Testimonials
Dear Phil,
Over the past 6 years we have used your organisation for our International Holidays. During this time our trips have been managed exclusively by Kerrie Lee. We would like to take this opportunity to let you know what an outstanding Employee you have.
On our most recent trip to South America, initially in planning we made many changes to our Itinerary. Then came the Volcano and finally flight delays. Being in a small town in South America and not knowing what to do was troubling. We contacted Kerrie and with her South American contact the holiday proceeded smoothly.
We make this point as an example of Kerries outstanding professionalism, nothing is too hard for her. Her bright personality and care makes us feel special as if part of her extended family. We cannot speak highly enough of her and look forward to having her create our holiday plans in the years ahead.
Yours sincerely,
Joan and Wayne R 13 July 2011
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Hi Diana,
We had a fantastic holiday and enjoyed everything planned. My birthday evening was lovely the food, the weather and the setting were perfect. We probably were overdressed though as most people were dressed pretty casual. A brief run down:
Gee the flight is LONG from Singapore to London! We wasted no time however and after a brief relax, we set off to the London Eye. We also visited Sea life and then the rest of the day was sightseeing on the bus. It was a great way to get an overview of everything. Shopping was also fun and the girls loved Harrods! We made it to the Zoo and The Lion King show was a big hit and we were sad to be leaving London so soon.
Paris was wonderful the people were helpful and our attempt to speak French was much appreciated. The accommodation was really good and clean and spacious. Perfect location to the bus stops too. Shopping was good there too especially at Champs Elysees and we picked up a few bits and pieces. Our day in Reims was great and thoroughly enjoyed by all. Disneyland was a lot of fun and well worth the effort. We even managed to go to Moulin Rouge the night before also well worth it. The bus again was a great way to get around and see things and we did visit the Louvre and saw Mona Lisa as well as Egyptian mummies of crocodiles and cats! Again very sad to be leaving, still so much to see!
Our train journeys were really good although all along we felt like we were in The Amazing Race as we ran each time through the thousands of tourists trying to find and get to our platform before too late. ( Also good fun plenty of laughs and we had a great system in the end to get our heavy luggage and ourselves on before it left.)
Lucerne was spectacular with the ice capped alps in full view. We were so lucky because the cable car and cog wheel train to Mt Pilatus, opened the day we arrived instead of in May. That was an absolute highlight the alps are stunning and it is a magnificent ride to the top and down again. Would have loved to have stayed in Lucerne for longer
Venice took a little to time to get used to but the accommodation was well placed and very comfortable (as it was everywhere we stayed) and the gondola ride was great fun. The trip to the islands was definitely worthwhile and by the end of our stay in Venice, we were sad to be leaving so soon.
Florence, the city, we found pretty run down and dirty in parts. The market were good though just the hassling was a pain. Shopping wasn't as good here either but the day trip to the Sienna, Chianti, and San Gimignano was fantastic. The leather goods and other bits and pieces were very well priced and the old towns were full of character and very interesting. a memorable day!
We even caught a train to visit Pisa on a whim also worthwhile.
Rome was fascinating could have definitely spent a couple more days there- so much to see in amongst the city - again a great hotel location and a very nice room.
Our day room at the Crowne Plaza, Singapore was very lavish and comfortable and our morning at the zoo was money well spent. That would have to be our favourite zoo so far all of the animals look so content and well fed in their lush environment.
Now back home to the real world it was certainly a fast and furious trip but we squeezed so much into it and didn't waste a minute.
Will have to start saving for the next trip now still so much to see!!
Thanks again for helping us plan such a wonderful trip
Regards,
Lisa
May 16, 2011
Dear Phil
On behalf of us all here at Paraquad SA, I thank you for your support of the "Win a trip to Queensland" competition held recently in conjunction with the Police Credit Union. The campaign was quite successful and has assisted greatly with not only the promotion of those organisations invloved, but has enhanced our database of contacts, which will assist in future fundraising campaigns of the association.
I am also a man of my word and have reciprocated by organising my holiday to Hawaii through Phil Hoffmann Travel at your Adelaide API store. Ivana Fiveash - Team Leader, was very professional and patient in arranging all our travel arrangements.
Phil, it has been a pleasure dealing with your organisation and we look forward to working with you in the future.
Your sincerely
James Kinghorn, CEO Paraquad SA, 28 Jan 2011
HI Georgina
We just wanted to say a BIG Thankyou for all your help with organising our trip to the USA. We got back yesterday and had the best time. All the places we stayed were great all the suggestions from the airport transfers, tours and everything was great.
