Umfulana Testimonials

Ireland Tour: Julius Klassen

Julius Klassen — Wed, 15 May 2013 16:57:55 +0200

Hello to Umfulana
We had a wonderful trip to Ireland all the places we stayed where great and we would not have changed a thing. The Guest house in Dingle just had everyone beat with the rooms and food they where very clean which is our biggest concern.

Spain Tour: Ronald Stuart

Ronald Stuart — Thu, 09 May 2013 16:51:20 +0200

Hi Petra,

This was our second Umfluana tour, the first being last year through Northern Italy lakes district. Everything went perfectly on both tours, everything was exactly as promised by your representatives, in fact, better than promised as we were given two room upgrades while in Spain. What a delightful holiday and what delightful lodgings throughout.

Great Britain Tour: Vinod Menon

Vinod Menon — Wed, 08 May 2013 08:28:53 +0200

I would like to thank Umfulana for organizing a wonderful trip to the UK. What I liked the most is the flexibility I had in planning the tour that my family wanted, rather than going with a rigid plan which usually packaged tours have. Since I drove from London to Edinburgh with stops at Cambridge, York, Lakes, Glasgow and Edinburgh, I really experienced UK's urban areas and country side.

In London our stay was arranged in a Townhouse Hotel near Hyde Park. It was located right in Central London and hence many of the attractions in London which we visited were nearby. I had gone for couple of London Tours (organized by premier tours) which were also good. The breakfast which was provided by the hotel was awesome and my family enjoyed it.

After that our stay in Cambridge, York and Lakes were in farm houses. Me, my wife and son thoroughly enjoyed the peace and tranquil in these farm houses. All of us are nature lovers and walk around these farm houses were truly an amazing experience.

Especially stay in the Farmhouse in Yorkshire was marvelous. It has a history of few hundred years. We enjoyed the long chats we had with Madame Pamela the owner of the farm house over our evening tea. She told us that it was first built in 15th century and then extensions were made in 16th century. I felt the ambiance was like that we see in Alfred Hitchcock and Agatha Christie movies.

Away from my busy profession, emails, phone calls, etc. it was a welcome break and Umfulana really did a good job in planning the trip for me. It was nice interacting with Jessica Parkin our Umfulana contact who was always there for me to do any clarifications and used to respond to my mail with utmost punctuality. If I plan another trip to Europe I will go back to Umfulana to organize it.

Warm Regards
Vinod Menon, Bangalore, India

Germany Tour: Jojo Rudy

Jojo Rudy — Mon, 06 May 2013 15:53:18 +0200

Dear Martin,

We had a great time on our trip. All the accommodations you chose for us were top rate.

We loved how close The Dom Hotel was to the cathedral and most everything else. When you said we would need to drive in a pedestrian lane to get to the hotel, we did not realize that it would be right on the cathedral grounds.

Our favorite accommodations, of course, was the Burghotel auf Schonburg . It was the perfect castle stay experience. The rooms were very tastefully appointed and clean and the views of the Rhine spectacular. The dinner was great too, a true gourmand experience,

Thank you for suggesting the Creglingen stop at Herrgottkirche. Reimensneider's altarpiece here is a masterpiece. We love Rothenburg and it is mostly due to the hospitality of owner Stefan Berger at the Ronantik Hotel Markustum. We felt we were staying in someone's family home. Y

ou had originally wanted us to stay at Zum Ritter right in the center of Heidelberg but we chose Schloss Hirchshorn. This gave us the unique experience of driving on the winding roads of the Odenwald Hills and the peace and quiet of the Neckar river and valley in that particular area. Again the views were breathtaking. Being, a group of seniors, given the choice we would have preferred to stay in the main building which had an elevator rather than the marstall. The chef of Schloss Hirchshorn is very talented. We received excellent service at all these hotels. The staff at each one were friendly and accommodating.

Thank you very much for a wonderful trip. My group and I all agreed that we would use your services again should the opportunity arise and will highly recommend your company. I also have a travel blog and would for sure give you and your company a positive review.

Sent from jojo's iPad Mini

South Africa Tour: Felix en Marianne Bruijning

Felix en Marianne Bruijning — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 13:26:47 +0100

Dear Merwin,

Again we absolutely enjoyed the itinerary you booked for us.

Woodall Country House and Addo were again fantastic.
And so were The Fernery in Tsitsikamma National Park and Moontide Guest House in Wilderness.
We also enjoyed the accommodation in Oudtshoorn, especially since the staff was very friendly and hospitable.The room was nice as well, but unfortunately there was no privacy at all on the terrace. And since we had company next door of 6 motor-bikers that was a pity.

At Grootbos Nature Reserve we were upgraded (they told us a couple of times) to the Forrest Lodge.
We were a tiny bit disappointed, since it is quite expensive (but maybe our expectations were to high). The staff was friendly but a bit aloof. The room was absolutely impressive but the only thing you could do on the sun-deck was indeed: sunbathing, since there were only two large deck-chairs and a tiny parasol. No easy chair for reading, no shadow to find at all and not covered, so when it rained we had to sit inside.

Even so we had a lovely time and we will certainly make an appeal to you again in the future.

Baaie dankie, ons het dit baaie geniet!

Best Regards,
Felix and Marianne Bruijning

Germany Tour: Timothy Neil Jacobs

Timothy Neil Jacobs — Sun, 20 Jan 2013 08:22:14 +0100

My daughter and I travelled to St Goar, Cologne, Colmberg and Heidelberg. With the exception of the Berg Hotel in Colmberg which had paper thin walls and a menu not suited to teanagers, the trip was outstanding. Our accomodation was exceptional, well located in the respective towns and easily found using a GPS. Staff at each of the hotels were friendly and helpful. The arrangements made by Umfulana were seemless ... we kept waiting for a problem to surface ... and are still waiting. Martin and the team from Umfulana were exceptional. We had a fanastic trip that was exactly what we had hoped for. The two outstanding stops were St Goar and Heidelberg. Thank you!

New Zealand Tour: Tracy Faulkner

Tracy Faulkner — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 15:45:55 +0100

We absolutely loved our trip. Umfulana had everything laid out perfectly for us. It was obvious that every single one of the B&B owners enjoyed working with them as well. Our entire family is ready to return to New Zealand and I won't hesitate to use their services again. Thanks for such an awesome experience!

Germany Tour: Rod Perkins

Rod Perkins — Mon, 29 Oct 2012 21:35:29 +0100

Thank you so much for all the help you provided to us and for finding all those wonderful places for us to stay. We both agree, except for a few things which I will detail later, our trip and accommodations were first class.

