Testimonials for Tours of Excellence

Gigi Phillips, Aladdin Travel, Travel Agent, USA
I have enjoyed working with Paula for many years. She has handled detailed and extensive itineraries for VIP groups as well as simpler tours for students. Paula has been able to work through any challenges we've encountered. She has earned the praises and trust from my most demanding clients and definitely from me. Paula is the best in the business!

Robert Rees, USA
We had an absolutely wonderful and unforgettable experience, due in no small part to you and Tours of Excellence. Your expertise, patience, guidance, and recommendations, and the little extra touches you planned for us at every step of the way, combined to make this one of the most enjoyable travel experiences of our lives. The value of your services was well worth the cost, and in fact you probably saved us a substantial sum in the overall scheme. I would heartily recommend Tours of Excellence to anyone contemplating a tour of England. We will definitely be back, and I will contact you and Tours of Excellence well beforehand. Kindest Personal Regards, Robert

Deborah Becker, USA
Thank you, Paula, and Tours of Excellence for planning a garden tour beyond our dreams. It was a pleasure working so closely with you, and your attention to detail made our trip much easier than we imagined it could be. All the gardens included in our tour displayed a wide array of flowers in bloom at the time. We would never have made it to the private gardens, which were the highlight of our trip, without your assistance. Even the B & B's we stayed at, home the most beautiful gardens. My husband and I look forward to planning our next trip to Europe with you!

Marilyn Lord-Potasiak, USA
Paula Edwards is the best travel agent and guardian angel that all inexperienced travellers need! My best friend and I didn't have to so much as decipher a metro schedule! Tours of Excellence took all the thinking out our 7-day, 6-stop custom tour of England and Scotland. On the first day of our arrival in England, a personalized book of our trip itinerary, specially tabbed and organized with all our train and event tickets was waiting for us. Even the money needed for cash-only activities was provided in sealed and labelled envelopes! It was foolproof! My friend and I were able to blissfully move from one lovely place to another, meeting the nicest people everywhere we went. Without Paula, I'm sure our trip would have looked more like something Lucy and Ethel had put together. In fact, the only arrangement we made without Paula's help was the one that went awry. Even then, Paula came to the rescue and negotiated with our airline to reunite me with my luggage! On top of that, Paula managed to give two very different friends an experience that matched both of our dreams of the best vacation ever! That's how gifted Paula Edwards is. She is our travel angel for life!

Domínguez Family, Mexico
First of all we all want to thank you for all the effort and commitment with our tour last summer in England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. I can assure you that after spending the last 4 years touring during summer time, one country per year (Italy, Spain, France and this year the United Kingdom with Ireland) this one totally designed, managed and operated by you, has been the best one. Before departing, we had exchanged more than 80 emails (I have a copy of all of them) and going through them now and after our experience with you, one can easily tell the care and tenderness you put in your work. The moment we arrived, we experienced what we expected with some little extra touches that made us feel much better. Your famous weekly files with a detailed itinerary, day by day and hour by hour, the maps, driving instructions, directions and the brochures of each place were magnificent tools. It’s not a surprise for me why you named your company “Tours of Excellence”, simply because you are committed to ensure not only the best value for your clients, but to provide a personal touch full of little details and with a lot of care in choosing the services provided.

Rosa Magrial, USA
Dear Paula, I would like to thank you for arranging a wonderful trip for us that exceeded all my expectations! Our accommodations in the Southwest of England & London were superb! Our local drivers were polite, efficient and knowledgeable. We especially enjoyed our full day at the Bath Thermae. Thank you for making all the bookings for our treatments. We also especially enjoyed our night at the Theatre in London. We had premier 3rd row seats in the play "Dancing in the Streets." Paula, three qualities stand out that make you such a wonderful and successful tour operator. First and foremost is the fact that you LISTEN. You really LISTENED to all my requests and needs and you tailor made our itinerary to answer those needs to perfection. Second your connections are first class & impeccable: our drivers were professional and respectable. Our hotels were outstanding in service & price. The Knightsbridge Hotel in London is a real gem. Only 2 blocks from Harrods, the tube and all the high end Knightsbridge stores and restaurants, it was located in a quite cul-de-sac with a residential neighbourhood feel. They had 24 hour room service, a truly helpful concierge staff, spacious, airy, clean and new bedrooms. Third, you are accessible and caring! While I was in London we talked by phone and communicated through e-mail. I felt secure in the fact that if I needed assistance it was only a phone call away. Again thank you for making our Easter holiday memorable! You will be the first person I contact when I plan my next vacation to Britain. Warmest regards, Rosa Madrigal & family.

