Southern Italy & Sicily featuring Taormina, Matera and the Amalfi Coast

11/29/2024

Review on 11/29/2024

11/29/2024

Review on 11/29/2024

11/25/2024

Review on 11/25/2024

Trip Rating:

This was a wonderful trip. Our tour guides were excellent. Especially memorable was the trip to Mt. Etna.

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Collette Support

11/25/2024

Review on 11/25/2024

Trip Rating:

Overall, I truly enjoyed the tour. It covered a lot of grounds and gave a good sample variety of Sicily and Southern Italy. I was very impressed by the farm to table experience. The hostess was extremely friendly and welcoming and made us feel like family. I truly loved Cefalu and its charms. Arigento and Valley of the Temples was a wonderful experience. Matera , Taormina and Pompeii were learning experiences as well. Exhilarated to experience Sorrento and travel the Amalfi Coast. Alberobello and trulli homes was a great learning experience.

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Collette Support

11/25/2024

Review on 11/25/2024

Trip Rating:

Valley of the Temples, in Agrigento, deserves more time than the tour planned. Thank goodness our tour manager, Christian, arranged for my spouse and myself, along with others who wanted to spend time there, avoiding a complete meltdown on my part. One of the main reasons we chose this tour was to spend time here. And the dinner "at a local restaurant and an evening view of the illuminated Valley..." is a complete fabrication; the restaurant was nowhere near the ruins and the only "panoramic spot" was on the bus as it was leaving the ruins.

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Collette Support

11/25/2024

Review on 11/25/2024

Trip Rating:

My wife Gay responded to your forms and we shared the same feelings. The tour was wonderful in every way and Christian was fabulous!!!! So helpful, brilliant , funny and we both feel that we’d be so happy to go on any tour that he would be guiding !!!!!!

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Collette Support

12/30/2023

Review on 12/30/2023

Trip Rating:

Top notch guides, excellent hotels, and reliable transportation

12/30/2023

Review on 12/30/2023

Trip Rating:

Tour leader made the trip!

12/22/2023

Review on 12/22/2023

Trip Rating:

Incredible activities and accommodations with knowledgeable tour manager who had great sense of humor and tons of patience

12/05/2023

Trip Rating:

I was happy with all that was included as well as the tour manager. I wanted the be a part of the real living- farm life over there in Italy. Going just out of season was great because less vacationer’s which meant shorter lines and less people to mill around for the tours scheduled.

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Collette Support

12/04/2023

Trip Rating:

I felt the tour guide we had went above and beyond to sssure that my dietary needs were meet. I truly appreciated it

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Collette Support

12/04/2023

Trip Rating:

Our trip to Sicily & Southern Italy this past October, 2023, was just AMAZING! Everyplace we visited, everything we saw & ate was absolutely wonderful & our Tour Manager, Enjo was the best! He was friendly, funny, informative & helpful in every way! My husband & I have been on other COLLETTE Tours & I can’t say enough about COLLETTE, they think of everything & we feel that you definitely get your money’s worth with COLLETTE! Thank you for a wonderful trip!

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Collette Support

12/04/2023

Trip Rating:

Wonderful experience getting a taste of the culture meeting new people learning so much

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Collette Support

12/04/2023

Trip Rating:

Great accommodations, great food, and Ilearned so much about Italy.

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Collette Support

12/04/2023

Trip Rating:

Excellent cities of choice, experiences and guide

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Collette Support

12/04/2023

Trip Rating:

The tour manager made our tour really enjoyable.

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Collette Support

12/04/2023

Trip Rating:

Very well done and appreciated all of the sites seen. My most memorable place was my great-grandmother hometown. it was great to see where she grew up and lived before coming to the USA. The only hotel not up to par was the Hotel Michelangelo. Great location place but not the best room size for most of the group I was with (10 in my group).

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Collette Support

12/01/2023

Trip Rating:

Manager went above & beyond to please and inform everyone! With a group of 42 folks, no easy task and she succeeded! Fantastic with recommendations when we had free time also. Rooms were all very clean and comfortable. We were satisfied completely. The inclusions were such a grand learning experience and with such fun!! Would do them all again!!! Great items for us to choose!!!!

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Collette Support

12/01/2023

Trip Rating:

a lot of traveling on the bus without the use of the bathroom. The wooden marquetry was not worthwhile nor was the bufflao ranch

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Collette Support

12/01/2023

Trip Rating:

need usage of the bathroom onboard bus. Tour manager was not sympathetic to that need nor was she tolerant when peope had questions about the schedule and or needed her to repeat them

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Collette Support

12/01/2023

Trip Rating:

We saw so many things in such a short timeframe. Loved the interactions with the locals and learning about their culture.

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Collette Support

11/13/2023

Trip Rating:

Palermo Sicily Italy was the best part of the trip

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Collette Support

11/13/2023

Trip Rating:

Palermo Sicily was the best part of the thrip

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Collette Support

11/13/2023

Trip Rating:

The tour manager was absolutely excellent. He was extremely knowledgeable and very entertaining. There were many memorable experiences but one I did not expect was courtesy of a local guide who was the owner of the Varisco sheep farm. Her enthusiastic presentation was heartfelt and inspiring.

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Collette Support

11/13/2023

Trip Rating:

Excellent experience from start to finish.

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Collette Support

11/13/2023

Trip Rating:

Sicily was awesome very different from Italy. It was my third to Italy but my first time to Sicily. So much history Sicily has to offer I didn’t realize how much.

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Collette Support

11/13/2023

Trip Rating:

It was a great tour! Great people. The tour manager was excellent, as was the bus driver. All the tour guides were very knowledgeable. We just loved it.

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Collette Support

11/13/2023

Trip Rating:

Sicily was a great surprise concerning its history, culture, and seeing that it was really a tropical paradise. Monreale with its mosaics, the Valley of the Temples, and the beautiful beaches were the highlights. Southern Italy was very good, but the tour of Pompeii was very crowded and rushed.

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Collette Support

11/13/2023

Trip Rating:

GREAT TOUR. GREAT TOUR MANAGER!!!

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Collette Support

11/02/2023

Trip Rating:

Group of 46 was to large. Made it difficult to enjoy tour and limited free time, restaurant selection, and hotels were average at best. Rome hotel was 45 min to an 1.5 hr outside of city depending on traffic. Too many individuals unable to keep. Food was average and except for three meals provided were at the hotel restaurants. All the same meals.

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Collette Support

11/02/2023

Trip Rating:

The itinerary, hotels, and tour leader and bus travel was phenomenal. Air travel arrangements not so much.

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Collette Support

11/01/2023

Trip Rating:

If you are over 65, don't go on this tour. Rated a level 3, More like a level 4+. Pace is extreme. Some hotels leave much to be desired. Sights and tour inclusions are excellent however.

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Collette Support

11/01/2023

Trip Rating:

Needed more time at featured locations.

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Collette Support

11/01/2023

Trip Rating:

Too big of a group to travel with 46 people is too many.

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Collette Support

10/30/2023

Trip Rating:

Great tour. Loved Sicily. The food, the accommodations, the history content, the places visited were all excellent. Although a very fast paced tour, it was great. I would have made it a full two weeks so that one could have some relaxation added in in between.

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Collette Support

10/27/2023

Trip Rating:

Excellent Tour. Tour Manager Very Good!

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Collette Support

10/10/2023

Trip Rating:

Overall tour schedule was excellent, brisk but that's what you pay for! On-tour hotel food choices/options could have been a little better. Our tour manager, Martina, was amazing and made an excellent tour truly memorable. She put her heart and soul into making sure each of us was having an exceptional experience, resolving any issues, etc. Plus, she had a natural gift for bonding with people, keeping us fully entertained and "two glasses happy" as she would say! Brava, Martina!! Grazie mille!

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Collette Support

09/28/2023

Trip Rating:

I've already filled out this survey. Why are you asking for it again?????

09/14/2023

Trip Rating:

top rated hotels, tour guide was excellent and bus was first class

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Collette Support

08/04/2023

Trip Rating:

To much time spent on the bus. , room request when booking and while on the tour were barley meet . Redundancy in meals provided on tour Tours with local guides seem to be on time schedule so some felt rushed The tour manager I for the Rome pre trip was excellent!

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Collette Support

08/01/2023

Trip Rating:

The tour was everything and more than I expected. I didn't want the tour to end.

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Collette Support

08/01/2023

Trip Rating:

Our tour manager, Ms. Martina Musso, made the travel experience exceptional and wonderful for me and my wife. She was totally committed and caring for all our needs. Her passion shined through on every tour making us all feel like family. She went above and beyond to get to know us and engaged with everyone. Fabulous tour manager!

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Collette Support

08/01/2023

Trip Rating:

Mgr was great. three of the hotels were subpar.

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Collette Support

08/01/2023

Trip Rating:

I already completed and submitted a review last week which explained everything about my trip. Hope you received it.

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Collette Support

08/01/2023

Trip Rating:

Our trip was excellent because of your Tour Director. She was very well organized and had a terrific personality. She was amazing how she handle over 40 people, always very happy and a pleasure to travel with. She is a valuable asset to your company and I hope you pay her well and never let her gol

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Collette Support

08/01/2023

Trip Rating:

The tour included so many highlights. It is difficult to pick one.

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Collette Support

07/31/2023

Trip Rating:

Great itinerary with a good balance of scheduled and free time. Included meals at hotels were not great.

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Collette Support

07/27/2023

Trip Rating:

I especially enjoyed the trips to Mount Etna and to the Valley of the Temples. I think that you could easily spend the entire trip in Sicily and do a more in depth tour. The tour manager, the driver and the location guides were excellent and very professional.

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Collette Support

07/27/2023

Trip Rating:

Hotel Garibaldi was not 4 star and probably not even 3 star. Had issues with our rattling heating unit. First night the hotel reception who we found out controls these units, turned it off at 1:30 in the morning. We woke up freezing. 2nd night we woke up at 3:30 in the morning and we were sweating. It was 30 degrees Celsius. We had no control to change the temperature either night. We called reception and complained again. We told them to lower it to 22, leave it at 22 and NOT to change it or shut it off. The lobby was in bad need of an update. My wife spoke to our Tour Guide and told her what we thought of this hotel and if this is how it is going to be on the trip, we are ready to pack and go home. Very bad first impression. She assured her that it wasn't and asked my wife to trust her. We found out we were not the only ones having issues with the heating units. Paola told us that future tours will not be staying at Hotel Garibaldi. We had an issue at another hotel with the heat and they immediately offered to change our room. We were glad we trusted our tour guide Paola. We stayed and had a wonderful time. Paola was excellent.

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Collette Support

07/27/2023

Trip Rating:

Hotel Garibaldi was not 4 star and probably not even 3 star. Had issues with our rattling heating unit. First night the hotel reception who we found out controls these units, turned it off at 1:30 in the morning. We woke up freezing. 2nd night we woke up at 3:30 in the morning and we were sweating. It was 30 degrees Celsius. We had no control to change the temperature either night. We called reception and complained again. We told them to lower it to 22, leave it at 22 and NOT to change it or shut it off. The lobby was in bad need of an update. I spoke to our Tour Guide and told her what we thought of this hotel and if this is how it is going to be on the trip, we are ready to pack and go home. Very bad first impression. She assured me that it wasn't and asked me to trust her. We found out we were not the only ones having issues with the heating units. Paola told us that future tours will not be staying at Hotel Garibaldi. We had an issue at another hotel with the heat and they immediately offered to change our room. We were glad we trusted our tour guide Paola and stayed with the tour. We had a wonderful time. Paola was excellent.

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Collette Support

07/27/2023

Trip Rating:

We moved around a lot and there was always something good to experience. I especially liked seeing the Valley of the Temples. It included a lot of places I enjoyed seeing. I liked not having to drive!

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Collette Support

07/27/2023

Trip Rating:

There was not enough free time

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Collette Support

07/27/2023

Trip Rating:

Really packed a lot into the time we had and saw a lot. Tour Manager and all guides were awesome and full of information. I would have liked a little more discretionary time to explore some of the area's restaurants and less hotel food. Because there were so many hotel changes, we felt a little rushed, I would probably elect fewer optional excursions next time just to be able to relax a little. That being said, I felt we really did see the best of Sicily! The farm trip and the visit to Savoca were both fantastic. Accommodations were generally very clean and comfortable with the exception of one room that only provided a full size bed for a double occupancy.