Romantik Hotel Scloss Rheinfels- St. Goar:

Beautiful spacious, clean room over looking the Rhine River. We were happy to have the sitting area to watch the ships coming up and down the river. We were also very happy to have the huge bathroom. The room itself was tastefully decorated and the location was perfect for us to explore some of the other small Towns.
The breakfast was awesome!!

When it was time to leave we were a little disappointed that our GPS took us on the Autobahn for our trip to Rothenberg, we were expecting a little more scenic drive as indicated in our directions from you. We would have liked a little more specifics on how to get to this route, as in: “Turn left out of the parking lot, left on B-9”. That would have helped since we were so unfamiliar with the roads. Otherwise, this was the perfect start to our trip.

Rothenberg: Loved the Romantik Hotel Markusturm! The staff was very friendly and helpful, the owners answers all our questions and gave us great suggestions for our stay. The room was wonderful, large, clean and decorated appropriately for the setting. We were happy it was so close to everything we wanted to do in town.

We had dinner here one night and it was delicious as was the breakfast in the morning.

Romantikhotel Augsburger Hoff- Augsberg

This place was just ok. The room was small but clean, the breakfast was really good. We got lots of help from the staff and made it to Munich twice with their help

Hotel Rosenvilla, Salzburg.

Loved the location, just 20 minute walk for town. Did not mind the walk! Breakfast was one of the best on our tour! Room decoration was a little quirky, but fit in with things and we had lots of room. Everyone was very helpful there and we had a very nice stay

Locanda Al Leon, Venice

Our major, major complaint of this trip was the very vague directions to the parking garage!!!! The area we came into was very confusing and congested with taxis, busses, police, people everywhere, and unfamiliar traffic flow and signs.

The directions said “we were to park in the 2nd multi story parking garage” Which we did.

Otherwise our stay in Venice was very nice. Loved the room, great location and spacious and clean. We were glad we were so close to everything when a pigeon pooped on my head and I could go back to was my hair.

Owners were very helpful and friendly. Breakfast was just ok.

Dimora Bolsone, Lake Garda

Our favorite and much needed space for us to unwind after a crazy week touring! Words cannot describe how much we loved this place! Beautiful landscaping, breathtaking views, and a huge room! Our host, Rafael was awesome! He gave us dinner suggestions every night and even called the last place to let them know we were coming. Breakfast was delicious and we got to meet another couple from Germany who had booked through you also!

Even though the road leading up to the home was long and winding it wasn’t difficult for us to come and go whenever we wanted to. Really great experience, would love to go back!

Burghotel Auf dem Falkenstein, Phronten.

I”m not sure why we were booked in this B&B. Aside from the awesome views (no view of the castle though), the place, while very nice. was a little inconvenient to get to with the traffic light at the top and bottom.

We finally made it up the mountain and found they had made dinner reservations for us for 7pm. We got there around 4:30 or so, and we were already starving. We ordered a meat and cheese platter to tide us over.

Parkhotel Wehrle Triburg.

Nice place, more like a hotel than the other places we had been in. But we liked it. The room was spacious and clean and the breakfast was really good. It was located right in town, close to the shops.

Romantik Hotel Zum Ritter St. Georg Heidleberg.

Great location right in the middle of the old city. Nice room, clean and spacious. Good breakfast. The staff at the front desk was more than helpful he got us checked in with our flight and went above and beyond what he could have done. We were very happy there.

All in all we loved our 2 weeks in Europe! With the few noted exceptions everything went smoothly and we loved our accommodations We look forward to booking our next trip with you! Thanks again for everything and we will recommend your services to all our friends! Rod and Allison Perkins

Germany Tour: George Harris

George Harris — Tue, 16 Oct 2012 01:21:47 +0200

Martin, I can't thank you enough for the tremendous job you did in setting up and booking our tour of Bavaria, Salzburg and Switzerland. It seemed that at each stop on our journey the hotels got better.
I'm amazed how you planned a 17 day self-drive tour for us without a hitch. It was an absolutely perfect trip. The hotels and their staffs could not have been any friendlier or more outgoing.
As I had requested due to reading other's reviews you booked me at the Falkenstein Hotel in Pfronten and it was just breath taking and totally incredible. The staff there was probably the best of our whole trip.
We were also plesantly surprised being put up in the Zum Ritter Hotel in Heidelberg. Couldn't be a better location in all of Heidelberg not to mention the history of the hotel. We had a especially wonderful meal there which was made so much better due to the waiter, Mr. Unger. He was a "trip".
Speaking of location, how about the Hotel Markusturm in Rothenburg. Another Gem.
Then there was the cherry on top when you booked us at the Schonburg Castle for our last night. Wow!!! My wife and I both said at the same time, "It dosen't get any better than this?"
When we pulled into Garmish it was around 9:00PM and we couldn't see anything. I was explaining to my wife, "wait until you get up in the morning to see how beautiful it is here."
Little did I know that when she opened the curtins in the morning she let out a "Yelp" as we looked right out at the gorgeous mountains and Zugspitz.
Again I thank you for such a remarkable job. It was the trip of a lifetime.
Please feel free to give out my email address to any furture clients who would like to speak with someone who used your wonderful service.
George and Joann Harris
Philadelphia, PA
ggh864@verizon.net

Italy Tour: Ronald Stuart

Ronald Stuart — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 18:29:30 +0200

Do want to thank Umfulana for putting together a most enjoyable package trip through Northern Italy, just what we wanted. Took your advice and purchased a GPS unit before the trip and it proved invaluable, keeping us from getting lost many a time. Have lots of happy memories and photos to share. The "bed and breakfast" lodgings were ideally situated and most memorable. Thanks for the experience. Ron and Nola

Germany Tour: Teri Turner

Teri Turner — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 02:09:49 +0200

We had a wonderful trip arranged through Umfulana. Everything
went smoothly. The accomodations were all wonderful and the
people we met were so gracious. I will recommend Umfulana to
all my friends and look forward to booking another trip!

Italy Tour: Salam Salha

Salam Salha — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 18:45:32 +0200

We had a very nice trip, the accomodations were very good both in florence and in montepulciano.
only one recommendation: if you want to hire a GPS, insist that it must be updated. the GPS they gave us was not, and we spent more time on the roads than it was necessary.
apart from that, all was excellent! thanks Umfulana!

