Archipelago Choice Ltd Traveller Reviews

2 weeks in Cuba with an excellent driver/guide visiting Havana, Vinales, Cienfuegos, Trinidad, Santa Clara and Cayo Santa Maria.

very well organised with excellent service and no problems at all throughout our stay in Cuba.

Our holiday was based on island hopping between Graciosa, Faial and Sao Miguel. Our activities included:- Visiting empty magma chambers and walking through lava tubes, whale watching and swimming with Manta Rays or (devil fish), walking and cycling. The variety of activities and the planning of such a trip could not have been bettered. The accommodation at the lovely Casa Da Vinha, on Graciosa, the Faial Garden Hotel on Faial, and the Covento da San Francisco were absolutely gorgeous but, in different ways and we would go back to all of them again. The inter-island flights were mostly on time due to good weather throughout our vacation.

This company has been the best that we have ever used and will do so time and time again. They are efficient, always helpful. If our ideas and plans changed they went our of their way to adapt the itinerary. I have written multiple e-mails and I have spoken on the phone and it never too much trouble for them to respond.

We took our five children (aged 10-24 yrs) on a two week Cape Verde holiday tour. We started off with the beaches at Sal and stayed at the Morabeza, then flew to Sao Vicente and from there took the ferry to Santo Antao. The mountain island with its pretty hiking routes, fantastic guide and beautiful hotel Pedracin village were just superb. I was sad to leave the island and would have liked to have stayed longer. Travel and hotel arrangements were well thought and planned. All in all we enjoyed everything; the combination of beach and hiking worked for us. If you ask the kids; they miss the Morabeza beach cafe.

Archipelago choice with Vista Verde planned our trip. We have only positive to say about the tour operators. They listened to our wishes and planned an itinerary that suited us! Correspondance with Archipelago Choice could not have been easier, thank you for all the info and easy communication.

We have visited about 70 different countries over the last sixty years, and, having just got back from two weeks in Cape Verde,where we visited five different islands we can honestly say that the service we received from Archipelago Choice outshone any travel agency we had used over these many years. From our first enquiry to organising our online checking for our homeward flight everything worked perfectly. The international and local flights, transfers, tours, English speaking guides, the specially chosen hotels all exceeded our expectation. What was even moe comforting for we octogenarians was the fact that the E company kept in close contact with the agency abroad and any small problem was dealt with immediately and we received emails to reassure us that all was being dealt with - which it was. We came home delighted with the whole holiday. Thank you Susanne at Archipelago who looked after us so well.

Faultless

Have just returned from a 10 day holiday with my three sons (plus my sons best buddy) from Madeira. I didn't have any preconceived ideas about the island apart from hearing how beautifully lush it is. Upon arriving, I was totally blown away with how green everything was with the abundance of banana trees and how dramatic the landscape, being a volcanic island. We stayed for the majority of the time on the South of the island in a fabulous quirky hotel, nestled high in the cliff top with spectacular views of the coastline and awesome sunsets each evening. The hotel served some excellent food and the staff were absolutely delightful. Most of our days were active with dolphin/whale watching (saw our first sighting of the magnificence Fin whales), jeep safari tour, mountain biking, visit to Nuns Valley (a must for the spectacular views), up in a cable car ride in Funcal whilst the descent was a traditional toboggan ride (a must) which was such great fun! The second part of the trip was on the Northwest of the island, about a 40 min taxi ride. Couldn't quite believe the contrast, a more rural feel, still green but very heavy clouds due to the high mountain range. The hotel was delightful, overlooking natural pools that we all took full advantage to swim in. Our three days here consisted of a day canyoning up high in the protected forest. Scuba diving in a large tank - turned out to be one of the best activities as you were so close to the incredible fish of the sea. This activity was run so well with very experienced diving instructors. Two hour levada walk, which ended up leading to a breathtaking waterfall. The seashore restaurants served delicious, yet simple food with numerous ones to choose. Felt as though we had been away for longer than 10 days - a true sign of an exceptional holiday.

Have dealt with Archipelago Choice previously, with a trip to the Azores in 2015. This time, like before everything went without a hitch and Susanne was absolutely delightful to deal with, nothing was too much trouble. Thank you for helping to making our holiday a truly superb experience.