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Collette Support

07/27/2023

Trip Rating:

.Rome Pompeii Siicily Mt. Etna

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Collette Support

07/27/2023

Trip Rating:

Organized , very personable,knowledgeable really liked the farm we went to that the family ran he seemed to be very well acquainted with them taste of Sicily food was cold but entertainment was good

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Collette Support

07/27/2023

Trip Rating:

Enjoyable and fun. Tour was well thought out.

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Collette Support

07/27/2023

Trip Rating:

Collette had everything organized beautifully and our tour guide, Rosarrio was excellent in every way.

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Collette Support

07/27/2023

Trip Rating:

Extrodanary across the board!! Tour guide Paola was totally exceptional and well organize and related to all ages very well. Attentive to our needs and listened to our input and addressed them.

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Collette Support

07/27/2023

Trip Rating:

Tour guide Poala was very efficient and friendly. She made sure we had a wonderful time!

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Collette Support

07/27/2023

Trip Rating:

I liked everything about it. Excellent tour guide and overall great tour!

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Collette Support

07/27/2023

Trip Rating:

Great tour guide. Saw much of Italy. Would have liked to have seen more of Rome. The food the first night was bad. The hotel at the last place we stayed charged me 20.00 Euro for wine I did not order, and told me to prove I didn't order it.

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Collette Support

07/27/2023

Trip Rating:

Wonderful trip! Great guides and fellow travelers

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Collette Support

07/24/2023

Trip Rating:

All the tours were excellent and memorable. Our tour director, Marisa, was fun, knowledgeable, and quite helpful in many ways. We were very fortunate to have such accomplished people in charge. The only negative was that 48 people in one group was way too large. Never had that experience before and hope it’s the last time.

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Collette Support

07/24/2023

Trip Rating:

I think the tour covered highlights quite well. Family farm visit, dinner with oompah group, Pompey visit…. and a great bus driver negotiating all the curvy roads, The only suggestion would be a smaller group…although the tour manager handled all very well.

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Collette Support

07/24/2023

Trip Rating:

Trip excellent with all the.hotels, places to see , and Bucket list locations from Greek temples to Pompei and Rome. Need better scheduling with airfare. Almost missed flight from Frankfurt to Los Angeles going home. 1.5 hour too tight to get from Terminal A to Terminal Z.

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Collette Support

07/24/2023

Trip Rating:

The farm visit we did in Sicily was outstanding

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Collette Support

07/24/2023

Trip Rating:

Dinner at the winery was outstanding

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Collette Support

05/30/2023

Trip Rating:

THE TOUR WAS FANTASTIC. WE HAD A GREAT COORDINATOR FROM UW OSHKOSH REPRESENTING COLLETTE.-THE TOURS, THE FOOD, THE HISTORY THAT WE EACH LEARNED FROM OUR VARIOUS GUIDES ON OUR MULTIPLE TOURS--THE SHAIRNG OF GOOD TIMES, THE FANTASTIC DRINKS, AND THE BEAURTIFUL REATURANTS. EVERYTHING WAS TOP NOTCH!! WHAT CAN BE SAID BE WOW! ADDITIONALY WE HAD A WONDEERFUL GROUP OF PARTICIPANTS VARING IN AGE FROM VARIOUS STATES THAT ALL CONGEALED INTO AN EXCITING GROUP.

We are pleased to hear you had a great time on our Discover Southern Italy & Sicily tour! Thank you so much for sharing your experience with us, we hope to see you again soon!

Collette Support

05/30/2023

Trip Rating:

Fantastic tour group and great places to see!

We are pleased to hear you had a great time on our Discover Southern Italy & Sicily tour! Thank you so much for sharing your experience with us, we hope to see you again soon!

Collette Support

05/24/2022

Trip Rating:

Pompeii was amazing. I also enjoyed the Sistine Chapel, Papal Basilica of St Peter and Vatican were all wonderful sights.

05/24/2022

Trip Rating:

It was a well planned trip.

05/24/2022

Trip Rating:

Great trip. Tour guide was tops, bus driver was the tops. Hotels were good. Included food was pretty bad.

05/24/2022

Trip Rating:

We saw and did so many things!

05/24/2022

Trip Rating:

Excellent tour company, timely, tour manager Federico Alvarez was absolutely fantastic!

05/22/2022

Trip Rating:

Wonderful experience. Great tour director and a great itinerary!

05/17/2022

Trip Rating:

Overall, the Sicily & Southern Italy Tour was very good. Our tour manager was terrific as were the included sites, Some of the hotels lacked sufficient storage, such as sufficient drawer, shelf or closet space. The hotels were otherwise clean and staff were all pleasant.

05/15/2022

Trip Rating:

Overall experience was excellent! Our main tour guide and the local guides were knowledgeable and friendly. They gave great suggestions for local restaurants and activities to enjoy in our downtime. We had a small group of fantastic people who made our first trip even more memorable!

05/15/2022

Trip Rating:

We had a great group of 15 fun people which made our first tour a great experience. Our tour explored locations that we had not personally considered. Mario was amazing and we had great local guides!

05/13/2022

Trip Rating:

Excellent tour manager with Dario Panniello. We saw many interesting, history and beautiful sites in Sicily and Southern Italy. The local tour guides were generally outstanding. A very nice tour.

05/13/2022

Trip Rating:

Wonderful places visited and great food!

12/24/2019

Trip Rating:

It would have been 5 stars had Collette taken a more aggressive approach on the cancellation and rebooking of our flight and the handling of the out of pocket expenses
Trip Rating:

Only one afternoon that was not on par with the rest of the trip

Thank you for traveling with Collette on our Discover Southern Italy & Sicily tour. We're sorry to hear you experienced a flight cancellation in route to tour. All out of pocket expenses during the delay can be submitted to the travel insurance for reimbursement.

Collette Support

12/11/2019

Trip Rating:

I didn't interact directly with them but they seemed to do their best when our return flight was canceled.
Trip Rating:

Francesca, the tour manager, was AWESOME! The local tour guides for the most part were very good. Diana in Sicily was a star. Roberta was also very knowledgeable about the churches she guided us through.

12/09/2019

Trip Rating:

The tour guide was awful. Her directions were not clear so I ended up going on an optional tour and paying $45 for it thought all I did was sit in the bus.Also she made a point of harassing single people by making them break up their group and putting them at tables with couples who were given preference.
Trip Rating:

Catania was interesting and unusual

Thank you for traveling with Collette on our Southern Italy & Sicily tour. We're sorry to hear you were disappointed with your tour manager. A member of the Guest Relations Team will be reaching out to discuss your feedback.

Collette Support

12/09/2019

Fun trip lots of food

Trip Rating:

Local guides were excellent. A lot of steps. Too much shopping
Trip Rating:

Sicily visits and Pompeii Antipasti and pasta.

Thank you for traveling with Collette on our Southern Italy & Sicily tour. We're very happy to hear you had a wonderful time on tour.

Collette Support

12/09/2019

Southern Italy great - Rome not so much

Trip Rating:

The southern Italy/Sicily part of the tour was done well for the most part. Lot's of breaks as we drove and a mix of things to see - hitting most of the highlights on our way. The tour guide for this part, Francesca was so friendly and knowledgeable with all kinds of fun facts she shared and entertained us at our dinners along with our bus driver, Antonio. Most of the dinners included were done very well and the entertainment so fun. The Rome extension was a disappointment. I felt it was way OVERPRICED for what we experienced. The Hotel was close to Treve fountain and Pantheon. Then a drive to Vatican City, Colliseum, and Catecombs. We toured Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's over 2 hrs. Then we exited and told we had 2 hours to "eat and shop" I was disappointed because I would have rather stayed and seen more of St. Peters. Not given that option. We only had 40 minutes on our own inside - we needed much more. VERY DISAPPOINTED. Also, we went to Colliseum early second day and ended up being held up for about 1 hr waiting for a 1/2 marathon group to go by. I felt this was poor planning on our City tour guide/Collette. . Catecomb tour was pretty uneventful nor was it interesting.
Trip Rating:

Poor for Rome extension and good because of Sicily, southern Italy, and our wonderful tour manager and bus driver.

Thank you for traveling with Collette on our Discover Southern Italy & Sicily tour with the Rome extension.We're sorry to hear you were disappointed with the Rome extension. Your feedback will be reviewed by the Product Design Team so that the overall touring experience for our guests can be improved.

Collette Support

12/09/2019

a little bit a little bit of everything in Italy.

Trip Rating:

There was a variety of things to see and do. We saw and visited churches coliseums, the top of the volcano, places where they make Lemoncello, jewelry, and marketplaces, etc etc etc. There with also a variety of food choices. I would do it again!
Trip Rating:

Pompaii

12/08/2019

Packed with history and sceniery.

Trip Rating:

Yes, I would recommend them. Alexa our guide was great and very knowledgeable about all of Italy.
Trip Rating:

Alexa was very knowledgeable and filled with historical stories of all the areas we visited.

11/20/2019

Trip Rating:

We took two tours back to back with a day and a half layover in Rome. Both tours were well organized, managed and executed. The accommodations were good (some better than others). The tour managers were enthusiastic and went above and beyond to ensure the trip went well. The biggest complaint I have is the cost of transfer between hotels, from the first to the second tour. Collette charged $100 for the transfer when we could have had a cab for under $25. In fact the ARoma hotel ran a shuttle into the city for $2 per person that would have taken us to the second hotel. If i had known these options i would never have booked the transfer prior to departure. This left us with the impression that we were misinformed and taken advantage of.
Trip Rating:

It is hard pick the most memorable, because there were several and the were distinct

11/18/2019

Nice trip, but some of the included were not very good

Trip Rating:

No problems with the service prior to the trip - all very normal.
Trip Rating:

The hotel in Giardini Naxos needed a make over 10 years ago. We had 4 included dinners at hotels. The only good one was at the MH Madera Hotel. The other 3 were really bad. Too bad. I didn't come to Italy to eat bad food.

Thank you for traveling with Collette on our Southern Italy & Sicily tour. We're sorry to hear you experienced issues with some of the included meals. Your feedback will be reviewed by our Product Design Team so that the overall touring experience for our guests can be improved.

Collette Support

11/18/2019

Sicily Southern Italy

Trip Rating:

Tour manager was great! Dinners were average with few exceptions. Breakfast venues need to learn how to cook eggs and bacon. The sites in Italy were fantastic!
Trip Rating:

The food was a disappointment with few exceptions.

11/18/2019

No room for one girl!

Trip Rating:

No will not to do it again. No room for one girl in Rome.
Trip Rating:

The tour manager and the driver made it wonderful.

11/18/2019

Beautiful locations, difficult terrain.

Trip Rating:

I felt rushed at times, and our guide at Pompeii hurried us and left some of us behind at times. Also, our hotel near the Amalfi coast was strangely de orated and just too far from everything. Our tour manager was excellent. Also, the tour was much more strenuous than it sounded.
Trip Rating:

We loved the hotel in Giardini-Naxos (the Hellenia Yachting Hotel) , though our room very disappointingly had no view of the sea.

11/17/2019

Trip Rating:

Tour was well planned and tour guide (Vincenzo) was personable, knowledgeable and very personable.
Trip Rating:

Tour of Southern Italy & Sicily was thought provoking, enlightening, editing and beautiful in every way possible.

11/17/2019

It was a wonderfully organized and executed tour with superior guides.

Trip Rating:

From the beginning to the end, every aspect of the tour was well planned and executed.
Trip Rating:

It’s hard to name a favorite experience because they were all memorable.

11/12/2019

Great guide and great trip !

Trip Rating:

Great Guide and Great Bus Driver
Trip Rating:

Would go again ! Enjoyed the food and the sites

11/12/2019

Extraordinary trip!