Germany Tour: Lorn Manthey

Lorn Manthey — Mon, 24 Sep 2012 10:33:42 +0200

Hello Martin......Back from our trip to Europe and we had a blast! Breakfast at all locations was excellent......wide selection of pastries, cereals, beverages, cheeses, meats, fruits and fresh-cooked eggs. Superb layouts and nicely arranged tables. We enjoyed all of the locations and there aren't enough adjectives to describe the renovated garden villas at Cannobio,the quaint mountainside village of Soglio and the sky-high mountain top hotel at Falkenstein. Weather was super for 12 of 13 days......couldn't ask for anything better.

Accommodations and people excellent at all locations except Luzerne........those rooms were very small and not well ventilated. They provided fans, but circulating warm air doesn't work. Couldn't have windows open because of road noise. Would have enjoyed staying across the street at the Hermitage, even though the rate wouldda been higher!

The route you planned was agressive but manageable. We took day trips at each location, which allowed jaunts to castles, the countryside, wine country, hiking, and a train trip to Munich for a pre-Octoberfest stop at the Hoffbrauhaus! The van was just the
right size for 4 people and luggage and comfortable riding and driving. The transmission was a bit balky, especially on hills. On the Autobahn we stayed in the center lane and enjoyed seeing the Porsches, Ferarris and Mercedes speed by.

One event/glitch we didn't forsee was getting stopped by the authorities as we drove briefly in Austria, for less than an hour. They demanded a day pass for the auto, which we didn't have and didn't know about. Had we known about it we gladly would have purchased the $8 pass rather than begrudgingly paying the $120 Euro fine.

Thanks so much for your excellent arrangements and thorough itinerary booklet. We highly recommend your services to anyone seeking a custom-made trip at a very affordable price.

Mantheys and Oldenburgs
Minnesota, USA
9/22/12

Germany Tour: Robbi Hyland

Robbi Hyland — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 15:53:04 +0200

Great trip! Thanks for your help, we had no problems all week.

Just a few notes:

Burghotel - best of our trip! View was just amazing!

Hohenzollern Castle - Our favorite castle

Ludwigsburg Palace - Our favorite tour

Rothenburg - Wonderful town

Dachau - spent 4 hours there (we were surprised that we did not hear a single word mentioned about World War II during our entire trip except at Dachau).

Castle Road and Romantik road - enjoyed the scenery (could not believe all of the apple trees, and we may need to bring our bikes and do a bike tour next time).

Autoban - got stuck in multiple traffic jams.

GPS in the car - wouldn't do the trip without it, made the drive effortless.

Thanks again, quite possibly our best trip ever!

Germany Tour: Rowl Cruikshank

Rowl Cruikshank — Fri, 14 Sep 2012 14:49:12 +0200

Mr Sciambi sent me your request for a trip opinion. We went on to France is why it has taken so long to reply. It was a wonderful trip and we had a great time.

I would suggest no American goes to Europe without a GPS. We would never have found those places on our own or a map. The people at the Schlosshotel were very accommodating about sending our costumes back although a little surprised at the request. A couple guests of the hotel asked to take our pictures and one thought we were some sort of entertainment for the hotel. I would think it might be a money maker for the castle hotels to offer the costume idea.

I loved staying in the castles and the food was wonderful. The in town rooms were a challenge for us to find and the parking with that big van we needed was a nightmare for my husband. Lucky for us he maintained his sense of humor. All in all a wonderful experience. Mrs Cruikshank

Italy Tour: Darcy Wiltse

Darcy Wiltse — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 06:40:27 +0200

Martin and the Umfulana team fully met our expectations. All bookings were honored upon arrival with no conflicts or issues, just as Martin promised they would be.

In many cases, the required voucher was not even required to be presented upon arrival. Clearly, Umfulana has a great reputation with the vendors we chose. The advice provided proved very useful and attention detail like local streets to watch for etc was used and appreciated. The head tax that some of the cities we visited in Italy was a bit of a surprise, but perhaps Umfulana was not privy to those local pecularities. Never the less, they were not large expenses, so it did not affect our trip significantly. As we move into our retirement years, we will be making more European trips and rest assured, we will be counting on Umfulana to recommend the itinerary and arrange for accommodation and transportation. In our minds, Umfulana is your 'One Stop' travel planner.

Well done Martin et al!

Germany Tour: Alec Fitton

Alec Fitton — Fri, 24 Aug 2012 11:19:14 +0200

Dear Martin,
We got back late last night. The trip was excellent. Arrangements worked smoothly, we loved the venues - all very different with some stunning locations. We found some terrific food and the hospitality everywhere was fabulous. A very memorable 13 days - especially the Schlosshotel Schönburg for our final night with the entrance to the bathroom hidden behind a bookcase!

Thank you for creating a special experience.

Kind regards,
Alec

Ireland Tour: Richard Tambini

Richard Tambini — Wed, 22 Aug 2012 19:00:31 +0200

Umfulana you have done it again. This is our third trip with Umfulana and we couldn't have been happier. The accomodations exceeded expectations, the itinerary was exciting and met our expectations. We surely learned much about Irish history. The Dingle peninsula was by far our favorite stop. The rugged terrain and beauty of the coastline was spectacular. We hired a local archealogical guide who took us around the area and showed us the early settlements and natural wonders. We even managed to see what everyone who visits the Dingle peninsula wants to see; the locations where they filmed Ryan's Daughter.
We look forward to our next Umfulana trip.

Austria Tour: Deana Schepp

Deana Schepp — Wed, 08 Aug 2012 20:16:02 +0200

You guys did a great job!

The accommodations were wonderful and were in great locations with easy access to public transportation. The hosts were very helpful and friendly.

Your recommendations of things to see and do were also very helpful!

My only room for improvement was that the hotel in Innsbruck was a little noisy from people in the street most of the night and that the golden roof was completely covered by scaffolding and tarp.

I would definitely use your services again and recommend your services to anyone who is planning a trip.

Thank you!

Deana Schepp

Germany Tour: Peter Hardy

Peter Hardy — Mon, 06 Aug 2012 09:12:48 +0200

Hi Martin

Here are some more detailed comments:

Rental Car - we were upgraded from Merc C-Class to Volvo XC70 wagon which was perfect for us. Much bigger and we would not have fit our luggage in the smaller car. The language for the GPS was set in German and it took us quite a while to work out how to change this to English (as one had to know German in order to work through the menu). Eventually an Avis employee assisted but I suspect only because we were being very slow in exiting the carpark which was needed for the next vehicle!

Hotel Zur Krone

Wonderful quiet hotel - perfect start to the tour and sorry it was just for one night. Lovely family - very welcoming. We were very tired after long haul flight from NZ but still managed dinner in the restaurant - superb! Breakfast at this hotel was by far the best of the tour - simply amazing way to start the next day. Highly recommended.