Archipelago Choice, and Max in particular made our pre- holiday experience pleasurable and painless; and the Azores lived up to our expectations, ensuring the holiday was all that we hoped it would be (the key was that we were blessed with the weather) Manage your expectations. Plan for a day of rain for every 5 good days in August (better months to go are June, July and Sept). The diving was perhaps a little disappointing- don't expect too much if you only dive off San Miguel- go to Santa Maria or Faial for the best diving. However, for everything else San Miguel has it: brilliant canyoning; coasteering; trekking (walking down and swimming in Fire Lake is a must); breathtaking views- especially Furnass from above (if you are lucky as we were), and 7 Cities (recommend spending as much time as you have to spare mountain biking here). The Azores really are a very well kept secret, and I am somewhat reticent to be so gushing...we will be back- and definitely with A-C. And our prayer is that it just does not change too much. Oh, and if you are flying back via Lisbon- ensure you spend at least a couple of days there.

5 star. See holiday review. They really could not do enough for us.

We had an amazing trip to the Azores islands at the end of June 2017 organised by Archipelago Choice. We visited 4 of the 9 islands and had a wonderful experience walking miles, whale watching, visiting not so old volcanoes and enjoying the laid back and beautiful Azores.

The organisation by Archipelago Choice was superb from start to finish on what was a very detailed tailor made holiday and we will be looking at where we can go with them again to other destinations.

I flew from the UK (Ryanair) to meet a friend who'd travelled direct from Canada in Ponta Delgada, Azores. This was very convenient for both of us. All aspects of our holiday had been carefully discussed beforehand with Archipelago Choice, and everything they had planned worked well - except for our return journeys home! As SATA cabin crew had gone on a two-day strike, our flights had to be rearranged at short notice, and A. Choice kept us fully informed, and paid for me to stay overnight in Lisbon in a hotel convenient to the airport.

Archipelago is a small tour operator, based in Keswick, who specialise in holidays to the Azores, Madeira and San Tome.

I enjoyed three days on Faial, three days on Pico and a night in Lisbon. Exploring family history with a special interest in 19th century immigration to the US, and whaling history. I particularly enjoyed a day-long tour on each island, provided by very knowledgeable drivers, and also using a hire car to further explore each island myself.

After considering other options, I'm glad I chose Archipelago Choice to create a visit to Faial and Pico (the Azores, Portugal), followed by a night in Lisbon. Purpose of my trip was to explore family history. Whaling history was my particular interest. Communication between their agent Paul Bunn and myself was exceptional. He arranged flights, taxis, car hire, hotels, day-long tours and more. Every aspect of my trip was thoughtfully selected. Communication in all steps of planning and even during my trip was excellent. Exceptionally good service! Can't praise Archipelago Choice enough!

AFTER 3 DAYS IN LISBON, STAYING IN THE DELIGHTFUL AND CENTRAL HOTEL PORTUGAL, WE FLEW TO HORTA ON FAIAL STAYING IN HOTEL CANAL AND COMPLETED 2 PRE-ARRANGED WALKS, FERRIED TO VISIT PICO AND FLEW TO SAO JORGE FOR A FURTHER 5 DAYS. OUR ACCOMMODATION HERE WAS AT THE QUINTA DO LOBO, A VERY GOOD CENTRAL LOCATION FOR DRIVING TO MORE EXCELLENT WALKS ON THIS LARGER ISLAND. ALL ACCOMMODATION WAS FIRST CLASS, FRIENDLY WITH EXCELLENT FOOD AND SERVICE.WHILST ONE CAN ONLY, CURRENTLY, FLY TO THE AZORES DIRECT IN THE SUMMER FROM UK IT WAS NOTED THAT THERE ARE FLIGHTS FROM THE ISLANDS TO THE USA AND CANADA.

The whole trip was organised by Archipelago Choice and one would be delighted to recommend them to potential visitors on this type of holiday. One could tell the care and effort they have put into these tours and be comforted to learn that their staff visit the service providers each year to vet them and have such a good relationship with them.