Europe Food & Wine Tours & Vacations

I will start by saying this is the first time I have ever used a travel company of any sort. I have always booked all of my own hotels, Airbnbs, flights, trains, and tickets for activities, etc. I have booked tours with tour guides, transportation, and excursions, but never left it up to a tour company to handle all of the details, start to finish. Needless to say, I was nervous. I was nervous I would land in Japan to no driver, no hotel, no guide, no tickets to activities on our “must-do” lists that get sold out—just my money gone and us stranded. I am used to the comfort of confirmations and control.

That is so far from the experience we had. Everything was fantastic! Our driver messaged us the night before landing with exact instructions on where to meet him, with pictures of how to navigate the airport. All three of the hotels we stayed in were clean, really nice, and exactly the type of rooms I requested. I have a very tall husband and two teenagers. King-size beds are hard to find in Japan, so I was very firm on wanting a king bed for us, but still the twin bedrooms for our kids.

Our first guide in Tokyo spoke fantastic English. He also did an amazing job of just doing what we wanted to do, even if it wasn’t on the itinerary. We were so appreciative of his flexibility because we did not stick to the itinerary at all, other than the ticketed activities. He took us to some restaurants that were local, not just those in tourist areas. He never rushed us, but still ensured we made it on time to the ticketed activities that had entry times. One night, our daughter realized she had left her purse in the bathroom and the driver drove us back 30 minutes to get it without an ounce of complaint or hesitation, even though it had been a long day and that now added another hour to his day. We even said we would take a taxi so he could go home, but he refused to let us and drove us personally.

Our second guide was in Kyoto. This is where we wanted to do the most sightseeing. He had no shortage of knowledge on the history of Japan. He was a walking Google for all things Japanese history. He did an excellent job switching up the itinerary when we discovered some things were closed for the New Year holiday. He took us to some more local and less-touristy places to eat as well.

I only needed to contact Zicasso’s travel company one time during our week. It was the night before our departure for the airport to confirm the driver, as this was the first time the entire trip I had not been contacted by a driver or guide the day before a departure or meeting. She responded within 30 minutes. The driver then contacted me within another 30 minutes. Otherwise, I was always contacted directly by each guide or driver the day before, with details of their arrivals and any other information.

It really was an excellent experience and I would highly recommend the company to anyone traveling in Japan or other areas in Asia where they provide travel services.

Thank you so much for referring us to Zicasso’s travel company. Their authentic experience, friendliness, and organizational skills in creating a most memorable Costa Rica experience for my whole family were incredible. It was indeed a trip of a lifetime! With grateful thanks...

The service from Zicasso’s travel company was exceptional throughout the trip. They did a great job keeping in touch and ensuring all tours and transfers were on time and satisfied our expectations.

Zicasso’s travel agent put together a trip of a lifetime to Australia for us. We are so pleased with her patience and the care she took to ensure everything was perfect and taken care of for us.

Zicass's travel experts worked well with us on planning the trip. Once the trip started, we had a support person who was available every single day to respond to any concerns. That support was truly exceptional.

Our only concern was that on occasion, the daily itinerary provided by the travel company did not precisely match what the subcontracted tour guide offered us. What we expected to happen based on the itinerary did not always happen. Having said that, the discrepancies were not egregious and did not detract from the day, but on occasion, were just confusing.

This trip was AMAZING! From beginning to end, everything was perfect. Zicasso’s travel company had everything planned for us to be able to enjoy this wonderful experience!