Burg Colmberg

Fantastic hotel full of character and history. Staff not as friendly as many other places but still very efficient. Reception and indeed access to the hotel itself is closed between 11am and 3pm - we were very lucky to be accommodated as we arrived just after 11am and would have had a long wait otherwise. We noticed on leaving that staff were very insistent that all guests post a tripadvisor review - it seemed more important to them than whether we genuinely enjoyed ourselves. Still a great hotel - breakfast was lovely. Highlight was meeting a couple of retired German forestry workers and sharing a long conversation about the region and our respective countries.

Landhaus Orphee

We messed up with the GPS and arrived down a very narrow cobbled lane in Regensburg at the Grand Orphee - wrong hotel! Only stressful moment of our entire drive as there was barely enough room to escape and plenty of strange looks from the pedestrians!! Anyway the correct hotel is very unassuming to look at but an absolute delight inside. Wonderful rooms and very friendly hosts. Breakfast was special being served in the room - our children loved it and felt very special. Fantastic location for the city. Highly recommended for families.

Schlosshotel Iglhauser

Another unique experience! No check in formalities - just given keys to our rooms and complimentary drinks. The hotel did a large load of laundry for us but no change on checking out - nor were we charged for other drinks while we were there. We asked and were told definitely no charge for anything! Lovely relaxing time here though there was a wedding on and many of the staff seemed very busy. The owner is charming - not much English but tried his best and always paid us attention. Beautiful breakfast. Only negative were the mosquitoes - no fault of the hotel!

Parkhotel Tristachersee

Amazing hotel. So professional and charming. Meticulous attention to detail and wonderful hospitality from great hosts. We were lucky to arrive for Sunday evening and the cocktail reception followed by 6 course dinner. Half board option here was perfect for us - the children tried food they had never had before. Wonderful kitchen - we felt very spoiled here. Most of the guests were far older (mostly 60+ I would have guessed) and we seemed the only ones with children but still not out of place. Travel to get here was stunning on the Alpine Road and up to the Grossglockner glacier - a very memorable trip. This hotel was one of the top 3 highlights of our trip and very highly recommended.

Locanda al Leon

Beautiful hotel in an ideal location in Venice. The only hotel on our trip with air-conditioning and it was an oasis. The rooms were beautifully simple - not as overly baroque as some we saw. Lovely hosts - very welcoming and helpful. Point to note is that they are not allowed irons/ironing boards in rooms due to fire risk - so we struggled with wrinkled clothes for a few days! Breakfast was only average (we had been indulged too well at all prior hotels!) Loved Venice and the hotel was in a perfect position to explore this wonderful city. Parking was less stressful than we thought it would be however in looking for the "second" parking building we entered the Garage San Marco instead. This was fine though we had to leave our keys in the car so it could be moved (as they stack cars).

Schloss Hotel Korb

Another amazing place though had trouble finding it with GPS. Our unit told us we had arrived however we were in a dead end street 2 miles away. Eventually got there with GPS lat/long co-ordinates. Sitting on the deck for dinner looking out over the valleys of Bolzano and vineyards was magic. Wonderful restaurant and lovely facilities. Pool was lovely as it was very hot. We were there at a quiet time as staff says it can get very busy in school holidays. This hotel was another highlight for us - simply for the food and the views. Highly recommended.

Burghotel Falkenstein

We are starting to run out of superlatives by this time! What a breathtaking view from this hotel - another unique experience. The owners here were friendly but staff were a mixture - efficient but a bit cold at times. The restaurant was amazing - absolutely stunning meal on our first night. The rooms are crazy - I suspect taking their inspiration from Neuschwanstein! Music plays very softly in the hotel corridors - barely audible in the rooms however both nights (at about 1am) someone must have knocked the volume and it was turned up to maximum. Not sure of the problem but after half an hour someone managed to turn it off! The drive up is controlled by lights with a very rigid timetable - might pay to put the times in your notes for the future. Uphill travel is only possible from quarter past the hour until five to. So there is twenty minute period you have to wait.

Trip to Neuschwanstein was great day but we did not enjoy the crows of American and Japanese tourists! It made us realize that one of the best things about our travel prior was just how "local" it had been - we met local people and ate local food and just enjoyed the country. Apart from Venice this was our only real "tourist" stop.

Hotel Laimer Hof

Fantastic hospitality - lovely people who operate this hotel. The reception area acts as a meeting place and we shared many conversations with the staff and other guests here. It felt more like a home than a hotel and that is probably why it is reviewed so well. The rooms are only average - clean and tidy but quite a different standard to the prior hotels on our tour. But that did not matter because the hospitality was so warm. Our only regret here was that due to our itinerary we did not have longer in Munich as it is a wonderful city and there is so much to see. So for our next trip we shall start in Munich and then perhaps travel to the north and west!

Overall

Martin - we cannot thank you enough for arranging this wonderful, fantastic tour. Every step of the journey we were fascinated by the array of accommodation, the diverse landscape, superb food (and beer!) and the many people we met along the way. It always seems a risk to book a tour via the internet with someone who you have never met - It is a lot of money and risk. But every detail you arranged worked perfectly and we have complete trust in you and Umfulana. We will recommend you to our friends and are very happy to give a reference if you have any other prospective clients from NZ who are unsure of booking with you.

Many, many thanks from the Hardy family!

Peter

Germany Tour: Elbert Lee Schroader

Elbert Lee Schroader — Sat, 28 Jul 2012 06:21:09 +0200

We had a wonderful trip! We appreciated the fact that we could travel at our own speed and had accomodations waiting for us at the next city. The Autobahn was crazy, but if you keep at a reasonable speed and let the racing cars pass, you do all right! The road leading to the Pfronten hotel was not for the faint of heart, but we did it, and have bragged about it to our family and friends! The meals were a bit expensive but delicious in that hotel.

We had an unfortunate experience in the Schloss Hotel in Kromberg in that we had wanted to have dinner at the palace, but were not told we needed reservations. When we approached the dining room, we were told they were booked. We had arrived in the morning, so that would have given them sufficient time to tell us we needed reservations that evening. We were seated in another area, however, and the food was good.

All in all, we would definitely recommend and use Umfulana! The tailor-made tour was exactly what we were looking for!