Trip Rating:

Luciana Lyons was our tour guide and she went above and beyond and made our trip really special. I know one person whose eye glasses needed fixing, without them her trip would have been miserable. Luciana got them fixed for free. The extra two days in Rome where she agreed to stay on was great. It wouldn't have been that way without their help. I found the history and stories growing up Italian fascinating. The personal touch of buying foods for us to try was nice. Massimo was the best bus driver ever. Our group was large with Mario leading the other bus and I only heard good comments about him also. He took lots of pictures of the trip and posted on Facebook. I enjoyed seeing them and that was something extra special he did for his group. The times we were together they both made the time fun.
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Sicily is so beautiful; Taormina was my favorite. The farm we visited was a wonderful experience, great food. The evening at the restaurant with the Four Carmello's music and dancing was really great.

11/12/2019

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Everything from the the reservation to planning the airfare from a different airport than our group. We would never get to experience a vacation like this on our own, the tour guides and local guides are so knowledgeable. We would do this again in a heartbeat 💓
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Definitely the Amalfi Coast!!! It was spectacular!

11/12/2019

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Nice trip at a good price. The hotel accommodations ranged from fair to excellent. The food was only fair. Only real disappointment on these trips is rushed through each excursion and takes up whole day, everyday so don’t get to relax, enjoy the sights/culture and shop.Be nice to have more down time....was none. Our tour guide, Mario Villanis, was perfect. Highly recommend him!
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Amalfi Coast and Pompei Beautiful costal trip.

11/11/2019

All our hopes for this trip were answered.

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From the moment we signed up , we had an immediate response from Kandy!! She was always checking in with us until the day we left!! All aspects of our trip were sooo well managed by our AWESOME Marta! She gave such excellent history & info of all areas . She had respect and a cared for those who needed special health considerations- BEST Tour Director EVER !!! Both of our Limo drivers were kind courteous & patient. Another great service you offer.
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As I said before , Marta made the itinerary come to life !! We were wowed by our Bus driver, Franco with his excellent driving skills. Robert: Loved Sa.........Savoca-. He got to sit and relax at the historic bar Vitelli's- a long time wish !! Debra: This trip included all the areas where my ancestors lived, thus everyday felt magical & filled with memories of the tales all my life. I truly can not pick a most favorite, as I loved it ALL. Swimming in the Ocean while at Taomina was great. Optional excursions were enjoyable.

11/04/2019

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Absolutely loved the tour. A great variety of places to visit.
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Sicily was my favorite. It's truly what I think of Italy. The places we visited were not a touristy as most of the places on the mainland

11/04/2019

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They booked flights on an airline that they knew was going to strike! Left me stranded in Boston until the very last because I was traveling solo and I had no travel insurance. Done with Collette.
Trip Rating:

Just a terrible experience from the beginning

Thank you for traveling with Collette on our Southern Italy and Sicily tour. We're very sorry to hear about the issues you experienced with your cancelled flights. A member of the Guest Relations Team will be reaching out to discuss your feedback.

Collette Support

11/04/2019

Trip Rating:

All preparations were taken care of. Marta was an absolutely wonderful guide. I will use Collette again!
Trip Rating:

The problem with Alitalia was disappointing and I missed 1 1/2 days of the tour. But that wasn't Collette's problem. I would request that the flights be direct. Flying from Rome to Detroit to Phily was exhausting and too time consuming.

10/21/2019

Bellisimo!

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We recently returned from Collettes Southern Italy & Sicily tour. We absolutely love it! Our tour guide Mattia and driver Massimo couldn't have been more helpful and accommodating. The group of people that we traveled with made for a pleasant experience as well. We would definitely book another Collette vacation!
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Very helpful and accommodating. I usually do our travel planning so I actually was able to relax and not stress.

10/21/2019

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Except for Palermo, everything was perfect. Love Mattia and Maximo our driver was amazing.
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Except for Palermo, the tour was great. Love Mattia and Maximo our driver was amazing. The farm dinners we’re awesome.

10/21/2019

Collette provides exceptional service.

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I do recommend Collette tours.
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Prices are comparable to other tour groups

10/21/2019

Great trip. Was not impressed with Palermo or hotel Garibaldi.

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Visit to the farms was great.
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Visit to farms. Mattio excellent tour guide.

10/17/2019

The Sicily and southern Italy trip is a delight everyday!

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The Sicily and Southern Italy trip is Fantastic! From a lot of great history to great meals with lots of wine of course, this trip is 12 days of delight! Collette has this trip nailed down to a tee, everyday is a treat!
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The tour was educational and fun all the way through! We had a feast on a local farm in Sicily! It was a Fantastic evening!

10/16/2019

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Highly recommend Collette. Good to have the arrangements so well taken care of, every detail. Very enjoyable itinerary.
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All details well taken care of, Great Itinerary.

10/15/2019

Sicily And Southern Italy in October

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Good trip with a great group of people. Tour manager and bus driver were good. Local guides were very good. Tour manager could have provided a little better overview of the expected day.
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Positives - Good trip with a great group of people. Tour manager and bus driver were good. Location and quality of the hotels was mixed; some were good and some were average at best. The optional stops were very good. The visit to Cefalu and local farm was excellent with a very nice family dinner and experience. A walk to Old World Sicily at Savoca was equally entertaining and beautiful. Matera and Pompeii were fantastic places to visit. Improvements Required - Two of the hotel locations were poor in that they had no local restaurants or shops to stop in. This was extremely disappointing in that one was believed to be in Sorrento on the Amalfi Coast. The hotels in Giardino Naxos was very dated, had small rooms, and the first room we entered was not clean. The pace of the trip was not ideal. We did not spend enough time at some of the great towns on the Amalfi coast and other places. We would stop and have to meet back in 90 minutes or so which left little time to eat, explore and shop; this occurred at Taormina, Sorento and other places. Group meals provided by Collette at the hotels we stayed was disappointing as finding the unique restaurants would have been much more fun and better.

Thank you for traveling with Collette on our Southern Italy & Sicily tour. We're sorry to hear about the issues you experienced with the some of the hotels and included meals. Your comments will be reviewed by the Product Design Team so that the overall touring experience for our guests can be improved.

Collette Support

10/15/2019

Spectacular vistas, great food, covered alot of Italy & Sicily.

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The service was outstanding as usual. The trip itself covers alot of territory & beautiful vistas. We would have liked to have had the Isle of Capri included in the package as an excursion or built into the itinerary. Loved the Amalfi coast & Pompeii. Savoca as an excursion was serene & beautifully untouched. This could be joined with Taormina along with more time to enjoy the evening.
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Agriturismo with Chinnsia was soo fun. The food was fabulous & great value. She made the whole evening !

10/13/2019

I enjoy traveling with Colette because they handle all the details

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This trip was exceptional. Daniel Boghe our tour Manager was extremely knowledgeable informative and just all-around helpful. All of our tours as well as the optional ones were amazing. This was my sixth trip with Colette and I already have number seven planned
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There were two the first what is a trip to a farm and dinner there which was more than exceptional. The second was the city of Pompeii which I found fascinating

10/10/2019

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They gave good service.
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Good trip. Organized. Would use them again

10/08/2019

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Our tour manager Vincenzo Giordano was very good. He knew exactly where we were to go and we had good local guides. He also took one of our group to the hospital when she broke her arm.
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The hotels were not up to par. Our room at the Matera Hotel smelled like body odor and had gnats flying all over the bathroom. The Hotel Degli Aranci in Rome was nice however our room was outside the main hotel on the street and looked out at the dumpster.We had bars on our windows. Terrible. Also the trips to the shops were a waste of time. They just wanted to sell us jewelry, limoncello or cameos and we wasted a lot of time there. I don't think one person bought a cameo.

Thank you for traveling with Collette on our Southern Italy & Sicily tour. We're very sorry for the issues you experienced with some of the hotels on tour. Your feedback will be reviewed by the Product Design Team so that the overall touring experience for our guests can be improved.

Collette Support

10/07/2019

Some of the hotels and food need to improve...

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Some hotels and included meals need improvement. Also main tour guides need to enforce front seat system in bus to give everyone a fair chance to sit there
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Going to the Volcano although we needed more time to explore

10/07/2019

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We enjoyed the entire trip. The landscape was beautiful. The hotels were excellent and the food was terrific.
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Roma was my favorite part of the trip followed by the Amalfi Coast. I wish we could have seen more of Roma but time was limited.

10/06/2019

Beautiful Southern Italy & Sicily Trip

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Service by Collette was very good planning & prior to leaving. Trip was excellent covering a lot of wonderful places in Southern Italy and Sicily. Our tour guide Cristian was attentive and knowledgeable. Bus driver Giuseppe helped keep us stay safe on all those hilly windy back roads. Walking tour of Cefalu and farm dinner excellent. The winery and dinner was so much fun and food delicious. The Amalfi drive breathtaking (would have liked more stops for pictures). Hotel in Sorrento could have been closer to town, back late that night and not a lot of dinner choices without hefty taxi ride! Loved: Palermo churches and markets, Valley of Temples, Mt. Etna, Taormina, Matera, Amalfi and Pompeii. Extra trip to town of Savoca and Godfather story very interesting. Ideas to make this trip better....Instead of stops at ceramic shop town, cameo store and wood store and a lot of shopping touristy places, we would have loved a boat ride on Amalfi coast or time to swim and enjoy our beach/pool at hotels. This would cut down on long bus time too. Hotel ( Diamond) change in Giardini Naxos was very disappointing. Not in great area and restaurant choices limited and walk back late at night not great for bunch of seniors. Hotel change in Rome could have been better located and staff not helpful. Returned to hotel after long day in Rome to find hotel had no water for sale, bar closed and nothing to drink or snack on. We loved trip and would recommend Collette. Italy is just beautiful and local people warm and inviting! ARRIVEDERCI Italy!
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Great trip to Southern Italy and Sicily!

10/04/2019

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Tour manager Mario and driver Max were very professional and always prepared. I received extra care due to walking difficulty. I had not expected this, it was very helpful. The reception we received at hotels and tours was the same, always pleasant, prepared and fun to participate in.
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The tour gave me the chance to experience ancient sights like Matera and Pompeii with a group.

10/01/2019

Amazing Sicily and Southern Italy explored.

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All the accommodation, pace of tour and tour manager Mario were excellent. From day 1 we were given plenty of information on where we would travel and some of the historical background which adds to the enjoyment of what we are seeing. A very able bus driver to see us safely to all the locations.
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The whole trip opened up new experiences in vìsiting very different locations, sampling amazing food and wine, all coordinated by an excellent Tour Manager

10/01/2019

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The tour manager was very knowledgeable of all areas where we visited. The guides also very informative and offered some humor. The transportation was very good.
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Some of the accommodations were very poor, the hotels had not been updated for years. Some were off were out of the way and food was not up to par.

10/01/2019

Fabulous!!!!

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I would certainly travel with Collette again. My trip to Sicily to the Amalfi Coast was marvellous, our group was great and our tour guide Mario is one of the best. I love how everything was taken care .. there were no worries , no stress ...just enjoy the ride.
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Sicily has such a rich cultural heritage . My favorite places were Catania, Taormina, Matera and the Amalfi Coast.

09/30/2019

Rethinking booking Collette tours for myself or my clients.

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The tour manager was wonderful. I was not happy, though, with the hotel choices on this tour as opposed to so many other Collette tours we have taken in the past. Most of the hotels were in an area where there was nothing else around. On the one night in Castelmare, for instance, we had a free evening. After touring the Amalfi Coast from 8:15am to 6:15pm, we could take a 10-15 cab ride to the town of Castlemare to get dinner. None of us felt like leaving to go find a cab! We all stayed at the hotel to eat. One of the worst hotels was the Hellenia Yachting hotel, which was in very bad need of repairs! In the two cases where there were balcony rooms available, my husband and I were one of the few who did not get those rooms. Of if king bedded rooms were available, we always seemed to get the twin bedded rooms. I also did not enjoy all the places we HAD to stop for shopping! The woodlaid shop in Sorrento, the jewelry store near Mt. Etna (at least we had refreshments there) and especially the cameo shop which was a half hour out of our way each direction. Only 2 or 3 people even bought something there but everyone else was held captive! We should be given the choice to come or go. I am becoming very hesitant to book another Collette tour again. The only thing that made this trip so enjoyable was the fantastic group we had which was in no part due to Collette. I had just booked my sister, Amelia Reibstein, on the Italian Treasures tour that just returned. The only reason she booked this tour was because of the villa experience. First of all they were out all day and never even got to see most of the villa. Second both couples I booked were on the 3rd floor and had to walk up 5 flights of steps with their carry ons and ever day after tours. They were the only two couples on that floor. Most of the other people on the tour who were in the lower rooms said their rooms were extremely small.
Trip Rating:

The Amalfi Coast was beautiful but scary. Loved the town of Matera but did not really enjoy the town of Alberobello. Wished we were staying in that town. My favorite memory was the Cefalu Farm and dinner. Loved Cinzia as she made it such a fun time. Also enjoyed the winery with dinner and the Flavors of Sicily dinner.

