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Penguin Travel - Reviews
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Ray Bowden
(Date: 08.08.2017)
Rating: 8/10
Tour: Balkan Kaleidoscope
Pre trip: Excellent dossier. Help provided in booking hotels before start and after finish. All paperwork provided in a timely manner. Tour leader: Very good. Good judgement used about providing enough information and too much. Good knowledge of the areas we travelled. Only too pleased to assist when necessary. Hotels: All at least adequate and some better than expected. Note, however - bed bugs in the Berat hotel. Two people (in different rooms) were bitten. Schedule: Well chosen. Dubrovnik and Mostar were disappointing because of the crowds. Perhaps alert people beforehand in future. Transport: Excellent. A big bus for 19 people was appreciated. (There had been some on-line criticism previously about small buses) Value for $: Very good. Value for broadening horizons: Excellent. A wonderful opportunity to understand the geographic, cultural, religious and historical complexity of the Balkans. Would I recommend the tour?: Without hesitation to many of our friends, but not all. People have to be prepared to tolerate many road hours, carrying luggage and less than 5* accommodation. Not all of our (elderly) travelling friends would cope.

CC
(Date: 28.07.2017)
Rating: 9/10
Tour: Balkan Kaleiedescope
I would highly recommend this tour to anyone who is looking for an enjoyable and hassle free way of travelling through the Balkan countries. The schedule is busy but the scenery along the route is truly magnificent. The tour gives an insight into countries with rich and complex histories and the guides do an excellent job of relating this. Local guides usually conduct walking tours in the cities that are visited while Tsvetelina from Penguin manages the rest. Tsvetelina is an absolutely excellent guide- friendly and professional at all times and it was to her credit that the tour ran without a hitch. Food, transport and accommodation were wonderful on this trip and represent really good value for money. The driver (Rosin) is also to be commended for his patience and skill in navigating some challenging terrain! I would have loved to have spent a little more time in Macedonia but otherwise I cannot fault this tour.

Steve Laurence
(Date: 27.07.2017)
Rating: 10/10
Tour: Balkan Kaleidoscope
This is a well trodden and well polished tour which provides the opportunity to see many of the major sites in the Western Balkans. Time spent in each location was just right, travelling times were spread comfortably across the duration of the tour and all of the hotels were well located and of high quality. Our tour guide, Tsvetelina Rangelova, was knowledgeable, helpful and friendly with a great sense of humour and an infectious smile. Travelling with a Bulgarian company ensured that any exposure to a biased view of Balkans history was limited to the occasional local guide. I can strongly recommend this tour and this company. I plan to use them for future tours in other parts of the world.

Lewis Miller
(Date: 27.07.2017)
Rating: 10/10
Tour: Balkan Kaleidoscope
The Balkan Kaleidoscope tour far exceeded my expectations. I was a single traveler with 18 others from various countries who were all seasoned travelers. They were all interesting and friendly. We traveled on a large comfortable bus with plenty of room. I forgot the driver's name but he was very professional and talented. I marveled at his skill in maneuvering that bus through some tight quarters. The hotels were all better quality than I had expected and were within walking distance of restaurants and sights. I especially enjoyed the free times in Dubrovnik and Kotor and a highlight for me was hiking up to St. John's fortress in Kotor, Montenegro. The view was incredible. Saving the best for last here, I must say that our leader, Tsvetelina Rangelova, is the best. She truly made this trip enjoyable. Her smile and enthusiasm each morning was contagious. I could tell that she truly enjoyed traveling with us. I marveled at how much information she gave us from memory without reading it. She really knows those countries. I hope that I can travel with Penguin Tours and Tsvetelina again sometime.

Valentina
(Date: 22.05.2017)
Rating: 10/10
Tour: Riding the Orpheus Trail

Charlene Duffy
(Date: 23.04.2017)
Rating: 9/10
Tour: Western Balkans Karst Bike & Hike Bulgaria
A group of 8 of us did this Bike & Hike tour and were fortunate to have 2 fantastic guides ( Tony & Atanas). They did a wonderful job of planning each day and modifying for those who wanted easier biking trails. All our hotel accommodations were great. We really felt like we got to meet the local people who were so friendly. Bulgaria is a beautiful country. I am glad to see the tour is rated as moderate difficulty as there was no rating 2 years ago when we booked it. As a result, the biking was more difficult than we expected. The hiking was not difficult. Again, a big thanks to Tony and Atanas for making our week so memorable.

Десислава Маринова
(Date: 28.02.2017)
Rating: 10/10
Tour: Наблюдение на Северното сияние в Национален парк Абиско (Швеция)
Пътуването ни беше наистина прекрасно и съм ви изключително благодарна за неговата организация. В Абиско имахме късмета да видим невероятно сияние, а и станахме добри приятели с останалите от групата. Специални благодарности на нашият водач Наим, чудесен организатор и прекрасен човек. Бяхме обгрижвани от него през цялото време. Бих препоръчала пътуването с него на всеки ваш клиент, а на вас като партньор.

Павлина Моллова
(Date: 28.02.2017)
Rating: 10/10
Tour: Наблюдение на Северното сияние в Национален парк Абиско (Швеция)
благодарим за организацията и съпорта по време на пътуването. Пътуването беше супер, Наим е професионалист и добър човек.Групата беше весела и забавна. Бъдете здрави и продължавайте така.

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View all» What people say about us

Christie

Tour: Balkan Kaleidoscope
★★★★★
I just returned from a 2 week tour of the Balkans and thoroughly enjoyed the experience offered by Penguin. Communication leading up to the tour was exceptional. Our itinerary was fast paced and comprehensive and the sights were spectacular. Accommodations were were clean and amenities sufficient for the price paid for the tour. The tour leader, bus driver and the local guides were efficient friendly and knowledgeable. I would definitely recommend Penguin travel, especially for off the beaten path destinations.


Mauricio

Tour: Iraqi Kurdistan
★★★★★
My recent trip in Iraq organized by Penguin was excellent from start to end. Both Penguin tour guide (Nessi) and the local guide (Fahad) managed all topics efficiently and facilitated an amazing experience for the group. Now I dream about visiting the Northern part of the country, too.


Peter

Tour: Socotra Island Adventures (Yemen)
★★★★★
Thanks for everything in terms of your work and help with this trip to Yemen. It was an amazing experience - one I would recommend to almost anyone. By the numbers of people who travelled to the island, it is only going to get more exposure. The local company was very good - so you can have no problems with them at all. I was really lucky though - there were only 2 of us on the trip - and it was a really nice experience. I will continue to work with Penguin in getting ideas for great places to travel.


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