Hungary Tours

My wife and I and another couple asked this European travel company to plan a trip for us to Berlin, Prague, Vienna and Budapest, with a stop in Cesky Krumlov and a separate visit by our friends to the High Tatras and Krakow. With the exception of a coupe of glitches in Berlin (the hotel, while very nice, was not near the central city, as portrayed, and a day trip for me and my wife to Potsdam was not what we expected and extremely disappointing, for which our agency reimbursed us), the trip was wonderful. We had requested well-located 3-4 star boutique hotels and Maggie and Lindsey of at our agency really delivered. The Abba in Berlin, in the main shopping area, was sleek and hip; the Am Stephanplatz in Vienna was quite nice and in an absolutely great location, directly across from the magnificent St. Stephan's Cathedral and within walking distance of everything to see in Vienna; the Century Old Town in Prague and the K&K Opera in Budapest were also great hotels located near many or most of the main attractions the Ruze (Rose) hotel in Cesky Krumlov was old, but the best in town. All of them included good service and excellent breakfasts. But it was in the tours that our agency really sparkled (Potsdam aside). We asked for individual tours rather than group tours, and our guides were either very good or outstanding, as were the drivers who took us from city to city (the difference in price between private cars and four Eurorail passes was not as much as we thought, and the drivers were anxious to act as guides as well, making the additional cost well worth it). Joe, our guide in Prague for two tours spoke fluent English, was trained as a lawyer, and had been part of the crowd that was fired on when the Russians moved into Prague in 1968. Not only was he full of stories and opinions, he was a cheerful and affable companion as well. Our guide of the Jewish Quarter in Budapest, Kata, was tenured professor who gave us tremendous insight into Jewish-Hungarian history and current European politics. We followed that tour up with an ourstanding traditional Jewish dinner at the home the widow of a rabbi of a congregation in Budapest. In addition to these tours, our agency arranged for fascinating tours of a food market (Budapest) and vineyard (also Budapest), and walking tours in Berlin, Vienna, Prague, Cesky Krumlov, Dresdan and Bratislava, the latter two as part of the drives between cities. We would not have changed a single one of these. As for our friends' extension to the High Tratas and Krakow, they said it was just as great as the part of the trip they shared with us.

Arrangements for our trip through Prague, Vienna, and Budapest were somewhat involved, as we also made overnight trips to Cesky Krumlov in the South Czech Republic and Hallstatt, Austria. By providing drivers for each leg of these side trips, Zicasso’s travel team was especially helpful in avoiding much longer train itineraries to these locations.

Overall, our travel company was wonderful in providing numerous recommendations at each location, private guides in all five cities, and were very flexible with adjustments to the itinerary or hotel locations based on our preferences. Their communication throughout the process was wonderful.

Zicasso’s travel company helped us plan and make land arrangements for our trip to Berlin, Prague, Chesky Krumlov, the Wachau Valley, Vienna, and Budapest. We had different needs for the areas we visited based on friends and family we planned to see, tour guide requests, accommodations we needed our travel agent to book, one place we wanted to book ourselves, and car and train transportation between destinations. The arrangements were not straightforward, but our travel agent was flexible. He came through and everything went beautifully as we navigated our itinerary. We had a fabulous time in Central Europe and are very appreciative of our travel team's efforts.

Most important to us was the quality of our tour guides, their knowledge of history and culture, storytelling abilities, and enjoyable personalities. Our agent delivered beautifully on our requests for outstanding tour guides, especially in Prague, the Wachau Valley, and Budapest. In Prague and Budapest, we had seven-hour walking tours that were truly wonderful and memorable.

Another of our agent’s strengths was recommending charming and comfortable boutique hotels. Highlight hotels he recommended were in Kreuzberg, Berlin, near our friend's home; the one in Prague with the adjacent, gorgeous, UNESCO World Heritage garden; and the one in Vienna.

Finally, our travel team remained available to us by text message throughout our trip, answering any questions that came up and being a fun travel partner throughout our travels.