We are happy n satisfied with both the guides for our tour in Hokkaido.
Thank u
Hope all is well! I apologize for not answering the questions sooner. We had left town for a long weekend for a family reunion for my wifes family so didnt get a chance.
I cant figure out the form so I was just going to type my response.
Travel Consultant 5 Whitney was absolutely terrific. She designed a wonderful trip for my family. She was so timely in her responses. I know there is a time difference, but she would always have a response to me the next morning. I honestly couldn't believe it. She was extremely receptive to my ideas or any changes we made to the itinerary. She has a tremendous amount of knowledge about the areas we visited, and she gave her honest opinion, which I really appreciated. I told everyone before we went if the tour is as good as this travel consultant we are in for a great trip and indeed we were.
Tour guides: Hiroko Kara
Command of English 5
Knowledge of Subjects 5
Ability to explain 5
Attitude 5
Flexibility 5
Hiroko, "Hiro", was absolutely wonderful. Her ability to communicate in English was superb. My dad and aunt who are hard of hearing had no issues. The kids in the back of the van could easily understand and hear her. Her knowledge was so impressive. She knew answers to nearly every question we had and really explained complex history so we could all understand. Her attitude was great. She was so patient with all of us. She helped my Dad and Aunt so much. She would push them in wheelchairs. She would sit and visit with them while the rest in our group explored places they could not go. She helped us with restaurant reservations. She made great suggestions for things to see and do. She was so patient if my wife and sister got caught up shopping.
Honestly, Hiro absolutely made the trip for us...Everyone in my family had a tear in their eye when we had to say goodbye. We all hope we get to see her again in the future. My family will never forget her kindness...
Chizuko Hamada : Command of English
Knowledge of Subjects 4
Ability to explain 4
Attitude 4
Flexibility 4
Chizuko was very nice and helpful. Most likely tis not fair to rate her because Hiro was so amazing. I htink our trio would still have been really good with her but again cant say enough about Hiro.
Drivers and Cars: 5
Mr. Chin who was our driver most of the journey, was absolutely fantastic. He was so helpful and great to my Dad and Aunt. He always had a smile and navigated the country beautifully. We felt very safe with him. The shuttle was fantastic. Very comfortable. We were so happy to have the extra room.
Our other driver, whose name I have forgotten we had on our last day in Kyoto was also very good and friendly. The driver in Hiroshima and the drivers to and from the airport also of very high quality.
Hotels: 5 We booked out own hotels on Expedia, but we really appreciated the advice. We really enjoyed all the hotels, and we thought the location of each was great. The hotel staff at each hotel very helpful. The hotels were all comfortable despite being a little smaller than hotels in the US.
Sights or Activities: 5. Everything Whitney helped us choose was outstanding.
We loved every activity. There was great history at every site. We never felt rushed and had enough time at each of the sites. You could always have more time because each place was fascinating. Hiros explanations were always helpful and made the places come to life. My kids were enthralled by the giant Buddha in Nara!! Honestly, I can't thank Whitney enough because she really helped us hit so many highlights in only ten days at a very comfortable pace. We realize we cant see it all, but hopefully that means we will come back to see more.
Meals: The restaurants you all arranged for us were all really great. I couldn't believe my kids would try and on top of that really enjoy the food. The restaurant near the bamboo forest was really special. And thank you for arranging the tea ceremony in Takayama!! Also Hiros suggestions for restaurants in the evening were also spot on!!!
Public Transportation: The train ride to Hiroshima worked out awesome. Very cool to ride the bullet train!! Wish we had trains in this country like that!!
Overall score of the whole package: Highest score possible 5/5. Honestly do not think it could have been better. Whitney did an amazing job planning the trip and Hiro was such a special guide. I cant thank Novaland enough for the amazing experience and memories they provided my family.
Sincerely,
Richard Batz
Hi Doris,
Thanks for asking us for feedback. We loved our experience. The guides are excellent. We thought all of them were knowledgeable and amazing in their own way. The schedule was tight but that is because we had so little time and we tried to squeeze many sights in limited time period. It was hard walking in the heat but that is to be expected for early July. We are so glad we did it that way. We will be back to Seoul as we were very impressed how livable and safe it was. Perhaps try to stay longer in one place next time. We loved your planning and we will be using Novaland in the future for other destinations.
Thanks so much,
Andreea and Abdullah
Dear Whitney,
The feedback form sent to the Tokyo plan may not be as appropriate for the Hokkaido trip. I copied the form here for my feedback.
1=poor, 2=fair,3=good, 4=very good, 5=excellent
Aspect | Mark(1-5) | Advice or Remark | |
Travel Consultant | 5 | Daisy had made a great plan for my family. Whitney who backed up Daisy in her absence had been very approachable and helpful. | |
Drivers and Cars | 5 | There are 2 drivers assigned to us. They are both very professional, easy to communicate with.