Your help and assistance was so appreciated and we will be coming back to book with you for our next trip
Thanks
Glenn, Chris and Jessica R , Adelaide, 26 October 2010
Thank you and congratulations to all of Phil Hoffmann's Travel Team for the wonderfully interesting and well presented show yesterday. It was so informative.
Bob and myself were amazed at the care given by the team from the time that we boarded the bus from Victor until we were dropped at our house by Kay and her husband at the end of the day.We could not contact a taxi and Kay seeing this offered to take us home to Middleton.
We are already booked on 2 cruises one in March and another in October. Tomorrow we have an appointment with David at Victor Harbor hoping to book the Asia Grand Adventure Tour in June.
If there is anything else I would like to have seen it would be information on what to pack/wear on board and in different countries.
Congratulations again to all of you!
Mary and Bob D, Victor Harbor, 26 October 2010
Dear Sir
A note to say thank you to Phil Hoffmann Travel for organizing my recent tour with Insight Vacations which saw me fly from Melbourne 6th May 2010 onto a 14 day Highlights of Europe tour and then arrive back to home, 26th May 2010.
My whole tour was organized by Alicia Wilson out of the Stirling Office and I wanted to compliment Alicia on a job well done. I had to go onto another tour when my original chosen tour was cancelled by Insight Vacations which meant a change in airline flight times and additional accommodation but this did not present a problem to Alicia who rebooked all my changes and produced my new itinerary promptly and was always courteous and gracious answering all my enquiries.
I thank you all at Phil Hoffmann once again having travelled with you in past years as well on tour.
C K, Eltham VIC, 16 June 2010
Hey Lauren,
Just wanted to drop you a line to say a massive THANK YOU for all your help with organising our Bali trip. We had a fantastic time. The Maya Ubud was gorgeous and the Kartika Discovery Villa was a little slice of heaven in the madness of Kuta. (highly recommend for your trip... if you shared with another couple, there are lots of spaces to have some privacy). The on-ground company you use was terrific - always reliable, friendly tour guides. No problems with them at all.
For anyone else going to Ubud, we would highly recommend the white water rafting with Soebek. That was a definite highlight. Fantastic family activity - would suit kids as young as five or six (they can just sit in the boat and not paddle!) We saw wild monkeys and stood under a waterfall. Brilliant!
We'll certainly be in touch the next time we are planning a holiday.
Thanks again,
Ms V P
Media Manager Monday 3rd May 2010
My wife and I have just completed 2 consecutive cruises with Princess Cruises arranged by your consultant Claire Korner at your Norwood office. The Cruises were marvellous as usual and the assistance we received again by Claire was excellent making our trip extremely memorable.
Over the past few years we have relied on Claire to organize our travel arrangements and the effort she has put in to making our travels pleasurable is a credit to her and your organisation. At all times we are able to travel knowing that everything has been arranged and we can feel fully confident that our holiday will be enjoyable.
Once again thanks to Claire for her kind assistance and we look forward to our next adventure.
Yours sincerely
Mr G R, Athelstone SA, 6 November 2009
Dear Phil,
I am writing to voice my appreciation for Fiona Potter - of your Norwood office arranging the most amazing holiday Cairo Cape Town for me and my New Zealand friend, Diane Steele. We arrived back yesterday after 25 days that covered the most dynamic, exciting and diverse range of activities, cultures and landscapes.
We were exclusively driven and guided just the two of us staying in first class accommodation, transferred to and from hotels and airports without a hitch. The whole trip was seamless in that although three different companies were involved, everything ran smoothly. Truly we cannot think of a single thing to complain about in any of the countries. We were treated with such respect by the staff involved who were highly skilled and professional.
Dianne and I have traveled extensively for many years so it is hard to find something out of the ordinary well this was it!! We loved every minute; it truly has been the journey of a lifetime and one that we will always remember. We also think it was great value for money.
I thought I would bring this to your attention as it is a trip that deserves to be promoted for its exclusiveness and diversity. But also to say how much we appreciated Fiona's professionalism and support.
CC of Glenside, Oct 2009
Dear Phil,
I am writing this letter to compliment you on your staff, especially Tanya Donaldson of your Norwood office. We went on an Asian cruise; August 9 to 25th, 2009.
It was great. Tanya made everything so easy. Nothing was too much bother. You have a very good staff member in Tanya.
On leaving Sunday 9th of August, at the airport, two people I think from your Glenelg office were there to see us off. It was wonderful.
But the part that really blew us away was on arrival at Adelaide airport at 9.45pm, 25th August, there were two people from your Glenelg office at the bottom of the escalator to welcome us home with a bag which contained a loaf of bread and a small carton of milk. Unbelievable.
Service, attention to detail; 10/10.
