European Christmas Market Tours & Vacations

We enjoyed our trip and got to see and experience everything we set out to do. However, our itinerary lacked attention to detail. When we arrived in London, we were on our own to catch the Express to Paddington and our 5-hour ride to Penzance. This is what was designed and expected, although our itinerary still showed a "meet and greet". First class train tickets were provided by the contractor, but not reserved seats. My wife and I started the trip sitting separately. The contractor reported that reserved seats were not available, although three-quarters of the passengers in first class had tickets with reserve seat numbers.

The next day, the itinerary showed us starting and ending in St. Ives, although we were booked in a Penzance hotel, and did not get to St. Ives until the next day. The itinerary stated that the Penzance hotel was only 500 meters from the train station, so we walked with our luggage to discover the last 100 meters were up a very steep hill with almost no sidewalk. We are both 75.

Day four included three stops that included two national parks. Our guide said that would be impossible to cover, so we saw one of the parks listed in the day four itinerary. The third location was Wells Cathedral. Our guide dropped us at a small old neighborhood church that we discovered was the wrong location, but we only had a 7-minute walk to the correct location. Not a big problem, but we only had an hour total to tour. At pickup the guide stated, "if you seen one church, you have seen them all".

On day six, we were booked to tour Criccieth Castle, and upon arrival, we found it was closed on Tuesdays. These are details we would expect the travel company to know. We went to another castle instead.

On day seven, the itinerary stated that we had a free day until our Mountain Cog Railway at 11:30. We discovered on our own that the railway required us to be there 30 minutes ahead of time. That did not leave time to do anything before. We went early and changed our time so that we had the afternoon.

Overall, we enjoyed our trip, but it was different from our previous Zicasso trips. With the exception of the railway, we were responsible for all of our admissions, unlike other trips, while this was probably the most expensive of the trips. As experienced travelers, we were able to deal with the blips in the itinerary, but it was not at the level we have had previously with Zicasso.

Zicasso's travel company formulated a graduation trip for myself, my wife, and my son in July 2026. They arranged drivers, airport transfers, train fares, hotel accommodations, tours, and logistics. We visited Bath, the Cotswolds, London, Portsmouth, and the Goodwood Festival of Speed while in the United Kingdom. They made the itinerary seamless and logical, allowing us to visit all the sights and landmarks we wanted to experience. They were also available via WhatsApp for any concerns or issues that arose.

Our hotel in London was so nice, especially because it was equipped with air conditioning, as it was hot in London! It was conveniently located in the heart of Covent Garden, with so many shops, restaurants, and things to do just steps away, while also being within walking distance of Piccadilly, Chinatown, and many other areas.

Our accommodations in Portsmouth were comparatively lackluster, but kudos to the travel specialists for making valiant efforts to rebook alternate accommodations. Unfortunately, due to the Goodwood Festival of Speed, most, if not all, hotels in the region were fully booked. Thank you for the kind gesture!

Overall, it was a wonderful trip and enjoyed by all of us.

I would recommend the travel company if you're ever seeking a personalized holiday itinerary in the United Kingdom!

The cities we visited were wonderful. We really enjoyed the tours, especially the cooking class with our chef! I will be making homemade ravioli over the holidays.

The hotels were located close to the city centers. But the hotel in Bologna was very close to the university, with lots of graffiti and live music late into the night. The hotel, however, was quaint and very nice. The hotel staff was very friendly and accommodating.

The hotel in Florence was just weird. Our travel companions' room had no windows and was small. Ours was oddly laid out but much bigger. The desk person told us both rooms were the same when we first checked in. If we came back after 9 p.m., there was no hotel staff, and we had to use a code to walk through an apartment lobby.

The hotel in Venice was situated right in the middle of lots of restaurants and gelato! The hotel was by far the best one, with much nicer amenities and rooms. It had a bar and restaurant on-site. It was a good way to end our trip.

My trip was fantastic! Every single minute of it! I was in Europe city-hopping for 16 days and every aspect of the trip was perfect! My travel specialist and her team, who planned my trip and gave me support throughout it, couldn't have done a better job - it truly was the trip of a lifetime!

We started out planning it about a year ago. I contacted Zicasso about planning a multi-city trip and I listed the places that I wanted to visit. I am a woman traveling solo, so I asked for guides for many places that I wanted to visit - people who knew the cities and the best way to get around, great places to eat, etc. The guides were awesome - I had four of them and they each had a background in history or art history, so they were perfect companions to visit museums and palaces with.

I also had a somewhat unusual request - I wanted to go to thrift shops in three cities. I strongly believe in recycling and finding a new home for pre-loved items. I did end up going to thrift stores and some shops featuring local designers and artisans, and found some absolute treasures to take home with me! And I spent one wonderful morning at a Paris flea market with my Parisian guide, and we had a grand time! I found some jewelry and a small piece of art to take home with me. She had me try my first crepe (I've never had one before) and also something that I'm going to misspell that, when pronounced, sounds like "shoe" - yummy!

