Culinary Delights of London and Paris Tour

Our tour officially began in London when we boarded the EuroStar train for Paris and ended in Madrid when we boarded our flight to the U.S. We did see most of the sites on the requested itinerary, but there were a few surprises, glitches and disappointments.

The first surprise came when we were met by our driver in Paris. Our Paris itinerary had been rearranged. We were to visit the Louvre that afternoon and Versailles the next day. The change was probably the best arrangement of our schedule. However, the first glitch came when we were instructed to make our way from the hotel to the Louvre via the Metro and meet our guide at 3:30 p.m. at the exit from the metro.  The guide, on the other hand, had instructions to meet us at 2:45 for entry into the museum at 3:00. The Paris Metro station is like an ant nest of tunnels, and we came out at the wrong exit. We telephoned the only number we had (for the company that provided the driver) and explained that we could not find the proper exit. They contacted the company that provided the guide. Instead of telling the guide where we were and having him meet us we were told to try to find the correct exit which we finally did. We met the guide and got to the entrance to the Louvre at 4:00. Instead of two hours in the Louvre we only had one before they started closing. Our guide did an excellent job with the limited time and then took his time to escort us to the metro platform where we were to catch the train back to the hotel.

For the rest of our stay in Paris the driver took us everywhere and we did not have to fend for ourselves on public transportation.  Our guide for the Versailles tour was very good, although it was a small group instead of a private tour, and we only saw the building and not the grounds. The dinner cruise on the Seine was great, the food excellent. We enjoyed the catacombs, and the Segway Tour was great fun and a good ending to our visit in Paris.

We started working with this company last November planning this trip. We agreed on the itinerary and paid the deposit. Final payment was remitted on March 16th. We expected to receive the detailed itinerary 30 days before departure, but 10 days before we left for London we had not received anything and emailed a query. We had less than a week to review the itinerary and found a couple of discrepancies which we asked to be corrected. If we had had more time we would have found several other differences between the agreed itinerary and the final one.

The major issues were local transport and tour group size. In Barcelona we were expected to find our own way from the hotel to the start of the Gaudi Tour and the Tapas Crawl, both over 2.5 km from the hotel. After contacting the company they agreed to reimburse taxi fares.  For the full-day tour to Fugueres and Girona we were taken to the train station by driver. However, we were expecting to go by car and were not expecting to ride the train at all. On returning to Barcelona we had to take a taxi to the hotel.

Both the Gaudi Tour and the Fugueres/Girona Tour were with large groups rather than private tours. We specifically requested either private tours or small groups (no more than 4 to 6 people).  In large groups the tour guide uses a radio microphone with each tourist wears a receiver with earbuds to hear the guide. Mr. P wears hearing aids and cannot use the earbuds. Therefore he could not hear the guide.

The French and Spanish trains were very good: on time, clean, comfortable. We enjoyed seeing the countryside of both countries.

Local transport in Seville was very satisfactory. The driver on the trip to Sanlucar de Barrameda was especially good. His local knowledge about the olive and grape industry was very helpful. Our tour of the sherry bodega was disappointing. The group was over 30 people and the guide spoke only Spanish! What happened to the private tour?  The original itinerary included lunch, but it was not included.

The trip to Granada and the Alhambra was also disappointing. The tour through the Alhambra was with a group of over 30, again with the guide using a radio-microphone.  I might as well have wandered around on my own.

In the original itinerary we were to have dinner and Flamenco performance in Madrid. However, it was rescheduled to Seville. We enjoyed both the very good meal and the show.

On arrival in Madrid we could not locate the driver for transport to the hotel. After several telephone calls and an hour waiting we finally found him. This leads to the final issue with the itinerary. The original agreed itinerary said: “Depart from Madrid with your guide as you drive to the nearby city of Toledo...   In the afternoon get a taste of the top attractions in the city [Madrid]...”   The final itinerary said: “Please go to Atocha Train Station... to take the 9:20 train to Toldeo... Take the 17:25 train to Madrid.”   The tour company did agree to provide a driver to take us to the station and show us where to get the train.  A guide for Toledo was also added for a half day tour.  The guide was excellent, perhaps the best one on the trip, but at 1:00 pm we were left on our own to wait for the train back to Madrid.  We never got the driving tour of the Madrid!

The hotels were all very good. Excellent locations, clean, modern, comfortable.  The hotel staffs were very friendly, courteous and helpful.

