RSD Travel
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On RSD's cultural tour of Crete last…
On RSD's cultural tour of Crete last week (4-11 November 2018) I had a great time, in contrast to the bad experience two weeks earlier described in another review on this site. Apart from the badly-handled chaos of our arrival from Glasgow at the Bali Paradise Hotel in the middle of the night, and the warehouse visits (which you get even on far more expensive holidays), everything was very much better, and I believe this was due to the company's local reps taking things in hand. In which case, all credit to them.Though there were eight busloads doing the same tour that week, the published itinerary was rearranged for each, so that no more than two arrived at the same place at the same time, and our departure on the first day was put back an hour because of our late arrival (still hard to get up for though!) Our tour guide, Ali, was lovely. He 'mothered' us nicely, and had to deal with one customer who was injured in a fall in the hotel on the first day. Our local guide for five days, Manos, had attended seminars about the archaeological sites, while Costas, his replacement for the day that included Malia, has a British degree in archaeology. I was delighted to learn from them about the ancient Minoan culture that had fascinated me since I was a teenager, and about the later history of Crete that's not so well known. The extras I paid for - the guided tour of Knossos and Heraklion Museum, and the Greek Night show - were maybe overpriced in themselves, but interesting and enjoyable additions to what was otherwise a bargain-price holiday. I think the Greek Night price would bear comparison with similar tourist shows (and their elevated drink prices) in my own country, Scotland. As a single traveller, I made quite a few new friends and the atmosphere was very relaxed. Like other reviewers on this site, we were asked at the end - very politely - to tip the driver and guides at a standard rate, but I didn't find it excessive (2.50 euros per day for the guides and 5 per day for the driver). George is an excellent driver, as other reviewers here have mentioned. He deserves a medal for taking us up dizzying ledges and round hairpin bends with confidence and ease. The food was not outstanding even at the 'gourmet package' dinners, but there was a wide choice. The Apollonia Resort hotel at Heraklion was better liked by most of our group than the Paradise Bali. The sales pressure at the warehouses (misrepresented as workshops or factories) was uncomfortable, but I would advise future customers who have to go through this to exit as soon as you decently can through the gift shop where there is one, and you will find there cheap Cretan products such as soap and olive oil. Also, while salesmen are pressuring you to buy gold, they don't tell you there is more affordable silver on the ground floor. Personally, I am glad I didn't read the reviews here before setting out, and I hope, if you are a customer reading this in advance of your tour, that you will have like me a very positive experience to report at the end of it.