Great Cities of Eastern Europe Reviews

4.8 Rating 45 Reviews

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“The smarTours trip to Warsaw, Krakow, Budapest, Vienna, Prague was fantastic. Our tour director Pavel C. was incredible and even surpassed excellent when in Prague. He offered us an extra free guided tour which gave us even more of the history of this great city. The bus driver Henrique (Warsaw to Vienna) was a superior driver who drove extremely smoothly and safely.”

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Posted 9 years ago

“Enjoyed a wonderful trip to Eastern Europe; nice hotels w/breakfast, nice bus & great itinerary. Sights were wonderful and everything went off without a hitch. Pavo our tour guide was extremely knowledgeable and always there to answer your questions & help out. He was very organized and kept things moving at a steady pace. (And you are on the move...) Always felt safe in each city; just need to use caution like you would when visiting any big city in the world. Agree with review below of the different Optional Tours to take... Things to know: Bring along a 220V to 110V convertor to be able to charge your electronic devices. Still a charge to use a restroom in Europe. Our tour guide had us near a restroom at least every 2 hours. Don't forget to let your credit card & debit/atm card company know you are going overseas. As AAA members we preordered the different currencies ($75-$100 U.S.) needed using a link to off AAA's webpage to Travelex. Our tour guide pointed out best ATM or Money Exchange kiosk to use if you want to get funds when you arrive. A lot of walking is involved on cobblestone roads/pathways; bring comfortable walking shoes. You can check in with Finnair 24 hours in advance; we did this and were able to get 2 seats together by aisle/window for overseas flight. Seat configuration on plane was 2-4-2.”

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Posted 9 years ago

“Interested to hear more from Janice and Art Baer (Jul 5) about the Krakow segment of the tour and the comment "only complaint...more leg room.".”

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Posted 9 years ago

“Just returned home yesterday from the 15 day Eastern European trip and it was amazing. We had Renata as our guide and we all thought she went above and beyond to make sure we had what we needed and knew where to go and how to get there. She could not have done more to make us welcome and comfortable. Each day we were given a history of where we were going and she was very knowledgeable and kept us interested. We were always handed a city map at each new location and she marked the hotel locaton . Be sure not to miss the folk dance excursion in Budapest. It was amazing. Our driver Henrique, the females fell in love with. He always gave us his hand when stepping off the bus. We used the front entrance more than the back to see him... Recommend this tour highly. A++++++... Would use smart tours again....”

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Posted 9 years ago

“Just returned from the 15 day Great Cities of Eastern Europe. Have taken many tour groups in the past and have to say this one was right up there as one of the best!!! So enjoyed the itinerary, great hotels, sightseeing, beautiful brand new bus. Very well planned!. The trip was really made by the exceptional tour guide Ranalta. She was amazing!! Because of her expertise and experience the trip went very smooth. She was very knowledgable and shared so much history of all our destinations. Everyone loved her!! Great job! Look forward to using Smartours again!!”

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Posted 9 years ago

“Just returned from the 15 day tour. Travelled with my husband and two children, (ages 16 and 20). We all enjoyed this trip. So much history and beautiful architecture to explore. The accommodations were clean and comfortable. The breakfast buffets were very good. There was a variety of foods to pick from so that all palates were satisfied. Our tour director, Renata was exceptional!!!! She is well organized, helpful, knowledgeable, energetic, friendly and fun to travel with. Renata shared with us what it was like to grow up and live under communist rule. Very interesting! If you are going to take this tour, be ready for a lot of walking. Take some comfortable walking shoes. Many of the surfaces are uneven as they are cobble stone. We would definitely travel with smart tours again.”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“Hotels were all great. Our tour guide was knowledgeable, organized,patient and had an excellent command of the English language. He gave us an extra tour in Prague! Overall he was excellent; only critique was that he was not more involved in welcoming and closing dinners...did not facilitate group members introduction/getting to know one another nor stayed at the farewell dinner. Tour guides were good to excellent...the best being the guide who took us to the Schoenbrunn Palace in Vienna. Some guides talked non stop and was too much to digest. Warsaw-Disappointed that the Warsaw Ghetto wall was just a drive by and a 1 1/2 hr tour of the Jews of Poland Museum was not enough. Krakow-Salt Mines...good not great. Need to make people aware BEFORE the tour that there are many steps to traverse and a great deal of walking. Jewish Quarter by Night-Tour was skimpy at best and restaurant food was terrible. If you continue this tour, consider another restaurant and allow more time to walk around the area..get there when you can see the synagogue and walk to the Holocaust memorial. We saw the memorial as my husband and I took a walk after we ordered our food. This tour was a waste of money and could have easily done it on our own. Budapest-Danube River cruise-fantastic and beautiful Schoenbrunn Palance was excellent and the best guide Prague- tours were excellent with our tour director and gave us an extra tour of places we would not have seen. Lunch cruise-excellent..beyond our expectations..Very nice. Helsinki-enjoyed it...beautiful great restaurant. Would have preferred going to hotel after arriving instead of driving around even though the guide was great...very sweet. Hotel was in great area to explore by ourselves. Comments about Finnair- Great service, ran smoothly and on time and friendly...only complaint...more leg room. We would definitely travel with smarTours again. It is a well run program, excellent hotels and financially competitive. The trip met our expectations and had a great time.”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 years ago

“We just returned from this tour (Helsinki, Warsaw, Auschwitz, Birkenau, Krakow, Budapest, Vienna, Prague, Helsinki). Our main tour guide (with us for almost all of the trip), Renata, was terrific. She was knowledgeable, friendly, very helpful and accommodating, energetic....just great!). In each city we had expert guides and each was absolutely wonderful! Overall it was an excellent tour, and I would recommend it to anyone who wants a thorough overview of the history and culture of the cities visited. The food, entertainment, optional tours, tour guides in each city, bus drivers were all wonderful. Cant say enough about the breakfasts!!!! And, some of the scheduled dinner meals included wine or beer - I definitely did NOT feel "nickeled and dimed" on this tour.”

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Posted 9 years ago