Norwegian Coastal Voyage From $6,399 $6,149 pp*

Stayed in **** hotels, ate at great restaurants. Guided tours were thorough and informative.

Good excursions. Best was the Sammi people visit. Loads of wonderful scenery.

Well-planned visit to a very beautiful country! This trip was unique as it had a 6-day relaxing coastal cruise along Norway’s beautiful coast in the middle of the tour! It was most enjoyable as it was very casual and slower paced than other tours! Plus our tour manager was always so helpful to all of the travelers! If she didn’t know the answer to a question or problem, she worked to find out a good solution! She was fun and very accessible!

Everything in Norway is beautiful, but the train trips through the mountains were so beautiful with so many waterfalls and quaint towns along the way! It was especially interesting to travel to regions above the Arctic Circle to see such a different environment than where I live!

Collette delivered what was promised. Their tour manager cared about the people. Only in one place was I disappointed. After a long day’s travel, the group had to walk at least a half mile in the rain, over uneven stone pavement, to get from the restaurant to the hotel. After a long day’s travel, mostly old people should not be expected to walk that far. Other than that, everything went smoothly and the trip was wonderful.

Wonderful scenery. I liked seeing and traveling in the fjords with the magnificent waterfalls.

Trip was as promised

It was as advertised . The cruse was great.

Excellent tour guide - Miriam Bourin Transfers for pre-trip to Stockholm not good. Only 1 of 3 was excellent. Our instructions on arriving in Olso were not what Miriam was told. No one to pick us up. (would be OK, IF we had been told that.)

Well organized. Too bad we were unable to take fjord cruise in Fla. We than Collette for recently telling us there would be a refund for that.

We were not impressed with the hoops we had to go through before purchasing. The travel agent had to constantly phone Collette to get answers, and we were told the prices changed constantly so we had to pay first before finding the correct cost. Having said that, the entire trip... transportation, accommodations and guide could not have been better.

We booked and Outside cabin and Hertigruten upgraded us to an Owner's Suite. Wow! That was a very unexpected gift to us. Loved watching the scenery pass by.

Tour guide, Chuck was amazing!! Friendly, professional, interesting, knowledgeable and fun!! Heard so many horror stories about tour guides not knowing a thing about the city they were supposed to be guiding you around, but Chuck was wonderful!! Such a pleasure to be with!

Our tour guide, Chuck even took us around small villages that we weren’t scheduled to see and knew tidbits about them all! He went above and beyond to make sure we had a wonderful time! Great fun!!

The trip, which included three countries, several hotels and various forms of transportation was extremely well managed by Mr. Chuck Tracy. There were obstacles (not created by the manager) which were expertly overcome so that all was on schedule. The timeliness of events and comfort of the travelers seemed to always be in his forefront. We have only praise for Mr. Tracy and Collette for assigning him to this tour.

A lot to see and enjoy. Perhaps the most exciting and enjoyable was the Flam Railway and visit to Bergen. That is just beautiful country! Visiting the Semi people and getting up close and personal with the Rain Deer was a learning and exciting experience.

Collette's Tour Director for this tour was very good at assisting with transfers and keep tour members punctual. However, he did not do anything above the minimum amount required during the tour. For example, our experiences with other companies were such that the Directors organized walks, etc. or other activities during free time if the members of the tour wished to take advantage of such activities . And other Directors mixed with the group by eating meals with them, etc. This Director did none of the above. In fact, he even announced to the group that he had gone off on his own to visit a palace. He did not announce that to the group before he left for the palace, and did not invite members of the group to accompany him. It appeared throughout the tour that he was more interested in taking photos on his own, than making himself available to the group for questions, guidance, etc. Additionally, we had requested quiet hotel rooms and ship cabin. However, some of our hotel rooms were located near elevators. Further, on the Hurtigruten vessel, not only was our room located near elevators/stair landings - but we had requested a cabin on the starboard side of the vessel and were given a cabin on the port side. And also, the view out of our cabin window was obstructed by the bottom of a lifeboat and the mechanisms to which it was attached - after paying a considerable amount to upgrade the cabin to a window/view cabin. Several of the hotels we would characterize as being below acceptable standards. Many of the important points of interest were driven by during the city tours, instead of visited as a part of the tour and paid for by Collette.

