“Hi Daniela,
We had a wonderful time! Thank you so much for your help coordinating and guiding us with this honeymoon. It was a wonderful two weeks, and I very much hope that I can come back to visit again sometime.
We did have a safe flight back, though we needed to change our flight schedule due to the hurricane in the US.
While each of our guides and hotels was very good, I would like to take an opportunity to note the exceptional quality of service provided by the following individuals/locations:
1. Federica, our tour guide in Venice, was absolutely wonderful. Her friendly nature, wealth of knowledge, and recommendations were outstanding. I’m very happy that we extended the tour with her to do the Doge’s Palace/St. Mark’s as well as the Tour of Hidden Venice. I wish we had even more time with her, because she was wonderful. The tour with Federica was one of my wife’s favorite parts of the trip.
2. Matia, our chef for the cooking class in Passignano, was also outstanding. He was also extremely friendly, very generous with his time and advice, and really gave me some insight as to how to cook well. The food at the osteria was also some of the very best I have ever tasted. (we also stopped for lunch earlier in the day before the cooking class) I’m very happy we chose to do the gourmet cooking class. It was certainly the right choice. This may have been my favorite part of the trip.
3. As far as accommodations, I found the quality of the Plaza Hotel Lucchesi to be truly exceptional. Castello Banfi il Borgo was also exceptional, but I suppose I expected it to be that way (the castle stay made the Tuscan countryside my wife’s favorite location that we visited – it was absolutely splendid – she already wants to go back). But I have to say, while my expectations were very high for each location, Hotel Lucchesi exceeded my expectations. The view from our room was tremendous, the hotel staff was wonderful, the convenience of the location was perfect, and the room was perhaps the cleanest room I have ever stayed in. The only part of our stay at Hotel Lucchesi that didn’t exceed expectation was breakfast, which was good, but not exceptional. The castle, though, was also wonderful and the food at the castle restaurant was tremendous.
4. Lastly, I’ll made special note of Tiberio, out guide to Le 5 Terre. He was a lot of fun and made sure we had a good time. ………………………
Also, a question for you – I have been delighted with the quality of service you have provided. Your recommendations and coordination made our honeymoon a wonderful one. I know that travel agents generate business using recommendations and word-of-mouth. Is there any special place where I could make note of the high quality of service I have received from you? I would be happy to put in a good word.
Again, many thanks for all your help.
Ciao e grazie!
Gregg”
Greggor Nallo (Aurora, OH) – AUGUST 2011
Statue in the Canopus at Hadrian’s Villa in Tivoli, Rome
Basilica of Santa Maria Novella in Florence, Tuscany, Italy
Curve road with cypress trees in val D’Orcia, Italy