We recommend Phil Hoffmann Travel to all our family and friends and we will always travel with your company.
Thank you once again to Tanya and all your staff.
J&P L of Salisbury East, Oct 2009
Subject: thank you Fleur Brenkley
I have just returned from a wonderful 7 week trip through Europe, London, Canada and Hawaii thanks to the suggestions, advice, planning and help given by Fleur Brenkley
Her assistance enabled us to have a trouble free trip The cruise with Avalon Waterways ( Fleur's suggestion) was just wonderful and I can highly recommend it Fleur's friendly, professional attitude made it a pleasure to consult l with her.
Thank you
Mrs M D - Adelaide, 10 October 2009
Well, I must say that 'Discover Japan' was a trip of a lifetime! I think I can honestly say it is the best trip I've ever been on. It was so well organised. Our Guides were absolutely fantastic! Sandy Pugsley should be commended on her dedication to the group and cared for us the whole time we were away. She was so generous with her time and even in our free time offered suggestions of things to do, often with her which was very kind. She is an excellent guide.
Kaori Adachi - our Japanese Guide was fantastic and also gave us so much time. She has a very pleasant manner and is very caring and knowledgeable.
Mario arranged everything for me and he did an excellent job. He also has a delightful way about him!
Future trips:
I have booked a cruise in March and look forward to that. Also, I have just booked a trip to New Zealand for Ted and myself for next May, and this is being done through Laura who also has been very efficient and friendly.
Well done to you and Phil Hoffmann Travel!
Regards
Mrs B R, West Lakes SA. 6 Oct 2009
Have just been telling a whole group of people at work what a wonderful time we had on the Sun Princess and how smoothly it all went because of Cherylee. What a time we had. She was amazing.. Its just the little things that she did that made it so special. I think she had members from other groups (who didn't have an escort) asking her about things too? I think Phil Hoffmann Travel is the only way to go when planning a holiday...wouldn't use anyone else.
Hi there Carol
Just wanted to say thank you for the welcome home card it was a lovely thought. The girls from Glenelg (I think) met us at the airport (approx 10.30 pm) with some bread & milk that was a great way to end a fantastic 16 days a finishing touch.
We have been very impressed with the service afforded by all of the Phil Hoffman staff that we have been associated with since we made our first contact in regard to the Treasures of Asia cruise. The cruise was fantastic (which we expected anyway, since we had already been on a Princess Cruise). It was made even better by having Cherylee Harris as our host.
We can't wait to go on our next trip you can be assured that it will definitely be booked through Phil Hoffmann Travel, wherever we decide to go!!
Kind Regards & Many Thanks
Mr A & Mrs R F, Adelaide, 29 July 2009
Mr & Mrs A S, Adelaide SA 21 July 2009
Hi Dean,
Although we got back nearly 2 weeks ago, it has taken me this long to let you know how things went. Firstly, we had a brilliant time!!!! So often, we were caught saying to each other Thank goodness Dean organized this for us
Trafalgar was brilliant we had a wonderful tour director (Kevin) who had masses of experience for us novices running around Europe with no idea what we were doing, he was an angel! I would thoroughly recommend Trafalgar and in particular, the Grand European to anyone. We sure all of the magnificent, romantic, well known historical places and experienced as much as we could. We took up all of the optional excursions (the tour director had tailored it down from the large number shown in the book to about a dozen very special events. Had we been on our own, we would not have fitted in half of all that we experienced it was extreamly well run and he made sure we got to all the different places at just the right time (before the crowds or when something amazing was going on) The Grand European also had fantastic hotels very luxurious and in very nice locations. I am not sure if we would have enjoyed it as much had we taken up a budget option. Choosing Trafalgar was partly due to the event PHT invited us to (the woman was very informative) and partly due to favorable comments by numerous people.
There are lots of other places we would like to visit now knowing that a tour will shield us from difficulties.
Really loved London and in particular BritRail. Thank you for first class and the passes they were excellent! Also, thank you for the reservations I can not think of a time when we didn't need them and we felt sorry for those that had first class tickets only to board a carriage that was full! It really is a lovely way of unwinding and watching the beautiful scenery go past.
The Hop on Hop off buses were essential we would have been literally lost without them!! York was stunning, really amazing while Edinburgh was brilliant we saw as much as we could in a short space of time. Ambelside in the Lakes District was a fantastic surprise lots of lovely walking trails etc perfect for stretching out our legs after 3 weeks in the Trafalgar Bus!!
Oyster card and the tube in general worked very well we used it all the time and thank you for the advice on taxis!
