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November 2006 issue

London walking tours

Besides walking a great deal on our own, on a June visit to London we took two guided walks with The Original London Walks (P.O. Box 1708, London, NW6 4LW, U.K.; phone 020 7624 3978 or 020 7794 1764 or visit www.walks.com. Recorded info at 020 7624 9255). They have an extensive list of all types of walks plus a list of the guides and descriptions of their backgrounds.

To go on a walk, just go to the designated underground stop, meet your guide and pay £6 (or £5 for those 65-plus). Walks generally take two hours. We took the “Along the Thames Pub Walk” and “Secret London.” I was...

September 2006 issue

On-and-off buses

We’ve found the “hop on/hop off” buses in the larger cities not only one of the best buys but an economical way to see the city.

We’ve done this in Auckland, New Zealand, as well as Washington, D.C., and Boston, Massachusetts. More recently, in May ‘06, we did it in Dublin and Cork, Ireland, and London, England.

The Dublin Bus Service cost us €25 (about $32), and the London “Big Bus” cost £40 (about $75). That’s for two! Yes, London is expensive, but compared to taxi fares this is a buy. We used the “Big Bus” for three days. You can buy your ticket at most hotels. With the...

June 2006 issue

Berlin guide

We were five days in Berlin in August ’05. On three of those days we were guided privately by Markus Mueller-Tenckhoff (Markgrafenstr. 39, 10117 Berlin, Germany; phone 0049 [0] 160 80 88 011, www.markusmuellertenckhoff.de or www.guidesinberlin.de/markus).

Markus went at a pace that seniors can handle and made sure that we saw all of the sights worth seeing. He was able to tell us a tremendous amount of history and show us East Berlin, North Berlin, Jewish sites, galleries, museums and restaurants. We would never have gotten the flavor of Berlin without him.

Markus charges €...

August 2005 issue

Give singles a break

I saw the article in the February ’05 issue, page 58. I have always chosen a tour to see different parts of the world, as I am a single traveler (not by choice). I’m hoping readers will write in and let me know how I can avoid the “single supplement.” Is there a central agency I can get in touch with that will supply this information?

I wanted to do a Sicily tour this year but the supplement was almost $600. The only tours I have taken without that charge have been Elderhostel trips (for which I am very grateful).

I really don’t mind sharing, but most tour companies do not...

November 2006 issue

Two nights at Iguazu Falls

During a trip my husband, Joe, and I took to Argentina (Sept. ’06, pg. 84. & Oct. ’06, pg. 76), we visited Iguazú Falls. We are so glad we went. It was absolutely spectacular!

We left our luggage at the hotel in Buenos Aires and flew out of the city airport to Iguazú. The city airport looks new, so it was probably refurbished a short time ago. We flew Aerolineas Argentinas, which, after having seen bad reviews, surprised us by providing a very clean new plane with a pleasant staff. We were fortunate that there was no strike during the time we were there in early April ’06.

September 2006 issue

Buenos Aires

My husband, Joe, and I were incredibly happy that we chose Buenos Aires (B.A.), Argentina, as our vacation destination this year. Aside from the U.S. dollar’s being strong there, one of the main reasons we decided to go was because we read W.E.B. Griffin’s “Honor Bound” series, “Honor Bound” and “Blood and Honor” among them, which addresses B.A. during WWII. It is very descriptive of the city and the estancias, also mentioning the Alvear Palace Hotel, and it sounded like an exciting and fascinating place. We were not disappointed.

Since we visited so many websites and read so many...

January 2006 issue

Romania, Moldova & Bulgaria tour

Having read another traveler’s comments (April ’05, pg. 35), we engaged a tour operator in Romania who turned out to be exceptional. Her name is Costela Petcu of AKS Tours (phone +40 21 313 6338, cell +4 0744 294 373 or e-mail costelape04@yahoo.com)

For our trip in Romania, Moldova and Bulgaria, Aug. 31-Sept. 22, ’05, she met us at the airport, introduced us to our driver/guide for the next 18 days, took us to dinner upon our return to Bucharest and even checked in on us while we were having another dinner. The driver, Christian, was exceptional.

For the whole trip, Costela...

July 2006 issue

Advice for Americans visiting Iran

Based on my April ’06 trip to Iran, I’d like to share three practical tips with ITN readers who are thinking of going there.

First, I was told that the Iranian Interests Section of the Pakistani Embassy in Washington will not issue a tourist visa to an American unless the prospective tourist already has received a visa authorization number from Tehran.

I had to send a copy of my passport information page to the company arranging my tour, which in turn presumably sent it on to the local operator in Tehran. This can be a time-consuming process. I received my number more than a...