Peter Sommer Travels Traveller Reviews

I find it hard to summarize this tour as two entirely different worlds are being put I find it hard to summarize this tour as two entirely different worlds are being put together, yet tied by strange and unexpected links. Nota's knowledge however is absolutely brilliant. Bringing the huge and really ancient site like Hattusha to life in combination with the artefacts from the museums is quite an achievement. Travelling through Cappadocia, Nota definitely found a way to explain this complex Byzantine art in such a way that it sticks to the mind. Amazing! The walks were a real treat; not too strenuous, not too long and well paced. This is exactly what I expected to find in the Cappadocian landscape. The utter silence of the place with only the rustling of the leaves, the murmur of the streams and the song of an occasional bird. All in all, a wonderful experience that I can highly recommend!

Excellent guiding and clear explanations. Nota always made sure we really understood the meaning and/or importance of each place where we stopped. Yet the programme was never overloaded and always well balanced.

We enjoyed a two week sailing/walking trip along the southern coast of Turkey centred around Fethiye. On the trip we visited ancient ruins from the Lycian, Greek and Roman periods. These ruins are amazing and have not been very well documented. Peter's knowledge of the area and its archiological significance made the trip a very educational experience. Every day we went for a walk of varying duration, some quite strenuous. The meals on the boat were fantastic and the captain and crew were delightful people who handled the boat magnificently and made for a wonderful holiday.

Very profesional organisation where every detail was handled superbly.

Everything was well planned and professional. The professionals from Peter Somer - Gulet operator and crew, guides etc. were excellent

The Two Week Cruising the Lycian Shore has everything: great archeological sites; stunningly beautiful and varied scenery, challenging walks, warm, clear turquoise water with ample opportunities to swim in secluded coves, great food, wonderful company, a gorgeous Gulet to call home: the trip was stimulating intellectually, physically active, but also peaceful with lots of time for introspection. I learned a great deal while nurturing my senses.

This Tour Company does everything first class and goes out of the way to accommodate guests and to anticipate and prevent problems. The guides are real authorities in their fields; emphasis is placed on educating clientele about the area historically and now. From our very first contact with the company, two years before we actually booked, we got swift and accurate personal attention. Peter Sommer actually called us (USA) himself, answered all our questions patiently and stayed in touch. When we did book, everything from that time forward to the end of our trip went off without a hitch. Tour sites can be crowded, but the guides timed everything perfectly so we missed the crowds. When we had a thunder storm one night, the guides and crew were up all night to make sure we awoke to a tidy ship and a wonderful breakfast. I just can't say enough about he professionalism of this company. I have a new and informed respect for the field of archeology and for the country we traveled to.

We spent last September with Peter Sommer Tours, sailing in a beautiful Turkish wooden boat along the rugged and historic Lycian coast. It was so much more than just a ‘holiday’. A typical day started with a rosey dawn viewed from bed, then a swim in the perfect turquoise sea, healthy and varied local food shared at a communal table with a dozen like minded guests, and an educative light scramble over history on land. The scenery was spectacular, the company delightful, the weather perfect and then . . . . there was the Archeology! Ancient stories are still being discovered in this richest and most complex of coastlines but great detail has been known for thousands of years about this East –West crossroad. History here is still alive and you can vividly imagine the lives of the citizens of ancient Arykanda right through to Xanthos. Peter Sommer Tours unfolds this richness logically and gently so by the end of the two weeks, you can identify a Byzantine apse from 100 metres and differentiate between an Ionian capital and a late Roman. But most importantly, five thousand years of this sparsely populated and beautiful stretch of Mediterranean coastline comes alive over the two weeks.

Peter Sommer Tours is a small operator who specializes in historically focused holidays. On the one hand, the tour was an extremely relaxing sun, swim, shop, food and wine tasting experience; on the other, it was a deep immersion into the beginnings of Western ciivilisation. It satisfied all the senses and also the mind. This balance was only possible because Peter Sommer, out guide, was enthusiastic, qualified and a great communicator. He wanted his disparate group of guests from all the world’s hemispheres to understand the legacy of these ancient civilizations. He did this with the support of Cem, a Turkish travel specialist, fixer and font of wisdom, and a quiet and capable crew of five together with a land based support group both in Turkey and in the head office.. Two weeks went very quickly with every day bracketed by the rhetorical question ‘how good is this?” This delightful holiday will stay with me as a definitive part of my history.

We've recently returned from our trip to Turkey and just wanted to say how impressed we were with the South East Aegean cruising the Greek islands and Turkish coast tour with Peter Sommer Travels Everything was so well organized, the captain and crew were a delight and of course the guides were extremely knowledgable, engaging and a pleasure to spend time with. We loved the itinerary and felt that we have been exposed to so much in such a short time. We're still trying to digest much of it and will have nothing but great memories of our first visit to Greece and Turkey.

Excellent communication before and after the trip. Very organized and a pleasure to deal with.

Our cruise of the Lycian shore was the most memorable and fun vacation of our lives. We returned home completely refreshed. Everything was perfect. The Turkish coast was lovely. The balance of learning/fun was excellent. Our gulet dropped anchor daily in wonderful coves where we could swim. Peter Sommer conveys his vast knowledge like the born teacher that he is, with enthusiasm and attention to context. The logistics of the trip were very well handled: minivans and transfers came off like clockwork. And the variety and excellence of food was unbelievable.

Peter Sommer Travels was exceedingly well organized from our first contact with his England office to the well-structured cruise of 14 days. As mentioned above, logistics were impeccably handled such that our vacation seemed to unfold effortlessly (but clearly a lot of effort on the part of Sommer and his staff was required to give the sense of effortless unfolding!). We were fortunate to have Peter Sommer himself on our cruise: he is great with people, a lot of fun, in addition to being very learned. The gulet and its cabins were comfortable and the crew gave impeccable service from beginning to end. There is nothing that could have been improved upon!

Peter Sommers Travel provides enjoyable well planned, well managed and interesting tours that I would recommend to anyone with an inquisitive mind who wants to learn about the world while on holiday. We travelled the coast of Turkey and Greek Dodecanese Islands visiting historical and natural sites during which we learned just how much was achieved in the ancient world before darkness descended with the coming of Middle Ages. It is no hardship either as the comfort of the boats used, the quality of the accommodation and excellent catering means you have a first class hotel on call wherever you go. All without having to pack and unpack and repack. Stress free all round.

They kept us well informed before hand about the tour.The descriptions given in the brochures and web site are accurate and not misleading at all. They answer any questions quickly and accurately and provide value for money. What more could you ask for?

We have been on several Peter Sommer holidays now and find them the perfect mix of archaeology and ancient history (our hobby and passion) as well as a wonderful opportunity to relax. The tours are excellently planned to the finest detail and orchestrated by incredibly well-informed, entertaining tour guides.

Administration is always excellent. The tours are well planned down to the smallest detail to ensure their clients get the most out of the trips. Great value for money.

Peter Sommer personally led our cruise around the Lycian Coast. He is an expert professional archaeologist and we could not have asked for a better guide and companion as we visited numerous ancient sites. A notewothy feature was that, when we went for a meal ashore, he always chose a really good restaurant and selected a delicious menu regardless of the cost. So often tour operators take their parties to expensive restaurants and then choose the cheapest possible set menu.

Peter Sommer Travels is a highly professional organisation. I would not hesitate to recommend them to anyone contemplating touring the ancient sites of the Meditterranean.