. Thank you all, Committee, for the hard work you have done so far. It is much appreciated.
I think the 'gathering gang' has done an amazing job getting this all together. I am sure everyone will find Savannah a perfect site for our first great gathering.
I can't wait to welcome y'all to the south (southeast actually... but that just didn't sound as good) Sandi
Congratulations to the organising committee! Great idea, superb work. Thank you so much for the effort invested in what promises to be a great event. You will gather from this that we plan to attend; decisions soon.
As soon as we get back from Italy, I'll start working on my Southern beau accent. I'll have a whole Toronto winter to perfect it.
Well, trust me to be the one who really doesn't "get" it. I sent and received my registration, but I'll be darned if I see where or to whom I am supposed to send my check for the deposit.
Did I miss something again that is obvious to everyone but me?
Germaine, I'm thinking that you're so truly blessed to live so close to the GTG and Savannah! I'm going to be travelling from way-way-way north of the 49th, with likely a few connector flights, and th' good Lawd knows what else, to get there!
Sheena, North America is a very big continent, also! So big that there's no one place that's central for all, and I think this is a spectacular location, so I'm looking forward to a week's vacation in that glorious city.
My sincere thanks to all of you huge-hearted organizers...good on ya! I'm looking forward to this, like you cannot believe! Now, to find a scrumptious place to stay for a week...hmmmm...what to choose? What to choose? This is a happy problem!
"No problem is so big or so complicated that it can't be run away from." ~ Charles Schulz Brenda
This message has been edited. Last edited by: Pauline,
Hmmm, so Sheena's faster than I am, by a country mile! Ssssssssssssspeedy, girl!
"Faster than a speeding bullet! More powerful than a locomotive! Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound! Look up in the sky...it's SuperSheena!" Brenda
Have the names of everyone on the organizing committee ever been posted? I think they should be listed in some prominent place so we can all give them a virtual round of applause. What an amazing job to put all this together in such a wonderful ongoing presentation. Thanks and congratulations to everyone who has been and is continuing to work so hard on this event.
Hi Dale, As we explained here we are not able to take reservations for individual events, it is a full weekend package. As I am sure you understand, we have had to make commitments to the various vendors.
Anyway it would be difficult to get to know your fellow ST'ers at just one meal, try to come for the whole event - it is going to be a great weekend!
Sheena
Posts: 2259 | Location: West Vancouver, B.C. Canada | Registered: 28 February 2004
Y'all are going to love it. We drove down to Ocala Florida in March of this year from Toronto, and I made my husband pull over and stop in Savannah for about 4 hours, the afternoon, JUST so I could put my feet on their ground.
(thank you Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, for forever giving me the desire to see Savannah).
My desire has not been quenched though with a fleeting 4 hours and 2 cosmo's, and since my husband quickly decided Savannah could use further exploration, we are booking a 4 day long weekend this fall. I've been googling expedia for flights for the last 2 weeks, ever since we came home from Ocala.
So good choice, admin!
Posts: 39 | Location: Canada | Registered: 28 January 2007
Thanks Gathering committee for all your hard work. I registered today after a couple of failed attempts because I kept hitting the enter button instead of tab to move from one field to the next - duh!
Sorry Sheena for the multiple submitted forms I'll be sending a check!
Posts: 927 | Location: North of Seattle | Registered: 28 February 2003
Originally posted by dale: A couple of things. Pauline, you'll find the drive from Atlanta to Savannah a boring five hours and a car in Savannah is virtually useless.
Sorry, but I respectfully disagree! A car in Savannah is a wonderful way to get out of the historic district and explore other parks of Savannah and environs. It also comes in handy if someone would like to tour charming Beaufort, SC or Charleston, SC or even Hilton, Head SC.
As a former resident of Savannah, I find a car in Savannah is invaluable to find the "roads less traveled" in the low-country region of Savannah, Georgia and South Carolina.
Fantastic job of organizing! Congratulations many times over to all of you on the committee.
Here's an additional piece of information for those who might want to come early. Next year's Savannah Music Festival, which is one of the largest in the US and also one of the most inclusive in terms of genres, is scheduled from March 20 through April 5, 2008. The schedule for '08 will be announced in the fall.
The planning committee has done an outstanding job on putting this together. Congratulations!
After talking it over with my husband we realized we cannot make this one as it falls in his busiest period of work (tax season), so we will look forward to the 2nd Gathering in 2010 in (maybe California).
Please, lots of posts and photos for the rest of us!
I haven't even looked at the detailed info, just the overview posted here and I'm so impressed already. Thank you GTG organizers! Will be registering this weekend when I get home and sending in a cheque. In $USD no less.
And yes, Midnight in the Garden of Good & Evil surely added to the appeal of Savannah!
Slow Travel Talk 
For me, it is a direct flight from Albuquerque to Atlanta, pickup a car and drive a few hours. Plus Savannah seems very well setup for a big gathering - several vacation rentals in the historic center, plus good hotels and B&Bs.
to California in 2010.