Germany Tour: Shawn Soeder

Shawn Soeder — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 11:58:45 +0200

Martin,

Thank you very much for arranging the tour of Southern Germany for myself and my son. We just returned yesterday and we had a fantastic vacation! Each and every one of the six accommodations was excellent, and all of the details of the plans that you arranged worked flawlessly. While each of the accommodations was excellent in terms of location, hospitality and service, one of them was truly remarkable: Burghotel Auf dem Falkenstein. The excitement of reaching that destination, the splendor of the view of the alps from that location, and the personal attention to excellence by the owners made that place something that we will never forget.

Germany Tour: Jason & Stephanie DeVono

Jason & Stephanie DeVono — Thu, 19 Jul 2012 16:48:39 +0200

We have just gotten back from aan 18 day tour from Munich to Rome and back and it was wonderful! Every hotel was fabulous and the uniqueness of these little places really added to the adventure and beauty of our trip. Our favorite place was Villa Dievole in Tuscany. We loved it so much there we didn't even take the day trip into Siena! Hotel Pironi at Lake Maggiore, Hotel Rosenvilla in Salzburg... all of them so wonderful! The place we probably liked the least was Villa I Barronci outside of Florence, though it was still very nice. Driving around was easy and part of the adventure, and the tour was a wonderful way to get a slice of so many different locations, cultures, and history without delving too deep and without getting bored!

I would definitely recommond this trip if you are independent, enjoy discovering other cultures and ways of life, and want to see a lot in a short time!

Germany Tour: Peter Hardy

Peter Hardy — Mon, 16 Jul 2012 01:17:37 +0200

After an outstanding 18 night tour of southern Germany, Austria and northern Italy our family has absolutely no reservation in recommending Martin and the team at Umfalana. The tour was amazing! Every detail was just right – the pace of travel was perfect allowing a balance of travel and time to see the sights. The accommodation was exquisite – every stop was unique in some way and we were continually thankful that we had Martin's experience to guide us.

Without question this is the best family holiday we have had and we have fallen in love with these beautiful countries and their people. We will be back in the future to sample even more.

Thank you so much!

Kim, Peter & Family

Germany Tour: Les Mitchell

Les Mitchell — Sat, 14 Jul 2012 07:11:34 +0200

Whilst researching an itinary for a four week driving tour of southern Germany and Austria I discovered Umfulana. Martin was very helpful and suggested an itinerary which fitted with our budget and idea for the trip. The whole trip went very smoothly and we were very happy with the accomodation. The variety of accomodations more than exceeded our expectations and on the two occasions where the quality of rooms may not have been so good, the locations made up for this (Heidelberg and Melk). The intimate nature of all of the hotels and the helpful staff made our trip much more enjoyable and made it easy to explore each of the regions we visited. Details and directions for Austrain hotels were not as comprehensive as for those in Germany (for example there was no indication of how to enter the old city in Salzburg - with the need for a code to lower the barrier to enable us to drive to the hotel) but this was only a minor concern.

Umfulana's recommendation for 2-3 nights at each location was excellent as there was always so much to do and the travel distances were always very comfortable.

The intinerary and choice of accomodation along the route made each day exciting. We were very sorry to leave each town but were always equally impressed when we arrived at each new destination.

Highlights for us were the castle stay at Oberwesel, the village of Beilstein, Falkenstein, Villa Barleben at Konstanz and the beautiful village of Hallstatt.

All communications with Umfulana were easy and the hotel and hire car bookings all perfecty organised. The additional notes and suggested travel routes added to our enjoyment of the trip.

I would strongly recommend Umfulana to anyone considering a driving holiday in Germany/Austria and will would be keen to use you again.

Thank you to Martin and your team for organising such a terrific holiday for us. We couldnt have enjoyed it more.

Les and Robyn Mitchell

Germany Tour: Loren I. Witkin

Loren I. Witkin — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 02:20:35 +0200

My family recently completed a two-week trip driving trip around Germany. We turned to Umfulana to arrange our rental car, lodgings, and a couple of tours. We couldn't have been more pleasantly surprised and pleased than we were with the arrangements. Umfulana carefully selected accomodations that not only met our needs and were memorable, but, at times were simply jaw-dropping. Falkenstein and Kronenberg - What more can I say, but "Wow"! Thanks, Martin

Germany Tour: Bill Helbig

Bill Helbig — Tue, 12 Jun 2012 22:30:46 +0200

Using Umfulana is the only way to tour Europe. They were very helpful in mapping out a customized itinerary a bit different than ones that they normally provide on their website. The amount of days and the driving distance between destinations were just right. The accommodations were outstanding at the places they booked for us. The hotels/B&Bs were not your standard chain hotels. Each one was very unique with its own distinctive appeal. We were not in the least disappointed!!! But be advised, if you stay at a castle, you will in most cases be required to climb quite a few stairs. If you have lots of luggage as we did, it could be quite challenging. If you rent a car the onboard GPS if equipped, does not do near a good a job as a Tom Tom. I would recommend that you bring one with along for navigation.

Germany Tour: Brian Steiner

Brian Steiner — Mon, 11 Jun 2012 04:50:20 +0200

Martin did a wonderful job setting up our trip. All of the venues we stayed at were fantastic. We had the best in quality of accommodations, level of service and locations. We were truly treated to the most unique and charming settings throughout our tour.

The trip was planned out with just the right amount travel in between stops, and we really appreciated the flexibility of independent travel, without the worry of finding quality lodging. Being centrally located in most of the cities allowed us to walk or use public transportation to reach attractions and events, and we were able to get a feel for the local culture and people. We especially enjoyed our time in Berlin and the guided tour we took with Thomas.

We did have a few problem issues on our trip. The rental car agency did not keep the vehicle we had reserved, and we had trouble finding one that would hold all three of us and our luggage, but we eventually settled for a Volkswagen minivan....a bit of let down from the Mercedes Benz I had expected. We have heard from other travelers that this is a common experience with rental car companies, so don't plan on getting the vehicle you think you reserved. The other issue we had was that we had a full day scheduled in Cologne (a beautiful and cultured city) on Monday....when all of the museums are closed.

Despite these couple of niggling disappointments, our trip was wonderful. After my experience with this tour, I will definitely have Umfulana set up any future travel to the continent, or other venues they cover. I could not have found the unique and charming places to stay that we had on our tour on my own. I'm incredibly grateful to the folks at Umfulana for giving us the opportunity to have a wonderful trip to Germany.

Germany Tour: Kieran Nash

Kieran Nash — Mon, 28 May 2012 13:30:42 +0200

Hi Martin

This response is being completed whilst awaiting our flight from SIN to POM, in short my wife and I thoroughly enjoyed each and every aspect of the tour from the non related UEFA CUP in Munich which I was privileged to watch Chelsea (luckily) beat the better side in a penalty shoot out.