I don’t know where the ball got dropped on our requests for this trip.  It was obvious that the arrangements were made at the last minute. For example the Louvre guide and the catacomb guide both said they were only contacted the day before. The catacomb guide had to say we were her relatives to get us in. The catacomb reservations needed to be made two months in advance. 

We had a good time, but it could have been less stressful and frustrating and more enjoyable. At our age (both over 75) we cannot do the things we could when younger. We need the extra help and personal attention we thought we would be getting on this trip.

The owner of our travel company had a lot of good ideas initially but by the time we booked the experiences they were standard tourist fare. Although we first began working together almost 9 months before our trip, and paid her 50% deposit, she didn't book much until less than 2 months before departure, according to the vouchers she included. Because we were traveling over the holidays, paying attention to which attractions were open and planning our itinerary should have been key. Details such as correct days of the Changing of the Guard ceremony or pre purchasing Oyster cards for discounts and transport fell by the wayside. Agent did not call ahead to our hotel to confirm booking details,(which were not settled correctly until after arrival) let alone arrange a welcome basket for us. The Jack the Ripper  tour first described as the only tour with "ripper vision" was booked with different tour operator, tour was good but no special effects or anything to distinguish it from other available tours. London eye tickets were not skip the line tickets we requested; we had to get help from the Eye customer service.  We had good luck with the tour guides arranged in Paris, but these were booked online with a tour company. I believe our agent had used them before but certainly she had no specific recommendation for individual guides; we got lucky with 2 of the 3 and the third was ok. The Versailles tour was not nearly as long as represented so we saw only the main rooms, no time for Petite Trianon. Yes, budget impacted our desire for unusual or personal touches, but I thought the trip should have been a level above what I could have booked(and in some cases did end up booking or rebooking) online using trip advisor. The most fun thing we did was go early to a West End theater and get same day front row seats for Miss Saigon. We only knew to try this because of our own knowledge, and it turned out to be a highlight. In Paris one of the main things we wanted to do was visit the catacombs. Due to the Paris attacks in November all advance tickets were refunded and no longer available online. Our agent just passed on the refund and made no attempt to think a way around that. On my own I hired a tour guide who purchased tickets in person for us. After initially suggesting entertainment like a Lido cabaret show for our family, we ended up at a dinner show type of place for New Year's Eve that was totally inappropriate( about 40 years too old) for our family with teens and we left early even though we had paid in advance.

Thank you to our travel planner and her company for helping us plan and schedule an amazing trip to Europe for our grand daughter’s graduation from high school.  This was a multi-generational tour - grandchildren, parents and grandparents.The trip was a year in the making to see the highlights and do some of the not to ordinary experiences in London and Paris, plus an extension to Budapest, Salzburg and Munich for the grandparents.  Our travel planner was attentive to our desires to do and see certain attractions, but also she suggested sights and activities unique to the places we were to visit.  She located condos in center city which were accessed by walking or public transportation to the major sites on our itinerary  ( We purchased Oyster Cards in London to make for quick and easy access on public transportation.)

Upon arriving in London we settled into our condo and then took off on our first adventure to ride on the Coca-Cola London Eye with  beautiful views of the city and then do a thrilling ride on the River Thames.  To highlight the activities in London: (the parents had previously visited London and Paris two times and the grandparents three times)  tour of Westminster Abbey and St. Paul’s Cathedral; in the evening  of the second day it was a dark, cold and rainy setting the stage for our Jack the Ripper Tour.  It made the walk on the cobbled alleyways eerie and thrilling reminding us of days gone by.  On our second full day we visited Wimbledon with behind the scenes visits of facilities used by the press, broadcasters and the world’s best tennis players.  Our grand daughters and their mother play tennis so it was very exciting for them to see the grass courts and to envision the championship players on center court.  Back to center city to visit the Tower of London to see the royal jewels and to hear the history of the castle and of those who were executed there.  Day three we were able to see the various stages of the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace,.  We didn’t have to stand in line for hours, as we had done in the past, but instead were able to see the inspection, Old Guard, New Guard, Palaces and were even able to march alongside the Guard and the Ceremonial Bands.

Leaving London, we arrived in Paris and were met and transferred to our centrally located condo.  On our first full day in France we traveled to Normandy via train.  We visited the Caen War Memorial, the Normandy Landing Beaches walking on the beaches where so many lost their lives fighting for our freedom and for those in other countries.  After lunch we visited the American Military Cemetery to remind us of the human sacrifice.

