Best of Catalonia: Barcelona & Monastery of Montserrat Tour

Everything was really excellent. Russ and the rest of the tour company were very helpful in all the detailed planning. The only couple items & it's really very minor; our itinerary had us going to Montserrat on a Sun. which is the busiest day. The roads were EXTREMELY crowded & of course the Monastery itself. Also a day tour was set up on Barcelona's state holiday so most places were closed & our itinerary had to be changed. The protest throughout Barcelona were really a neat experience . We weren't real impressed with Llorett De Mar other than our wonderful accommodations. We would have preferred to stay in Tossa which was our first choice. Tossa had a lot more charm, good restaurants & not so touristy.

I worked with this travel agent and he planned a fabulous trip for myself, my husband and our 2 kids (12 and 16)!  It was a perfect combination of museums and churches, outdoorsy (hiking in Montserrat) and gastronomy (a food tour in Barcelona) and of big cities and small towns. Everything was taken care of in advance so we didn't have to worry, and even once we got to Spain and wanted to make some last minute changes to our itinerary, he couldn't have been more accommodating. 

From start to finish, we were extremely happy with all the services and communication provided by Zicasso’s tour operator. They helped us create a perfect itinerary and made sure we had continuous communication through WhatsApp during our travels. I have used Zicasso twice before for trips to Southeast Asia and Italy, and both experiences were excellent. This was also the case for our Spain trip, showing that pretty much anywhere in the world, you are put in touch with reputable travel agencies that will provide exceptional service. Our travel agent was always responsive, professional, and very committed to helping us with every aspect of our trip.

Our tour included Madrid, Granada, Sevilla, and Barcelona, with several special tours, meals, and events in each place. While in Madrid, we took a day trip to Toledo and also saw a flamenco show with dinner. We had plenty of time to tour the famous sites in Madrid, eat tapas, and do some shopping. The hotel was excellent! We decided to upgrade for a fee when we arrived to have early access to the room, and it was worth every penny. We enjoyed all of the hotels that were selected for us on this trip.

Moving between cities by train was also a relaxing and efficient way to travel in Spain. A true highlight was the tour of the Alhambra Palace in Granada, with its spectacular history and views. Sevilla was also wonderful, but hard to navigate as we visited during Semana Santa and several streets were closed (and there were crowds of thousands) for the holy processions. It was very special to get to see the processions, but not ideal for touring the city.

We ended our trip in Barcelona and loved a special group cooking class arranged by our tour operator, and also a day trip to Montserrat. It was my daughter's birthday and our travel agent and her team helped us book a dinner reservation at a wonderful restaurant to celebrate. They also helped us with a dinner reservation for one of our nights in Madrid.

All of our transportation between trains/hotels/airports and cities was excellent, with very nice drivers and luxury vehicles!

Thank you to all of the tour operator’s staff and service providers for making our trip so special. We highly recommend the company for your trip to Spain.

Our Trip to Spain

In brief, our Spain travel agency did an exceptional, outstanding job.

From the outset of our planning we presented numerous challenges to to this agency.   We initially were a group of seven (subsequently reduced to three couples) located in four different states and four different time zones with as much as 12 hours difference from Madrid.   Our group had little knowledge of Spain and less experience in dealing with a travel agency.   Our requirements included dealing with mobility impairment, religious restrictions, differing interests and ultimately two different itineraries.

We started working with our agent at the company who provided a first set of information recommendations which were later refined with the great help from another agent.  In addition, this agent patiently answered question after question on all topics.  But, most important the arrangements made by this company were uniformly excellent.

We started our trip in Barcelona, and as planned our ground transportation was there waiting for us.  The selected hotel was very clean, roomy and perfectly located with pleasant helpful, English speaking staff.  Even better was the guide hired by our travel agency who for a day and half, was, knowledgeable, charming and verysolicitous in dealing with our physical limitations.  Thanks to our guide we enjoyed even  more superb food, the great beauty of the exquisite city of Barcelona and the fascinating Monttserrat.

