HINSDALE TRAVEL SERVICE

Katie Schonfeld and Craig Devoto

Hi Donna,

We had an absolutely amazing trip!! We loved every second of it and fell in love with Italy all over again. Borgo San Felice and Tuscany were our favorite. But that is not to say Rome, Florence, Pisa and Siena were not just as phenomenal :-) Craig has always loved Rome but he said that after our visit to Florence if he were to pick a city to live in, it would now be Florence and no longer Rome.

I attached just a couple pictures (decided all 650 might be a bit overwhelming- haha) but wanted to share with you a little taste of our trip. However, I guess I could also send you pictures of all the food too for a true "taste". We also ended up buying an additional piece of luggage in order to bring back all the olive oil, balsamic, wine and pasta that we purchased in the Florence Central Market.

As for feedback:
• We highly highly recommend San Felice! We will 100% return to this resort for future vacations, rent a car and tour the whole wine region. While it  may have been pricey, it was worth every penny!!
• And our tour guide (Lorenzo) for the first wine tour in Tuscany (Chianti and the Castle) was awesome!
• We also loved the Vatican Tour. We are so glad you pushed the guide because we learned so many unique facts about the paintings, the background and the little historical pieces that played in the creation of the works in the museum. It also helped that our tour guide was very personable and tied her historical and religious passion into a wonderful guide.
• The Bernini Place in Florence was great; again great location, spacious, comfortable and great staff
• The Rome hotel was in a good location but our least favorite of the 3. We know hotels are more pricy in Rome, but we would probably not choose to stay with them again. Very friendly staff, but left a little to be desired.
• As for the transfers, we had great drivers and everyone was one time. We did miss one pick up when we arrived in Florence, our train was 30 mintues delayed and we couldn't locate the driver so had to grab a cab. I think we learned we loved having arranged drivers to and from airports, and to take us to the early trains. But for arrival to the busy train terminals, it's just easier to grab one of the cabs that are lined up out front :-)
We can't thank you enough for helping to organize a forever memorable honeymoon. It was more than we could have hoped for and just thank you so much!

If you ever have future couples who would like feedback from a couple who visited locations/hotels/tours they are interested please feel free to reach out to us, as we would be more than happy to share our positive feedback!

Thank you again!
Katie & Craig

Randy and Jennifer Porzel

Honeymoon Dream!!!
 

Dear Debbie,
 

We recently returned home from our trip to Moorea and Bora Bora of the French Polynesian Islands. As nervous as we were to travel so far from our home (Chicago), we couldn't thank you enough for your diligent planning and organization. From start to finish, our entire trip was flawless.
 

Our trip to island paradise began in Papeete, Tahiti where we were welcomed with a flower lei and airport representative that welcomed us as if we were family. He had all our travel arrangements already prepared and walked us over to our next plane to Moorea. When we landed in Moorea, once again, a hotel representative welcomed us and carried our bags to the bus.
 

The Pearl Beach Resort and Spa (Moorea) was an excellent choice. We thought our limited budget would prohibit us from luxury travel in the French Polynesian Islands, but you proved us wrong. We felt like royalty throughout the entire trip.
 

After 5 days in our Honeymoon Garden Bungalow in Moorea, our hotel representative took us back to
Our Over Water Bungalow at the Pearl Beach Resort and Spa (Bora Bora) was a dream come true. With our private entrance to the ocean and a private coral reef directly under our bungalow, words cannot express the beauty.

Sadly, we are back home to reality. We can't wait to start planning our next trip with you. Thank you for all your help!!
 

Randy and Jennifer Porzel

Laura Fazzio and Daniel Ploskonka

Hi Donna,

The Koa Kea Resort was absolutely spectacular!  Upon our arrival we were escorted to our room to find that we were upgraded to an oceanfront suite!  I know we obviously paid for the oceanfront but had no idea about the suite.  Then shortly after we had gotten settled, the hotel surprised us with this exotic floral arrangement and champagne!  What you don't find very often nowadays is housekeeping coming to your room daily.  In this case they came twice a day, morning and evening.  We stayed at the Disney resort 5 days in Oahu and they came once to bring towels.  The resort is well kept and very clean.  The beds are so comfy!  The staff is very resourceful and friendly.  We took full advantage of having the oceanfront suite.  The cost was worth the stay at Koa Kea.  If you are looking for a boutique hotel feel this is where you want to stay.  Red Salt restaurant was delicious.  A bit pricey but you get what you pay for.

Thank you,
Laura

Hi Donna, 

I have been meaning to email you but things have been crazy since getting back from our honeymoon then jumping right into the holiday season! :) First of all, thank you so much for sending us the macadamia nut cookies to our room at the Hyatt. That was so kind of you! We actually ended up purchasing the same cookies for my sister and father! Hawaii was fantastic. We were very happy with the decision to stay at the Maui Westin and the Grand Hyatt on Kauai. The Westin was fantastic but then when we got to the Grand Hyatt, that blew it away! What a luxurious resort! We had great experiences at both resorts and would recommend and visit both again. 

It was so convenient that the Westin had a shuttle around the area. We utilized that many times! We did the Old Lahaina Luau, a snorkel/hike/kayak excursion through Hike Maui and the sunrise bike ride down Haleakala through Bike Maui and would highly recommend all trips. We didn't do as many outside activities on Kauai but used it more as a relax period- we did take helicopter tour with Blue Hawaiian which was fantastic and worth every penny. The only "disappointment" was seeing the Fern Grotto. A lot of older couples we spoke with before traveling to Kauai told us how beautiful the grotto was and how we had to go. We ended up taking a $20 boat ride to the grotto through Smith's. The boat was 30 min late to leave the dock since they were waiting for a tour group (which was only 2 people...). Also, the boat ride was pretty boring and when we got to the grotto, it was the total opposite of what I expected. So much of the fern is gone after the hurricane. I feel like Smith's is still trying to milk the "attraction" for what it's worth :( Hopefully overtime it re-grows and becomes a worthwhile attraction again. 

I have attached a few pictures from our wedding and will email you a few from the honeymoon when I get home from work tonight. Once again, thank you SO much for planning a fantastic honeymoon for us and we would certainly come to you again for our next big trip as well as recommend you to any other couples looking to utilize a travel agent. 

If you ever have future couples who would like feedback from a couple who visited locations/hotels/tours they are interested please feel free to reach out to us, as we would be more than happy to share our positive feedback!