From: Cindy, Roni and Debby

Fred, Sam, and Lilianne,

I wanted to send you an email you describing the amazing trip we went on to Italy last week. Just so you can recall, my sister is Debby Pomeranc, Jack Pomeranc's daughter-in-law.

Rome was absolutely amazing. Our hotel was located just down the street from the Spanish Steps and the Via Veneto. Both areas had delcious food and were in walking distance from our hotel. We stayed at the Hotel Oxford. I had emailed them prior to getting there about tickets to the Colloseum and they promptly replied. While there they gave us recommendations for restaurants, booked reservations, and helped us figure out how to get around. Everyone there was extremely delightful and always greeted when we walked through the doors. We climbed an endless amount of stairs (Eurpopean elevators are way too tiny to go in) as all our rooms were on the top floor but I guess it was a good idea to work off our daily gelato!!!

The first tour to the trevi fountain, pantheon, Piazza Nuvona, and around the city was pretty good. She rushed us a bit in the locations so we ended up going back to see them again. However, she was very informative and we truly learned a lot. At the end of the tour we wanted to go to the Colloseum and she willingly dropped us off where we needed to be. That was extremely genereous of her.

The Vatican/Sistine Chapel Tour was exceptional. Our tour guide was fabulous and very dramatic. She added to the stories she told and provided us with new information about the art and the drawings. She truly was terrific.

We caught an early train to Florence and unfortunately had a huge problem outside the Uffizi. In Rome our passports were locked in the safe. For whatever reason I had them on me and within a 5 minute time frame they were lifted out of my pocketbook. I was in complete shock and we quickly called the states. My father then contacted your company and Leena was able to help us out. She provided us with useful information as to what we need to do, kept us all calm, and offered us suggestions about other tours we could take of Florence since we had to cancel the scheduled one for the next morning. My father was so pleased with her and we all felt more at ease after he spoke with her. THANK YOU!

The Hotel Balestri was incredible. Elise was at the front desk during our trauma and she helped us out by calling taxis, giving us advice and offering to talk to the Carabinieri for us if they didn't understand English. She then told everyone at the desk our story when she left in case we needed any assistance before she came back the next day. The following morning she provided us with other things to do in Florence since we missed our tour. I have never met such a compassionate person. This hotel was abolutely beautiful as it sits on the river and perfectly located. However, being it was near the Uffizi, I was extremely cautious after that. Our new tour included the American Embassy!!!

Venice - The trains were easy to find and very comfortable. I have never gotten to a train station and seen a body of water in front of me. What a breath taking view. Our hotel was, The Santa Chiara, very far from San Marco Square but that didn't matter to us. It gave us the opporunity to really walk ALL over Venice and get a feel for the city. The view was beautiful as it sat on the Grand Canal.

Unfortunately this hotel was nothing like the other two. They men at the desk were extremely rude from the moment we arrived. They took our passports and kept them for more than 30 minutes which was not necessary. Due to the events the day before we asked for them back and he snapped and said "I'll give them to you when I'm done!" There was no need for that kind of attitude. Debby, my sister, stood at the desk until he was finished because we didn't want to let them out of our sight a second time. The next desk man (Elesandro) was also extremely short and impolite. At one point we asked him how we get a taxi back to the airport. I showed him our voucher and he said he had no idea. I asked him to call the travel agency in Italy and he said they were closed because it was a holiday. I had a cell number for Mrs. Ila and when I asked him to call that number he said no again and that I could do it and it would be expensive. Debby asked why he wouldn't call for us and he said "Why should I have to pay for it". Never-the-less my father, in the states, called your company and once again your staff was amazing. This time he spoke with Cassie who called Italy for us and within minutes Italy called us (Roberto) to explain what we needed to do. Apparently our hotel was suppposed to give us something upon our arrival that told us when we were being picked up. When we asked them at the desk Elesandro replied, nasty of course, "There is nothing here for you" Also, when it started to rain, they entered our room during the day and closed our shutters wihtout our permission. The windows were closed and they had no reason to enter our room. Overall we were not pleased with them and how they treated us. The location was great and so was the view but the staff at this hotel was terrible. I would not recommend this place again.

The tour guide was exceptional and we took a 45 minute boat ride to the square that morning to see the entire grand canal. How fascinating. The Doge's palace is a must see for everyone.

