Dear Ramon,
The Downs Wine Society would like to thank you for the excellent five day trip you organised in September for us to sample some of the wines of the Rioja region of Spain.
The standard of accommodation and food exceeded our expectations. We greatly improved our knowlege about Rioja wine from our visits to the 4 very different bodegas and one of the highlights of the visit was the tour of the museum of wine history. Logrono was very vibrant with its Wine Festival and street entertainment. Our visit to the Guggenheim Museum and tour of the old quarter of Bilbao was a perfect ending to our trip.
Thank you for your expert organisation and for not losing any of us in Bilbao!
With best wishes
Judy Keys
Member of the Downs Wine Society
Dear Ramon
We were looking for something very special and I must admit that you came up with the most outstanding tour we had ever experienced. We will definitely contact you again and will not hesitate to highly recommend you to others who want to experience great food, excellent wines and amazing entertainment.
Thank you for showing us the
Real Spain in such a highly professional manner.
Franz Willmes
Intercapital Brokers
Hi Ramon,
I just wanted to say a BIG thank you for organising my parent's wine tour - they had an absolutely
fabulous time and were so over-excited when I got home from Ibiza, that it was hard for them to contain
themselves!!!!
Thanks so much for making it wonderful for them!!! I will definitely recommend your tours to anyone else
looking for something similar in Spain.
Many Thanks again
Kylie
Dear Ramon
You are a very gracious host and was I glad to get to meet you. I too enjoyed your company - you make me smile. I'll have to say I missed your daily updates on the US economy the rest of my trip. As I'm sure you're well aware - it's gotten worse.
I really enjoyed the wine tour - and will recommend it to others. You have done an excellent job in picking out diverse wineries, that made the tour interesting. I also liked that the group ended up being smaller - it made it easier to get to know the others. I really liked the Hotel in Haro - very charming and comfortable. As for the food - it was amazing! I can't comment enough on how excellent the food was. I really enjoyed the tapas tours in Logrono even in the crowded streets of the festival - we would not have been able to do that without you. I liked getting to experience new food - octopus, pork foie - both which were excellent. Alberto also is great tour guide! He is very knowledgeable about wine and history of Spain and Rioja.
I am looking forward to drinking the wine that you gave us. I will think about the trip and you when I drink it.
Thanks for the offer on the advice for Spain - I will take you up on that as I do plan to return someday. Also I am planning a trip to London and Ireland next spring/summer, so I may ask you questions about London if you don't mind. If you ever need info regarding the U.S. - I will try my best to reciprocate.
Thanks for the info about the culinary and wine tour - I will definitely pass it on.
Best Wishes,
Evelyn
Hello Ramon,
Firstly I would like to thank you sincerely for all your help in organizing our trip to Spain. I don’t know what I
would have done without your help.
I wish we had more time in London – we are only transiting this time – otherwise we would like to have met you
& thanked you in person. If you are going to be in Spain in September maybe we can meet there !
Whilst we are away – we leave Australia on 31.8.07 ( we are going via Beijing) – we can be contacted on my
mobile XXXXXXXXX.
Thank you once again,
Kind regards,
Suzanne Windrim
We had a great time and loved Spain. People were very friendly. The hotel in Granada was super
location with great assistance. Saw so much history, hiked to St. Michael Church and toured caves
in Sacremente. The Alhambra was amazing. The tour guide was extremely knowledgeable and to be
honest probably too advanced for our intellect which was maybe why he was so expensive. (a
farmer and a banker) He would be great for professors and educators. You were hesitant about him
due to expense which I don't discredit you. We made the choice and we did learn. Good experience.
Hotel was good in Seville. Great location! Again, they spoke English which helped us. Loved tapas
and the heart of Spain with such old history. You were so kind to check on us with phone calls, etc.
I actually felt confident when flying there because of your assistance. Thank you for everything.
You have been great! You are good at your job!
Leslie
Dear Ramon
It was a fantastic trip.Brenda and I had a wonderful time and appreciated the careful planning which ensured we
enjoyed the wine,food and architecture.A memorable weekend ...and our thanks for your help with the wheelchair!