The hotels were exquisite, food was far better than anticipated and just kept getting better and better with variations to tease the palate. Staff/Management in each establishment were totally professional and obliging, the 2 nights in Pfrontem were a brilliant way to kick off the tour and nothing varied after that.............the Avis GPS was an absolute godsend...the only minor "complaint could be addressed to the Avis staff who were blase about driving instructions, use of the GPS (all in German) and even starting the ignityion if not used to non key starts. As an Avis Presidents Card holder and ex employee I found their attention to these points lacking, all were rwesolved in due course and as I retain contacts in the organisation I will take these matters up directly with their upper echelon.

We will definitley be recommending Umfulana to all our friends who may contemplate a Germany based tour in the future. From a personal aspect we are looking at Aziberbijan as a destination in the next 12 - 18 months and should you have any contacts there we would be grateful for feedback in due course.

Once again our sincere thanks for the time and effort provided by yourself and Umfulana.
\
Best regards
Kieran and Mila Nash

Germany Tour: Kathryn Straughan

Kathryn Straughan — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 18:20:10 +0200

Umfuluma delivered for us a well thought out, intimate tour of Germany.

Between stops at the great cities, and delightful diversions to out-of-the-way smaller villages full of charm, Umfuluma did a great job of capturing our expectations for a unique vacation to Germany.

Spain Tour: Bruce Shevlin

Bruce Shevlin — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 21:54:41 +0200

Jessica,
Thank you so very much.
Excellent! Loved the Hotels and their staffs. Planning was excellent. More detail regarding the routes "in old town" would be quite helpful.
Bruce

Naples Tour: Dana Devlin

Dana Devlin — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 15:24:00 +0100

Stefanie,
Thank you for your e-mail. We arrived home last night. We had a fabulous trip to Southern Italy and appreciate all the help that you gave to us in planning our accommodations and itinerary!!! All of our hosts and their employees were very kind and gracious to us. The cooking class turned out perfect and a special treat for Dana and me. We especially enjoyed the people, the food and our stay at Frantoio. We enjoyed all of your recommended accommodations.

Thanks again for all of your time and assistance.
Warm Regards,
Arline & Dana Devlin
Caldwell, Idaho

South Africa Tour: Felix and Marianne Bruijning

Felix and Marianne Bruijning — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 10:52:50 +0100

We thoroughly enjoyed our trip through Limpopo. For us there were not too many game-parks in the Itinerary, but then, we did not do all the offered game drives. On travel days we did not go on a game drive at all and after “Naka Sanga” we also skipped the early morning drives. This worked out fine for us, elderly people as we are. But we enjoyed the ones we did enormously and have seen quite a lot of game, Lots of lions, elephants, rhino’s, hypo’s, giraffes and all the other “ordinary” game, but also very special ones, like the brown hyena and a pack of wild dogs.
We believe the Peermont Hotel is fine for a one night stay only, when you arrive after 3 PM and leave again early the next day. At all the other accommodations, each very special in their own way, we were received with a very warm welcome by a very friendly and hospitable staff. We would not have missed out on one of them, or on one of the Game Parks.
Absolute highlights were: the Lodge in the Soutpansberg, the Lodge in Naka Sanga and in Madikwe Game Reserve. But we also very much enjoyed our stay in Pretoria, Polokwane, the Lodge in Pilanusberg and in Magaliesburg.

Thanks Merwin, for a wonderfull and very interesting Itinerary.
Felix and Marianne Bruijning

Germany Tour: Nancy Sestak

Nancy Sestak — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 11:17:15 +0100

Martin!
This is Nancy Sestak. Erik and I just got back from our Bavaian vacation and I wanted to send you a note to thank you so much for putting together a wonderful trip. Everything went along seamlessly. On top of it we had near perfect weather.
Hotel Falkenstein was by far our absolute favorite in every way, but all of the hotels were cozy, friendly and simply excellent.
Seeing the castles and the alps were the big thrills (I had read Ludwig's biography to prep for the trip). We did some unforgettable hiking in Garmish, but we were really excited to be staying in the sleepier town of Grainau. It was very low tourist season all around which was delightful.
We had lots and lots of good food and cheese and meat and of course beer.

-Nancy Sestak
PS - right before we left, we purchased a GPS and I will admit that that device made our driving vacation MUCH easier. I love a map, but the GPS was so precise that I am now a big fan of them.

Italy Tour: Carol Hambly

Carol Hambly — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 15:40:46 +0200

Hello Jerry,

We had a fine time and, as usual, the places we stayed in were great and we, again, loved the planning! I, especially, being the driver, was grateful to be able to leave the car at Naples airport, as there is much building in the city centre around Garibaldi Square and everywhere Garmin told us to go, we couldn't, so took much longer to get out of Naples than necessary.

In retrospect, we should have spent more time between Florence and Rome as that was too rushed to see everything on the list. We did manage to see the best bits however.

We had the most magnificent weather and I think one of the best September/Octobers they have had in years, which resulted in many, many Italians using the weather to take a break - so it was very busy everywhere.

One thing I really must comment on was the helpfulness of the reception staff in Rome. They were really first class. We had lovely people all the way and it was only when we got down south that we realised how helpful they really were. I think the South had had a long season and was tired of being polite to tourists, so were a bit short and not very forthcoming and as informative as they could have been, which made me appreciate the Roman assistance even more, as they too had had a long season.

Many thanks for all the assistance and we'll be in contact in the future, no doubt.

Kind regards,
Carol

Germany Tour: Janet Adler

Janet Adler — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 19:44:57 +0200

We loved our trip to Germany and everything went smoothly thanks to our GPS (and Umfulana, of course). The GPS made travel between cities very easy and finding our hotels was a breeze (and it possibly saved a marriage:-). My favorite was the Schoonburg Castle in Oberwesel overlooking the Rhine, followed closely by the Heidelberg Suites with a view of the Old Town, the Neckar River and the Heidelberg Castle. My least favorite was the Hotel Carmen in Munich. My only suggestion is that any English speaking tourists traveling to the Burghotel Falkenstein be forwarned about the one-way road leading up to the hotel. We couldn't read the signs at the bottom of the mountain, and I actually don't know if we drove up when the light was green or red!! We didn't find out until later that travel down the mountain is on the hour, and travel up the mountain is on the half-hour.

The weather was great, our itinerary was wonderful and we definitely will call Umfulana if we decide to take another tour.

Great Britain Tour: David Sessions

David Sessions — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 14:21:37 +0200

Good morning Martin

We arrived home last evening.