The Norway in a Nutshell, and the Hurtigruten portion of the trip.

PROF. JAMES FOX, RET. - REFEREE TO: MR DAN SULLIVAN, CEO COLLETEE VACATIONS DATE: JULY 8, 2018 Re: Chuck Tracy - Norwegian Coastal Voyage & Scandinavian Capitals PREMAMBLE STATEMENT Mr. Tracy’s responsibility in a recently completed tour of Scandinavia and its environs - was to inform, guide, lead, chaperon and/ or direct our group of vacationers through a maze of travel challenges. Mr. Tracy provided exemplary leadership through written and verbal communication during the entire trip. Part of Mr. Tracy’s success was determined by his quality of leadership skills (that is, leadership which informed the objective and goals of our trip in the first place) and hitting time-line goals. Mr. Tracy's responsibility cannot be understated. His effort included working with ALL other members of the vacationing group in his entourage. His efforts - as well as other areas of Mr. Tracy's work were extraordinary. For example, although not directly linked to this specific vacation agenda - much of his work-related-characteristics were also on display in his manners, empathy, and informal group discussion participation. Mr. Tracy demonstrated characteristics suggesting that Collette’s commitment to excellence does not stop with merely ‘getting’ vacationers to their desired destination, but rather a dedication to ‘real’ enjoyment in our trip - leaving few 'stones unturned' as he approached our various mini-excursions. His interest and desire to firmly and completely understand why our past informs our future is remarkable. Finally, Mr. Tracy's oral and written communication skills supported empathy for those in his charge which unquestionably serves as a model for future tour guides. Simply put, his work is outstanding. UNIQUE POTITIVE FACTORS Mr. Chuck Tracy demonstrated - to me and speaking for Mrs. Fox as well - a willingness to work FOR each vacationer as opposed to drive us there and – ‘we leave in ten minutes’ methodology - which he shared with all members in our vacation group. He also offered timely help for each transfer (by necessity, we enjoyed one (1) train trip, three (3) plane flights, and a ship voyage. Next - I was impressed that Mr. Tracy did not confuse kindness with weakness. This is an extraordinary tour-guide attribute. Finally, Mr. Tracy was energetic. He started the tour with rigor and continued a busy pace that separated him from 'the average' responsibility assigned or expected of a tour guide. POTENTIALLY NEGATIVE FACTORS Mr. Chuck Tracy demonstrated a tendency to over-worry about the need, comfort, and his personal influence on each vacationer’s personal satisfaction in the tour and to him personally. As a sort of 'Devil's Advocate' - as it were, he was over apprehensive. However, in the end, Mr. Tracy was always in the best position to reject spurious claims that ‘this could have been done better…’ or ‘why does Collette do that…’ – no matter how well intentioned our unsolicited advice might have been. COMPARATIVE STRENGTH WITH OTHER TOUR INITIATIVES Mr. Tracy – as a tour guide – holds (it seems to me) a significantly elevated position in comparison with other tour guides requiring firm, but also compassionate leadership of comparative rigor. Since I do not possess his tour-guide records prior to this specific trip - my only view is juxtaposed against this Norwegian Costal vacation initiative. Nonetheless, his work in this regard is extraordinary. RELAVANT TOUR EXPERIENCE As mentioned, Mr. Tracy's prior tour leadership work is not part of my preview. However, based on his command of resolving extraordinary challenges on this trip, his skills cannot be overestimated, in my opinion. REPUTATION OF COLLETTE FROM A VACATIONEERS’ POINT OF VIEW Collette undoubtedly prides itself in turning out tour guides fully prepared to attract future vacations with Collette. Vacationers are constantly evaluating, and re-evaluating individual tours and I would suspect that Collette is always mindful of its reputation to insure their customers are receiving the best possible tour experience. Therefore, as a client myself, I am mindful that Mr. Tracy’s rigorous approach to our satisfaction is - by extension – a boilerplate moto that each vacationer expects - 'you care to send the very best.' MR. TRACY'S POTENTIAL Mr. Tracy has potential to be a complete ‘conflict resolution’ practitioner - in my opinion – and is on the fast-track for ‘tour guide of the year’ (if such an award exists) for several reasons. First, he has demonstrated - to me - an academic and theatrical attitude combined, which appears to inform his ambition. Secondly, he is ambitious without undermining his ability for human interaction. Lastly, his personality recommends his need to work with others in a group - striving to obtain a tour outcome without offending others in the process. This is amazing in-and-of itself. ABILITY TO EXPRESS INSTRUCTIONS ORALLY AND IN WRITING Mr. Tracy's communication - both orally and written - are - perhaps - his strongest attributes. He is - or was on this tour- comprehensive - consistent, and thorough. ABILITY TO CONDEPTUALIZE AND INTEGRATE KNOWLEDGE I am impressed with the Mr. Tracy's ability to draw strong inferential data from other sources - (local tour guide specialist) - on topics covering a narrow domain of interest. He consistently provided information - in general bus-group discussions - that was the source of reflection and expanded debate. OTHER FACTORS My overall impression of Mr. Tracy suggests that he is interested in 'creating' something or 'advancing our body of knowledge' - and to that end - he seems - to me - the perfect candidate for ‘tour guide’ of the year award if such an award was available. James Fox, Professor (Retired) Geography and Cartographic Sciences Southside Virginia Community College

