Best of Spain Reviews

We would certainly book again with Global Journeys, and Michelle White our Tour Consultant, was excellent. Our travelling companions were fun and a good mix of cultures. The drivers were excellent. However the quality of the hotels was not up to 4 star standard and the tour director lacked knowledge of Spain or the language nor was she very helpful. ...read more The Be My Guest dinner was poor in comparison with our previous experiences. In general the included and optional meals left much to be desired, except for the dinner at La Castafiore (dinner at the opera) which was exceptional and the standard we expected.

Although the logistics of the tour was up to Trafalgar's high standard, the sites of the tour were far too repetitive. At times we felt that religion was being preached to us rather than the history of the area. We will, of course, recommend Trafalgar & Global Journeys to all who ask, but not, perhaps, Spain.

Good points: Fantastic tour director, great knowledge and passion for her country, great sense of humour and organisational ability under stress. Excellent accommodation, tour excursions etc. Not so good points: Too much time allocated for 'shopping', most of the tour members were older folk who like us did not really appreciate this. First driver ...read more while obviously skilled in low speed situations had an annoying habit of 'sawing' at the steering on the highway. Conclusion: This tour is a better proposition for younger/more mobile folk than older less mobile clients.

Lydia was a wonderful tour director and established alot of trust and confidence immediately. She was always very personable and approachable. Joao was a great driver and an artist on the road. He managed the coach smoothly and we always felt safe with his driving. In terms of my booking experience, I felt Kirby often took too long to respond (sometimes ...read more 2 days) which did leave me feeling doubtful. (Ed. Sorry to hear about the delays you experienced with Kirby at Global Journeys, as we pride ourselves on our speedy responses. Thanks for the feedback.)

There were many highlights in the trip, the one that took the crown was viewing of art collections in the Pardo Museum (Madrid) with the local guide. She did a fine job briefing us with knowledgeable background of each outstanding painting. She convinced us the museum collection is so impressive we stayed behind and spend the rest of the day to follow ...read more the recommended viewing list she handed to us. One cannot but be moved to share a room wall to wall with master pieces by the like of Titan, Van Gogh, El Greco, Goya, Rembrandt, Claude Monet etc, it was feast for the soul. Also our fare well dinner was in a well-appointed restaurant in down town Madrid. Our tour director arranged three amigo tenors who did many popular Spanish numbers including the 'Granada'---their combined voice matching that of the mighty Plácido Domingo. We sang along and many bought their CD as mementos. Lastly, my salmon main was well presented, very tasty and generous in portion. Thanks for organising the trip for us.

The tour was good value for money, the tour director and the driver were both very professional and went out of their way to help. The tour director was as flexible as she could be given the tight schedule we had to keep to. The bus was very comfortable and having a toilet on board was an added bonus. The tour did not give me enough time to enjoy some ...read more of the places we visited at my own pace. In future I would look at not going on all the optional tours so I can concentrate on just relaxing every now and then. The restaurants the tour chose for us provided us with excellent service and food. Overall the accommodation was comfortable and clean, however, I would have preferred that the hotels were closer to the centres of the cities so I could do more exploring on foot. The accommodation on the last night in Madrid was appalling; it was disappointing to end the tour in such a dreadful place. All in all I highly recommend this tour to anyone who can keep up the pace.