You were right about the zigzagging that we did we could have saved ourselves a day had we tackled one end of UK in the beginning and the lower side at the end but we did appreciate the down time that the train gave us. A million thank you's for your excellent instructions on the itinerary these train stations are huge and quite overwhelming but we had your itinerary to keep us on track. You got the horrid task of fitting it all together for us and we really appreciated it!
You were also right about Hotel Re! in Singapore it was out from the main part and although they had their own bus and taxis were cheap, it would have been easier had we been in the centre. We also realized why most hotels in Singapore have pools it was sooooo hot and sticky! Still, Hotel Re! was the cheapest option and it was very clean and comfortable. We only got single beds (I think that is an SIA thing) which was odd (we later discovered that lots of places had single king size beds that are pushed together but Hotel Re!'s couldn't be). Some of the SIA deals were a little confusing but we managed to get on a boat cruise and utilize the hop on bus quite effectively. SIA organized a night zoo tour as well as a Santosa tour but we realized later we may have been able to do both trips cheaper still at least we didn't have to run around trying to organize it ourselves!
The trains from both Milano Centrale (wow, isn't that an amazing station!!) and Como to Firenze were great we did not have any trouble with these at all and yet again, the scenery was brilliant!! Bellagio on Lake Como was perfect for our 30th wedding anniversary, the best part of the trip. If you have not gone to Lake Como yet, make sure you do!!
Meridianna was very comfortable with no problems at all any easy and cheap way to get from Firenze to London.
So, once again, thank you for everything itinerary, bookings, advice and recommendations and in particular, holding our hands through the planning process. Looking forward to more travel in a year or two Canada or Croacia/Greek Islands with perhaps a small trip (Hawaii or Bali) in-between. Tony is even keen for the 4 of us to do a small cruise! I get the PHT newsletter so I will keep my eye out for deals and no doubt we will see you at the next travel expo.
Hope you are well and not working too hard!
Take care
Mrs A P
Dear Dean and staff,
Hi Dean,
Here we are back in good old cold and wet Birdwood after our 6 weeks holiday overseas. A bit of a shock to the system I must say. We arrived home Thursday via Singapore and still suffering today a bit from the dreaded jet lag. We had four days in Singapore to break the journey from London which wasn't to bad, but the flight from Singapore to Adelaide, leaving at midnight and arriving back here in the morning took its toll as we did not get much sleep. (Might have something to do with our age also!)
We had a really fantastic 6 weeks away with heaps of highlights too numerous to mention. The boat cruise down the Rivers of Europe (Budapest to Amsterdam) was just fantastic. It is great to have a place for two weeks that you don't have to pack and unpack all the time and yet the scenery was constantly changing. I can recommend that to anyone who wants to relax. Of course there was plenty to see and do if you wanted to, but that was up to the individual person so that was great. One of our highlights was probably dinner on the Eiffel Tower in Paris and also our week in Italy but once again there was so many beautiful places that it is hard to pick out just one special place, although I must say Sorrento in Italy and our visit to the Blue Grotto was a stand out. The man who rowed our boat into the Grotto had the most magnificent voice and sang while we were in the Grotto. It may the hairs on your neck stand out.
Les and I would like to say how much we appreciated your patience and help in organising our trip Dean, because it was a bit of a trial trying to get Les' health insurance and then in a short space of time trying to co-ordinate the trip with the one that John and Edna had already booked. Thank you so much. Everything went really smoothly, all bookings were confirmed without any problems whatsoever and that only helped to make our holiday so much more relaxed and enjoyable. You and your staff were fantastic.
I must also say a huge thank you to our tour leader, Phillip Styles and his wife Robyn. What an outstanding down to earth couple they are. Their understanding and patience has to be highly commended especially when Les had trouble with the high salt content of the food on the ship. With his heart condition he of course should not have salt and Phillip went out of his way to make sure Les had a separate menu each night with a low salt content. Nothing was too much trouble for both Phillip and Robyn and we would like to make sure that "the boss" Phil Hoffmann knows how much we appreciated every effort that you Dean, Phillip and Robyn contributed towards making our holiday an outstanding event.. (Of course it did help when Phillip and Robyn turned out to be Crows supporters and we had a footy tipping competition for some entertainment - Not that Les or I won anything!)
I think I can speak for John and Edna also in thanking everyone Dean, and once again to all those hard working office staff that contributed towards making our once in a lifetime trip to Europe an outstanding success and Phillip and Robyn for their part in making sure that everyone on the tour was well looked after and any problems resolved (not that I think there were any) without as little fuss as possible. What more can I say outstanding.
Regards
Mr & Mrs L R, Birdwood SA. 28 June 2009
p.s. Dean, Les has opened the 2007 Yalumba Bush Vine Grenache and reckons its a top drop!