With our best wishes
Ernie and Brenda
Thank you, Ramond, for the excellent organisation of the Rioja winery tour.
The guides you found for us were good-humoured, charming and professional.
I wish you all the best with your future projects.
Stephen Allender
Dear Ramon
The pleasure was ours.....!
The Gods have certainly gifted La Rioja with perfection in all things - the sun, the gloriously fire-coloured vines
covering such a dramatic landscape, the amazing buildings so fearlessly set into the very best that nature can offer,
the gorgeous wines we tasted which were so plentifully offered and the wonderful food .... and here I am running out
of superlatives to describe what was for us one of the most pleasurable trips we have ever taken.
Our thanks to you for the excellent organisation and I have already been recommending you to friends and
colleagues who were interested in hearing about the trip.
Anthony Hemy
We enjoyed the trip very much - the choice of wineries to visit couldn't have been better. Fortunately the weather
was favourable and Alan has some very good photographs. I am sorry that because of my bad cold and the late
lunch for Alan on the one day - we had to finish our visit early - thank you for arranging the taxi. I hope too that you
haven't caught my cold - goodness knows where I got it from! I am now back at work still feeling pretty ill, but I have
some lovely memories of the holiday - thank you for arranging it with David. I think we went at the best time of the
year to see the beautiful colours of the region - certainly a lovely part of Spain to visit. I especially enjoyed the lunch
on the Saturday in the traditional winery - set against the backdrop of the mountains.
Many thanks, Christine
Dear Ramon
It was a fascinating and relaxing trip, with plenty of time to get to know the group - well done and thank you.
George Bird
Hello Ramon and team at the unique traveller
Pam and I had a marvellous trip to Rioja with you which managed to pack a great deal into a short space
of time whilst still feeling leisurely.
Alberto's explanations were excellent and Antonio was discreetly in support whenever required.
You were quite right to insist on Maria leading us at the first winery: her vigour and enthusiasm got all the
winery visits off on the right foot and was a pleasure.
Yesterday I met the well known Edinburgh modern architect Richard Murphy at the Soane Museum. He
was insistent that Spain sets a very high standard in modern architecture and now has a marvellous
portfolio to show off. I hope that you will be able to offer more excellent tours on these lines to the
architects and to everyone in due course.
Thanks again for a marvellous tour and we hope to travel again with you soon.
Philip and Pam
Dear Ramon,
First of all my sincere apologies for the tardy reply, life has been non stop since we returned from our wonderful
excursion to wineries of Rioja.
Ros and I thoroughly enjoyed the experience, the wonderfully creative architecture and the passion of the
winemakers for their art and of course the end product.
We certainly also appreciated the wonderful guidance of Alberto and Antonio who brought significant knowledge to
the tour and enhanced the whole wonderful experience.
The exuberance of the great-grand daughter of the founder of Tondonia certainly proved that genealogy is not a
myth, she shared his passion and his vision for the family tradition and the determination to maintain the exceptional
standards of the Tondonia wines.
The beauty of the Marques de Riscal Winery and the sensational hotel design will live in our memories for ever, not
to mention a most agreeable luncheon and superb wines from the Bodega.
The fantastic roof line of the Calatrava Ysios Winery, so effectively reflecting the Cantabrian Mountains in the
backdrop and the quality of the structure and the processes within in such an efficient and yet striking setting, were
fantastic.
To be followed by another wonderful lunch at the Chateau styled Remelluri Estate and the wonderful talk from
Alberto about his passion for Rioja region, the people and of course the wines!
I am not sure we were ready for the striking winery at Vina Real, the Engineering was stimulating and yet so
effective for the modernity of the winery and its processes. As you know I am very fond of the Vina Real and its
sister wine Contino, so the visit was all the more special for me.
All in all, the whole event was extremely professional and our congratulation to all three of you, but especially you
Ramón as you went totally out of your way to make each and every one of us feel as though it was our personal
tour. Also for your personal care, attention and assistance to Ernie Watkinson, when BA managed to lose his
wheelchair.
