Munich and through the Balkans this tour provides a brilliant look at the history and culture of an important part of Europe. It has a packed itinerary, efficiently organised with good hotels and many discoveries in busy days of touring. Lots of guidance and recommendations are provided for food, views and cultural experiences which makes for an excellent tour.
This trip delivers pleasures on every level! From the comfort of the cabin to the delicious food and to the accommodating/caring team which mapped out the wonderful route… so delicious in every way!
I wish I could give this tour five stars, but the Russian portion of the tour was disappointing. Our Tour Leader and Driver from Expat were AH-MAZING. Most of the local guides were also excellent. We went to countries that we never thought would be of any interest, but were pleasantly surprised. The main selling point of the tour was Russia, but it was very rushed. Don't get me wrong, the whole tour is very fast paced and we are used to that, but Russia was on another level. We felt like we were cattle being herded from one place to another. We didn't get our Russian Vodka tasting. We paid for the Moscow Optional, and although it was a long day, alot of it was wasted on the platform waiting for the trains. We didn't get to explore Red Square, instead we were taken to a high end shopping mall which was a waste of time. Then we were rushed through the metro, only to be left waiting for hours at the train station. The Russian guide was rude and in our eyes, ruined that portion of the tour. We were treated in a way that left quite a negative impression of Russia, which is an absolute shame because when we ventured out on our own, we had a ball in St Petersburg. The rest of the trip was awesome. I mean, AWESOME. Long days on the coach, but that's to be expected and we were kept entertained. Matt is an excellent Tour Leader and must be commended on his fantastic service. We had a few curveballs with traffic and Paul navigated us through without issue. They worked perfectly as a team. We couldn't have asked for anyone better. The food on the trip was fantastic!