trip

Morocco could have been shortened. Guide good but not very approachable: i.e. In Casablanco where we could have had lunch in a cafe on the ocean(same prices) directed us to a cafe not on the water "that catered to large groups". Not good and no atmosphere and when approached said"you could have gone anywhere you wanted". Then give us choices; it's your country. He most likely received a portion of total sales which he said was true and "that they do that all over the world"!!!!! Very little of Portugal for inclusion in a trip Title. I should have only done Spain. Only big cities with good guides informing us of history of the countries and city. Guess I'm getting tired of only large cities.

An Adventure!

Overall I believe the tour was a success, but definately has areas needing of improvement. Francisco was an amazing tour director and very helpful. We visited many unique sites and learned alot. However, a few of the hotel choices were quite awful. The Hotel Rabat was the worse establishment I've ever stayed in, the neighborhood was not tourist friendly, the linens were dingy and stained, and the food was bad. The Grand Tulip in Morocco had beautiful grounds but the rooms were mediocre at best. The sheets were also dingy and the walls had many stains on them. I also didn't think it was necessary to spend an evening in Rabat, there really wasn't anything so special about that place that it could not have been missed or perhaps just a day tour (but I would prefer to eliminate it and the extra driving time). I would have much rather spent more time in Fes, which had a beautiful hotel and located in a nice area or an evening in Casablanca. I also was not pleased with the food options at most of the hotels. The food at the hotel in Lisbon and Seville were the best. The others, not at all memorable. Morocco was good in itself but could have been helped with better hotel options. As the trip is not inexpensive and comfort should be a huge consideration. The hotel in Madrid also had several issues in the bathrooms: mold, loose ceiling tile, and noisy water drippings from a pipe. If the hotel and food options would be improved this trip would be amazing. There was also a lot of time spent traveling to new cities via bus, having an approximate driving time between each city posted before-hand would have been helpful for travelers to decide if that is something they want to do before booking the trip. This should probably be reworked so that travelers can spend more time enjoying the cities rather than driving. I also felt like I was tipping all day long; I understand that people need to make a living but there were too many people with their hands out and not enough time spent together. Nevertheless, my favorite parts of the trip were the Flamenco show in Granada at the Gypsy Cave and visiting Seville. The Alhambra was definately my favorite site and Lisbon was a wonderful surprise with great pastries. We also had a small group of 21 which was the perfect size. Would I recommend the trip? Yes, but with conditions.

too many

There are too many good things and too many bad things about this tour. Its rated as intense - but its not the physcial endurance needed for walking -- its the physcial endurance for setting in a tour bus for so long, and the back and forth from Madrid to Morocco and back to Madrid (for one night??). Many of us were sick almost the entire time we were in Morocco so I can undestand that that may have impacted my feelings re Morocco. However, add in the lunches and dinners and don't make it so difficult to navigate in a country that has so much health and sanitary problems. Our tour guide, Francisco, was absolutely the best - knowledgeable, dealt with our sickness problems, and just a wonderful person.

Portugal, Spain & Morocco

My experienced on our tour will be treasured for a lifetime... it's so priceless!

Morocco was best

loved the cobras. learned a LOT!

Having Fun

The trip met my expectations. The hotels inproved by each place we went. The food was excellent and the excersions were great. The tour gave you enough time to alone if you wanted and time to sightsee and shop. The one thing to note is that in some of the hotels the air conditiong was subpar. The hotel location in Lisbon could have been better, The rest of the trip was great and eye opening. Our tour Director Fernando was awesome. He gave tips on what to see and where to eat. My sister and I had a great time.

Another Great Tour

I enjoyed Portugal and Spain immensely, especially the extension to Barcelona. The tilework and beautifully planned streets were excellent. I had originally chosen this tour because of Morocco, but it was my least favorite country. The mosques, with the exception of the one in Casablanca, were not as beautiful as the ones I've seen in other countries. We were not allowed inside the mosques either. I also did not like the contrived shopping "opportunities". GoAhead always provides great travel experiences.

Too fast paced----many hours on the bus

I loved the places we visited but there was absolutely no down time to go exploring. That is my favorite part about GoAhead--to have a city tour, an optional, and also at least a half day to go back to museums, local cafes, shopping, etc. NOT ON THIS TRIP. The whole group of 40 ( way too many) was together for everything---even most meals.

Spain:amazing, Morocco:interesting, Portugal:color

This was my first time to Europe, so I didn't know what to expect. I was very pleasantly surprised. Our tour guide was great. He was a very kind and caring person with a great sense of humor. He would arrange our wake-up calls for us and always told us the next day's schedule. There was 1 person in our group who required some special attention. He went the extra mile in order to make sure she had a safe trip. Another person got seriously ill and a doctor was called in. He then always tried to buy liquids that would help her while we were on the road. In Morocco, many rest stops did not have toilet tissue. He bought some tissue for us to use in the restrooms. He really cared about us. The guides were amazing and shared their wealth of knowledge. I learned so much from them that my head felt like it was going to explode ( and that was a good thing). The hotels and meals were good. All of the hotels were in great locations, except the one in Lisbon, Portugal. It was a nice hotel, but far away from anything. Overall, a great trip with experiences that I will treasure forever. :)

first trip

morroco's planned visits were not accomplished. 11 1/2 hour bus ride to long,even for your seasoned go aheads travellers although stopping to use the bathroom every 2 hours was buying insurance against everyone throwing a fit.