Athens to Vienna; Semi – Private Tour with Dedicated Tour Leader & Car

Traveler Reviews

• A

  Anonymous

  May 14th, 2023
  5.0
  I had planned on visiting Macedonia, but also wanted to get a taste for the rest of the Balkans on our first trip to...
  I had planned on visiting Macedonia, but also wanted to get a taste for the rest of the Balkans on our first trip to the region, so engaged Choose Balkans to get the most out of our time there, and frankly it was getting complicated looking at each individual bit myself! (We started in Belgrade and visited Sarajevo, Mostar and Kravica in B&H, Dubrovnik, Albania, Montenegro, Kosovo, Skopje, Ohrid, Prilep, Heraklia in Macedonia and Thessaloniki, Meteora, Delphi, Corinthe in Greece with drop-off in Athens. Sirma did an amazing job of planning the trip. She balanced our requirements, such as pick up and drop off points (multiple drop-offs), needing to be in certain places at certain times to meet up with friends/celebrate Orthodox Easter/catch flights etc, with suggestions about what we could do in between and some of the more classic itineraries. She was very responsive to messages when we were organising the trip, despite the time difference with Australia. It was reassuring to know that she was there in the background making sure everything went smoothly as well during the trip. The hotels ranged from good to excellent and we liked all of them for different reasons, whether it be the location, friendliness of the staff/owners or the breakfasts. The breakfasts catered to all our tastes, me who likes to try local food and the kids who preferred more classic options. And I was able to do the laundry at the Choose Balkans accommodation in Tirana, which was not a highlight of the trip, but still a necessity. During the trip itself, our guide Eri Veseli took great care of us. Firstly, he speaks a few of the same languages I speak - German, Italian, Greek (and English obviously ), so we got on well from the beginning, swapping in and out of our languages and conversing with other people we met, which really enhanced the experience for me. He shared stories and perspectives on historical and cultural aspects of the Balkans, so we left with a deeper understanding of the region. We felt safe at all times while he was driving, which was something that was important for me, and somehow he managed to negotiate the narrow streets in some of the places we went and always found parking, which was a miracle sometimes! Everything went smoothly, including borders, and currency exchange. A couple of bonus points that had not really occurred to me before deciding to use Choose Balkans were that, thanks to Eri, we ended up with some amazing family photos, that received many compliments from our friends, and also he knew all the good places with amazing views to stop to eat when we were travelling around. A few comments on the Balkans generally. Firstly, we felt very safe in terms of our personal belongings (we were a lot less cautious than we would have had to be in other parts of Europe!) and when we had free time, felt comfortable out and about by ourselves in the evening. Likewise with the roads - general driving behaviour is actually much better than say Italy or Greece. OK, parking in the towns and cities is as bad as elsewhere.... The people are welcoming and the variety of breathtaking scenery and cultural aspects in such a small geographical area makes it an ideal place to visit. For anyone looking to escape the hoards of tourists elsewhere in Europe, I would definitely recommend it, although some of the places would be busy during high season. For anyone who can't make up their mind whether to organise their tour themselves or use Choose Balkans, my main reason for using Choose Balkans was so that I didn't have to deal with hiccups like transport options having changed from what is published and getting stuck somewhere (with the implications for hotel bookings elsewhere etc),, plus we were on a tight schedule. Thanks to Sirma's great planning and Eri looking after us "on the ground", there weren't any hiccups, but I knew that if there had have been, they would have sorted it out and it would not have been stressful for us. I will be returning to the Balkans frequently and will definitely use Choose Balkans again. I would highly recommend them, whether it be for a long and complex itinerary like ours, a side-trip for a few days to explore the region further if you are based in one of the capital cities, or even just for a day trip. Thanks again Sirma and Eri.Show more
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  Traveled in April 2023
  

  Reply from: Choose Balkans

  What an incredible journey through the Balkans! Your detailed review highlights the exceptional planning and service provided by Choose Balkans, Sirma, and Eri. Your insights about safety, personal belongings, and driving in the Balkans will be valuable to future travelers. The region's welcoming people and diverse cultural and natural beauty are indeed captivating. We look forward to welcoming you back to the Balkans in the future. Warm Regards. Choose Balkans Team

  Show more
• J

  JParrino

  June 15th, 2022
  5.0
  If you are contemplating visiting Albania, we would like to highly recommend Choose Balkans (choosebalkans.com) as...
  If you are contemplating visiting Albania, we would like to highly recommend Choose Balkans (choosebalkans.com) as your tour guide. We just returned from their 8-day “Visit 4 UNESCO World Heritage Sights” tour and cannot endorse them enough. This tour gave us a wonderful overview of the country and showed us fabulous scenery. We went from mountainous areas to beaches. The tour included transportation, hotel rooms, breakfast and all entry fees. The hotels were high quality and very clean. Alban, the CEO of Choose Balkans, is impeccably honest and held our deposit for two years while we waited for Covid to settle down. We are in our early 70’s and had to be careful, but wanted to make sure we completed this bucket-list trip. Mandi, our tour guide, went out of his way to make sure we understood the historical aspects of every sight and the general history of the country. He also went out of his way to help us as we visited sights that were more of a challenge at our age. In short, ChooseBalkans.com will cater the trip to your needs. This tour far exceeded our expectations, and we cannot recommend Choose Balkans more highly or recommend more highly that you visit Albania. It would be difficult to do this tour on your own as the driving would be a challenge, many Albanians speak very little English, and the transportation infrastructure is still limited (no trains and few buses). Choose Balkans made this tour fun, interesting and a good value.Show more
  Traveled in June 2022
  