I have recommended you to colleague from Lantra, who I sure will be getting in touch shortly.
Once again our congratulations and sincerest thanks for an absolutely super trip, which will remain with us for ever.
Regards to all of you,
Peter & Rosalind Rogerson.
Kina,
had a very good time, wine tour was the best part of the trip. Excellent guide and
great tours of wineries, very good food for the breakfasts and lunches that were
included. What an experience, not one other American the whole time and no English
speaking people except the guide. Were on our own in the evenings and we did fine.
Lots of tapas and walking around these ancient medieval towns. Fascinating. Very
friendly people and even though no English very helpful when we needed assistance.
My high school Spanish came in handy.
All Euros everywhere, no point in taking any American money except to exchange, no one
took it even in big cities or at airports. ATM's everywhere and easy to use. Hotels
did not do money exchanges there not big enough I guess, banks or ATM's only way.
Even though told of pick pockets and thieves never had a problem and felt very safe
physically everywhere we were any time of day or night.
I would have even felt safe on my own as a single woman.
Tours on the cruise were great ie Rome, Florence etc and ship very pretty and nice
but food was very mediocre (Royal Carribean). Was like eating at Holiday Inn, very
standard fare and American food, steak every night on menu but no special sauces and
very bland presentation, no special appetizers or desserts. Would not go Royal
Carribean again due to that. Also shows were not as good as other cruises we have
been on just a few acrobats and not much else.
Barcelona mostly just a big city but hotel you found was very good and very centrally
located. Good service and good beds but what they call a restaurant is a bar with a
few sandwiches and not much else, no one really ate there.
So all in all a very interesting and exciting trip and we saw a whole different way
of life which was good.
Thanks for all of your assistance and we will be in touch again.
Carol
Dear Ramon,
My husband and his friend had the most amazing time and have not stopped talking about it!!! So thank you so much.
They are going to contact you directly with feedback.
Regards
Samantha Rees
Ramon,
Thank you for arranging such a fantastic trip.
The hotel was perfect and in a great location and the guide at Tordonia was fantastic as was the meal and wine at Remelluri.
The meal at Laguardia was superb and the staff looked after us very well.
The highlight for us though was the extremely professional, pleasant and interesting guide you hired. We are indeed Unique travellers and he handled us competently with a wonderful grasp of the British sense of humour! My friend constantly made no sense at all and he ignored his ramblings beautifully. I would certainly recommend him to your British clients.
Please pass on our gratitude and regards to his family who sound very nice.
Regards
Bryan Rees
Ramon,
Thanks very much, it was a very nice place and we had a good time.
Location is perfect, service fantastic and food simple but sufficient. Staff was very nice and helpful..........that was the best added value of the place.
Thank you very much for arranging this and we know where to find you next time.
All the best,
Wouter
Wouter H.L. Han
Lazard
Ramon,
Just wanted to drop you a note to let you know that I thoroughly enjoyed the trip to Rioja. I also wanted to tell you how much our overall enjoyment was due to the knowledge and enthusiasm of our tour guide, Alberto. The interesting choice of vineyards and restaurants really gave us a broad taste of the region, but without Alberto I don't think it would have been as enjoyable.
Regards,
Pat Zvokel
Rioja, May 7 - 10, 2008
Hi Ramon,
Thanks! We had a great time in spite of the weather. Thanks for everything.
We will recommend your company to our friends and colleagues for sure.
Susan
Ramon,
We really enjoyed the wine tour of Rioja. The hotels, the food, and especially our guide, Alberto, were fantastic!
One of my favourite things was the interesting contrasts of style, size, and philosophies that the selected wineries illustrated. I also was relieved that it was a very non-snobby approach to appreciating wine. I hate the pretentious way some people talk about wine.
We had dinner the first night at the restaurant (Las Duellas) at our hotel. My mother and I were both shocked at the quality of the seafood at this restaurant--as good or better than any I have had in Los Angeles, or even on Kauai, which certainly has some of the best fish in the world.
