Returned from this trip on Thursday 19 June and had a great time. Kim was our TM and Lorenzo was our driver for the Italian part of the trip. There were 26 in the group - 18 women and 9 men. This was my 5th Just You holiday and the best one due to the great bunch of people. Everyone mixed in well even those who had travelled with friends. The outward flight was delayed by about 30 minutes. We left Venice around 17:45 and reached the hotel in Fiera di Primiero just after 20:00. It was a pleasant journey and there was hardly any traffic. Hotel Castel Pietra is really lovely. The bedroom was very large with a king sized bed, which was very comfortable. I think all rooms had a balcony. My room had lovely views of the Dolomites. I left the balcony room open at all times, which meant I could hear the clock chimes - the first night they seemed to be every half an hour or so! Be prepared to be woken up by the cockerel around 5.00 a.m.! I don't think everyone heard the chimes and the cockerel. Food was delicious. Breakfast was buffet with plenty of choices. Dinner was a set meal, but again there was a choice from 3 options for all three courses. You had to decide what you wanted the night before. Vegetarians were catered for. Included lunch at La Ritonda restaurant on the second day was lovely. Dolomites are spectacular and there was still plenty of snow around. We were very lucky with the weather. It did rain a bit, but we were not really affected by it. For example, when we went on the optional excursion to Feltre, it rained in Fiera di Primiero!
Opatija in Croatia is lovely. The hotel was right by the Marina. Breakfast and dinner were buffet with plenty of choices. I enjoyed the trips to Pula where we saw the Roman Amphitheatre, Rovinj with its lovely harbour and Krk Island. In Croatia the local guide was Irene and she was very good.
It was the right time for this trip as the main tourist season had not yet started so there were not many crowds. Though this meant that when we did the Dolomites trip not many cafes were open. Kim was a great Tour Manager. I personally enjoyed this trip very much and was happy with everything. There were some people who had small suggestions and hopefully they will post their comments on the Forum so they can be taken on board. I took the opportunity to 'sell' the Forum so hopefully more people will start using it. It was really nice to meet Mike the Saint. Perhaps he can add to the review I have posted.
Regards
Jaya
Hi Jaya,
Well done, a very good review and I don't really think there is anything additional I can add other than to totally agree with your comments about Kim, the tour manager who was excellent and great fun to be with and how well the whole group got on. It certainly adds to the enjoyment of the holiday when you have such good travelling companions who all mix and get on so well.
We had many good laughs and I certainly made some new friends.
The tour itself is excellent and there is certainly a contrast between the beauty and scenic surroundings of the Dolomites to Croatia's rocky coastline and the historical and interesting towns.
It was also especially nice to finish off the holiday with the bonus of a boat trip along the coast on our free day organised by the wonderful tour manager Kim.
Many thanks to her, my fellow travellers and of course Just You.
Mike
Don't forget to check out our group photo on Facebook.