They also help us to communicate with the hotel staff during check-in and order food in the restaurants. This provided us a great help as we do not speak Japanese. This is an extra service that we did not expect. Thank you very much. | |
Hotels | Location |
| No rating as we arranged our own hotels. For reference, both hotels are great to stay. 1. Tenza Hotel & SKYSPA at Sapporo Cental: - good and strategic location - big room and clean. - staff are unable to communicate in English. It makes communication a bit difficult.
2. Furano Natulux Hotel - small room, but comfortable for short stay. - good location, there are restaurants and supermarket nearby. - staff are friendly and able to communicate in English. - a very pleasant stay. |
Comfort |
| Both hotels are comfortable. | |
Sights or Activities | Worthiness of Visit | 5 |
|
Meet Your Interests? | 4 |
| |
Too Tight or Too Loose? | just nice | The plan is just nice, not too tight or too loose. | |
Meals | 5 | We suggested what to eat and the driver brought us to the restaurants. The restaurants recommended by the driver are very good. | |
Public Transportation (train, flight, cruise, etc.) | NA |
| |
Any Other Aspect |
|
| |
Overall Score of the Whole Package | 5 |
| |
Thank you for checking in with us!
Here you go! Thank you so much for making our trip so memorable!
1=poor, 2=fair, 3=good, 4=very good, 5=excellent
Aspect | Mark(1-5) | Advice or Remark | |
Travel Consultant | 5 | Excellent response times, always eager to help | |
Tour Guides | Command of English | 5 | Very few issues communicating |
Knowledge of Subjects | 5 |
| |
Ability of Explain | 5 |
| |
Attitude | 5 |
| |
Flexibility | 5 |
| |
Drivers and Cars | 5 |
| |
Hotels | Location | 3 | The locations in every city were just a little bit inconvenient. I'm not sure if this was asked at any point, but we would have preferred to be in the heart of things to make access to stores and restaurants easier. |
Comfort | 4 |
| |
Sights or Activities | Worthiness of Visit | 4 | |
Meet Your Interests? | 4 | Too many temples. Our guides were excellent at adjusting to our interests though | |
Too Tight or Too Loose? |
| In retrospect, we should have planned for more free time, especially in the beginning as we were still struggling with jet lag | |
Meals | 5 | Our guides found terrific places for us to eat | |
Public Transportation (train, flight, cruise, etc.) | 5 | KTX was easy and relatively comfortable | |
Any Other Aspect |
|
| |
Overall Score of the Whole Package | 5 | I have already recommended this company, Amina, and our guides to others | |
HI Amina,
Thank you for your help on planning the tour. It worked out very well for us. THANK YOU!
Best Regards,
Juliet
1=poor, 2=fair, 3=good, 4=very good, 5=excellent
Aspect | Mark(1-5) | Advice or Remark | |
Travel Consultant | 5 | ||
Tour Guides | Command of English | 5 | Jay Song was excellent! |
Knowledge of Subjects | 5 |
| |
Ability of Explain | 5 |
| |
Attitude | 5 |
| |
Flexibility | 5 |
| |
Drivers and Cars | 5 |
| |
Hotels | Location | NA |
|
Comfort | NA |
| |
Sights or Activities | Worthiness of Visit | 5 |
|
Meet Your Interests? | 5 |
| |
Too Tight or Too Loose? |
|
| |
Meals | 5 | Jay Song picked incredible vegetarian restaurant for us to accommodate our diet need. It became one of the most memorable meal experiences in Korea, among many. | |
Public Transportation (train, flight, cruise, etc.) | NA |
| |
Any Other Aspect |
| Your prompt responses were very helpful! Thank you! | |
Overall Score of the Whole Package | 5 |
| |
Aspect | Mark(1-5) | Advice or Remark | |
Travel Consultant | 5 |
| |
Tour Guides | Command of English | 5 | never an issue |
Knowledge of Subjects | 5 |
| |
Ability of Explain | 5 |
| |
Attitude | 5 |
| |
Flexibility | 5 | Dee in Jeju handled the rain without a problem | |
Drivers and Cars | 5 | Lodging at Dragon Hill Lodge made it a challenge but it all worked | |
Hotels | Location | 5 |
|
Comfort | 5 |
| |
Sights or Activities | Worthiness of Visit | 5 |
|
Meet Your Interests? | 5 | dog cafe and hanbok wearing were especially great | |
Too Tight or Too Loose? | 5 | just right | |
Meals | 5 |
| |
Public Transportation (train, flight, cruise, etc.) | 5 | Train was wonderful! | |
Any Other Aspect |
|
| |
Overall Score of the Whole Package | 5 | Really a good trip. My son and granddaughter were very happy | |
Many, many thanks, Amina. A job well done.
Helen,
It’s been an amazing trip so far. We are super interested in the onsen experience.