London & Paris Vacation Packages

We had a short but action-packed week: three nights in Rome and four nights in Paris. Our Zicasso travel specialist was terrific to work with, very responsive in planning and execution. Accommodations, guides, and activities were all first class and well balanced. We saw all the appropriate sites (Vatican, Colosseum, Louvre, Versailles, Eiffel Tower) and had some great alternative activities (Vespa sidecar tour, cooking and bakery classes, Paris sewer tour!). VIP service at the airports was a game changer. We'll be back.

Over the years, we have traveled with Zicasso to Chile, Argentina, and Patagonia, and every trip has exceeded our expectations.

This year, we planned a trip to France, including the wine regions of the Loire Valley and Avignon, along with visits to the castles and gardens in both areas. Zicasso matched us with our travel specialist to bring this itinerary to life and she was exceptional in every respect. She took the time to understand our interests and planned a trip that perfectly matched our expectations. The hotels were excellent and the guides and drivers were friendly, communicative, and highly knowledgeable about the region’s history and the vineyards we visited. She was available every day and thoughtfully anticipated our needs, including ensuring that distilled water was available at each hotel for the CPAP machines used by the gentlemen. She also received our list of preferred restaurants and, without being asked, confirmed each reservation for us, an unexpected but much-appreciated touch.

As on our previous Zicasso trips, drivers were always there to greet us when we arrived at airports and train stations. The entire trip, including the hotel locations selected by Zicasso, was memorable and left us eager to return someday. Thank you, Zicasso, and especially to our travel specialist, for making this such an unforgettable vacation.

Overall, we had a wonderful experience. The people were friendly, the sights great, and the food was outstanding. The heat was challenging, especially in Paris. The jet lag also weighed on us the first week. We felt more energetic the second week. Your tour app was very easy to use and I liked having all the tickets there.

Both hotels were great. Especially having air conditioning in the heat. Really enjoyed the very personable staff at our hotel in Paris. Super-friendly all around. Would highly recommend our hotel in Paris. We had a great suite in Nice and everything was excellent at our hotel in Nice.

Paris and Nice were two different experiences - both great. Easy to get rides in Paris. Nice not so much. Greatly appreciated the arrangements you made to get us from airports to hotels to trains to hotels to airport. Removed a lot of stress. The people you arranged were all excellent.

The food was terrific. Really enjoyed your list to assist us. Having breakfast prearranged at the hotel was a great way to start the day. I did not appreciate the amount of time necessary to have lunch and dinner as it is the opposite of American quick eating.

Marie really enjoyed her French cooking class in Paris. The restaurant in Paris was an experience. Very good, but expensive. The restaurant in Paris was a great experience, but a little warm in the evening. We had two charming couples sit next to us that Friday evening: an English novelist and his daughter, and a couple from Australia who are involved in the Grand Prix racing business.

The hotel in Cannes treated us very well. Linda showed the staff pictures of her parents on their honeymoon there in September 1945. The staff presented my wife with a gift bag and we had an outstanding lunch there.

While you may not have viewed the pace of the travels as too busy, my wife thought it was busy, especially with long lunches and long dinners. Her pace at age 78 was much slower than Marie, who is 19 and does hiking.

My wife would have liked another day in Nice to go into the Monaco casino at night.

At Versailles and in the museums, Marie would separate from my wife and me, which caused my wife some anxiety (I ignored it as she is 19).

We did limited strolling in Paris because of the heat and because my wife’s legs got tired. She had more energy in Nice.

The Musée d’Orsay has one floor with Van Gogh, which is mobbed. The other floors were not terribly crowded. We should have started with the floor with Van Gogh. We really enjoyed the museum.

We enjoyed Versailles, but it was very hot that day and we were there in the heat of the afternoon. We did not see the outer buildings as we were whipped by the heat.

We really enjoyed Sainte-Chapelle and did not feel rushed.

We postponed the boat ride until 6:30 p.m. as it was so hot. Good that the tickets were flexible.

We saw the Eiffel Tower during the day and at night (with the dinner at the restaurant in Paris).

On the Sunday drive with our driver (he was charming) it was busy, yet afterward I felt maybe we did not allocate our time the best. Again, having no real appreciation for where we were going or the time to get from place to place, it is easier in hindsight to suggest adjustments. Part of this also was lack of alignment of my wishes, those of my wife and those of Marie.

All three of us agreed that the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild & gardens was a highlight. We loved the lunch and desserts as well. We had plenty of time as well and a beautiful day to visit.

We enjoyed our visit to Cannes, as the hotel visit was very emotional for my wife and they treated us very well. The time went very fast. In hindsight, I and Marie would have liked the boat ride and snorkel from Cannes, but not enough time.

On Wednesday we took a taxi to the neighborhood of the Matisse Museum and nearby monastery and gardens, and then walked down to the Chagall Museum where we had a great lunch under the trees while the museum was closed for the lunch period.

Marie and I also enjoyed going to the top of Castle Hill behind our hotel and walking through the park. We went swimming in the sea twice. Also enjoyed the pool at the hotel.

Thank you for your services in arranging a great trip.

Zicasso's trip planner worked with my family for the better part of a year planning our big family trip. She provided exceptional service and planned every detail of our trip. We have a large family, with lots of moving parts. There were many changes in the itinerary along the way and she rolled with all the many changes. She was always polite, courteous, and graceful in her many interactions with our family.

She listened carefully during our initial conversations to help us plan the best trip possible. Being a large family, with multiple generations, she really created the best possible experience, taking in everyone's wishes. Working with her was very relieving, knowing she was taking care of all the details.

Our family's trip took us from the States to Ireland, Scotland, and England. We traveled on planes, trains, ferry, and drove a car. Our trip planner arranged every detail meticulously. We stayed in lovely, quaint, boutique hotels, ate the most wonderful foods, saw the amazing sights, and UNESCO World Heritage Sites across all three countries. From the Cliffs of Moher to the Culloden Moor Memorial to Stonehenge to castles grand and desolate; from beautiful cathedrals to old abbey ruins; from little country pubs to Michelin-starred restaurants; and even spending a couple days in an actual 17th-century castle, every minute was amazing! Truly amazing!

Zicasso’s travel specialist set up a wonderful tour over our 14-night vacation in London. A nice mix of activities and tours. A very nice hotel in central London, with great AC for those record-breaking hot days. Private and small-group tours and nice restaurant recommendations topped it off. Would sign up again with this travel company and use the travel specialist’s knowledge of the places to see, etc.

Everything went well, as planned, with only two minor issues: on the visit to Versailles with a guide, when attempting to enter the gardens with the guide, she noticed that she did not have the proper tickets, but a quick phone call to the travel company and the guide was given the go-ahead to pay for the ticket to access the garden; as we had not received one voucher necessary to enter an abbey on a self-guided tour, we had the vouchers for the audio guides, but not for the entrance to the abbey, and again, a quick phone call to the travel company, the vouchers were sent immediately.

The preparation for the trip went smoothly with a phone call from Paris to our home and then various messages and changes through Zicasso. Payments were made without problems and suggestions were provided in view of our budget and interests.