We flew from Barcelona to Bilbao.  Again we were delighted by the cleanliness and roominess of our hotel room.   The location could not have been better and the staff were most helpful.   Our guide for a half day walking tour was excellent and gave us an appreciation for the city while answering question after question.

Admission, bus and train tickets for Barcelona and Bilbao as well as for side trips were all taken care of by our travel agency and all of the provided drivers and transfers were punctual an courteous;   including a 5 am ride to Bilbao airport.

Finally, we are particularly grateful to our agent for her attention to all details and even trying to help us rearrange on schedule on the fly during a side trip to San Sebastien.

WELL DONE!

Words can't explain just how important this trip was for my 90-year-old Uncle.  In 1944, he was a  U.S. soldier in Germany, and during that time, he had one week's leave from the Army.  He decided to visit Spain for that week, and he absolutely fell in love with the country.  He promised himself that one day he'd return.   Nearly 75 years later, I had the privilege of helping him make that dream come true.  However, I could never have made that trip as smooth and absolutely enjoyable and free of all stress that it was if it weren't for our travel planner and her associates at the travel agency.  They were careful and thoughtful in their assessment of what and how we needed to travel the country, given my Uncle's age.   

The travel agency asked all the right questions, then created an amazing itinerary that encompassed all the cities and towns we wanted to experience without rushing from one place to another.  My Uncle did not want to be herded on a bus tour, nor did he want to sit on a bus with lots of other tourists and not be able to understand the tour guide.  He wanted private tours of major sites in each of the towns we visited and he wanted to be able to have resting time each day.  Additionally, he wanted four-star accommodations, rather than whatever accommodations a group tour was providing. 

Our travel planner and her team created the most incredible vacation for my Uncle, that included professional, patient, and incredibly knowledgeable tour guides who were also personable and fun-loving people.   They all spoke excellent English besides their native Spanish, and had tickets to the most popular sites, bypassing huge long lines to get us into the facilities ahead of everyone.  They also provided wheelchair accommodations and made sure my Uncle had access to bathroom facilities when necessary.   I made sure each private tour guide received a generous tip for their wonderful services. 

Additionally, I can't say enough about the accommodations that we had along the way.  They were all four to five star that all included an AMAZING delicious breakfast buffet each day.  I can still taste the wonderful cheeses, fruit, huevos, ham, chocolate croissants and perfect cappuccinos!  The presentation of each breakfast was outstanding! 

We first visited Barcelona and had a two bedroom apartment that was absolutely perfect and located near food, fun and transportation. The staff was friendly and amazing, and everyone spoke English.   The apartment was five star all the way!  We had a wonderful tour with our guide where we got first class treatment, bypassing the long lines for the Templo Expiatorio de la Sagrada Familia, which was designed by famous architect Antonio Gaudi. Then she took us to the Old City of Barcelona where we walked on the same streets built by Romans.  My Uncle is still talking about that experience!  

The next day, we boarded a bus with a small group of travelers to see Monseratte,  a Benedictine monk mountain retreat.  It was one of our highlights of the entire trip, and was quite emotional for my Uncle.  The views from Monseratte are absolutely breathtaking and I was able to get some fantastic photographs from the top of the mountain.  Absolutely recommend this day trip.  After we left Monseratte, we enjoyed an afternoon of wine tasting and tapas at a family vineyard with our small group of about ten travelers.  We had so much fun and we all bonded as a group.  Such a wonderful way to end our day.

From Barcelona, we were flown to Granada, where we stayed in another fantastic five-star hotel adorned with Marble and decorative rod iron throughout the facility.  It was also in the heart of the town and easy access to shopping and sites.  We took a taxi up the mountain to the La Hambra where we met our next tour guide who gave us a wonderful tour of the city within a city.  What a site to see and such history to learn!   Later in the day, when we returned to Granada, we walked the city and shopped- lots of great shopping- and had a wonderful dinner at an outside cafe.  This is definitely a trendy, upscale shopping area.