I want to spend a couple of days to collect my thoughts. First I want to express the profound appreciation that all of us felt for you and your group for designing such a fantastic trip. The accomodations were lovely; the hosts open and gracious; our relationship with each deepened the experience of the trip. It was a trip of our lifetime and your choices made it rich.

Thank You from all of us.

Best

David

Germany Tour: Jeff Little

Jeff Little — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 03:43:36 +0200

We couldn’t have been more pleased with the trip organized by Umfulana and Jerry Crippen.

Hotel Kloster-Stuble in Rothenburg was charming and the manager was extremely helpful. We were a little skeptical when we arrived at Rosenvilla in Salzburg but the location was great with easy trolley access to old town and the breakfasts were excellent. Faulkenstein was absolutely fabulous from the exciting trip up the switchbacks to the beautiful views from the rooms. We only stayed one night in Heidelberg but wished we could have stayed another at the Heidelberg Suites.

We only had 2 small problems. When we arrived in Frankfort we were assigned a BMW sedan. There was no way two couples could fit all the luggage in a sedan. Avis immediately replaced the car with a Volvo wagon which was fine. Also, I would spend a little more time receiving instructions on the GPS. Although it was helpful, on two occasions the GPS inexplicably took us off the highway and literally into a corn field. We gave her a rest and she was better for the rest of the trip.

We would use Umfulana again. In fact, my son plans to contact Jerry to arrange a trip to Italy.

Germany Tour: Vaughn Teegarden

Vaughn Teegarden — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 03:34:50 +0200

I can't say enough about the fine tour arranged by Umfulana. The lodgings exceeded our expectations in every respect. The hosts and staff of each lodging were caring and successfully did their very best to make our stay pleasant. Each place had a unique character of it's own and many were located in the most gorgeous setting imaginable. Others were conveniently located to the sights and shopping of the area.

We were treated to a very nice slice of Southern Germany and all the variety that the area encompasses. Many times we ignored the instructions from the GPS and headed for a place out in the country, Knowing that the GPS would get us where we were going when it was necessary. By so doing we drove through beautiful countrysides and exceptionally pretty villages.

Germany is truly a country of flower boxes and well kept homes. The people in these out of the way places are friendly and helpful. And "Oboy" is all I can say about the fine food and drink. I could fill a book with all the pleasant and exciting memories of our tour, but instead I will just say:

Thank you Umfulana for a very fine trip!

France Tour: Audrey Chan Chee May

Audrey Chan Chee May — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 12:40:47 +0200

Umfulana is fantastic. We loved our trip through France. The B&B's were so well chosen. Each one so different and special. All located off the beaten tracks where you experience France in a more personal manner. All the inns chosen had fantastic hosts who were more than willing to help us in every way. I would say many of our hosts were better than 5 star concierge.

Martin is so professional and efficient. He answered all our questions so quickly and arranged eveything for us perfectly. We really appreciate his patience and all his effort in helping us with all the small details. The detail driving routes and excursion suggestions really helped.

Thank you Martin and the whole Umfulana Team for making our trip to France so very very memorable and special. You guys are truly excellent!! I will definitely recommend Umfulana to all my friends.

Audrey, Andre, Beatrice and Sean

Germany Tour: Jamie Mammen

Jamie Mammen — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 05:35:15 +0200

Our group of five enjoyed a fabulous tour of Germany. Jerry of Umfulana provided an itinerary that was both comfortable and thorough. We were able to hit all of our desired destinations without feeling rushed.

The lodging and accommodations were top-notch in each of our overnight locations. We were especially blown away by the location and views at Burghotel Falkenstein.

Our group was so pleased that we cheerfully toasted to Jerry each evening at dinner! Five out of five of us would utilize Umfulana for our next destination. Thank you!

Great Britain Tour: Richard Smith

Richard Smith — Sun, 18 Sep 2011 20:47:25 +0200

Our trip was just fabulous. The bed and breakfasts were are well-chosen and the itinerary was great, if a little ambitious at times, if we really wanted to see as much as possible. Umfulana took care of all of the details and it went perfectly smoothly. Thank you!

Germany Tour: Tom Singkofer

Tom Singkofer — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 19:54:09 +0200

Dear Jerry,

Laura and I had a great 15 day trip to Bavaria. Laura wishes we would have traded a day in Regensburg for one in Rothenburg. She loves all things Christmas. We weren't aware that Rothenburg is the Christmas City. The hotels and staff were great, you and your staff did a fantastic job setting up our trip. As you recommended a GPS unit was an invaluable tool. Some of your suggested side trips, and a few of our own made the expierience even more delightful.

We had a great trip,

Tom and Laura Singkofer

Germany Tour: Jonathan Schiller

Jonathan Schiller — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 12:16:44 +0200

Dear Jerry,
Autumn and I are finally coming to the reality that we're back in the States now. The trip was simply amazing and we cannot say enough good things about the way you and Umfalana took care of us. I actually have several friends and family members that are now considering trips to Germany, and I will be providing them with your contact information.

Thanks Again,

Jonathan

Puglia Tour: Valerie and Richard Tambini

Valerie and Richard Tambini — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 11:18:11 +0200

Dear Jerry,
We wanted to let you know that we had a wonderful time on our trip to southern Italy. As with our last trip with you, the accommodations were top rate and the choice of route provided us with splendid views and historical insight.
Our hostess at the Masseria Serra dell' Isola was Rita. Rita was a wonderful host. She actually tried to find us in Mola Di Bari when we got lost trying to find her. As it turned out, we were the only guests at the Masseria the first two nights. In the evenings, we were treated to a liter of local white wine and homemade delights. The last night there was interesting. Rita hosted her nephew's wedding reception. Of course, we were invited. Rita did an outstanding job with the food and of couse, this being Italy, the party went on all night.
The next place we stayed was the Masseria Il Frantoio. Armando proved to be an exceptional host. It was obvious he took pride in the quality of the accommodations and the food his wife prepared for dinner. Armando would come out and explain what each dish was and how it was prepared. His wine paring was spot on. Breakfast was served buffet style.... this gave us opportunity to meet fellow travelers. We met a delightful couple from New York City. We had breakfast and dinner with them at the Masseria. We enjoyed great converstaion with them over drinks and cordials in the courtyard until late. This was a great place to stay.
Traveling down the coast to Otranto, we arrived at the Masseria Montelauro. While we enjoyed our stay here, it was a bit of a come down after the hosting we received at Masseria Frantoio. This was more hotel like and not as personal. Nonetheless, the accommodations were good and the location was ideal for exploring the Southern Adriatic coast.
Next stop, Sant'Angelo Luxury Resort. This was in the ancient city of Matera. We were absolutely awed by the splendor of such an old city with its rich history and breathtaking vistas. We enjoyed exploring the city. The experience of stayng at a hotel that was in a cave was quite a thrill. We had our own private courtyard from which to enjoy an evening drink and revel in the day's explortions. Not as personable a place as the first two masserias ... but a great experience.
Finally, the Lama di Luna. The farm was just huge with olive trees and vineyards as far as you could see. The view overlooking the valley all the way to the sea was breathtaking. The cool breezes on the high plain provided a welcome relief to the heat of the day. Our host provided us dinner on the veranda overlooking the valley below. The food was served buffet style and was absolutely fabulous. This was rustic southern Italian cooking at its finest and freshly prepared daily . Valerie and I are endeavering to recreate some of the dishes we had at Lama di Luna as it represents to us, very heathful eating. This last accommodation was a perfect end to a great trip. Although the farm is located out in the middle of nowhere, it was only a forty-five minute ride to the airport in Bari where we began our journey home.
Thanks Jerry for a great time. We're looking forward to the next trip.

