rkrussell

Jul 23, 2016

Italy with CHA - Great tour guide, hotels, restaurants and tours!

Our tour of Italy was a dream trip. We were partnered with another school, touring Milan, Venice, Florence, Assisi, Pompeii, and Rome. Our tour guide greeted us at the airport, and treated us like family. She was very knowledgeable of Italy's history,and always had humorous stories that kept the whole group interested and entertained. When individuals in the group had special needs, she made sure that they were met, ensuring that everyone was safe and having a positive travel experience, She went above and beyond duty to ensure the member of our group who had some health issues could enjoy the trip to the fullest. Without Simone, our tour guide, we would not have enjoyed the trip as much. She was awesome --an energetic character whom we all came to love! Our hotels were of high quality, generally centrally located. Breakfasts and dinners were delicious and very generous. Breakfasts were buffet style, and at times dinners were too. We were able to sample some very fine Italian cooking. Having lunch on our own allowed us to cater to our individual tastes. Some of the adults would leisurely find a restaurant and while away the time in a relaxed manner. Others preferred to eat pizza, gelato, and other foods you could "take away," thus allowing more time for sight seeing or shopping. Everyone was happy! Traveling by tour bus made our vacation so relaxing. Our local tour guides for the most part were excellent. They were very knowledgeable, and at times humorous. It was such a relief to have already purchased tickets at the more crowded venues, such as the Vatican, the Colosseum, and Pompeii. Our tour guides just buzzed ahead of the crowds with our tickets and headsets. Aside from the breathtaking taking views and historical sites, we also were fortunate to see how lace is made, and we attended an olive oil/ balsamic vinegar, and wine tasting (for adults) session. It was really fun! The group loved seeing the glass blowing artist. I think to call the side trip to "a leather factory" was a stretch. It was a store that sold leather goods. The only thing we saw being made there were that belts, purses, etc. were being embossed with gold. Still, the group enjoyed the many opportunities to shop. I found every aspect of working with CHA to be very enjoyable except one. Our group was rather small, so we were asked (told) that our travel dates and itinerary would change, extending the length of our stay, thus increasing the cost. We wound up loving the new itinerary, but I think somehow if a group's plans are changed that CHA might want to throw in a freebie of some sort. The other thing that bothered me a bit was that we had a single boy traveling originally, When he found out that he would have to pay extra for a single, or have to beg the other group to stay with them, he decided to drop out of the trip. We had an odd number of travelers, so in order to save the students money, one adult had to stay with two of the students. (Students are expected to stay in triples.) If an adult had not stayed with the students, they would have had to pay more, as would the lone adult. (Adults are to be in doubles.) It worked out for our group because we were flexible. However, I think groups really need to be warned from the early planning stages that the cost might be significantly higher if the number of travelers doesn't quite meet the specifications. I will definitely use CHA again for my next trip. The ability to travel, knowing that we will be staying in great accommodations, seeing world-famous sites, eating sumptuous meals, while someone else does the driving, is too wonderful to resist!