Balkan Kaleidoscope

Customer Reviews

• JS

  Johan

  · April 25th, 2025
  We thougt it was a brilliant tour. Well planned and well executed by our very inspiring guide Biliana. The group worked fine, the bus became a second home.
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  Trip date: April 2025
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  Tim

  · April 22nd, 2025
  A great fast paced tour of the Balkans with loads of great sights, sounds, smells and experiences for experienced travellers. Biliana is an excellent tour guide and a chance to immerse in the region, learning about the history, culture and history of the region.
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  Trip date: March 2025
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  Chris

  · April 14th, 2025
  The tour guide (Biliana) was amazin The Itimerary was 90% as scheduled, and there was a lot of beautiful sights. The hotels was mixed, some of them were really good, some really bad (The one in Trebinje was horrible, in addition to the fact that Trebinje was a waste of time), I would probably have liked less time in Kosovo and more time in the other countries, that being said: Kosovo is cheap. Sarajevo,Dubrovnik and Kotor were the clear highlights of the trip! If you want to visit many Balkan countries, and get to see a lot of places in a short period then this tour is for you.
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  Trip date: March 2025
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  Marianne

  · December 21st, 2024
  It was a beutiful tour
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  Trip date: July 2024
• VB

  Victoria

  · November 21st, 2024
  I thought that the tour delivered as advertised and kept a good schedule. I appreciated the guide's ability to be courteous, informative and able to be flexible when necessary. He was a good problem solver.
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  Trip date: November 2024
• GA

  Glenn Allen

  · November 10th, 2024
  We loved our trip through the Balkans! Be prepared for many hours in the bus but enjoying the gorgeous scenery as you travel. This is a quick stop at most of the cities/sites but you get a taste in case you want to return for a more thorough visit. I think our group really engaged with one another making the trip even more delightful. The hotels were fine, some were 4-5 star and all with nice breakfasts! Thanks to Valentina who did a wonderful job with our group on her first tour with this itinerary. Also to Boris our careful driver.
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  Penguin Travel commented on this review

  Thank you for your feedback, Glenn. Looking forward to having you on another adventure soon.
  Trip date: October 2024
• 

  Patsy

  · November 5th, 2024
  Very pleased with the overall tour. The sights were beautiful; driver and guide managed well in all aspects. All expectations were met.
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  Trip date: September 2024
• AS

  Aladdin

  · October 30th, 2024
  Pros The choice of hotels (11) is among the best possible, especially their locations in relation to the city center or the old city, and ranges from luxurious to moderate, with the exception of the Viv Hotel in Trebinje, which was below par. The guide, Rosen, is a nice person and his assistance at the borders, passport control, accommodation and luggage was excellent, as was the driver. All the local guides were great without exception. Cons: A significant mistake on the part of Penguin is in choosing a guide and driver who were not familiar with the tour itinerary ( first time) This cost us complete silence from the guide throughout the long driving and we did not even know the names of the cities we were passing through and he did not easily choose the appropriate stops to rest and have a snack and never stoped to take pictures at the scenic spots designated for this purpose on the roads. As for taking photos from inside the bus, the windows were not cleaned even once. A big mistake made by the tour guide was changing the "tour schedule" and dropping Mostar because of a claimed damage on the road due to a flood that happened more than 10 days ago, a reason that Penguin did not officially confirm and Google Maps did not show on the day of departure to that city. We missed seeing the most beautiful city and panoramic view in Bosnia. The passengers stayed in the same seats they chose for 12 days, those in the front stayed in the front and those in the back stayed in the back without exchanging equal opportunities to see the views . I am not sure if the concept of rotating seats daily was understood by the tour guide or Penguin itself. By all means, the tour as a whole is wonderful because of the magnificent countries, places, people and food. . I wish every traveler good luck on their trip with them.
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  Trip date: October 2024
• ST

  Swee Hoe

  · October 28th, 2024
  1/Hotel in Trebinje is really bad. 2/Hotel with lift should be a priority for all over night stay. 3/Tour leader service and knowledge was bad. Understand this is his first time visiting some of the cities, and first time penguin tour leader for him. 4/Bus Driver was good and professional. Smaller bus would have been better, as some area are not accessible by big bus 5/Over all, tour was too hectic. Would have been better, in this tour to take out Serbia (Belgrade). Much time wasted on in and out of Serbia. Too many hours on the mountainous road. 6/More days recommended along the Adrian Sea coast line cities. 7/ Mostar visit was abandoned, due to earlier week flood. Really disappointed and felt short changed. Tour agency should have alternative plan for visit to Mostar, as this was know earlier. Mostar is a must see destination in this tour of the Balkans. 8/As the road trip was always long hours, only once we stopped for a proper lunch. 9/ Airport & hotel pick up was properly arranged. 10/Late informations on Hotels stay. Only got it the day before we departed for our flight to Sofia.
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  Trip date: October 2024
• 

  Glen

  · August 13th, 2024
  A fantastic trip, very well organised and conducted throughout. Great introduction walking tours in the cities. Guide Andrey was excellent and had everything running smoothly. Driver Bobby was also excellent in getting us around. Hotels were generally good, some were very good. Nice scenic journeys between cities. Good value for money and would recommend.
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  Trip date: July 2024