So I am extremely satisfied with the tour, and will definitely be recommending you to my friends.
Thanks so much
Michael Kieley
Ramon
I've been meaning to write to you but I've been very busy since I got back. First of all, thank you very much for organising such a nice trip, we both very much enjoyed it.
I thought you might like some general feedback on the tour. First up, Alberto was great- a real gentleman, who clearly knew what he was talking about and was not imposing at all. In fact, we got on so well, we thought about inviting him to stick around for an extra evening for a few drinks! The accommodation was absolutely first-class- the hotel in Haro was one of the nicest I've ever stayed in and the Marques hotel in Logrono was also excellent, the people were very friendly and helpful, we actually ended up staying an extra night there. Overall, the wine tours were very good and quite interesting, even for my girlfriend Laura who would not have quite the same passion for wine as I do! The Rioja was obviously great, but of course I knew that already! But I think it was the food which impressed me the most- I had expected a high standard but was still very pleasantly surprised! I had some of the best steaks I ever had there, also the regional delicacies such as Burgos black pudding were fantastic! Both lunches were excellent, in particular the one on the second day in the little village whose name I've forgotten at the moment.. The scenery was beautiful- Alberto told us that the wettest May in 60 years had contributed to making the region greener than usual for this time of year which was also nice!
Anyway, well done once again on the organisation- I thought the whole thing was very well thought-out and pre-planned. The bottles of wine waiting for us at the hotel was a very classy touch! I would have no trouble recommending your tour to other people, in fact, I already have done. Despite some trouble with Ryanair luggage policies, I managed to smuggle several bottles of Reserva back into the country, which I plan to enjoy over the next few months!
Many thanks again, I'm sure I will be in touch in the future about another trip at some stage!
Take care and best wishes
John
Hi Ramon
I have just had an email from clients who said they had the most amazing time ever. Thank you so much for organising a wonderful and exclusive tour for them.
Regards Jacqui
Jacqui Harvey
UK/Europe, USA/Canada Wholesale Team Leader / House of Travel Ltd
Thanks Ramon, and also for the list of distributors.
I really enjoyed the tour - best things for me were: the range of wineries you'd chosen; learning so much about different methods of wine production; getting to taste a range of excellent wine; Alberto (he was really knowledgeable and down to earth); fantastic food; exactly right mix of organised time and free time; having your expert guidance to the tapas bars in Logroño;
I've recommended the tour already to a few friends who I think would enjoy it.
All the best
Judith
Hi Ramon
Thanks very much, we really enjoyed the trip too. I did get to the football so thanks too for your help with that.
A few comment:
- we liked the group makeup of 9 guests and 2 guides
- great itinerary with a good mix of old and new wineries
- enjoyed lunch at Remelluri
- enjoyed the mix of singles and couples
- we have recommended you to others
Regards
Adrian & Gill
Hi Ramon,
Thank you for your email. Both Hans and I enjoyed the trip a lot. We will definitely recommend it to our friends. I copied Hans in this email. He will give you more feedback.
Best Regards
Jennie
Hi Ramon,
Hope you are well. Sorry it has taken us so long to reply but work has been manic since we have been back!
Thank you so much for such a lovely break, we were so relaxed and full of Rioja and good food when we left that it felt like we had been away for a couple of weeks! The itinerary was perfect from our point of view, it was good to see the different types of wineries and learn so much from yourself and Alberto. We really enjoyed the Rioja Festival too, which we would not have been able to enjoy as much without you!
We have loads of good photos, which I will email to you as soon as I get a chance.
Thanks again for all of your help in organising the tour and for the offer of free advice on Spain, (I am sure we will be taking you up on the offer soon). Also, thanks for our massive bottle of wine – we have already finished one!
Take care and speak to you soon.
Sat & Clint
Hi Ramon...
You have gone above & beyond and I can't begin to thank you for doing all of this for a complete stranger. I have no doubt that your tour will be fabulous and whether you like it or not (ha ha) we will be back for another.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Again thanks so much from the bottom of my heart. You are truly a class act & I am very impressed.
Regards, Suzanne
