Northern Europe Solo Trips and Holidays

The Normandy, Brittany, Loire Valley itinerary is full and diverse with lovely accommodations and meals.. To stand where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake, to gazing out on the beaches of Normandy, and walking the American cemetery, to sleeping in the same chateau as King Henry IV are but a few highlights. The local experts provide the meaningful historical details that bring it all to life. Thank you again, Insight, for another remarkable trip.

Bring your walking shoes........but well worth it!! History, beautiful gardens, wonderful food.......this tour has it all !! Loved staying in the Chateau De La Bourdaisiere....be sure and see its tomato and dahlia gardens.

The tour director and bus driver, Ine Lynam & Conner were excellent and very knowledgeable and helpful. We gained so much history of Ireland and the cities towns that we toured. The hotels, food, service and itinerary were superb! Focus on Ireland was the perfect choice to visit the beautiful countryside and coastal area of Ireland. We will use Insight Tours for the next trip we take. You are very fortunate to such to an excellent tour director and coach driver as Ine Lynam and Conner.

Anyone considering going on this trip needs to think about why they are going. If it is for wildlife eg. birds, they need to investigate the best time of the year to go, taking migration into account etc. I had a wonderful time on this trip. Whilst the wildlife were not particularly co-operative, or the weather, the Expedition Team did their best at all times to fulfil the itinerary and give us the best opportunity to see the expected wild life. Whilst many whales were missing, we had the unusual bonus of seeing six Polar Bears and 17 Narwhals! You win some, you lose some! The M/V Greg Mortimer is an impressive ship, keeping the rocking and rolling across Baffin Bay, to a minimum. Inside it is extremely comfortable, all the 'hotel' staff are friendly and very professional. The rooms were kept spotless and serviced twice a day. There was a very large choice of good food at all meals. Two meals are buffet and the evening dinner, a served meal. The lectures on board, given by members of the Expedition Team and some guest lecturers, were linked to the programme and additional ones added where particular interest was shown by passengers. They were of a high standard. I am very happy to recommend this trip to those who are prepared to be flexible, both with the itinerary and daily programme. One day we started on Plan A and ended on Plan E thanks to the weather! It should not be considered as a cruise but a truly exploratory trip, getting into zodiacs a couple of times a day to go and get close up views of icebergs, bird nesting cliffs, glaciers: anything that may be of interest.

Sam was an absolute driving force making the most out of every day. She was extremely knowledgeable and made the holiday a truly fabulous experience. We enjoyed every day of the holiday and would happily book another Explore holiday in the future.

The guide ( Gerion) was amazing, not only was he extremely knowleadgeable of the entire history of all the towns and cities we touched on and passed, but his detailed understanding of the periods of the rise and fall of each period was astounding. We started off with no knowledge of Albanias history and left Albania with insight of its rich past and tapestry of interwoven historical achievements and tragedies. Truly an eye opener for us all. Gerion was an encyclopaedia of knowledge . But most of all, he is a most caring and personable tour guide with a keen sense of humour, which we love. We could approach him with any of our concerns and he negotiates on behalf of us,and eventually, solves our problems for us. For me, personally and my travelling companions , it is 102% of the time. He is , what we call, the absolute "best", a 5* guide and tour leader.