Overall, the trip was beyond our wildest dreams. The tours were perfect, the guides were fluent in English and very knowledgable, and Italy is just a remarkable place. Lilianne picked great hotels, locations, and even gave me some pointers along the way. She was extremely helpful and I would not hesitate to call her again for another trip.

My mother, sister and I truly thank you and your staff for organizing the trip and helping us through a very emotional and trying time while in Eurpoe. It is an experience we will never forget. If you have any further questions please don't hesitate to contact us.

Thank you again,
Cindy, Roni and Debby

-----Original Message -----
From: Jean Anne Romagna
Subject: Deluxe Italy Tour

My husband and I just returned from our 15-day tour. What a fabulous trip! We were told that the group would be small, but we never imagined that it would include only 19 people! This small number, and the extremely knowledgeable guides, made our excursions very personal. We seemed to be able to bypass the extremely long lines at the Vatican and the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence. We loved our boat tour of Capri. Here, too, we were on a boat small enough to peek into the lesser-known grottos (white and green) and beaches surrounding the island, leaving the throngs bobbing and waiting for their turn to tour the Blue Grotto.

Our tour guides were Nora, Nino, Pino, Fernando, Maurizio, Roberto, Marzia, Savino, and Carmen. They each brought their own expertise to the tours, always with a special dedication to their subject, patience with us, and a sense of humor that appealed to both the youngsters and the adults of the group. Our bus driver, Giulio, made us feel safe and secure with his driving skills. He was also very flexible, allowing us to stop and take photographs among the sunflowers in Tuscany.

A special word of appreciation must go to our tour director Lorenzo Tarzio. He was absolutely wonderful. His personal attention to detail was fabulous. He was extremely knowledgeable, always recommending the best restaurants, walking routes, shopping sites, and points of interest.

While in Rome, my husband and I took a free afternoon to venture into the small town of Terracina, where his grandparents were born. Lorenzo explained the rail system, researched the schedule,and gave us the confidence to venture out on our own. We are not world travelers, but with Lorenzo's encouragement we did it. It was probably the high point of our trip. Mille grazie, Lorenzo. And many thanks to Central Holidays and our travel agent Joyce Heist for making our dreams come true.

University Flights
New York, NY

Antonella
Central Holidays

Dear Antonella:

I want to thank you for a wonderful trip to Sicily. The hotels were excellent, the star being Capotaormina. The food quite good for hotel fare and occasionally surpassed that.

I want to single out special praise for our tour leader, Gaetano Salemi. He is most unusual because of his passion for Sicily and his wide knowledge of the place: geography, climate, agriculture, history, political and economic life - past and present -, island gossip, anthropology, art and literary history and music. He is a true polymath with a brilliant power of presentation, excellent English, high energy and nuanced enthusiasm. He is well-mannered and resourceful. He transmitted his enthusiasm for Norman Architecture, Sicilian cookery, Greek ruins, the wild scenery of this enchanting island,its dark and lighter sides, to a very unlikely audience who enjoyed an unusual experience under his tutelage. His sense of humor, patience and courtesy were unfailing.

Two examples one small and one major: the American requires salad with meals. He found a way of procuring it although I overheard a discussion with a bemused maitre de who could not quite grasp its importance. More serious, his handling of a woman in very bad health, who had a severe crisis while on the trip. He saw that she received the best medical care available in record time at a local hospital, and did so in difficult circumstances without a show of effort or disruption to other group members.

Sicilians a re famous for their eloquence and on several occasions I could hear in his presentations the voices of those ancient masters of political and literary eloquence, Crespi, Rudini and his favorite, Tomasi di Lampedusa. He introduced the names of all those great men of the Sicilian past from Empedocles to Pirandello, Verga, Sschascha and without boring so that when he finally read from The Leopard, it was his audience who reminded him that he had promised to do so.

Our driver, Edward, was - prompt, courteos, an excellent foil for Gaetano, -- and very helpful and careful of his charges. They made an excellent team.

"Thank you again for a wonderful vacation.