Thank you for traveling with Collette on our Southern Italy & Sicily tour. Thank you for taking the time provide us with your review of the tour. We're very sorry to hear about the issues you experienced with the itinerary and the hotels that were used for this departure. Your comments will be reviewed by our Product Design Team for Italy so that the overall touring experience can be improved. We did speak with your sister Amelia today as well regarding her experience on our Italy's Treasures tour.

Collette Support

09/30/2019

The trip was a great and fun experience.

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The tour was very well organized, great food and hotels. The tour manager, Mario, did a very good job. Lots of fun.
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It's a wonderful tour. Got to see a lot of areas that were included in the price. When we were in Silcily, we stayed at a hotel right on the Mediterranean ocean, sunset was spectacular, with dinner out by the pool on that Friday night. Outstanding, I won't forget it.

09/24/2019

Our 3rd Collette tour didn’t measure up to previous 2 tours

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Our tour guide, Matilda was very good. The local guides were also good. What lacked this tour compared to previous tour was the polish and classs and attention to detail we experienced in our previous 2 Collette tours to British Columbia and Spain. The location of the hotels limited where 42 guests rooms were so the accommodations were below standard and loaded with issues such as no working air conditioning despite trying to change rooms. Also, one day I had heat stroke and no where in any of the hotels Was there an ice bucket or ice machine. When asked about getting ice to help with my edema and over heated ness my husband had to go to the bR repeatedly to get a bag or bowl of ice. In addition, there was absolutely NO acknowledgement of my birthday or anniversary as was done in the past on your fabulous British Columbia tours and our Tauck tours. These occasions are very dear to me as I have health issues and every year is a gift which is one reason we travel during my nirthday and anniversary month. You were made aware of these occasions yet it fell on deaf ears Maldonado upon our arrival to Palermo, Matilda was surprised to see us as he received notice we had cancelled our trip. We were shocked and disappointed to hear this as the only thing we cancelled were transfers from airport. We have a few more tours we were thinking of taking in the next few years and we are now definitely reconsidering tour choices as Collette definitely fell short in many areas this trip. The itinerary was fine, the food at dinners was fair to poor quality. The winery experience was not charming but rather sterile and factory like, the breakfasts were noticeably sparse other than carbohydrates in the form of breads and sweets. In some hotels there’s served canned fruit and then when we left on bus they brought out the better fruit. The prepared scrambled eggs were not eatable as they tasted like powdered eggs. Some hotels brought out hard boiled eggs after we were to get on bus. In other words, quality was lacking. Your tours are not the most expensive nit they aren’t the cheapest either so it was disappointing value. Thank goodness for good guides in particular, Matilda, who was very cognizant of my few health concerns with regards to what I would be able to do or not do on tour which I was able to do almost everything except steep climbs. He also made sure that my beds had a pillow topper or some other topper for my very sore muscles and stiff joints due to my Polymyalgia rheumatica, a very debilitating long term condition requiring large doses of prednisone. So in summar, guides were good, especially Maatilla, itinerary of where we went other than that winery was fine, the dinners and breakfasts were fair, accommodations were fair to poor due to poor operating systems and food. We were looking forward to great southern Italy food and thankfully on our own found some. Very disappointed our special occasions were never acknowledged in any way shape or form and that’s on you and head guide because that was your responsibility to follow through with on your own or with the individual hotels. Definitely will be considering more thoroughly our choices for tour companies for our next tours to Croatia, australia/Ne Zealand and for Montreal and Quebec as we definitely felt you fell short by comparison to our previous 2 tours with you.
Trip Rating:

I did so on previous page in great detail. So refer to that review

Thank you for traveling with Collette on our Southern Italy & Sicily tour. We're very sorry to hear you had such a disappointing experience on tour with us. A member of the Guest Relations Team will be reaching out to discuss your feedback.

Collette Support

09/03/2019

Wonderful, informative, and thoroughly enjoyable combined holidays.

Trip Rating:

As on previous Collette holidays we found everything very satisfactory. Only the MH Matera Hotel gave us any cause for criticism, because there was a dangerous 3 legged chair on the patio area and when we commented to reception, there was very little response. We think he may not have been able to speak English, but he made no attempt to help us. The young lady from housekeeping was much more helpful. All other hotels were really good and we thoroughly enjoyed our 4 days in Rome in between the Sicily and Italian Vistas combined holidays. We went to discover where my father was during the WWII period (he's no longer with us to ask him about it) and the Allied Forces Landing Museum was extremely interesting. Our two Tour Managers, Francesca Vacca and Heather Villamaino went above and beyond expectations to help us all. Heather managed to overcome the difficulties with the arrival at the Baglioni Hotel in Florence, exceptionally well, when all the cases were delivered to the wrong rooms. Francesca was extremely helpful in finding Taxis for us to visit Termoli on the east coast, which is where my father lost his left leg in a battle during the war, and we have nothing but praise for her endeavours throughout the whole of the Sicily - Southern Italy holiday. We are most grateful to both of them as well as our excellent drivers - Massimo and Rafaelle. Thank you all at Collette for your excellent holiday programme.
Trip Rating:

The whole tour of Sicily and Southern Italy went way beyond our expectations. We discovered information from the Allied Landing Forces Museum regarding the British involvement during WWII and loved the whole experience of Sicily - the scenery, the way of life, and the interesting history, which we knew nothing about before our visit.

08/09/2019

Beautiful, busy tour

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I thought the service on the tour was amazing. My lack of five stars is based on the tour itself. This was the longest tour I have done thus far & it was wonderful. My only complaint/suggestion: add the options towards the end of the tour instead of the beginning or have one at the beginning & one at the end. Nearing the end of the tour, we were tired of all the traveling so instead of going on the tour of the Amalfi coast, we stayed at the hotel & relaxed by the pool. Had there been a “break” near the end, we wouldn’t have felt the need to miss a part of the tour in order to “recharge”. The volcanoes were amazing. I would have loved to have the option to go further up Mt. Etna though.
Trip Rating:

Some favorites were Mt. Etna & the views of a smoking Etna from the Greek theatre in Taormina, Giardini-Naxos, Agrigento & the Valley of the Temples & Monreale & the Norman Cathedral. We had a couple issues with hotels. 1- they had AC but for the most part it felt like it was barely working. 2- we had a gorgeous room with wonderful views in Giardini-Naxos but the shower leaked. Also, the beach is very rocky so bring swimming shoes.

08/06/2019

Trip Rating:

Trip Leader was not professional or uniformly interested in his job.
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Amalfi coast and visit to Pompey

07/08/2019

Trip Rating:

Good job. Hi
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Tour was great. Excellent guide and excellent driver. Only problem was that the trip was too fast-paced. No time to relax, just rush, rush, rush.

06/27/2019

The trip was OK. The next time I travel it will be on a more personal iten

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The hotels were very good. The bus was exceptionally clean. The bus driver accomodating. I think the guide took some shortcuts.
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Have been to Italy before. Won't be going again

06/26/2019

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As usual, the tour was a wonderful experience! Excellent tour director - very knowledgeable, great sense of humor, extremely helpful. Wonderful group of fellow travelers. The right amount of free time to do what we wanted.
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Well planned. Interesting locations

06/21/2019

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We enjoyed a wonderful trip with a excellent guide Francesca from Naples. She was so warm & full of life. All of the trip details were perfect. She made us laugh, had us singing on the bus & even thought us some Italian I found my self practicing on the street sign as we traveled. We saw incredible UNESCO world heritage sites that were so unique & that we had never even heard of before. I would take another trip with Collette.
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We went to family farm in Sicily for a tour & a meal. They showed us how to make rice balls the family was really adorable & the woman who was our host was so funny. We could easily see how genuine they are & how they enjoy sharing what they love doing. The food was amazing!!

06/20/2019

Trip Rating:

They tried to keep me updated in flight plans that were changed. An explanation for the changeswould have been appreciated.
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I chose the tour for the itinerary and that was up to my expectations! However, there was at least one day that we were on the bus too long although there were stops. When we had dinners arranged, a choice would have been better than a fixed menu. A map included in our packets would have been helpful, as well as our tour guide displaying our daily trip.

06/18/2019

It was a nice trip. quick views and visits of places.

Trip Rating:

The service was fine. Restaurants OK, hotel location ok. Can be improved. The thing I was not informed about before booking this trip is that it is a senior citizen tour. I was the youngest person in the group. I had a good time with my fellow travel companions but I think you should let people know in advance. Stops at factories are a waste of time .
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Some of the hotel locations I didn't like.

06/18/2019

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They were most helpful with my air travel selection.
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This was an outstanding tour of a very interesting and picturesque area. This was our seventh tour with Collette and while they have all been very good to great, this one stoodout because of our Tour Manager Paola Balzo. She did an outstanding job and should be commended for the way she did her job.

06/16/2019

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Southern Italy was our fifth trip with Collette. We have been very pleased with all of our Collette trips. Tour guides and experiences have been amazing.
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Tour guide and driver were excellent. Tour provided some amazing experiences

06/16/2019

Excellent Organization for a memorable tour

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The pre tour package was excellent. I appreciated the prepared hotel page to leave with family and the preparation tips. The choice of optional tours was excellent. When my husband and I were the only two to choose the Allied Landing Museum we were still accommodated, virtually a private tour. Our tour guide Paola made an extra effort to meet us afterwards so there was no stress to rejoin our group. The pace of the entire tour was excellent, no need to pack up every night. The local guides chosen for each city were excellent.
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This tour covered all the highlights (and I am already longing to return to see more of Sicily. As a tourist you do not always feel welcome if you are visiting an area that has perhaps seen too many visitors. Not so in Sicily, we felt so welcome everywhere we went. This was most evident at my favourite optional tour, the Agriturismo Case Varisco. Cinzia was a delight, and having the men on the tour helping her prepare food was a definite highlight.

06/10/2019

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Well organized. Everything that was promised was delivered.
Trip Rating:

Scenery was great and Mt. Etna had a small eruption when we were there.

06/10/2019

Very good/helpful customer service

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Very good/helpful customer service when we need inquiries,
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1)The perfect time of the day to see the smoke coming from the mouth of Mt. Etna, amazing. 2) The sight seeing ride on the Amalfi Coast 3) the Fish Market in Catania, amazing to know that man still there shopping and waiting until the end to find “bargain” for the sale of day 😅😅😅

06/07/2019

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Hotel food could have been better[dinner]
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The tour guides were great.

06/07/2019

Tour guid was very good could have used more relaxing time

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Tour guide was very good
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The scenery Did not care for activities to not opt out because already checked out of hotel such as cameo factory, inlaid wood out of date

06/04/2019

Trip Rating:

Too many extra costs after initial high cost. Meals provided were not very good. TOOO many people on the tour...47. Very little time at some stops.
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Stops at very high end places and very touristy places. Matera was very interesting but Arbolobello was terrible and it rained very hard. Also tour manager often talked for ever when we had little time to see some shops and sights. She had a hard time counting so many heads! Would have enjoyed more time in Sicily at less touristy sights.

Thank you for traveling with Collette to Southern Italy & Sicily. We're sorry to hear about the difficulties you experienced on tour. Your feedback will be reviewed by the Product Design Team in order to improve the overall touring experience for our guests.

Collette Support

06/03/2019

Trip Rating:

Very organized. Yes I will
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The Roman ruins and Sicily

06/03/2019

Trip Rating:

Great tours. Coordinations were great
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Day at the winery. Informative and delicious food and wine

06/03/2019

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We worked with a travel agent so we didn’t have much direct contact with them.
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We had a lovely experience except for the group was too big. And there were two groups within that group that were each about 16 people. It didn’t make for people mixing well

06/03/2019

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One of the best trips I have ever been on...everyone was amazing!
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All of it...trip was fabulous...winery was wonderful!! Oranges were delicious, wine was tasty, also!!