I wanted to see a show at the Moulin Rouge, but did not want to go to a club at night by myself, so my guide escorted me and we had a wonderful time! Similarly, I wanted to go to a jazz club one evening and my guide escorted me there, where we had a blast! She accompanied me to the Louvre and made sure I got to see all the pieces I was interested in seeing. She also took very good pictures of me at all the spots we visited so I could send them back home. I'll give her a 5+ star rating as a guide! She was just lovely!

My next stop was Prague and my guide was just as superb! She introduced me to espresso tonics (I'm sipping one right now as I've been making them at home - I love them!) and she gave me a wonderful guided tour of the city. The next day we did some thrifting and visited stores featuring local designers. Again, I found some treasures. Another 5+ star guide!

From there I took the train to Vienna, where my guide brought me on an amazing walking tour of the city. She was so knowledgeable about the city and its history - you could tell it is her passion. She also brought me to thrift stores and local artisan shops and again I found even more treasures! We visited museums and enjoyed lunch and coffees together. And she escorted me to a blues club one evening where we had a blast listening to live classic American blues (my real love, along with jazz). My guide is just so delightful! Highly recommended if you are interested in visiting Vienna.

From there I flew to Venice - my final destination. My guide was so knowledgeable about the artwork that we saw at the Peggy Guggenheim Collection - it felt as if by seeing the paintings we were visiting old friends of his! And he also took me to see Doge's Palace and on a gondola ride.

On day two in Venice, we went by boat to Murano, where we visited the glass factory and saw the glassblowers working. I had done very well at sticking to my budget for the trip until I got to the Murano factory showroom. I love glass and the pieces they were selling were all sublime! So much work went into them. I ended up buying two pieces that are being shipped to me so I did not have to worry about transporting them on the plane. And our tour guide at the factory even gifted me a necklace that I'm wild about after serving me prosecco in a handblown glass.

From there, we headed to the island of Burano and had lunch. I've got wonderful pictures of the colorful houses there. As I said, the trip could not have been better. The hotels were all fabulous in each city - centrally located and an easy walk to restaurants and shops. The beds were super-comfortable and each room was very quiet - I slept like a log from all the walking that I did every day.

I even managed to send postcards to friends and family from each city - not an easy task since not many people use snail mail anymore! But my guides were all determined to help me find postage and they did - every one of them!

Each hotel offered breakfast and the food was delicious. I'm on a keto diet but came off of it for this trip so I could enjoy the local specialties. The breakfasts were all buffet-style and offered everything you could imagine - eggs, bacon, sausage, all kinds of breads and rolls, pastries, fresh fruit and juice, yogurt, and the best coffee! Every hotel had an excellent buffet. They were all 4-star hotels and each room was charming. The staff at each hotel were also very accommodating, wanting to ensure that I had everything I needed.

There is nothing that the travel specialist and her team left out. Her team even arranged for a last-minute guide to help me get from my hotel to the airport in Venice and make sure I was at the right ticket counter (I was a little concerned about finding the water taxi and then finding the right place to go at the airport). He wheeled and carried my luggage, which by this time was heavy!

The whole trip was perfect and I'm hoping to return in a couple of years. I'd like to make a trip to the Christmas markets in Europe - especially Prague and Vienna - and you know which guides I'm going to be requesting! The whole experience was top-notch! Have no concerns at all about working with this company - they're the best! I thank each and every one who was involved in my trip. It really was perfect!

The trip was well planned with only a few bumps. We enjoyed all of the sights and really had a wonderful time.

My only complaint was the hotel selection. The majority of the hotels were nice but far from everything. We would have preferred to be within walking distance of restaurants and pubs. All but one of our travelers are in their 70s, and we had to drag our luggage up steep flights of stairs in three of the hotels. There was no staff available to help. We loved our stay in our castle hotel in County Clare, and our hotel in Dublin was very nice. I would not use the others again.

There was no problem reaching Zicasso's travel company when we had an issue, and they were very accommodating.

We can't say enough good things about the trip planned for us in Tuscany and Cinque Terre. It was the perfect balance of cultural (museums, artwork, architecture), historical (tours of towns, churches), food (culinary classes, olive oil mill, winemaking/vineyards), and outdoor activities (hiking, truffle hunting, sunset boating cruise). The uniqueness of some of the activities made this vacation one of the best European vacations we have ever experienced.

The guidance of Zicasso's travel specialists was so appreciated and was spot on for planning meals and when to leave open time. The guides and drivers they provided were extremely knowledgeable, helpful, and very friendly. Even when we had major air travel issues getting to Italy, they immediately came to our rescue when we had to arrive in Florence instead of Pisa.

Also, all of the accommodations which they booked for us were comfortable, spacious, and within easy walking distance of local attractions. We highly recommend Zicasso. We are looking forward to being able to plan our next Italian adventure with them.