Peter Sommer Travels Traveller Reviews

Peter Sommer's two week gulet cruise in Turkey was amazing. Each day was a wonderful balance of exploring archaeological sites with an expert archaeologist, visiting small villages for delicious homemade meals or wine tastings, swimming in the warm waters of the Aegean sea, and enjoying comfortable meals and down time on the beautiful gulet. Our guide was excellent, and each day ran smoothly due to his preparations and care. The captain and crew of the gulet were professional, helpful, and lovely, and I felt welcomed and comfortable on the gulet. I hoped to learn a lot on this trip, and I certainly did. The well curated library aboard the gulet was an unexpected surprise. In addition, the Peter Sommer team is super responsive before and after the trip, answering questions and offering advice. I really appreciated the personal customer service. This was an absolutely amazing trip, and I am still thinking about all the places I visited and the beauty of the scenery. 

Everyone on the Peter Sommer Travels team was excellent. They always gave me as much time as I needed to answer my questions, and I never felt rushed or as if I were bothering them with trivial matters. They were always responsive to all emails, and so helpful and kind. Their professionalism and excellence is one reason I would take another trip with Peter Sommer Travels.

I had a great and educational time looking at archeological ruins along the Aegean coast of Turkey.

Peter Sommer tours: knowledgeable and professional, personable and enthusiastic. Peter delightfully explained what we were looking at.

Exploring ancient sites in Turkiye with someone who knows and loves the area, was a thrilling way both to explore part of the beautiful modern coast line and to envisage its ancient cities.

Peter Sommer's thoughtful consideration of every detail ensured we were able to explore magnificent bays and olive-groved hillsides in comfortable walking conditions. He held us spellbound with his passionate and vivid descriptions of life in ancient cities. And returning to the elegant gulet, we enjoyed different fresh and delicious Turkish dishes every day. The whole experrience: food for body, mind and soul.

We were able to tour the most interesting sites in the Peloponnese with 2 great guides. The hotels we stayed in and the meals we ate were top notch.

The tour operator, that is our 2 guides, were exceptional. They were very knowledgeable and attentive. I have already signed up for another of their tours next year.

This was my fifth Peter Sommer trip and my fourth on a gulet - "Walking and Sailing the Lycian Way". It encompass all I want for my perfect holiday, boats, walking/hiking and seeing ancient remains. It was a very professional and wonderfully organised experience and every detail was catered for. I had to do nothing, but get up in the morning. The gulet was very comfortable and I loved the sailing between the various beautiful locations. I could relax and watch others go for swims, snorkelling or paddle boarding. I was amazed how a small boat could produce such fresh and appetising food, even though Greek/Turkish food is not my thing. I never went hungry. One of our guides Cem, introduced us to wonderful Turkish wines. We also had many meals in local restaurants or on picnics, meeting local Turkish people. We even called into a bakery and saw our bread being made. I am not sports minded, but walking is my delight. We walked/trekked through forests, open landscapes. Sometimes easy walking, sometimes across rugged territory. Many of the tracks were ancient roads and we walked where people had walked for thousands of years. The most bizarre thing was seeing a wizened old shepherd with his flock of sheep, while scrolling through his smart phone! We walked up hill and down dale, with so many wonderful views, that my phone camera could not capture the magnificence of the scenery. We walked along old roads, past numerous tombs, through ruined ancient Greek settlements and it is here that our guides, Cem and Peter Sommer himself came into their own. They have been doing these tours for decades and have selected the best sites and walk combinations. The depth of their knowledge was astounding. Knowledge is one thing, however, but they also had the ability to put it over and bring dead sites to life. This coupled with a deep understanding of the often complex history put them into context and made the tour unforgettable. Another important aspect of the tour was meeting people of similar interest and from various countries across the world. The small size of the group was important, as it allowed you to get to know each other, make friendships and explore other aspects of life in a way that larger tours can not. I can not recommend these tours highly enough. I am also booked on another one next year and thinking of adding another one as well.

Peter Sommer organises and runs superb tours through the ancient world, either on land or sailing with gulets. He employs wonderful guides who are both knowledgeable, enthusiastic and able to make dead sites ‘come to life’. They only take small numbers allowing you to get to know each other, make friendships and explore other aspects of life in a way that larger tours can not.

Our small group tour was first rate throughout. We loved the hotel, a converted 15th century convent, distinctive in every way and absolutely first rate. Every day was well planned but not exhausing. We were met in the morning by two beautiful cars who would drive us to the day's activities. Tickets and arrangements were always in place and the only place with a line was the Vatican. Our two guides were first rate and very knowledgeable. There were no issues at ll and we cam away really believing we had been exposed, in the most pleasant way, to a comprehensive Rome experience.

Peter Sommer was very easy to deal with both before and during out trip. We were met at the Airport on arrival and always had immediate access to first rate assistance if needed. The location of our hotel was great as we were five minutes from a lovely and historic district of restaurants and, most important, gelato shops.

We were treated to the very best tour guides and museum/art historians who had endless knowledge and energy.

(Tassos & Maria,Cyclades Tour) and (Nota - The Heart of Athens tour) - all tour guides and museum/art historians who had endless knowledge and energy. They were all open to dialog and questions at all times. They all had flexibility on our schedule considering weather, and adapted extremely graciously on our behalf. In Athens, I want to mention that Michael Metcalfe was amazing in his ability to help us out in many ways..from meeting and greeting in Athens, to lugging heavy suitcases. I was impressed with this ability to fix a ferry sched. glitch with a plane reservation for all of us in a few minutes on the phone. I have already recommended this tour to my doctor and his family. They, too are looking for a learning historical island holiday.

We spent a week exploring Rome with Paul Beston, our guide, who was superb! A wonderful experience all round.

Peter Sommer Travel are the wonderful for historical tours! Very stimulating all round.

This trip was such a great experience. The ship was excellent, the guide and archaeologist were top notch, and the food was beyond amazing. It was wonderful to spend the day touring ancient sites, visiting a winery (and tasting great wines) or learning all about olive oil production then and returning to the gulet and immediately jumping into the beautiful turquoise water. Ahhhhh! Our small group bonded immediately, and we had so many laughs together.

Peter Sommer Tours was outstanding. They were organized and efficient and made sure we had a top notch experience

It was wonderful. This is primarily an archeological cruise on a wooden gulet through the Cyclades islands. The 2 guides were Greek classical archeologists and both were very knowledgeable, energetic, and fabulous

The Peter Sommer Group did a wonderful job of planning and organizing the trip. When asked a question, they were prompt and helpful in answering.