Sincerely,

Joanne C. Rose
University Flights

-----Original Message-----
From: Leslie Soodak
Subject: Thank you

Dear Central Holidays Customer Service Representatives,

I have just returned from my trip to Italy, which was arranged with your services. I want to thank you for helping us to have an exceptional vacation. Each of the elements in your package (e.g., hotels, tours, transfers) was just as they were explained. The hotels we stayed in were all wonderful, the rooms and breakfasts outstanding. The airport to hotel transfers made life simple and easy. The tours were each led by excellent guides with good humor! Our only disappointment was that after upgrading (at additional expense) to have a tour of the Vatican, it did not assist us in avoiding the terribly long lines. In fact, given that our hotel was so near the Vatican, it would have been helpful to be advised to simply do this on our own. This did not, however, prevent us from thoroughly enjoying the entire trip.

Thanks for helping us have a great trip. We will certainly recommend you to others and will be in touch to plan our future vacations.

Sincerely,
Leslie Soodak

From: Mary Ann Koenig
Subject: Lorenzo Tarza

I was recently on a tour of Italy with Lorenzo as my tour guide. I have been on many guided tours but felt impelled to contact you in regards to this tour guide. He was absolutely amazing. At all times he was a true gentleman but always approachable. He was kind and extremely knowledgeable. His neatness, organizational skills, punctuality and attention to the smallest of details are to be commended. For example, my luggage was "lost." He attended to this problem as if it was his own. Making a long story short, through a great deal of work and many phone calls he finally connected with a reliable person at "de Italia"? (I believe this is the company that has the exclusive contract to handle the delivery of "lost or delayed" luggage.) Through his and his brother's (another amazing tour guide-do you think it is genetic?) efforts they finally located the luggage in ROME. It had been there for over a week and no one would do anything about it. I signed a release, Lorenzo faxed it to his brother and to Rome and the luggage was flown to Venice where Lorenzo's brother personally picked up the luggage and delivered it to me in Venice.

Lorenzo's brother was also guiding a tour for you that arrived in Venice that day and due to their collaborative efforts, the luggage was retrieved and delivered to me personally. Neither Lorenzo nor his brother would take a tip. They believed this was just "part of his job" WOW!! Not only did I have the opportunity to explore the experienced travelers started calling ourselves "Lorenzo's family" that is how strongly we all felt about our experience. I hope I have the opportunity to travel with him again.

PS: Don't you thing the luggage story would be a great advertisement for your company? True stories are always the best.

Thank you for such a great experience- I will definitely travel with Central Holidays again.

Mary Ann Koenig

Pasquale G. Gizzo
WEST HARRISON, NY

Ms Lina Alvarez
Central Holidays
250 Moonachie Road
Moonachie, New Jersey 07074

Dear Ms. Alvarez:

Both I and my family would like to take this opportunity to pass along a word of thanks to all at Central Holidays for making our trip back to our dear Italia such a pleasurable and memorable one. We would like to especially commend Lenny Culpi, Account Executive, for his assistance and attention to our trip. We have been to Europe before, but his efforts made this trip go so well.

We were able to join my parents in their birth place due to his assistance and that for us, made the journey all the more memorable. We will surely recommend your firm to others and especially this fine gentleman. Again, on behalf of my wife, Kathleen and daughter Genna Marie, thank you so very much.

Mille Grazie!

Very truly yours,

Pasquale G. Gizzo, Esq.

Pratt Institute
Brooklyn, NY
School of Art & Design

Re: Fashion students visit Europe
Cc: Roberta Jackson

Attn: Fred Berardo,

It was a pleasure to meet with you, Joe and Roberta at your office in late January on my return from Europe. I would like to once again express how wonderful the trip went, and what wonderful people you have working for your company.

Roberta and I have been working together every year since 1999, trying to get the Fashion in Europe Program to run each summer. However, with the cost of tuition being so high, enrolment did not meet the quota for group rating. During the summer of 2005, Roberta mentioned that if we ran the program in early January the travel part of the trip would be less expensive than if it were to run in the summer. I immediately worked on the approval of the course to run in January. It was because of Roberta's patience over the years and her knowledge of the business that the course ran, and ran so smoothly. Everything from travel transfers from airport to hotels, private tour escorts in Paris and Italy, private city tours, private coach transfers to fashion visits, full day excursions, hotel accommodations, museum tours, right up to a smooth flight home to JFK, was all due to Roberta's planning.

