I spent two weeks in Burkina Faso, Benin and Togo, Jan. 1-18, 2012, on a trip arranged by Fulani Travel, a British company with an office in New York City. There was one other tour member besides me.
I first contacted Fulani Travel in January 2011. At a price of €2,775 (near $3,439), single occupancy, the trip included transport, hotels, breakfasts, services of a guide and driver, tips to local guides, road tolls and entrance fees.
REPORT ON HUNGARY…
I was sorry to read, in the subscriber’s letter “China Countryside Tips” (June ’12, pg. 14), that her tour company abandoned her partway through her trip. While I sympathize with her situation, I can’t agree with her conclusion that you should not travel in China without a guide or a Mandarin-speaking companion or that you should stay only in high-end hotels.
I visited Quito, Ecuador, four times from late June to mid July 2011, staying each time at El Arupo Hostel (Juan Rodriguez E7-22 y Reina Victoria, Quito, Ecuador; phone [593 2] 2557 543 or fax [593 2] 2225 716), originally recommended by a friend.
A renovated brick-and-wooden house, the hostel is spotlessly clean and safe. Guests could use the kitchen and laundry facilities. There was a free storage room, a safe-deposit box, free Internet access and WiFi. A refrigerator holds bottled water, soft drinks and local beer which you can buy.
A wonderful place to stop when on a Black Sea vacation is Hotel Selena (Yani Popov str. 7, Sozopol 8130, Bulgaria; phone/fax +359 550 25200 or phone +359 550 25300). This lovely, 72-room hotel is located on the shore of a horseshoe-shaped bay. Odd-numbered rooms overlook the beach and harbor.
My wife, Sandy, and I stayed there June 1-9, 2012. For €30 (near $38) per night, we had a very comfortable, clean room.
I traveled to Albania, Macedonia and northern Greece in June ’11. Albania is trying very hard to attract and impress tourists. I encountered friendly, welcoming, accommodating people, and they were not just those in the tourist industry.
In Macedonia, our local guide was not as friendly as the one in Albania.
Here’s some advice based on the experiences a friend and I had while traveling with a guide and driver in Burkina Faso, Benin and Togo, Jan. 1-18, 2012.
I wrote about amenities at Schiphol Amsterdam Airport (AMS) a few years ago (June ’08, pg. 61). In April-May 2012, I passed through Schiphol four times in the space of three weeks and each time found it more interesting.
AMS is well organized, and signs in English aid you in reaching your destination. It may take 20 minutes or more to reach your gate, even with the moving walkways, but that’s not unusual at a large airport.
REPORT ON NORTH KOREA
You don’t know till you go.
On GREECE, June ’04. . .