  Reply from: Choose Balkans

  Hello , Thank you for your positive feedback and kind words. We are so glad that you enjoyed the experience with us. You are always welcome to explore more. Warm Regards. Choose Balkans Team

  Show more
• 

  Bojken

  March 16th, 2022
  5.0
  What a brilliant tour! As an Albanian myself, I went on this tour with friends visiting from Germany and Austria, and...
  What a brilliant tour! As an Albanian myself, I went on this tour with friends visiting from Germany and Austria, and learned so much more about my home country and the Blakans. We were within a small tour group of 6, with Sokol as our tour guide. It was such an enjoyable eight days in the UNESCO Sites that exceeded our expectations. I would definitely recommend this tourShow more
  Traveled in January 2022
  

  Reply from: Choose Balkans

  Hello Bojken, Thank you for your positive feedback. We are so glad that you enjoyed the experience with us. You are always welcome to explore more. Warm Regards. Choose Balkans Team

  Show more
• S

  Sira

  March 12th, 2022
  5.0
  My friends booked this tour as a surprise for my birthday. Everything was organised perfectly by Choose Balkans Team.
  Traveled in May 2021
  

  Reply from: Choose Balkans

  Hello Sira Thank you for your positive feedback. We are so glad that you enjoyed the experience with us. You are always welcome to explore more. Warm Regards. Choose Balkans Team

  Show more
• 

  qemal

  March 9th, 2022
  5.0
  This tour allowed me to see so much of Albania and North Macedonia in a fairly short amount of time. What made this...
  This tour allowed me to see so much of Albania and North Macedonia in a fairly short amount of time. What made this tour excellent was our guide!! He was so knowledgeable about the countries and was always professional. He was infinitely patient with us.Show more
  Traveled in January 2022
  

  Reply from: Choose Balkans

  Thank you for your positive feedback. We are so glad that you enjoyed the experience with us. You are always welcome to explore more. Warm Regards. Choose Balkans Team

  Show more
• 

  Rozi

  January 5th, 2020
  5.0
  It was such a nice tour, the guide was friendly and his enlgish is excellent. Everything was very well organised by...
  It was such a nice tour, the guide was friendly and his enlgish is excellent. Everything was very well organised by Choose Balkans. I would strongly recommend this tour.Show more
  Traveled in August 2019
  

  Reply from: Choose Balkans

  Hello Rozi, Thank you for your review and being part of our services. It was a pleasure to organise this tour for you. :) Best regards, Choose Balkans Team

  Show more
• K

  KerrieRodgers

  August 14th, 2019
  5.0
  Fabulous tour full of history. Our guide was very educated and extremely knowledgeable about his country and it’s...
  Fabulous tour full of history. Our guide was very educated and extremely knowledgeable about his country and it’s history. He was also a safe driver. It was very hot when we toured but we stopped for some beach swims.Show more
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  Traveled in August 2019
  

  Reply from: Choose Balkans

  Hello Kerrie, thank you for your kind review. It was a pleasure to organise this tour for you. Best regards, Choose Balkans Team

  Show more
• 

  JADRANKA

  May 31st, 2019
  5.0
  Best place in albania to book tours, extremely nice people.
  Traveled in May 2019
  

  Reply from: Choose Balkans

  Hello Jadranka, thank you for your review. It was a pleasure organising this tour for you. Best regards, Choose Balkans Team

  Show more
• C

  Catherine

  April 1st, 2019
  4.5
  Exceeded expectations.Prompt communications. Friendly people.
  Traveled in March 2019
  

  Reply from: Choose Balkans

  Hello Catherine, thank you for your kind review. It was a pleasure organising this tour for you. Best regards, Choose Balkans Team

  Show more
• E

  ElisabethWilliams

  March 8th, 2019
  5.0
  The four of us are two couples in our midd 60’s planing to visit Albania, Montenegro and Kosovo. We tried to organise...
  The four of us are two couples in our midd 60’s planing to visit Albania, Montenegro and Kosovo. We tried to organise the tour our selves, however everything seemed so complicated. We were lucky find in Choose Balkans online. They offer tour of Albania, Montenegro, Kosovo and also Macedonia (which was a bonus in our plans). The tourguide Kreshnik was very knowledgeable and very customer oriented. The tour was almost just tailored for us and it was private just for the four of us. Don’t miss the Berat, Gjirokaster, Ohrid, Prizren. Also ask the tour guide to recommende local dishes in every city. They are delicious. I loved the castle in Berat and the Ohrid Lake view from the mountains. Must do tour, great companyShow more
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  Traveled in March 2019
  

  Reply from: Choose Balkans

  Hello Elisabeth, thank you for your kind review. We are happy to hear that you enjoyed your time in the Balkans. It was a pleasure organising this tour for you. Best regards, Choose Balkans Team

  Show more