Destination Europe

11/21/09

November 2009, Robert Smock Columbus, Ohio

by pitt73686 at Citysearch

Hi Kayla & team:

I just returned from my 17 day trip to Europe that you and your team put together for me and it was incredible. I got to visit Rome, Venice, Lake Como, Amsterdam, and Paris. This is the most time that I’ve taken off work in 17 years and thanks to you and your staff I was able to totally relax and enjoy myself. The hotels were beautiful, the tours were wonderful, and everything you and your staff suggested was perfect for what I wanted to see and do. I can’t wait for you to plan my next trip to Europe, which I hope is real soon. I have already recommended your company to several people who are planning a European vacation. Thanks to you and your staff this vacation far exceeded all my expectations, and it’s one I will never forget.

I truly can’t thank you enough for everything you and your staff did for me..

Sincerely

Robert Smock

• Pros: Incredible knowledge
• Cons: None

11/19/09

Destination Europe - Kayla Zeigler - Amazing Europe Planning

by DestinationEuropePlanning at Citysearch

Kayla:

Dan Hesler here. You sent my wife (Jill) and I on a two week vacation to Italy and Greece last month. It was absolutely wonderful. I wrote 50 pages of narrative while traveling, but I think that would be a little more feedback than you really want. I thought I would give you my impressions on the various hotels and expeditions we used, for the sake of future travelers. It was all great, but you probably could use something a little more nuanced than that.

Florence: The Residenza Vespucci was just as charming as it could be. The location was fine; it was a little noisy at night, but I think all of Florence is probably like that. Aurelia and her family were charming, and the room was excellent. I suppose that if someone were looking for a generic "four seasons" experience, it might have seemed a little casual, but if that's what you want, why go overseas? We loved the Residenza Vezpucci, and would recommend it highly.

The cooking class we took with Francesca Di Leonardi was one of the highlights of the trip. Even if you don't care about cooking (which I don't), it was tremendous experience. Whatever it was that we were doing for 3.5 hours, we talked, laughed, and drank wine while we were doing it, and it ended up with a nice meal. What's not to like?

If I had to do it over again, I would completely discard any American tastes I might have in cars, and rent the smallest thing they rent out. With the streets in Florence and Sienna, as well as the way people drive and park there, our Mercedes diesel might have been bigger than it needed to be. It wasn't a problem, but it is a thought.

Our hotel in Sienna, the Borgo Grondaie, was very nice, the staff were helpful, and the grounds were gorgeous. The wine tour was tremendous, and Valentina was wonderful. Like the cooking class, I would recommend it highly for anyone, whether they are particularly into wine or not. Getting into the backroads of tuscany and hanging out with Italians, even if we were paying them for the experience, would up being more memorable than cathedrals, which start to all blend together.

I liked taking the train into Rome. It was relatively stress free. I am sure I could have driven into Rome, but it might have been stressful. Our Vatican tour (and tour guide) were wonderful. That is an experience that you really want someone to tell you the stories as you see the sights.

Our hotel in Rome, the Suites Piazza del Popolo, was tremendous. The room was fine, Marco was great, but we adored the neighborhood. In a city full of tourists, it felt like there weren't many when we went home at night. The restaurants were wonderful, we met lots of nice people, and I can't say enough about it. Marco's bed and breakfast, like Aurelia's in Florence, was totally charming. In general, we fell in love with Italy.

Santorini, we had slightly mixed feelings about. On the one hand, it is stunning beautiful. On the other hand, even though it is clearly a "couples" destination, it still had something of a Daytona-Beach-at-spring-break feeling to it. That's great if you like that sort of thing. (Jill would go back again, I am not so sure.) The coolest thing we did at Santorini was walk from Fira to Oia. It was a serious three hour walk, through hills, but it was secluded and beautiful. The hotel Ira (on Santorini) was nice. Manish was lovely to us, and he says hello. The room was great, and the view was spectacular.

In Athens, the Hotel Amalia was spectacular. It did feel like the four seasons. Of course, that is a different experience than the idiosyncrasies of a family owned bed and breakfast, but it was marvelous.

All in all, everything was great, and thank you so much for putting it all together. I do not know when we will next travel overseas again, but we will not hesitate to call you again, nor to recommend you to anyone. Kayla Zeigler at Destination Europe - You have been wonderful.

Thank you again,

Dan Hesler

• Pros: Excellent planning, custom service and personal attention

11/19/09

Destination Europe - Kayla Zeigler - Amazing Europe Planning

by DestinationEuropeTravel at Citysearch

HI Kayla!

Yes, our trip was just amazing...from the boutique hotels to the multitude of sights and sounds of Europe. Everything was awesome, especially all the infinite details that you so very carefully arranged. It was an experience that my husband and I will truly remember and share with our friends! Thanks so much! I'll write more later and do the blog when my mind is finer tuned. Thanks so very, very much! ~Suzy & Gary

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HI Kayla,

Our European vacation to London, Paris, Luzern, Zermatt, and Lake Como area was absolutely fantastic! We had a good visit with our friends in their English cottage, along with a taste for everyday life in England.

In Paris, we loved the bike ride to Versailles, especially seeing the beautiful grounds and inside the gorgeous palace. No wonder they had the French Revolution. The morning we left for Switzerland was early, and again our driver was very punctual. Having another smiling face to meet us and take us to the train station was perfect.

We made it to Luzern without a hitch. Luzern is so magical. The Hotel Des Balances can be seen from just outside the train station, with a short, 10 minute walk to the entrance. This hotel is the best for service and the room with a view of the river was awesome. Our balcony was huge! We loved looking at the historical church across the way...truly a work of art. The surrounding area, bridge and tower were awesome. We really felt like we were reading a fairy tale and it came true! The room and balcony were perfect, as was the very comfy bed and bathroom. There were even little stars on the ceiling. This hotel is very special indeed. Both of us could have spent several more days here, but Zermatt was calling.

We made all three trains to Zermatt, even the 7 minutes between Bern and Visp. However, it was worth having time to check into our gorgeous room and large balcony in Zermatt. Our room was decorated in chocolate hearts and sprinkles of red shinny hearts. How very romantic that was. Yes, we could see the Matterhorn from our window and balcony! The food at the Hotel Alex was excellent from breakfast to dinner. They catered to our every need. Again, we were sad to leave, but little did we know our Mercedes and drivers would be waiting in Milano/Lake Como.

Outside the train station, our driver, took us to our beautiful boutique hotel in Tremezzo, Italy. La Darsena has even entertained one of our previous vice presidents for lunch. The owners were absolutely wonderful, assisting us with all kinds of details. Again, our balcony was at lake's edge. We took the ferry to Bellagio that afternoon. The ferry station was only a five minute walk, if that! One of the most memorable aspects of this fantastic journey through Europe was our private car (Mercedes) tour around parts of Lake Como. Seeing the exact spot where Mussolini was shot made our skin cringe. On a lighter note, George Clooney's villa was spectacular. We also loved the little, quaint restaurant on the lake for a delicious lunch and all the small, back stairways we used to get to it! Furthermore, we went into the Villa Este for a look at the grounds and inside this eloquent and very exclusive place to stay - WOW! Andrea, our driver, was the very best of the best!

Kayla-thank you so much for all of these details that made our trip to Europe so very special! Your abilities to coordinate activities are fantastic and will be recommended to our friends who really want to enjoy every minute of their European vacations. Details do make the difference!

G & S. Coler, Carson City, Nevada - June 2009

• Pros: Excellent planning, custom service and personal attention