05/20/2019

Best trip ever!

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Enjoyed experiencing Sicily and Southern Italy. Our trip was excellent mainly because you have a great Tour Manager, Daniel Boghen. He provides information of the area and makes each day enjoyable.
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Seeing Pompei was really thrilling.

05/20/2019

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The tour manager was great and kept us well entertained on the coach journeys. My only problem was so little time to look around towns by yourself and shop. I had to buy souvenirs to take home to my family horribly quickly and was thus disappointed with my purchases. It was suggested we wait to shop at certain places as they were family run etc. These places turned out to be purveyors of really beautiful things, diamond, pearl, emerald and coral jewelry at one place; genuine cameos at another and exquisite inlaid woodwork at another - all well beyond my means, and those of others (but not all).
Trip Rating:

Not enough time to wander around towns and shop, as previously mentioned. Our tour manager was truly great; I was impressed with the hotels but would have preferred smaller meals.

05/20/2019

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My husband makes almost all of the arrangements and is in a much better position to comment on Collette's service. However, it seemed that the response time with the company was good and we had no issues with service.
Trip Rating:

Our guide, Daniel, was very organized and knowledgeable. We especially enjoyed the Amalfi Coast and Pompie.

05/20/2019

Southern Italy and Sicily

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Excellent tour guide who made the trip especially wonderful!
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Detailed view of impressive sights. All things taken care of so could just relax & enjoy!

05/20/2019

Daniel was the best tour guide ever! He took great care of all of us.

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Everything went smoothly, with one exception, the guide at Hellenia, who ignored those of us who moved more slowly on the uneven terrain; I would never recommend him for anything.
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Having Daniel was the highlight of the tour; he patiently explained everything we asked about; he provided maps and other helpful handouts, and he made sure that everything ran smoothly.

05/16/2019

We love Collette!

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Traveling with Collette is a pleasure! They tour managers are very knowledgeable of the regions they are assigned and organized. We enjoy the variety of experiences and the centrally located hotels.
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Taormina was our favorite overall. It was beautiful! We would have loved to have stayed longer.

05/05/2019

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Tour director (Marta) was great. Experience +knowledgeable + attentive. Bus driver not talkative but very good at dealing with Sicilian drivers and roads.
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Southern Italy and Sicily are beautiful areas of the world. We visited several incredible places (Matera). Because we staid 2-3 days in each hotel and did not leave hotels until 8-8:30 am the tour was not very tiring. Bot my husband and I loved the tour. (My only issue was that Collette website did not let me check balance owing if I booked the tour through the third party)

05/02/2019

Trip Rating:

Suggest having a group of maximum 20 people to help make every junction of the path more efficient. The Tour Manager should NOT repeatedly make the tipping sound like mandatory and not discretionary, as it should be.
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Amalfi coast drive was one of the highlights.

04/29/2019

Very good tour

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timely updating of information, presentations made at group meetings.
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Touramina and Matera were the highlights and the drive on the Amalfi coast.

04/29/2019

Great tour, great tour guide, just what a bus tour should be.

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Kept us informed, provided info when needed.
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Just what we expected a bus tour to be. Fast moving but we saw a lot.

04/28/2019

Beautiful country and knowledgeable, wonderful tour manager

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Worked well with my travel agent. Everything done and received on time. Trip was represented well in Collette information.
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Great local tours especially liked Matera. Also tour manager was very knowledgeable and had a great sense of humor. Local tour guides were all very good.

04/22/2019

Very Enjoyable Trip

Trip Rating:

This was my second Collette tour to Italy. Previous tour was to Rome and then to the North and depart from Milan. The recent tour was to Sicily and then North to depart from Rome. In both cases I was most impressed with the Tour Guides provided by Collette. A Happy smile and a warm greeting from Luciana every morning began the day of beauty and entertainment. The Tour Guide provided Local guides in each city or at each attraction who were knowledgeable of the History, Customs, and points of interest and who were passionate to share their knowledge. To me, this makes the experience much more enjoyable.
Trip Rating:

Our tour began in Sicily with 5 nights there and then across to the Toe of Italy and over to the Boothill area and finally to Pompeii and Rome. So much Beautiful country and History to enjoy. Our tour was in the Spring of the year and is the most beautiful time to see Italy. Snow on Mt. Etna while Almond trees bloomed below. The first green leaves sprouting on the grape vines and gardens being prepared by the local people. Visiting Pompeii on the last day was a truly memorable experience which was improved by a knowledgeable local guide. The tour bus driver was amazing. In Sicily I don't think that there is a mile of road that is straight and he maneuvered that bus as if it were a sedan around curves and over roads which seemed impossible. A truly enjoyable trip !

04/22/2019

Trip Rating:

Attentive and professional
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The group is too big (40 people). Overwhelming for Luciana. Time/day is too short. We started at 8:30. In few days, we were done half day. We were not told that there is group (29 persons) within this trip, leaving us (11 persons) awkward and out of place in the beginning. The group did not want to rotate seats; only within themselves. Dinners should be in local authentic restaurants; not in the hotel. Breakfast should be combined with other hotel guests. Otherwise, menu is limited (mostly American Continental); tables are assigned. We want to enjoy local Italian dishes. Luciana and local guides were excellent (Jackie, Diana). Matera guide was good. But in Pompeii (Pasquale?) was not good (not engaging, boring). Bus driver (Giuseppe) was excellent. We did not visit Salerno due to traffic, but this should be expected. Shopping should be optional; or after the tour is done. Otherwise, we wasted our time.

Thank you for traveling with Collette to Southern Italy & Sicily. Your feedback will be reviewed by our Product Design Team in order to improve the overall touring experience for our guests.

Collette Support

04/22/2019

Trip Rating:

This was our fourth trip with Collette and have already signed up for two more.
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The only bad thing about the trip was the number of miles traveled by bus. I think we could have skipped a UNESCO site and stayed longer on the amalfi coast or in Naples area. Great dinner last night in Rome.

04/15/2019

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Excellent site choices.loved seeing places.
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All the city and sites I visit was great!

04/10/2019

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The food in the pre-selected restaurants was below quality. There was no choice of entrees and most important on Fridays during lent the food served was meat. I feel the only food I enjoyed were at the restaurants we selected when meals were on our own. Also the hotels, although were quite nice, were in remote areas where we did not have the option to walk into town. Hotels need to be nearer to town. We were not happy when we arrived at a hotel at 2pm with dinner at 7 (at the hotel) and we had nothing to do.
Trip Rating:

Saw a lot with an exceptionally wonderful tour guide. Would have liked to spend more time in the bigger cities.

Thank you for traveling with Collette to Italy. Your feedback will be reviewed by the Product Design Team in order to enhance the overall touring experience for our guests.

Collette Support

04/09/2019

Trip Rating:

They were able to answer questions prior to departure. Yes I would recommend them and use them again.
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Our tour guide was great. The Farm Dinner and tastes of Sicily are highly recomended. I felt our hotels where not located close to other events that you could do on your own. had too much free time in hotel....felt stuck in area with nothing to do.

04/08/2019

An amazing trip with beautiful scenery like The Amalfi Coast. Breath taking

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It was well organized. Mattia Di Carlo was very helpful with notes in the main entrance. Hotels were great. Meals were very good. The farm at Sicily was delicious and amazing. Her and her family were so warm and friendly. Tour guides were so informative and I enjoyed the historical facts and their insight on stories in the area and in the past. Wine tour was very good.
Trip Rating:

Cefalù was great with her and her family at the farm. The food was amazing. So much, so good. They were warm and friendly. Amalfi coast ride unforgettable! Positano was beautiful! Naples was were my grandma was from , so meaningful to me. Pompeii had so much history and and interesting facts. The Greek ruins showed how much they influenced the area. Loved the churches. We were able to attend mass at St Agatha church on Sunday that Deanna told us about. Loved Jacqueline knowledge of the area. All tour guides were super. Mattia and Massimo the bus driver made the trip!

04/08/2019

Spectacular!

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Well organized and detailed. They delivered what they said they would.
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Our guide, Mattia di Carlo. was informative and personable. He educated and entertained. The various structures, buildings, churches and cities came to life because of him.

04/08/2019

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Everything on the tour was great especially the tour guide. Very cairing knowing a lot about everything. Hotels need to be closer to towns so you can go outside and do something.
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Favorite was the farm dinner

03/18/2019

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The time of year that we went it was cold and in one case snowing. The free time was to long some of the shops were closed. Our guide was excellent very friendly, smart and very attentive to everyone on the trip. For us she made the trip!
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Because of the time of year

03/18/2019

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no one at collette could explain how we go from terminal 3 to terminal l at Rome airport. Tour guide was phenominal. The weather was too cold. Too much free time in cold weather. Meals were not as good as in previous trips
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the dining out with group and music

02/04/2019

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I like that I was picked up at my home and driven to the airport. Our guide was outstanding. She did a wonderful job educating us about Sicily and Italy. I thought our rooms were fine and the beds were comfortable. Overall it was an enjoyable bus tour and I have never taken such a tour before
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Sicily has so much to offer. Before I took the tour I knew little about this region. I definitely would go back again

01/05/2019

Trip Rating:

Both trips, Portugal ad Italy, where very good. I travel extensively and was very pleased with the service that your representatives gave everyone. Mary Dalton and Jarius were excellent. The hotels and restaurants were great. Thank you! I would go again this year on the trip they have planned but I have already booked two trips for the fall. Can’t be in two places at once! If I am available, I would certainly travel again with Collette!
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Already explained how I felt about my trips!

01/04/2019

Our tour almost made me wish I was born Italian!!

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Our Collette CA contact (Jarius) was so very knowledgeable about our destination and then the Italian tour guide (Savio) that we hooked up with was the icing on the cake. Both made this trip an experience to remember!!
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The pace of the tour, the quality of the guide and the hotel accommodations were top notch. Our bus driver was also multi-talented.....and I'll leave it at that as a surprise to the next tour.

01/04/2019

Sicily is an interesting country and we saw the best of it.

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We went to the higlights of Sicily, a trip I couldn't have planned better myself. We also went to a private farm and visited with a family. I loved that. The pacing was rigorous but balanced.
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The travel to and from on international flights could have been better arranged for the follks from Baltimore. Overall, the pricing, what we saw and travel on the tour bus was quite good.

01/04/2019

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Quality tour guides who know the culture and daily life of their country. Also know history and food of their country.
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Staying across the sea from Sorrento and seeing Mt Vervisous from the shore.

12/03/2018

Everything was superb!

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Excellent trip, itinerary, guide, fellow travelers, booking agent - everything was wonderful from beginning to end! Thank you!
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There were so many memorable experiences...Darion was awesome, the Greek Temples were amazing, the beautiful seaside villages or Taormina and others were a vacation spot we would come back to in the future, the winery was so much fun!, and Matera and Pompeii were so impressive historically...I really can't pick my favorite, as we loved the whole trip from beginning to end!!

11/13/2018

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I have travelled with Collette quite a bit and they always go above and beyond to make our tour experiential. The optional tours were a great value.
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There were so many memorable moments but we especially enjoyed our visit to Matera where we met a local artist.

11/12/2018

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Our tour guide , Mattie was excellent. The bus driver was terrific too. The places we visited were outstanding
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Pompeii was so very interesting

11/12/2018

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This was my first time traveling with Collette. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire experience.
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The entire tour was memorable.

11/09/2018

very good tour.

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We have traveled with Collette for seven trips. This was a very good trip. I do think that there was too much time spent traveling instead of visiting towns or cities. We basically spent two full days traveling; although our tour guide did stop along the way for some short town visits and some shopping. Unfortunately, we did have three days of heavy rain, but that certainly is NOT the fault of Collette or the tour guide. We made the best of it. The food was excellent and we truly enjoyed the little towns and local tour guides. We are planning another trip back to Italy in the future.
Trip Rating:

see the previous comments.