Next, our travel agency arranged for a private driver to take us from Granada to Seville because the train was inoperable and we would have had to take a bus for part of the nearly three-hour trip to Seville.  Our private ride was smooth, relaxing and our driver was very personable.  He also had a very clean, comfortable car.  I highly recommend this mode of transportation!

Once in Seville, we checked into our hotel- yet, another spectacular accommodation- including a rooftop pool and bar that overlooked the entire city of Seville.  The rooms are spotless and I absolutely love the bathrooms, equipped with glass showers, large overhead showerheads and excellent craftsmanship.  Our evening Tapas and wine tour with our guide was so memorable.  She took us for a walk through her neighbourhood of narrow cobblestone streets and rod iron balconies to see various historical sites such as a Music museum and conservatory, an ancient breathtaking Cathedral that was still operational, and the town plaza where neighbours would meet and children would play.  The area was so quaint, we didn't want to leave.  Moreso, our guide had arranged for us to go from one Tapas bar to another in the neighbourhood- never waiting in any lines- and tasting the most exquisite Tapas and wine/beer we'd ever had on the trip!  She paid all expenses and ordered the food and drink throughout the night. 

Sadly, we had to leave Seville and take the highspeed train to Madrid, where we stayed for several days in an absolutely beautiful hotel on Jorge Juan Avenue.  Newly renovated with an old European flair of gorgeous white marble everywhere, beautifully decorated lobby and bar, a lower-level cellar that was renovated into this amazing kitchen, breakfast buffet with old brick and wood decor, including an old iron stove, and central to the whole hotel was a gorgeous rod iron cage-elevator that Europe is so well-known for.   Can't speak highly enough of this hotel!

Madrid is a very large city and quite majestic.  They have a large central park in the midst of the city and it's filled with people walking their dogs, scooters, joggers, and kayakers surrounding a beautiful small lake adorned with marble monuments.  We really enjoyed eating ice cream and walking in this park, and also saw a lovely art exhibit while there.  Our second day in Madrid included a 25-minute train ride to Toledo, where we met our tour guide who showed us all over this quaint historical town.  She grew up in Toledo and knew everyone, so we got private tours of little businesses that would make gold jewelry by hand, as well as a six-generation business that handcrafted amazing pottery with 24K gold inlay.  The town is also known for its steel and sword making.  We saw amazing swords and gold- lots of gold.  Absolutely a must for gifts of gold or steel products at amazingly low prices.   We truly loved the Cathedrals and narrow winding cobblestone streets of Toledo.  It's a small town with a rich religious history of various religious backgrounds. Now I know where "Holy Toledo!" came from! 

Overall, the trip was a life changer.  My Uncle shed a tear when we had to leave because he enjoyed this trip more than any other place he's ever visited in his life.  At 90 years old, he said he is now complete.  To our travel planner and everyone at this company, I can't thank you enough for providing such a memorable gift for an old man who wanted nothing more than to have one last trip to a beautiful country he has never forgotten.  Muchas gracias!

By using Zicasso we were paired with this travel agent - Everything they planned for us was perfect.

To our travel agent:  I just wanted you to know that everything on our trip was absolutely perfect!  I specifically want you to know that our tour guides for the Gaudi tour, the Montserrat and vineyard tour, the Alhambra and our guide for the Flamenco and Tapas tour we fantastic.  Choosing private tours was the smartest choice I made.  These individuals were well informed, well spoken, and spent much more time with us than had been allowed, I hope due to our interest in the subjects.  Each was an incredibly gracious host and I would like you to know that that were well tipped by us in an effort to let them know how much we appreciated their going above and beyond what we had expected.  All the hotels were lovely but the hotels in Barcelona and Costa Brava were our favorites.  The rooms, the staff and the service were all impeccable - so much so we almost didn’t want to leave.My only mistake in planning this trip was not realizing that we would fall in love with Spain and need much more time than I had planned for.  We will be back and I will most certainly contact you when we are ready to return.Thank you for giving us the perfect trip.Arden