Sincerely,

Valerie and Richard .

Germany Tour: Michael Kuhn

Michael Kuhn — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 11:01:15 +0200

Jerry,

Here is my feedback regarding our recent trip to Germany.

All arrangements were in place and virtually hassle-free. All the hotels recognized my name and had the rooms available to us. Other than the scheduling issue over the city tour in Munich, all the arrangements were exactly as indicated.

Several further notes:

- Rainer in Heidelberg spent far more than the allotted two hours with us – quite a treat! We saw so much more of the city than was expected. He told us more about our hotel (Hirschgasse) than the hotel staff had. He asked me to send you his greetings.

- The Avis clerk at the Frankfurt airport did give us some static over the matter of the voucher. She was initially insistent that we produce a separate voucher just for Avis showing that the rental car was fully paid. I had to convince her – and subsequently her supervisor – that the single voucher containing the rental car and hotel arrangements was all that was needed. In the end, the clerk agreed to accept the voucher you provided. It may be useful in the future to provide your guests a separate rental car voucher to avoid delays at the rental car counter.

- We did have a small difficulty initially with Burghotel Falkenstein. When we called to advise that we would be late (after 6 PM) in arriving, we were told that one of the two rooms was unavailable due to a hotel staff error assigning that room to another guest. We were told that we would need to relocate to a different property "5 minutes away". We communicated that a different hotel was unacceptable since we had specifically booked Burghotel Falkenstein. However, we were pleased to discover by the time we arrived that there was a second room available – perhaps the nicest room in the hotel, which our daughter enjoyed immensely. In the end, the hotel responded magnificently and our stay at Falkenstein was the highlight of our entire trip.

- The Avis agency at the Munich train station is not, in fact, at the train station but at some distance from the station on a side street. It took us almost 20 minutes to discover this – it is not a widely-known fact nor are there any directional signs. For the record (and for your guests' future use) the Avis agency is in the parking garage located at the intersection of Hirtenstrasse and Lammerstrasse.

- Again, it was disappointing to discover that the city tours of Heidelberg and Munich were not at 10 AM as the itinerary had stated but rather at 2 PM. Perhaps the later time was due to the fact that both tours were on a Sunday. Nevertheless, I would have wished that you had highlighted the change in time when you sent me the final booked tour on 21 June so that we might have planned accordingly. To forego the Munich city tour which cost us approximately 100 Euros was disappointing.

- In sum, we achieved our objective with Umfulana – enjoy a worry-free two-week excursion through southern Germany and Berlin while being treated to first-class boutique accommodations not available to the ordinary U.S. tourist. The process was easy and your advice was sound.

Thanks again for all your help. I have recommended your company already to several of my colleagues who are contemplating travel to Germany.

Sincerely,

Michael

Germany Tour: Patrick & Karen McCormick

Patrick & Karen McCormick — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 00:49:30 +0200

Our 21 day trip was wonderful. All the hotels were fabulous and hospitable, plus our rooms were ready upon our arrival regardless of the time - 8 am in Berlin. Thanks to your suggestion, the extra day in Rothenburg allowed for a relaxing day after the first week of our trip and the night in Falkenstein was a special treat as it was my 50th birthday. I wish I had stayed an extra day in Cologne but I don't know where I would have trimmed it from. We had three full days plus another half day in Berlin which allowed time for an entire day in Potsdam. Munich was wonderful to revisit and although so much HAS changed so much is still the same. Our favorite place was Vienna and I could have used more time there. We happened to be there for Ottoa von Hapsburg's funeral and the pagentry of 700 years of the Empire was on display and was a moving experience that we will not forget. Prague was a lot of fun and a great place to buy gifts for the family as the exchange rate was more favorable -- that and it was cheaper in general than Germany and Austria. Pilnitz and Dresden were wonderful stops on our return to Berlin but I am wondering whether it is ever sunny in Eastern Germany as we had 5 days of rain combined in Berlin and Dresden. The only suggestion I can make are the need for better directions within Prague as our Avis navigation did not work in the Czech Republic and althought I had your directions as well as detailed directions that I printed before we left the US we were lost and unless you kow Czech you are "up a creek" -- after failing to get correct directions from the police, we asked a taxi to guide us to the hotel and we followed him. Once at the hotel we were fine and got our bearings and had a great time. Guests need to be warned about the hefty price tag for parking in Prague (31 euros) per night which was more than twice what we paid in any other city. I will highly recommend you to anyone I know visiting Germany and Austria in the near future.

Germany Tour: Dale Ramsay

Dale Ramsay — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 19:55:36 +0200

Martin we had a great time. Everything was well organized, the Hotels were fantastic and driving Geramany, France and Swizerland was a dream. As you has advised the one day stops were a bit tough and having too many stops could be an issue. We saw a lot, did a lot and met some great people. Thanks Dale

France Tour: Giles Stewart

Giles Stewart — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 18:01:30 +0200

We had a GREAT vacation covering 7 cities/towns in France & Switzerland. The locations you selected for all the Bed & Breakfast facilities were excellent. We made quite a fw new friends, especially in France and look forward to a future visit.

The only change we made, was an upgrade to the rental car, since the vehicle you included was substantially smaller than the vehicles we usually operate back home.

To sum up the trip, it met our complete satisfaction, and we will certainly call on you the next time we vacation in an area in which you provide service. We'll continue to recommend your service to our friends & associates.

Thanks for your help.

Giles
Florida, USA