Robert Rees, USA
Our family has availed itself of Tours of Excellence services twice now, and we're eagerly anticipating planning three more tours due, in large part, to the thoroughly professional and enjoyable arrangements provided by Tours of Excellence. The name says it all - their ability to anticipate our interests is uncanny, and the detailed arrangements literally leave nothing for us to do on our tours but enjoy ourselves. The flexibility to adopt to our whims and preferences are wonderful, and their knowledge of the best and most interesting ways to experience everything we've hoped to is absolutely amazing. We heartily recommend Tours of Excellence to anyone dreaming about a tour of a lifetime in the United Kingdom.

The Keyser Family, USA
It is with great pleasure that we write this testimonial on behalf of Tours of Excellence. Recently, we had acquired the expertise of Paula Edwards and her vast knowledge of the tourist industry to help us plan a vacation in Scotland. From our first contact with Paula, we found her to be extremely knowledgeable, courteous, and very accommodating to our needs. Corresponding entirely through e-mail, Paula, pulled together for us a fascinating and unforgettable trip. Although there were 8 members in our party, Paula did an outstanding job of scheduling and rescheduling our destinations, and working with local Bed and Breakfasts', performed her job with great efficiency and skill to make our vacation most memorable. We had requested a private driver during our 10-day stay, and she found the perfect coach company to fit our needs. Our driver, Frank, was most accommodating and gave us quite a history of the country as we travelled. Having him stay with us at our B&B's was wonderful and made our trip all the more enjoyable! Paula's organization of the trip was most impressive. Upon our arrival, a notebook was presented to us by our driver with our itinerary, maps, brochures and company checks of all attractions. At every place we visited, they had our names on their visitors list and were waiting for us. Paula's presentation of the notebook was very well laid out and much thought was put into its presentation. We have and will continue to highly recommend Tours of Excellence to anyone wishing to plan their next vacation destination to England, Scotland, Ireland or Wales. We can not express enough our deepest appreciation to Paula Edwards for all the time and energy she took to assist us with our vacation plans. Paula is a wonderful person to work with, and we know that anyone wishing to contact her will be given the same personal consideration that she gave us that made us feel special. Because of her, we will never forget the vacation of a lifetime, and wish to thank Paula for making our dream vacation come true.

Sandi Shirey, USA
We are two couples from Virginia in the United States who enjoy visiting England. In the past, we had taken tours but this year, we wanted to visit places not available on a regular tour. We found Tours of Excellence on line and began an email conversation with Paula Edwards. We had no idea that it would turn out as well as it did. The trip was a success because of Paula’s ability to listen to what we wanted to do, to suggest alternatives, to make reservations and other arrangements, all of which worked beautifully. Paula’s attention to detail included alerting us to possible crowd issues at times, and to festivals and special events we may wish to attend, and then getting us the tickets for those things we did wish to do. The final itinerary provided every detail we needed. Awaiting us when we arrived at our first hotel was a daily itinerary with vouchers, confirmations and other documents, which allowed us to travel without concern.

Alice Colton, Alice Travel, Travel Agent, USA
I wanted to thank you for making my clients trip to Cornwall absolutely wonderful. Your attention to detail is quite amazing. From the planning stages to the conclusion of the tour no request was too small and all questions were answered thoroughly. When it came time to prepare documents these were the most complete I have seen. Every day was outlined and every minute detail was included. It truly amazed me that you checked up on the clients and kept me advised. You made me look good to the clients and the clients truly appreciated a trip well planned and well executed. I look forward to working with you again in the near future.

Kay Sanders, Sanders Travel & Tours Inc, Travel Agent, USA
Tours of Excellence is a small outstanding company that can produce huge results for the clients. I have used them for my specialty tours, and the clients always comment that the tour was wonderful. Paula Edwards pays attention to the small details, and keeps her promises to give us the best available. Furthermore, she is quick with responses to our questions. I first ran across her skills when she worked at a different company, and those skills came with her when she started Tours of Excellence. The company name says it all - they are the best I know in Britain.

