Balkans Wine tasting Trips

Hi Explore, I think I counted that was my 21st Explore holiday. The hotel was in a great location near No 48 bus to Monte and 1 and 2 buses to Funchal. Also near the Lido and a supermarket. The only problem I found with the hotel is that you could not turn the air conditioning off at all - it was set so that it came on periodically during the night to refresh the room which woke me up with cold blasts. I had to put the two blankets on my bed. Also, I found the mattress too hard. Apart from that the staff were friendly and helpful. Philip our guide was great, a bit more info about loos when we stopped would have been helpful. I could not always hear him when standing with the group, his voice did not carry and you had to be very close to him to hear what he had to say, probably also something to do with my hearing maybe! I would have loved to have had more time to visit the orchid garden at Boa Vista near to the Botanical gardens but time ran out. It is only open on a Monday, Wednesday, Friday according to the hotel.

Felepe was our tour leader. He was friendly, organized, always on task, very patient, and very knowledgeable about Madeira. He had a very strong passion for his country and the people. He taught us many things about the culture and ways of living in Madeira. It was a very enjoyable week

Fantastic walking holiday. The leader Matteo Giordan was lovely. Very knowledgeable, helpful, well organised & conscientious , & made everyone feel included-he made the holiday. He set up the group info app first thing so we all had information, meeting times etc easily available. -It also provided an easy platform for sharing photos! He included some lovely local activities like visiting a farm to understand more about their annual schedule & arranged a local homecooked traditional meal at his parents farm which was delicious!

Awesome weather, views and walking routes, stops and time to explore. Excellent tour guide, local knowledge, able to answer all questions, great briefings. Made the whole group welcome. Perfect accommodation, and food. Great base and easy bus or boat trips to start / end. Low season is a wonderful time to explore Amalfi coast, valleys, history and agriculture. No crowds. Great suprises of food and local people to introduce aspects of the local food, farming and music culture. Walking the paths and lots of steps is rewarding in this beautiful natural environment with a feast of architecture and views.

Benni our leader was excellent enthusiastic cheerful and loooked after our group . The hotel selected (as usual one was having work done ) was too far away from main town so there were no places to wander to nearby other than a main road without a pavement ! Fortunately for the evening meals a minibus was provided to take us from hotel to Funchal ( even if you wanted to go elsewhere in Funchal ) but there wasn’t one provided on the free day . Fortunately could use local buses or taxis / uber

Very varied and excellent itinerary with food and wine tasting on several occasions. Beautiful scenery and a very knowledgeable guide who enabled us to see most of the island. I love the small group size too and enjoyed getting to know people