11/06/2018

Trip Rating:

Too many people on the tour.
Trip Rating:

Too many people on tour never again

Thank you for traveling with Collette to Southern Italy & Sicily. Your feedback will be reviewed by the Product Development Team.

Collette Support

10/29/2018

Trip Rating:

Tour guide was fabulous, Mattia DiCarlo was very knowledgeable and quick to assess the personalities in the group.
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Beautiful tour of the Amalfi Coast.

10/29/2018

Out of This World!

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Well worth it! Our guide and driver were tremendous! All the stops and sight seeing were out of this world! Would do it again! Great memories!
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On the the beach at Naxos, Sicily.

10/26/2018

Trip Rating:

Tour director Mario Villanis was the best
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Farm Case Varisco in Cefalu - Hostess had exceptional personality, food was great, very entertaining optional tour

10/22/2018

Tour needs refinement

Trip Rating:

Hotel selection good but would prefer locations within city centers. Long day trip to vineyard for a 30 view of operation and dinner was very disappointing. Would have preferred Sorrento, Amalphi coast and Matera sequence. Palermo visit could have focused on major sites within walking distance of hotel versus bus trip to visit a cathedral.
Trip Rating:

The visit to Matera was highlight of tour.

10/17/2018

Collette is the best!

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This was our third trip with collette and each trip has been wonderful. Sicily and southern Italy was just beautiful! Our tour guide was excellent! Hotels were centrally located !
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So manywinderful experiences that it is difficult to choose .. Cefalù , an optional tour was one of my favorite stops- the setting , the host and the food just outstanding!

10/15/2018

Professional, informative, delicious!

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Hotel accomodations were excellent quality and very modern. Our guide was very informative and he handled every problem with utmost professionalism. The trip gave us a "glimpse" of many towns and cultures.
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There were so many memorable experiences - swimming in the Meditterean Sea, having sandals made in Amalfi, the views from Taorimina and Mt Etna.

10/09/2018

Trip Rating:

I was a little disappointed with Collette on this trip. We missed our connecting flight in Rome because our origin flight was delayed 1 1/2 hours. We only had 1 1/2 hours of connection time. When we did arrive in Palermo, it was upsetting to learn that our Collette rep had left. We found another one and really had to convince him to help up, which he finally did. The tour manager in Sicily and Italy was not what we are accustomed to with Collette.
Trip Rating:

Pompei was probably my favorite.

Thank you for traveling with Collette to southern Italy and Sicily. A member of the Guest Relations Team will follow up with you.

Collette Support

10/08/2018

Efforts should be made to negotiate early openings for breakfasts.

Trip Rating:

Good choice of hotels with one exception. The visits and the chance to eat at excellent sites was a real bonus.
Trip Rating:

Eating at good restaurants especially the night where we had live music. The visit and meal at an agritourismo was a treat.

10/08/2018

Great fun

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It was a lot of fun and having the tour guide made it stress free.
Trip Rating:

Going on a tour made it Stress free travel

07/09/2018

Wonderful

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The overall experience was very smooth and hassle free. The site selection and tour guides especially Jacquline in Palermo and Diane in Catania and Mt. Etna were great. Salvatore was an excellent driver and extremely pleasant and knowledgeable. Monica was super and made the whole trip unforgettable.
Trip Rating:

Mt Etna, Taormina, Matera, Pompei

06/18/2018

We saw all the things we were interested in, in Scicily and the Amalfi Coas

Trip Rating:

The tour was well paced and we experienced all the places we wanted to see. The guide did an excellent job and was well versed in the areas we visited.
Trip Rating:

It was a good experience.

06/13/2018

So. Italy, leave the driving to Collette

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Great tour, guides and hotels. We learned so much about So Italy that we didn't know and saw some wonderful sights. Thank you for the ride to and from the airport too.
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All of the details were so well organized for us from buses, hotels, route and sights. Great guides too.

06/12/2018

Trip Rating:

Firstly I must say this tour should be a level 4 not 3 it was much more strenuous than my last years level 3 trip to Spain & Portugal was .I would have chosen a different vacation if I had known. In spite of that fact It was very well organized, went to interesting places & hotels were good.visits & dinners included were excellent. Our tour manager was excellent. I particularly enjoyed the visits to Aerobella.Do please continue to offer this part of the tour . In the Palermo hotel the pillows were like a couple of rocks ,the only place they were not excellent .Also please find a hotel in Palermo which doesn’t have a hike to get to the bus,first time ever with many holidays with different companies I have ever not had the bus at the hotel door. Thank you for your holiday offerings they are excellent,just need a couple of items attended to .
Trip Rating:

Read what I have written today about activity levels to truly help customers judge which tour to go on.

Thank you for traveling with Collette to southern Italy and Sicily. Your feedback has been forwarded to our Product Development Team. They will use your comments to enhance this tour for our future guests.

Collette Support

06/11/2018

Exceptionally one of the best vacations!!

Trip Rating:

What a wonderful experience we had on the Southern Italy 🇮🇹 & Sicilly tour. Everything from the tour itinerary to the staff and accommodations was a five star adventure!! We were treated to wonderful, delicious and authentic cuisine in every region that we visited throughout Italy. Collette was able to culturally immerse us in the various activities and tour explorations. Our tour guide Tony and driver Salvatore were exceptional to making the most out of our travel experience. Thank you to Captivating Journeys on Maui Hawaii for making this a effortless and flawless vacation. Ciao!!
Trip Rating:

Exceptional experience in 🇮🇹 Italy!!

05/29/2018

Trip Rating:

The mini bus you put us on was terrible....knees touched seat in front, had to sit sideways with legs in aisle, every bump was exaggerated, a fine tour ruined with 1600 miles of discomfort....rest of tour was great, good director, guides meals, hotels etc. I could not take another Collette tour knowing the lack of concern shown for customer comfort...shameful!
Trip Rating:

Terrible mini bus!!!!! Totally uncomfortable

Thank you for traveling with Collette to Italy. A member of the Guest Relations Team will be reaching out to you to discuss your feedback.

Collette Support

05/16/2018

Trip Rating:

Yes, I would recommend Collette
Trip Rating:

The tour met my expectations. I think you should have non- smoking groups. Some of our tour group were smokers and did not show much courtesy to others by not taking their smoking away from the group. When they returned to the bus, you cold smell the smoke on them. I thought the dinner meals at the hotels were not very good. Better to allow more free time so 43 people are not trying to be fed at once and can have better selection of what to eat.

Thank you for traveling with Collette to southern Italy & Sicily. All feedback is influential in addition to being an important means through which we work to improve our product, service and customer satisfaction. We are grateful for your business and hope to see you again on another Collette tour.

Collette Support

05/16/2018

Try another tour group!

Trip Rating:

Guide was mediocre at best. Did not take individual needs or questions . Avoided conflict. Amalfi Coast... we spent 1 hour and 45 minutes total there. Too many side trips to retail shops. Food at group dinners was very poor. Steak inedible!. Quality of food with group functions not good at all.
Trip Rating:

Mattera, Taormina Small towns of Sorrento and Salerno--very authentic.

Thank you for traveling with Collette to southern Italy & Sicily. A member of the Guest Relations Team will be reaching out to discuss your feedback.

Collette Support

05/16/2018

Excellent trip.

Trip Rating:

Collette is very organized and experienced. A well thought out tour at all locations. Very well planned and executed. Our tour guide Christina and driver were absolutely amazing. This certainly makes the trip relaxing and fun. Every need was thought out and delivered.
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It was all our favorite. Every stop had a great and memorable experience.

04/09/2018

Well organized

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Well organized, Bryce is a professional tour manager
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Taormina Greek theatre was a highlight

04/01/2018

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Great trip leader. Flexible.
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Liked the places we saw as well as th food and wine.

03/27/2018

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Great trip, ***** the tour manager was outstanding! Even when the weather was not good she did a great job of making the day wonderful.
Trip Rating:

Great trip and outstanding tour manager, *****

02/22/2018

Try Touring Off Season. It is a great experience.

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The January departure of Sicily and Southern Italy was an enjoyable tour. Zero crowds due to the off season, and a real feeling for what the average, not tourist, Italian citizen's life is like. Our tour guide, *****, was well versed in all the destinations, friendly and resourceful.
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Great tour, just the right length. Was surprised at the history and cross culture heritage of the region, and very much enjoyed the food and sights.

02/21/2018

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Marta was excellent, she made every minute wonderful.
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Amalfi and Catania were highlights for us.

01/26/2018

Don't miss Sicily and southern Italy tour!

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This is our third tour with Colette and we couldn't be happier with this company. Our guides have been exceptional and everything runs smoothly.
Trip Rating:

The itinerary for this tour was great. Our guide ***** was exceptional. He's very knowledgeable, patient and organized. Our driver *******, always made us feel safe. The local guides and our side tours were great too. We had a wonderful group of people on this tour which added to the positive experience.

11/15/2017

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The guide was excellent and most hotels were very good.
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My favorite was the bus tour around Rome

11/08/2017

Outstanding in every way!

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This was our 3rd tour with Colette and we have been very happy with all three tours. We've had EXCELLENT guides and itineraries. Our latest trip was exceptional in every way.
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Every minute was terrific. Loved the itinerary.

11/08/2017

Great vacation - would tour with Collette again!

Trip Rating:

Excellent tour manager and interesting and somewhat unique side tours. Accommodated my vegetarian requests extremely well. However, I did hear some complaints about the included meals from others in the group, so perhaps some research into improving those could be done.
Trip Rating:

I thought the tour was managed very well. Good hotel choices, tours, tour guides, and bus driver.

11/08/2017

Worth the trip

Trip Rating:

The tour manager was exceptional. He was always on top of all the coordination and the people. He had extensive knowledge of the country and lots of interesting stories. The local tour guides were very informative and interesring as well.
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The Amalfi Coast is a place I have wanted to photograph for over 28 years. It was worth the wait.

11/08/2017

Wonderful trip....can't wait to book another Collette tour!!

Trip Rating:

First of all, the discount for being a loyal customer added to their booking discount and the free transport was so great. The tour guide and their pick of the local guides in Sicily were excellent. They were so knowledgeable and one of the even published books, which I purchased and am enjoying I have taken other tour s with different groups, but have found Collette to be better in terms of content, ease on the trip, exciting places to see, fun and most of all the best in terms of what you get for your money. The people on this tour were also a lot of fun and great people to be with for 10 days! I will always use Collette for other trips and highly recommend them to my friends! Thanks for making my trip so memorable and pleasant.
Trip Rating:

The places we visited, the excursions offered, the guides, hotels and meals all made for a great experience.

11/06/2017

Trip Rating:

We saw a whole lot of southern Italy. Our tour guide was very passionate about her country.
Trip Rating:

Only negative is that the days were jam packed. Sometimes starting at 6 A.M. and ending at 10 P.M.. The days were too long for many of the seniors on the tour. Many people got sick. There was also A LOT of walking.

Hello, thank you for sharing this feedback with us about the pace of the tour. We have passed this along to members of our team for review.

We appreciate you and value your insight as it helps us to improve our tours for future guests. We look forward to traveling with you again soon.

Collette Support

11/03/2017

Trip Rating:

great guide and very informative - was so grateful guide was so well-versed in English - great local tour guides for all included and optional tours - beautiful hotel rooms with great views - was so grateful for transportation to and from my airport - can't say enough good about my experience
Trip Rating:

so much information provided - favorite was bus through the Amalfi Coast - very professional bus driving necessary for this - stunning scenery - unforgettable

11/03/2017

Well organized tour -

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I felt the tour was well planned. I have specific food allergies and our tour guide was always careful that my needs were met. the pace was good, I choose to do all the extra tours so one of the days was very full, but rewarding. The driver got us everywhere safely. The city tour guides added a personal touch for us for the places that we visited. The hotels were in good locations. One did not have good WiFi but I indicated that on our survey, other than that it was fine.
Trip Rating:

We visited cities and places that were rich in history - Matera, Pompeii. places - valley of the temples - saw natural wonders = Mt Etna and Mt Vesuviues. Seeing the cathedrals in Palermo and Monreale and Chefalu were very special to me. ;I cannot find just one place that was more memorable than the others. Perhaps the Amalfi Coast comes the closest.

11/02/2017

Recommend the tour for others with a few changes.