Marion Scoular, Sherwood Studio, Duluth, GA, USA
I have been impressed by the thoroughness and insight that Paula uses in preparing my rather specialised Embroidery Tours.  She pays great attention to the smallest details and her knowledge means that she anticipates our needs, often saving us valuable time and money. This knowledge includes being aware of the restrictions that our coach driver has on his time behind the wheel, so adjusting the itinerary accordingly.  She responds promptly to my enquiries.  I would not consider a tour without her expertise.... in fact, we have booked her for 2009 & 2010! 

Bill & Ruthanne Wright, Denver, Colorado, USA
Paula is indeed the best in the travel industry! Our trip to England was the trip of a lifetime. planned for our own individual interests & needs. Not being seasoned world-travellers, planning our itinerary was a daunting mystery. Paula took our vague ideas & fleshed out the most delightful adventure! All details were covered; directions, entrance fees & helpful tidbits & a coffee along the way. It was as close to stress-free as travelling in a foreign country (that drives disconcertingly on the other side of the road) can possibly be! Our experience began in London. Paula led us through the historic sights & experiences while leaving time for to explore the charming neighbourhood cafes & shops near our lovely, reasonably priced hotel. We never felt hurried or exhausted by the pace. English breakfasts were outstanding; we've been converted to milk in our tea and grilled tomatoes since. Taking a train to York, we then embarked on the most storybook-like trip through English countryside & picturesque little villages, hills and dales. Our lodgings were greatly varied; all excellent. Paula honoured our budget needs and far exceeded our expectations. Never could we have found such delights on our own. We're smitten; can't wait to plan another adventure with Tours of Excellence and Paula Edwards.

Ed & Kellie Sensintaffar, Montgomery, Alabama, USA
As avid gardeners, we had dreamed of seeing some proper English gardens. A search on the internet led us to Tours of Excellence. We expressed our interest in touring gardens as well as some of the Methodist, John & Charles Wesley, sites. Paula responded quickly with an initial plan that needed little modification. She prepared an itinerary that included much more than we could ever have expected. We enjoyed touring London, visiting seventeen gardens and two of the Wesley churches/homes in ten days. The gardens ranged from small private gardens, where we visited with the owners, to some of England’s finest gardens with stately houses and castles. All were beautiful and each had it own special features. We received the “Final Details” before leaving the States and found that when we arrived all details, including hotel, local travel and admission arrangements were included in the package. We had a very enjoyable ten day visit thanks to Paula Edwards and the Tours of Excellence.

Phyllis & Bill Bettencourt, Arroyo Grande, California, USA
We cannot express enough the gratitude we have for all the assistance that Paula Edwards of Tours of Excellence provided us recently, for our trip to England with our granddaughter. From start to finish we had full confidence in what services she could and would provide for us. Her communication was excellent and prompt. We were amazed at how quickly she would get back to us with answers or information via email. Upon leaving the US we had full confidence that all the services - train tickets from airport into London, hotel reservations, and train to central England and back to London - would be intact. To our further amazement we were handed a notebook binder from Paula when we checked into our first hotel with further travel details, plus extra tourist information she thought we could use. We would not hesitate recommending Paula to any of our friends in the US contemplating future travel to the UK and neighbouring countries.

David & Judy May, Canada
My wife and I were planning a once in a lifetime trip to England, France and Italy that would take us 5 months to complete. We knew we needed someone extraordinary to help us with the logistics of this adventure and I can't believe how fortunate we were to find Paula Edwards and Tours of Excellence. Right from the start through countless e-mails Paula learned more and more about us and our needs to begin to layout details of locations and accommodations. We left Canada with a thick binder holding our complete itinerary, guides, maps, tickets, contact phone numbers and more. She booked planes, trains, cars, ferries, hotels, apartments and virtually everything we would need in those 5 months. My wife has a disability that grew worse as time went by and Paula helped us through these issues by adapting our plans as needed. She was always as close as my phone and we stayed in touch constantly. Perhaps it's only when things happen that are unplanned that you find out just how good your support team is. We can tell you that with Paula on our side it was like having a family member look out for you. We don't think we would travel again without calling her and she has the strongest possible recommendation we could give.

Ray & Kathy Widick, Florida, USA
We consider ourselves extremely fortunate to have had the pleasure of working with Paula Edwards and Tours of Excellence in making our vacation in the United Kingdom a truly magical experience. Every portion of our holiday from concept to reality was handled professionally and with utmost attention right down to the minutest detail. Our castle tours and overnight stays were above all expectations. Thank you, thank you so much! Ray and I will definitely be in touch when it’s time to plan our next visit and we highly recommend Tours of Excellence.