The organization, execution, and conclusion of each day's experience was outstanding.

The accommodations, including hotels, ships, restaurants, coaches and excursions, were very good. Our tour leader was both knowledgeable and personable. He made every effort to enhance the our overall trip experience.

The hotel accommodations in Stockholm (Scandic - Grand Central) were not up to the standards for a trip such as this.

The was our second Collette tour. The first was an East Coast American Heritage tour and it was excellent so we expected the same level of expertise with this trip - but it fell way short. First of all the Tour Manager, the person accompanying us on the entire trip, was from Seattle WA. and had never been to some of the areas and knew even less about some of the areas than we did. It also seemed that he was getting wrong information and poor support from the home office. It was like the blind leading the almost blind. Before the trip even departed the started Collette cancelled the optional archipelago tour we had signed up for without ever giving an explanation and more than the minimum number of people had signed up or indicated they would have gone. We had been to several of the cities numerous times and were really looking forward to that particular tour. Someone screwed up our Hurtigruten cabin reservation (we never did find out who or why). The hotels and their locations were great, the in-city tour guides very good, the transfers on time and comfortable. They seemed to be cheap or skimp on drinks (including water on the buses). We went hours on the bus with no information or narration - some learning experience. It would have been great to have had a tour manager who was either from the area, had lived in the area or at least had greater knowledge of the area instead of a person who acted like he was seeing it for the first time. It was clearly not the same class or quality we had anticipated.

Iceland was very interesting and the Hurtigruten a memorable experience. Nice group of fellow travelers.

I have recommended Collette to anyone who will listen! We have enjoyed our tours with them. The logistics are impressive and the guides are great. Hotels are wonderful and the free time is nice.

The Northern Lights were spectacular and the Richard With was a fun boat. Very relaxing!

We had problems with the way the flights were booked causing us to have to pay for luggage even though we were traveling internationally. Also, had some flight issues and the Collette representatives were not as helpful and thorough as they should be in resolving our issue. Outside of flight issues, the service was good.

Unfortunately missed the first capital portion of the trip due to flight problems. Really enjoyed the rest of the tour. Tour guide was not as personable as we had expected. Loved the boat tour through the Fjords.

I am nit exactly sure what you mean by their service therefore I am being guarded in my response

The tour was awesome the destinations , local guides, hotels, cruise on the Hurtigruten (rxceot for our cabin) meals , etc were all great! Especially enjoyed the wslking tour in Stickholm. The hotel location in Copenhagen was suoer!

I have bought several tours from Collette and rated them all 5 stars. This tour, however, had problems inherent in it. The hotels and lodging was good, but some details were not. We were unable to see a plan of the Hurtigruten ship in advance and could not pick the cabin. We requested an outside cabin which we did get, but it was on a lower deck than we would have chosen. Some cabins on the same level as ours had coffee makers and some had TV's. Details of what was and was not available on the ship would have been helpful. Also, the only optional tour we were told about in advance was the tour of Fredericksborg castle. There were many excursions daily from the ship which it would have been good to know about earlier. It would have been good to know also about the high cost of a glass of wine on the ship - $20. There were 43 people in our group which we felt was too many on such a trip with so many different changes of locations. Our tour leader did what she could, I guess, under the circumstances, but she too often seemed overwhelmed and scattered. The places we visited, both in the capital cities and from the ship were extraordinarily beautiful and it was a trip we enjoyed immensely. We especially enjoyed the "Norway in a Nutshell" day, as well as all the days on the ship. Crossing the Arctic Circle and experiencing the fjords, waterfalls, mountains and the various towns along the coast was unbelievably beautiful. All in all - a wonderful vacation!