Trip Rating:

Travel days are too long. Need some downtime before dinner. Too many local guides and the need for more tipping costs. Bus drivers were excellent. Collette guide was excellent. Hotel choices were great. Food was good. Vineyard visit was A1 as was the meal there. Checking in was smooth and timely at every hotel. Washroom breaks while travelling were not great. Not enough time to stand in a long bathroom line and make a purchase. Washroom choices could have been cleaner/more equipped for bus loads of tourists. History lessons were a little too detailed. Overall a great trip.
Trip Rating:

Some changes required regarding washrooms, additional tour guides

11/01/2017

Outstanding tour.

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The trip was well-arranged...all connections made, everything on time. The Tour Director was outstanding...well-organized and responsive and caring for the clients needs. Everything happened perfectly. The various destinations were outstanding.
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There are many things to do and see in Sicily and Southern Italy...this tour provided a good sampling of those things.

10/24/2017

Trip Rating:

Collette were a great tour company. Our Guide and drivers were very friendly and knowledgeable and provided a great tour. The accommodation was mostly very nice and the added excursions were lovely.
Trip Rating:

The most favourable memory we visiting the family on the farm and dining in their restaurant and seeing the Sicilian way of life. The drive up the Amalfi Coast was also a treat.

10/11/2017

Trip Rating:

Outstanding!! Our guide ******was so informative and kind. That really makes the trip enjoyable. Hotels were fabulous and spotless. Local guides were also great. I didn't enjoy stopping at the jewelry store or woodworking shop. I would have liked to enjoy the town's more.
Trip Rating:

Love Sicily, but mainland was great, too.

10/07/2017

great

Trip Rating:

Our guide was terrific! She was full of energy and enthusiasm for her country. To improve the trip for seniors like us, more washroom breaks would be appreciated. The hotels were great, and the entertainment & sights. We enjoyed the music & dinner night. Would like to have more music.
Trip Rating:

good hotels, good food, interesting stories & sights

10/05/2017

Would use Collette again.

Trip Rating:

Customer service was very accomodating whenever I called for info. The itinerary booklet was very helpful and informative. The limo service, Blue Bird Global was very professional and on time. However, I do have some issues with the tour which I will describe further into this survey.
Trip Rating:

Too much walking due to bus not being able to park in a convient location when dropping us off to visit a site or going to dinner. Worse night was in Rome, we walked a good half hour to get to the restaurant when there were many restaurants much closer where we did not have to walk so far. The restaurant was very small and could not accommodate the group in the dining room and some people ate by themselves. The food was not up to par based on all the other wonderful meals we had. Very disappointed, we were not able to see the beautiful coastline of the Amalfi Coast due to the fact that we were sitting on the opposite side of the bus. The tour manager should have switched the people over halfway on the Amalfi Coast so everyone would get a chance to see the beautiful scenery.

Hello, thanks for bringing this to our attention. We have shared your feedback with our team and they will review it and use it to improve the tour for future guests. If you'd like to share more about your experience, we'd be happy to set you up with a call with our guest relations team.

Collette Support

10/05/2017

Stressful, rushed and too much time on a bus

Trip Rating:

The tour to Salerno and Amafi Coast was very stressful. There were too many cities to visit in eleven days. We spent hours in the bus and a short time on the Amalfi Coast. The winery tour, inlaid wood tour and Cameo factory should be optional. I,wanted time in Sorrento. I bought a ring at the Came Facory for over 900 Euro that was supposed to be sent to me. I have not heard from the Cameo Factory and not received my ring. The shop was supposed to be sponsored but Colette. The food at the hotels was awful.
Trip Rating:

I explained too many stops and forced to visit inlaid wood shop, winery, Cameo shop

Hello Karen,

Thank you for bringing this to our attention. A member of our guest relations team will be reaching out to you to learn more about your experience.

Collette Support

10/05/2017

Trip Rating:

Your representatives were always there when we asked a question or had a concern.
Trip Rating:

Your brochures said "moderate" walking....I think it should have said a LOT of walking up hills, cobblestone pavement, etc. The tourguides walked way too fast for some of us to catch up to them & unfortunately we missed some of the comments, etc. Also, the last supper in Rome...why did we have to walk over 20 minutes to get there when there were other restaurants we passed that would have been just fine. Plus the restaurant was too small for our group. Dinner was adequate but we were crushed in that room. In fact, one couple had to sit in another room by themselves. The food in this establishment was sub-par compared to the rest of the places we ate at. Also, the only reason my wife and I went on this tour was because my wife always wanted to go to the Almalfi coast. Your brochure said explor the Almalfi coast. We only stop at a tourist little area for 10-15 minutes to get some pictures & soveneirs. Then we got on the bus and rode the rest of the way. Where is the "EXPLORE"". Plus we unfortunately has the driver's side of the bus. We DID NOT get to see the coast only the buses coming at us the the moutains. Why did I save so much money to explor the coast, and only get to see the road, busses, etc. VERY VERY DISAPPOINTED. Maybe the tour guide (half-way through our drive) could have asked the people to trade seats so EVERYONE could get a view of Almalfi coast, etc. My wife was very, very DISAPPOINTED. This was supposed to be her dream vacation.....NOT!

Hello Archie, thank you for bringing this to our attention. We have forwarded your feedback to members of our product and tour management team for review. They'll use your insight about the tour elements to improve the experience for future guests.

If there's anything else you'd like to share with us, we'd be happy to set up a call with our guest relations team. Please let us know if you'd be interested in speaking with them. We appreciate your business and look forward to traveling with you again soon.

Collette Support

10/01/2017

Trip Rating:

Great tour guide, local guides , and nice hotels
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Agri tours, Agrigento, Pompeii

10/01/2017

Friendly tour director

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Good service.
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Love Amalfi coast, Mt. Etna, Albero Bello

09/17/2017

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Yes. I would recommend
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Places we visited were really great

09/17/2017

Sicily and Souther Italy is a wonderful scenic tour with lots of History

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The tour was very well organized and was a treasure to have a local Sicilian Tour Manager
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The favorite experience was the Amalfi Coast drive.

09/12/2017

A little disappointed

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At the beginning of our trip we were alerted by Delta that there was bad weather going into JFK airport and we could change our flight with any charges.. I call Collette and told them and they said they didn't have any weather warnings. So then I called the airlines and asked if l could change our flight and found out because it was purchased by Collette I could not. Make a long story short we missed our connecting flight had to sleep in the airport because no hotel rooms were available. It was horrible no. We did missed one meal and one day at the whole Day in Palermo . I was surprise that collected not get the Weather alert that I did for their customers.
Trip Rating:

Our favorite moments were at the farms the food was excellent and it was nice seeing how the Italians live. We were disappointed at one of the farms because in your ad it said we get a tour of the farm and we did not.

Hello Cynthia, we appreciate you bringing this to our attention. We have passed along your feedback about your experience with the flights and other accommodations on tour to members of our team for review.

Your insight is valued and appreciated as it helps us to improve the tours for future guests. If there is anything else you wish to share about the tour, please feel free to reach out. We look forward to traveling with you again soon!

Collette Support

08/31/2017

We enjoyed the tour.

Trip Rating:

My husband and I were both pleased with the over-all experience of the tour we took with Collette. The accommodations were all clean and comfortable. We enjoyed all of the "included" meals and dining experiences. We were not impressed with our guide, however. Throughout the trip, she made many inaccurate generalizations and derogatory comments about the Italian people's habits and customs. My husband, being an Italian who was born and grew up in Italy, took offense to many of these comments. I, personally, think it is very inappropriate for anyone to make negative comments about others' way of life!
Trip Rating:

There were many nice people on the tour that we enjoyed meeting. Sicily was beautiful and we thoroughly enjoyed the experiences each day.

Hello, thank you for sharing this feedback with us about the tour manager. We have passed this along to members of our team for review.

We appreciate you and value your insight as it helps us to improve our tours for future guests. We look forward to traveling with you again soon.

Collette Support

08/09/2017

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I agree with my wife's comments.
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The people on the tour and the beautiful scenery.

06/21/2017

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My wife Gwen and I both enjoyed the itinerary, professionalism and our guide and bus driver.Daniel our guide was so knowlegible and helpful that we felt he went above and beyond to make everyone safe and interested. The tour and choice of hotels was most enjoyable except the first hotel Frederico 11 central palace Palermo was so dark and low lit that we had difficulty finding things . We have been on tour with Collette before and would definitely go with them again Also our travel agent Kathy Hamilton with Golliger Travel Brantford is a great asset in our travel needs
Trip Rating:

Difficult to pick one thing. Everything was great and out of the way places were well chosen

06/21/2017

Trip Rating:

The tour leader was terrific - very knowledgeable about history and the areas. Enjoyed the two hotels on the Mediterranean. Other than Sicily, really enjoyed southern Italy. Well organized with lots to see. Especially liked the additional bus tour of Rome and the walkabout since Rome was not a scheduled visit.
Trip Rating:

Tour Leader was excellent. Very knowledgeable about the history and the areas we visited. Loved Sicily and especially southern Italy. Though Rome was not a tour visit, we did do a bus tour and a walkabout to see several select sites. Terrific!

06/12/2017

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Our tour manager, *personal details removed by Feefo*, and our driver *personal details removed by Feefo*, were excellent. . Our hotels were not as "comfortable" as expected. The tour guide at Pompeii was so bad we did not extend a gratuity in the end. Had we not toured Pompeii another time, with Collette, we would never have seen so much with an explanation. This tour guide didn't even let us take pictures.
Trip Rating:

Taormina was just so nice.

06/07/2017

I have booked 2 more trips with you and hope to see improvement.

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The itinerary, the tour guide, and the driver were excellent. Some of the hotels had issues and should be replaced, especially The Hellenia Yachting Hotel ( not certain if the name is exactly correct ). I did not care for some of the main dishes/choices on some of your included meals. You did not provide free water on the bus or in the hotel rooms. You asked the guests to tip the local guides and even the replacement driver on *personal info removed by Feef* mandatory day off. I did not.
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I loved the Sassi di Matera and Alberobella.

05/31/2017

Spectacular views of Sciliy and So. Italy.

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Tour manager was excellent. She kept a large group (41) together, on time and happy, which wasn't easy. We had many different personalities, varying needs and opinions. But we were a cohesive group much to the credit of *Personal details removed by Feefo* Luggage transfers, bus drivers and tour guides made the transition from hotel to hotel seamless, plus the guides made the sites come to life with their knowledge of the area and history.
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I enjoyed the mixture of historic Italian cities, the charm of the smaller towns and the beauty of Amalfi and Capri. Plus acres of farm land with orange, lemon, olives groves and grapevines.

05/30/2017

I would say the tour was just "okay." Wouldn't recommend it.

Trip Rating:

Not really fond of the tour. The hotels were nice, but the some of the restaurants we were taken to were terrible, especially the one for lunch by the sea. That was the worst menu and everyone complained about the food and the price. I did not care for Palermo's portion of the tour. We enjoyed Mt. Etna and once we crossed over to Italy things improved a lot. At Mt. Etna there was nothing to do but wait until we were ready to board the bus again. It was boring because we were not dropped off anywhere near shopping so we just sat there. The food was better in Italy and the tour became more interesting. Our guide was great, just did not care for the first half of the tour. Not sure we will be doing a Collette Tour again.
Trip Rating:

I loved the hotel on the Bay of Naples. We had a wonderful room and it was beautiful. The hotel in Rome was beautiful too, but we only stayed one night so couldn't really enjoy it. Loved the shopping in several places. I think my favorite though was Pompeii and the Amalfi Coast. Those were very interesting.

Hello Bonnie,

Thanks for bringing this to our attention. We have shared your feedback about the first part of your trip with our team for review. They will use your insight to improve the tours for future guests.

Collette Support

05/24/2017

Overall very good holiday. very dissapointed with thw airline carrier

Trip Rating:

Overall we were very pleased with the holiday and the excellent services provided by (personal details removed by Feefo). We were also very impresses by our chuffer services from home and back. The hotels were very good and the attention to detail whilst in Sicily and Italy was again excellent. Our only complaint was the Airline (Vueling) which was very poor. The lost our bags for thee days out of ten days which almost ruined the holiday. On our way home we discovered that our baggage had not been paid for, a mistake you have acknowledged and repaid us for that! We would like to think that if we choose Collette again we would not encounter poor airline services. Are you able to re-assure us?
Trip Rating:

I have already outlined my reasons.

