Sam Schlossberg

Caters to Sightseeing Jewish Singles

By Susie Davidson

Advocate Correspondent

BROOKLINE - From Barcelona and the French Riviera through Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, to the Hawaiian Islands and everywhere in between, Sam Schlossberg offers travel opportunities to adventurous Baby Boomer-aged Jewish singles.

This winter, two trips to the Hawaiian islands of Oahu and Maui are planned, for Dec. 22-31 and March 2-11. The scenery has got to be better than a dance, and the possibilities are endless.

A West Hartford, Conn. native who holds a B.A. in psychology from the University of Connecticut and an MBA in marketing from Suffolk University, Schlossberg has lived in the Brookline area for the past 25 years. He also spent a year in Jerusalem, studying at Hebrew University. Since 1990, when he began with one annual trip, Schlossberg, who currently organizes five per year, has taken Jewish singles to Barcelona, Provence and the French Riviera, Spain and Portugal, Central Europe, Rome, Florence, Venice and Milan, Scandinavia, France and Barcelona, Spain, Ireland, Wales and England, Scotland and Wales, Holland, Belgium and Luxembourg, the Canadian Rockies, Toronto and Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec City and the Gaspe Peninsula, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, Hawaii, the California Coast, America's National Parks, Las Vegas and Phoenix and, close to home, Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard and Newport. He’s personally visited over 60 countries. Not a bad gig, as they go.

“I started Jewish Singles Vacations,” he said, “to give Jewish singles in the baby boom generation who love to travel an opportunity to take group vacations with their peers.”

30 to 40 people usually participate, though some trips attract 60. They usually run about 60 percent women and 40 percent men, though this can vary as well. 35-55 is the general age range, although anyone is welcome, and occasionally, non-Jews and even couples come along as well.

Religious streams are mixed as well; the trips do tend to run more to the non-religious. “We strive,” said Schlossberg, “to create an itinerary which does not cater to any particular level of observance, but does not exclude or offend anyone either.” To do this, lunches and dinners are not included, and no activities are scheduled on Friday nights or Saturdays. When possible, the hotels used on Friday nights and Saturdays are within walking distance of synagogues. Those desiring to eat Kosher food are advised to make advance preparations, and Schossberg provides a list of Kosher area restaurants whenever possible.

There is no singles supplement; roommates are provided. JSCV is registered with the Boston Better Business Bureau, and past participants can be contacted for feedback.

“There were 45 people on my trip to Barcelona/Provence,” recalled Alison of Newton, who enjoyed her experience. “Although I am not very religious, the trip gave me the ability to not have to travel alone. I got tired of waiting for friends, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that like myself, there are many working professionals across the country who have the time to travel but cannot always find people who want to go at the same time.

“It was nice to be able to mingle with professionals who come from similar backgrounds,” she continued. “We found we had lots of common interests, even though the group was from all over the country and Canada, and there was even a women from Australia.”

Nonetheless, she said they played Jewish Geography with success, and seemed to know people in common from all over.

How involved one gets with the others is a personal decision. “You could certainly go off on your own during the evenings or when the trip did not have structure,” Alison said. “I am very sociable, so I actually enjoyed going out to dinner with a group of different people each night.”

She keeps in touch with trip attendees from New York as well as two people from the Brookline/Cambridge area. “We all live within walking distance from each other, but had never met!,” she said. “There were two people who lived in the same complex who had never seen each other.”

For information on Jewish Singles Vacations, call 617-782-3396, email jsv@tourgroups.com, or visit www.tourgroups.com/jsv/ to see actual trip itineraries.