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Hi from Rick: New! Alpine Europe, Facebook

Dear Traveler,

A high point of filming new TV shows last summer was a chance to be wowed by the scenery, inhale the perfect air, and merge with life in the slow lane in the heart of the Swiss Alps.

Since the very beginning 30 years ago, we've routed our Best of Europe tours through the Alps to give everyone an ideal little "vacation from your vacation." Since then, the Alps have also been a peak experience on our Best of Italy, Germany-Austria-Switzerland, and Eastern France tours. We love the Alps and so do our travelers.

This month we've launched a new tour that weaves all our favorite Alpine destinations into one itinerary filled with Alpine thrills — My Way: Alpine Europe in 12 Days. If you love hiking, fresh air, the sound of cowbells, and jaw-dropping scenery, this itinerary, from Salzburg in the east to Chamonix in the west, is for you.

In this month's Tour News you'll learn more about this perfect summer escape, along with our eight other tour itineraries that crisscross Europe's Alps. Our Video of the Month is a clip from the "mix with the locals" segment I filmed in Gimmelwald last summer. Our guide interview is with a tour assistant who loves raising kids' travel IQs on our Family Europe tours. And we have more news: we've created a new Facebook page just for fans of our tour program.

Rick Steves Europe Tours on Facebook gives all of us an easier way to share news, fun memories, pictures and opinions about touring in Europe — with each other and our friends. Unlike our Tour News at ricksteves.com (which will stay, by the way) it can be interactive and spontaneous.

While my personal Facebook page will continue taking you behind the scenes with me, our new page will provide our tour members — past and future — a fun and efficient way to stay in touch. Read more about it in this month's Tour News, give it a try, and post your thoughts. If you need a nudge, it's the only place where you can see the action-packed video introduction I did with new tour guides on reunion day.

One last note: Thanks to all of you who attended our big Tour Alum Reunion Party and Test Drive a Tour Guide presentations on January 12th. My tour guides, staff and I all had a blast celebrating travel with you. Gathering together a year's worth of tour members and our guides for this festival is always a highlight of our year. We are already bracing ourselves (happily) for an even bigger event for our "Touring Class of 2013" next January 18th. Tickets are free — for people who join our tours!

Happy travels,

Rick