The overall tour and what it included was excellent, but some of the details could have been better as I stated in my initial statement.

Everything was very well planned.

Cruise along the coast and visiting the fishing villages.

The tour director *Personal details removed by Feefo* was great! He did everything he can in rather difficult itinerary. The pace of the trip was little bit too fast, and the cruise part had lots of info missing in beforehand notice. The explorations on the boat was quite expensive for what they provided. The meal on the boat was good, but the drink was just too much. Too many days, we had to buy our own meals. I rather pay little more to have meals provided than hunt for restaurants.

Three cities (Stockholm, Copenhagen, Oslo) were great, we will not be able to visit them otherwise.

Our Collette guide was not well informed about the countries we traveled. She was of little help on the ship part of our trip as never led a trip into the towns but instead tagged along with another tour guide and was only available to consult with us for an hour or so each day and handed out some information...big deal. We paid well for a guided tour not a partial guided tour. She was not well organized and the worst part was you ask the guides to collect the surveys of the trip. It was very obvious she read what I said as was very cold to me the last day of the trip. You need to have the indepth surveys go directly to your office!!

Would have liked more time in Oslo and at the end of the ship tour as so close to the Russian border.

Not enough meals and the food we had was mediocre for the price we paid. The tour manager needed to be more well grounded regarding the places we visited.

Commented before on this question.

Very professional in all respects to include tour reservations, airline bookings, accommodations, local tour guides

Tour was beyond expectations with an extraordinary energetic and detailed-oriented tour guide who was pro-active in preventing airport transfer problems and coordinating all luggage transfers flawlessly! She was always available and looking out for all 32 tour members. The Tour Itinerary was aggressive and well-planned for each country visited, Local tour guides were engaging and knowledgeable. Loved the Hurtigruten cruise along Norwegian coast and the Iceland extension! Very nice hotels and locations selected in all countries. Great trip!

We booked thru Avoya Travel and Dave Sklar. He was terrific and everything was arranged perfectly and came off without a hitch! I would highly recommend his knowledge - Dave could answer any question, and I had plenty! He made us comfortable with his expertise! We felt good because he had been on this trip and had actual experience he could share.

All of Scandinavia was gorgeous and unique! The terrain was spectacular, especially the fjords! All of the capitol cites were interesting and charming! The people were friendly and happy you were there! It felt safe and easy to get around all of the cities. We really enjoyed the trip and would definitely recommend it!

This is our 3-rd Collette tour. The first two were great-Collette in Maine has always been wonderfully helpful and went the extra mile and the tour managers were very good. This third one just plain lacked in almost every way. NO! I would never recommend Collette again, as a result of this trip. We are unlikely to buy from them again.

Very good,centrally located hotels---except Copenhagan. The Tour Manager was poor---she told us way too many times that she had never been on the cruise part of the trip and also "poor me" because she said she was up most of the night working on our tour. We did have some unavoidable problems-Swedish pilots went on strike, Both excursions were cancelled for less than 15 people. I know this is policy, but let us know in time for us to plan something on our own. Oh, what were the chances of getting 15 people when there were only 22 on the trip. Our tour manager knew nothing about the Iceland extension 7 of us were taking and was of no help. Lucky for us, a Collette tour manager,, had a group in Iceland. We met her in the lobby of the hotel and she provided packets of in, confirmed our tour rides, to the airport, etc. One more thing-not enough time in any of the cities and who doesn't hate getting off a plane and being told we are on our own for the afternoon or for dinner. The best part of the trip was the cruise up the coast of Norway. Staff was great and the expedition crew knew there stuff and the talks were excellent (evenings)

Amateurish

Former trips good...this trip had poor Preparation and execution for seasoned travelers...sky moping on little details and "no plan B" Shen plan "A" is in jeopardy .