We purchased 4-day Museum Passes in Paris in order to visit the museums on our own time frame: the Louvre, the d’Orsay, the Rodin and the Palace of Versailles.  We put on our walking shoes and walked to the museums and other major sites: Notre Dame, the Eifel Tower, the Arc of Triumph and the Cimetiere du Pere Lachaise over the next four days.  In the evening of our second full day in Paris we did a Gourmet Food Tour walking in the Les Halles-Montorqueil section of Paris.  We sampled wonderful pastries, cheese, sausage, wines and candies from this famous area.After seeing Versailles three times before we were excited about the unique visit our travel planner had arranged for us.  We did a bike tour in the town of Versailles, purchased items for a picnic lunch and then pedaled out to the Palace grounds.  We explored Marie Antoinette’s Hamlet, and the Petit and Grand Trianons, picnicked at the end of the Grand Canal and skipped the lines to tour the Palace.

To end our tour in Paris and to send the grand daughters and their parents off to home, we highlighted the last night with a dinner cruise.  We all enjoyed the fine cuisine and the beautiful night time views of Paris along the River Seine.

We as grandparents continued our journey to Budapest, Salzburg, and Munich.  Staying in centrally located hotels we were able to walk to main attractions and to easily meet our guides for our tours.  In Budapest we did a walking tour of Pest learning about the history, legends and myths while visiting the major sites.  Our second day we took a market tour in one of Europe’s finest halls while sampling several foods and drinks.  Leaving the city we visited a winery-owned restaurant in Etyek for lunch and then drove to a family run winery for a wine tasting.Leaving Budapest we went by train to Salzburg via train.  (We found the trains comfortable, clean and an easy way to move from city to city and country to country. 

Doing the “Sound of Music” Tour was a highlight for us after enjoying the movie over the last fifty years.  We also visited the Fortress of Hohensalzberg, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s birthplace, did a Mozart concert at the Fortress and toured the beautiful Salzkammergut area. 

Onto Munich for three days.  We enjoyed a walking/driving tour of the city with stops at the Bavarian monarchs palace, the 1972 Summer Olympic Park, the BMW Plant and the famous Hofbrauhaus.  On day two we went outside the city by train to the see King Ludwig‘s castles.  We marveled at the natural beauty of the Alps and villages and the magnificence of the Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau Castles.  To complete our stay we took a five hour tour to the Dachau Concentration Camp.  Our guide gave us a detailed tour of the camp and the memorials.  A sobering experience and “lest we forget” all those who lost their lives.

The total trip was remarkable and a special thank you goes out to our tour designer for her expertise and diligence in making everything work together in our time frame.  Her attention to detail was awesome: we had a detailed itinerary, all necessary vouchers for attractions and travel, excellent guides and accommodations.  We highly recommend this company and our outstanding agent.

We had an amazing eight-night trip to London and Paris!

My husband and I wanted to celebrate our 25th anniversary with a special trip. We chose Zicasso to help us find travel partners to make the most memorable vacation. They started by asking for our ideas, what kinds of things we wanted to do, and getting to know us. They prepared a dazzling itinerary that included everything we asked for, plus extra details that ended up being some of our favorite highlights. I had no idea you could do a bike tour on the grounds of the Palace of Versailles!

Every piece of the trip was captured in an app that was easily accessible on our phones, making everything, like entrance tickets, directions, and the contact information for our tour guides, available instantly.

It truly was the trip of a lifetime.  The wonders of Paris (which has been on my list to see for many years) didn't fail to impress.  The Louvre, the Eiffel Tower, the shops, the restaurants, the friendliness of everyone we encountered was simply amazing.  The Arche de Triomphe, the Champs-Élysées, the boat ride down the Seine.

The one thing I wouldn't do again is Versailles.  I think I had built it up so much in my mind that it couldn't impress me.  Having visited Catherine's Summer Palace and Peter the Great's Winter Home, as well as the Biltmore house and the Hearst Castle, I found the furnished homes much more inviting and interesting.  Also, it was a Sunday and thousands of tourists were there.

The stop in Bayeaux for 3 nights was a slice of heaven.  We took the 8 hour D-Day tour (on June 6 no less!), and the tour to Le Mont Saint-Michel, which was completely amazing.  This fabulous monastery built on a granite rock in between a river and the English Channel must be seen to be believed.  Our hostess at our Bed & Breakfast was full of local lore and cooked like a pro.