05/24/2017

Best trip ever!

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This was the best tour we have experienced and our first with Collette. Our leader was very knowledgeable about history and customs and had very good connections in each location we stopped at. Our hotels were all clean and well placed. We really liked that on the meals that were included with the trip we still had 3 choices. Our driver was excellent, he always was on time and in a prime location. There also was a great mix of scheduled time and free time. Based on this experience I would highly recommend Collette. I should mention that we were impressed from the beginning because of the customer service any time we called with questions!
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The city of Metera, had no idea it even existed.

05/17/2017

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Good travel guide with knowledge of the variety of places and venues visited
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Pompii, Matera of prior human habitats

04/19/2017

I have traveled on 7 (other companies) tours, but Collette was THE BEST!!

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The places we visited were wonderful. Our tour leader *Personal Details removed by Feefo*, was extremely knowledgeable. The information and history he gave us was exceptional! (I would love to travel with him again) The accommodations were wonderful and the planned meals were fantastic. The motor coach service and driver were great. The entire experience was wonderful, wonderful, wonderful!
Trip Rating:

Personal interaction with a working family farm in Sicily. My husband and I own a farm in Virginia & naturally I was interested in this optional choice. Every day's planned schedule was so memorable that I can not choose just one experience.

03/16/2017

Great tour guide. Great itinerary. Did not deal with office direct....ou...

Trip Rating:

Great tour guide. Great itinerary. Did not deal with office direct....our travel agent did all.
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Ancient sites...awesome, foods delicious, wines good and beUtiful,scenery...Amafi coast ...

03/15/2017

Good service by Collette

Trip Rating:

Your instructions for changing money in Sicily were wrong
Trip Rating:

Enjoyed tour and Sicily, hotel in Naxios was bad

Hello Steven,

Thanks for bringing this to our attention. We have sent your feedback over to our product team to make sure the info is correct for future guests.

We appreciate your business and hope to travel with you again soon.

Collette Support

11/30/2016

Excellent service by Collette US

Trip Rating:

Perfect trip, everything was excellent

11/27/2016

Good customer service, but flight arrangements didn't allow enough time in ...

Trip Rating:

Good customer service, but flight arrangements didn't allow enough time in JFK for me to get my bag, go through custom, and reach my connecting flight. I had to leave my bag behind (it was sent through on a later flight), and RUN for my connecting flight two terminals away.
Trip Rating:

Too much time on the bus going from Sicily to Catania, which I could have skipped altogether. To much emphasis on shopping instead of suggestions for other cultural sights during our free time.

11/27/2016

PACE OF ENTIRE TRIP WAS EXCELLENT. OLDER GROUP WAS GREATLY CONSIDERED. NICE...

Trip Rating:

PACE OF ENTIRE TRIP WAS EXCELLENT. OLDER GROUP WAS GREATLY CONSIDERED. NICE BALANCE OF SIGHTS AND FREE TIME. SUPER GUIDE.

11/24/2016

Great trip, entertaining, informative, fun; good value.

Trip Rating:

The guide was GREAT. The hotels had very poor WiFi, and should either have in-room coffee kettles or a 24 hour coffee/tea station readily available. This is important because due to jet lag, many of us wake up at very early hours, before the restaurant is open. Most hotels did not have simple exercise facilities, and even the few that did, had very limited operating hours, or equipment was out of order.

11/23/2016

Good service by Collette US

Trip Rating:

there is always room for improvement
Trip Rating:

a lot of favorable moments. the best is Alberobello.

10/28/2016

Very helpful service.

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The service staff answered all questions in a timely and helpful manner. They were helpful in planning our travel which was different than the tour itself. They allowed us to connect with the tour transfer from the airport to the hotel despite our having arrived four days earlier. We were, therefore, able to rent a car from the airport for personal touring and then return it to the airport, before joining the transfer. It made things so easy!
Trip Rating:

Although we were delighted with the itinerary, we were disappointed in the superficial approach to seeing this history-rich island. The tour of Palermo was merely a drive through on the way to Monreale - which was a wonderful and focused visit. The Valley of the Temples showed us three temples but gave little exposure to why the community developed in the "Valley" or how extensive it was. The hotel here was exceedingly poor with littered grounds, failure of the water system, out in the boon-docks so there was nothing to do or see during free time. (Wish we could have visited Piazza Armerina since we traveled very near it on our way to Catania.) Materna and Alberobello were fascinating and a selling point for this itinerary. The Amalfi Coast spectacular. "Free time" gave us very little time to really look around a town - 1-1/2 hours is not much when we had to find our own lunch and look around, too. There was quite an emphasis on "shopping" which is not at all our emphasis. We would have preferred to visit museums that would have enhanced our understanding of Agrigento and Pompeii. The limoncello and cameo factory stops added nothing to the tour. The dinner tour to the family farm in Cefalu was superb! The dinner in Giardini Naxos with the musicians was a trial - the food and wine were not tasty and the musicians were so loud and constant that it made dinner conversation all but impossible. The Sorrento seaside hotel was lovely. We were amazed at the number of people on this tour - which definitely required a lot of walking on cobblestones - that were not able to walk very far or on hills. There were some travelers who frequently grumbling about having to get out of the bus "again". (Please note: a woman on a scooter NEVER caused any delay - she was marvelous!) The tour director always had good alternatives for these folks, but the comments got a little old. We came home thinking we had only skimmed the surface of Sicily. The local guides were all very interesting in their focused tours, and our tour guide was an efficient and fun tour director, but overall we felt the need to buy informational books along the way to fill in the holes that we felt remained in our exposure this magnificent island.

10/26/2016

enjoyable trip--could have had a little time on the bus

Trip Rating:

they make a great effort to show as many sites as possible in the time frame.
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Self Explanatory This is not the right time, but we found the food at Collette Dinners very poor

10/23/2016

amazing tour. the tour guide, Monica, was fantastic. Very professional and...

Trip Rating:

amazing tour. the tour guide, Monica, was fantastic. Very professional and very informative. we had problems with suitcases not arriving when we did and she went beyond her duties to help get them.

10/12/2016

Wonderful trip

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Our tour manager, Marco was wonderful, very knowledgeable and he always keep things moving. The local guides were great, very informative and interesting! The sites were beautiful. I enjoyed them even more when I got home and looked at my pictures.

10/12/2016

Loved the experience.

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Our tour guide was fantastic. She was funny, informative and very accommodating. The places we went too and stayed at were well planned out and most interesting.
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Agrigento and Matera had great history to see and hear about. Taormino had beautiful gardens and vistas, while the Amalfi Coast was just spectacular.

06/08/2016

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We had 3 dimentia travelers on the tour that we were always looking for. It took away from our trip. I realize that this isn't Collette's fault but it still affected our experience.
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The drive along the Amalfi coast was breathtaking. I enjoyed visiting the wineries. The ruins of Pompei were awesome! Climbing Mt Aetna volcano was great. Weather was freezing!

06/01/2016

Trip Rating:

Collettte Tours brings a High standard to their tours, encompassing the highlights of the cities/countries travelled, lodging selected , restaurants and knowledgable and personable tour directors that keep the group safe and engaged
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The ride along the Almafi Coast , was an AHHHHH moment

06/01/2016

A great trip I would do it again in a minute.

Trip Rating:

Our tour director Yovanka, was very thorough and did an excellent job throughout our tour. We were a divers group of wonderful people from all over the US and Canada. The individual tour leaders were also very informative with the exception of one who brought us to the war museum. Our bus driver also did an excellent job, frankly, he could not have been better. Most of the hotels were good, the last one was the most accommodating . The restaurants were outstanding, the service, food and vino, was the best. I would recommend the company and would buy from them again. We were a very large group and perhaps coordinating getting on and off the bus could be improved.
Trip Rating:

In Sicily the Greek Temples. In Italy the Amafi Coast was spectacular.

06/01/2016

Amazing

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The person who assisted us in booking our trip was great. I would definitely travel with Colette again. Everyone was cheerful, helpful & wonderful to work with.
Trip Rating:

Our tour guide, Jovanka, was knowledgeable, interesting, and made the trip special; along with our bus driver, Franco. Every place we went (with the exception of the WW2 museum, the local guide was not good or helpful) was absolutely amazing. I can't say enough good about this trip. The accommodations, the food, the tours and guides were wonderful. When I am asked what my favorite part of the trip was, my answer is everything.

Is there anything you would like us to pass along to our product team that you were not particularly satisfied with?

Collette Support

06/01/2016

terrific

Trip Rating:

complete, comprehensive, ask all the right questions, leave nothing undone
Trip Rating:

mattera was exceptional, especially getting to see it from both sides

06/01/2016

Collette's Sicily and Southern Italy tour is the best tour to see so much in 10 days!

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Our tour guide, Yavanka, was fantastic. She made the trip very interesting, full of historical information, and took very good care of us. The tour was very thorough and covered so much of Sicily. The hotels were comfortable and fairly modern. We traveled comfortably in the bus with a very very good driver. Marriott Destination Program used Collette for its professionalism and first class value. We would definite use Collette again and recommend it as a travel agency.
Trip Rating:

The dinners and the wine that were included were amazing!

05/18/2016

As above

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No complaints
Trip Rating:

This was our FIRST bus tour. Experience mostly positive. However, two comments : you should have a policy that departure of the bus will occur within 5 minutes of the time given. If you're not there, you'll be left behind. We waited once for 25 minutes before leaving. Steve knows the circumstance. Do what you say. Mean what you say (like with little kids). : we read in your brochure that the normal sized pull-along could not be accommodated. If brought along, the traveler would be required to pay $4.00/day/bag. We did not bring our pull-alongs and found that required us to pack quite differently than we normally do. It looked like about half of our fellow travelers brought their pull-alongs. Were they charged $4.00/day, or did you just let that go? Do what you say. Mean what you say (like with little kids).

05/12/2016

The tour manager will make or break the trip

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Our Germany Christmas Market trip was disappointing due to the choices of the tour manager . Or maybe the design of the trip. But this to her manager for our Italy trip was absolutely fabulous .
Trip Rating:

The Amalfi Coast Drive was our most memorable and sadly most disappointing. It was the most beautiful part of the entire trip but we were stuck on the side of the bus away from The View. Halfway through the Dr they should have made everybody switch sides so that the entire bus got photo opportunities of the Amalfi Coast. It would have been the fair thing to do.

05/04/2016

Sicily and Southern Italy.

Trip Rating:

Hotels were NOT well located. Too far from town centers. We like to located in a town. In Sorrento hotel was very nice, but we felt stranded. Tips should be included as part of the cost. We do not like having to tip, especially the local guides who were excellent. Bus driver was superb. He should be paid a good wage and not have to depend on tips. The same for our tour guide. She was good, but we would have preferred an Italian guide. Food provided by tour was fair. There should be more museum, etc. tours included in the tour. Granted it would be more expensive, but you get what you pay for. Tour should be 1-2 days longer considering the amount of area covered. We were often given too much time in a town during the lunch hour where stores and sites are closed, especially in Italy. I have taken other tours and I felt a bit nickel and dimed with Colette. Instead of Pompei go to Paestum or Herculeum. The Pompei tour was not comprehensive enough. I felt pressured to buy at the woodworking store in Sorrento. Did not like that at all.
Trip Rating:

Matera was the most memorable. However, we should be given a map of the towns as part of tour materials. Luckily, we ventured out and found much to see on our own. Things that the tour could have included without great expense, or at least be given highlights of a town which would be of interest. Same applies to the Palermo, Taormina, Amalfi,etc. Collette should include more, I.e., the church in Amalfi, instead you get dropped off and then "good luck"! Free time especially in Taormina and Alberbello was too long. We could have seen something else as part of tour. We had no choice but to sit and wait for our coach, we were stranded during the time when things were closed. P. Would have liked more time in Sorrento in the evening when Sorrento comes alive. Again, if hotels had been more centrally located, the experience would have been much better. The meal at the winery was poor. The winery tour itself was very good.