Wheel & Anchor Avis 

TURKEY

Nothing but rave reviews for Wheel and Anchor, the tour host, the itinerary and probably one of the best tour guides. After 4 days in Istanbul, it was nice to journey off the touristy route and stay in small quaint towns with exceptional accommodations, food and beautiful countryside.
The extension to Cappadocia was beyond words to describe, especially the hot air balloon ride!

Turkey has so much to offer, love the people and their culture.
I’m In the process of booking my second trip with W&A. I know I won’t be disappointed

Thanks to our guide, Martine, we were able to experience Costa Rica at its diverse best from the cloud forest to the rain forest ending at the sea. We certainly went via those roads less travelled to lodges off the beaten track that focused on our connection to the environment. Meals, with one or 2 exceptions, were included and featured locally sourced foods. One of the memorable experiences was happening upon the annual sea turtle festival on the Osa Peninsula. Not only did we “mingle with the locals” but had the unique experience of watching the baby sea turtles being released and making their way to the ocean. As a very early “baby boomer”, I did find the hikes a bit challenging at times. Other memories include the spa treatment with mashed avocados, chocolate, a sugar scrub and washing off in the river; bird watching in the early morning and 11 degrees; the “avatar adventure”; and the boa constrictor!

We travelled to Nice and Provence in May and the concept of a small group tour with all gratuities included at a more relaxed pace sounded good. However, the time was all wrong, and we think the organiser should have taken this in consideration. For example: the tour had an entire free day where those touring are left on their own (suggestions are given and a city card is given for transportation and some free or discounted attractions) and the free day in Nice was on a Tuesday when almost all museums are closed, including the famous Matisse museum. When next we moved to the Forcalquier area, there were two consecutive holidays on Wednesday and Thursday, and on Friday people also took off from work to link with the weekend on Saturday and Sunday. Thus, the crowds were immense. Moreover the Olympic flame was passing by there exactly when we were staying in the area, so the sleepy town was not sleepy anymore. The day when we were making a stop in Aix-en-Provence was also the same day the Olympic flame was going through, resulting in unusual crowds, street closings, high security, interfering with the sightseeing. While in St-Rémy de Provence the day scheduled for some free time was on a Monday, again, when the museums were closed. The tour should have had different dates in order to avoid this.
Also this company includes breakfast and lunches but no dinners (except for the farewell one on the last day of the tour). The lunches took about 2 hours of the day as they were in sit-down restaurants previously booked. All know that restaurant service in France is slow. So, a time of day we should be sight seeing, two hours are taken for lunch. Dinners should be included instead. The last thing one wishes to do is to look for restaurants in the evening after some sightseeing during the day specially in France when reservations are a must or one can spend time going from place to place in order to dine and not even knowing the quality of the food being served, the cleanliness of the restaurant, etc.
The other thing is that this company included the coverage of alcoholic drinks at lunch, so those who do not drink are subsidising the wine of those who drink. We were only six people in the tour and four drank at least two bottles of wine at every meal the tour covered. It is unfair for the non-drinkers. Alcohol should not be included. By doing so, the company could very well afford covering dinners rather than lunches.
There is too much free time, since besides the free time built into the tour as explained, the pace is slow.
The hotels in Nice and St-Rémy de Provence were in excellent locations and the one in Forcalquier was in a beautiful setting but not in town which necessitated a taxi both ways if one wished to go to town.

I have just read the other reviews on the 5 X 5 Scandinavian trip that we just came back from and want to say they are VERY accurate. The accommodations, restaurants and guides were all checked out ahead of time and they were wonderful. This is our first time with Wheel and Anchor and will not be our last. The service was outstanding and perfect. We are sure that everything they do will be of the highest quality. Gordon loves to travel and it shows in everything he does. We would give more than 5 stars if they were available.
Lynn and Gary Sturch

Wheel and Anchor is an excellent company providing superior travel experiences. I just completed the 5 x 5 Scandinavia and the Baltics tour with Gordon and I can’t imagine how it could have been improved. This was my third travel experience with W & A and I look forward to more. The hotels are always well-chosen to provide comfortable but unique accommodations, the meals are excellent, and the local guides are well informed and approachable.

Just returned from the 5 x 5 Scandinavia trip. Wheel and Anchor is a very well run tour group. Everything was so well organized, accommatidion were excellent. The tour guides that were available in each location where all very knowledgeable about the area and very eager to answer our questions. 5 star

This was my first experience with group travel & It exceeded my expectations. I enjoyed the itinerary, my travel companions & our wonderful guide Alfie.
I will travel again with Wheel & Anchor.

My wife and I had a most enjoyable trip. We were pleasantly surprised almost everyday with each and every adventure. Our host Alffie could not have done better. He was focused and made sure we were without complaints. Looking forward to our next trip with Wheel and Anchor this fall.