All in all, the students were so pleased with the trip. They have been raving about it in the hallways of Pratt Institutes' Fashion department. I have already had quite a few students ask when the next trip would be running. I am so pleased to have had such a wonderful experience what the trip running as it did for the first time. I attribute the success of this trip to Roberta who has always believed that eventually we would get this program running.

I praise Central Holidays for managing such a wonderful company; you have made many people very happy, and have touched their lives in ways you would be proud to know. I personally have taken this trip once as a student in 1988, as an assistant to Professor Michael Renzulli in 1998, and now running the class on my own, each time under the guidance of Central Holidays, and each times was run flawlessly. I can once again say that the experience has touched my life in many wonderful, enlightening ways. I am looking forward to next year's trip with Central Holidays as our agent.

Thank you all for a wonderful experience.

Sincerely
Rosie De Pasquale

Dennis & Angela Lockard
Carmel, Indiana

Mr. Gianni Miradoli
Mr. Sam Silvertein
World Travel Group
Central Holiday Tours
250 Moonachie Road
Moonachie, New Jersey 07074


Dear Mr.Miradoli and Mr. Silverstein:

Ten of us were on a Central Holidays "Northern Highlights" tour in Italy July 9-18, 2005. We all had a splendid time and want to particularly acknowledge the outstanding effort of our Tour Director, Luigi Biavati.

This is our third trip with Central Holidays. My wife and I took a 19 day Italian tour several years ago with the original Central Holidays, and my wife my son and I took the "Northern Highlights" tour with Central Holidays three years ago when it was owned by Far and Wide.

A substantial contribution to our enjoyment of the "Northern highlights" tour this year and three years ago was our personable, knowledgeable and insightful Tour Director, Luigi Biavati. We had such a good time on that second trip that we convinced two other families to take the same tour with us this year, provided Luigi was available as the Tour Director. All ten of us had a wonderful time on the tour, and Luigi helped make it thoroughly enjoyable.

His love of his job and his country is evident. He shared stories and insights into the history and development of the regions we visited, entertaining us on our bus rides and helping us better appreciate what we would be seeing. He was personable and available, and it was apparent he went out of his way to make everyone-not just the ten of us-comfortable, and to smoothly attend to a and accommodate special needs as they came up.

I am sure you realize what an outstanding Tour Director you have in Luigi, but we feel it is important for you to hear, too, from the people whose Italian experience was so enriched with his knowledge, commitment and professionalism.

We look forward to future Central Holidays tours with family, friends and, of course, Luigi Biavati

Sincerely,

Dennis G. Lockard

LINDA LICATA
SEAFORD, NY


Central Holidays
250 Moonachie Road
Moonachie, NJ 07074

Re: Splendors of Sicily Tour

To Whom It May Concern:

My husband and I just returned home form the Splendors of Sicily tour where we had the pleasure of visiting the very beautiful island of Sicily filed with all its history and natural wonders. We had the best time and would like to compliment your company on the very professional way that everything was handled.

We were very pleased with our hotel accommodations in all three locations, the meals, the motor coach and driver (Tonino) that were provided for us, the excellence of all the tour guides and all the tours that were provided with the Splendors of Sicily Tour. Our airline schedules and transfers were also very well coordinated.

We would most especially like to compliment our tour director, ROMINA TARZIA. Besides being such a nice person, she was so enthusiastic and professional, and was so well educated and knowledgeable in all areas. We learned so much from all the information that Romina shard with our group and we regard her most highly.

Thank you to Romina Tarzia and Central Holidays for making our trip so wonderful and one that we shall always remember as the best vacation ever!

Sincerely,

Linda Licata

Robert P. Mason
Marilyn T. Mason
Bozman, Maryland

France Vacations
Dear France Vacations:

We have recently returned from your France tour package that featured the Anacoluthe barge trip. We want you to know that we are very pleased with all aspects of the trip. Your arrangements and reservations all worked out as planned. There were no unpleasant surprises-in facts there were many pleasant ones!

The Canal & Company people who run the Anacoluthe provided an excellent experience with the finest meals and comfortable accommodations while spotlighting a carefully selected profile of French life and history. The six days aboard were an outstandingly pleasant and memorable period among our many travels.

We would heartily recommend this trip and your preparations for it to our friends for a most enjoyable experience.

Sincerely,

Robert P. and Marilyn T. Mason

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