TESTIMONIALS FROM OUR GUESTS AND CLIENTS - TRAVEL to GERMANY
For those who do not know us yet, we are happy to
share some testimonials from guests and clients of culTOURinaria and The German
American Connection. Thanks to everyone who contributed a quote.
We have put together a random incomplete list of quotes from guests who
have traveled with us on a guided custom small group tour or on a guided
German Ancestry tour as well as from clients who have used our
individual trip planning service for self-guided tours to Germany,
Austria and Switzerland.
"The
Porcelain Art Tour 2011 in Germany was a memorable experience! The well
planned tour was full of great moments for porcelain artists. The
museum and factory tours were informative hosted by gracious tour
guides. Painting in Dresden and Lenggries was a wonderful experience.
The teachers had decades of experience in Meissen and Dresden styles of
painting. Because of our wonderful porcelain painting, we plan to return
to Germany to have another memorable time." Lydia Lumen, Houston, TX (guided Porcelain Art Tour in Germany)
"Our trip ... was perfect. We had so much fun and owe much of it to the organization of Ute Boese of The German American Connection for the arrangements and tips she provided." Diana E. (Individual Trip Planning Service for a self-guided tour to Germany and Austria)
"My wife and I contracted with The German American Connection for a nine-day genealogy / history tour of Germany with Ute Boese as our guide... Ute developed a complete itinerary which extended our research and put a real face on place names and developed a feeling for the people who have lived there in the past. She contacted local genealogists and city officials to uncover new information on our families... As experienced travelers, we could have planned our own trip covering the same areas. We would have missed much by doing so. In addition to the well-known historical sights, Ute scheduled visits to places we would have never known existed... As we walked small villages, people came out to talk with us. Our limited knowledge of German would have kept us from learning what we did about local history and culture. Her knowledge and connections enabled us to learn new details about known family and to uncover new members. Weeks after the trip, Ute is still working for us in translating documents and searching new sources..." Linda and Len, FL (guided German Ancestry Tour)
"My
husband and I have traveled in Europe both independently and with tours
and although our experiences have always been quite pleasurable we have
never had such a grand and effortless trip that I readily attribute to
our amazing and terrific tour guide Ute. From the moment we arrived at
the airport Ute was there handling the smallest details and making sure
that our needs were met to perfection. Ute is most knowledgeable about
every facet of Germany from history to botany and is tremendously
resourceful in discovering any information an individual might inquire
about. The central focus of our trip was to explore genealogy and visit
Christmas Markets and with Ute's keen ability to develop rapport with
town officials, clergy from town churches, record officials, and
everyone else we encountered, we received rapt attention and hospitality
from all of them as well as important pieces of information formally
unknown about my husband's family. The selection of Christmas Markets
was a perfect mix ranging from a very small and quaint village market
with almost all attendees being local including a quite good brass band
to the large and well attended markets of larger cities. Traveling the
German Autobahn could have been a harrowing experience but with Ute's
steadfast and expert driving skills we could truly relax and enjoy one
idealistic village after another. The choice of accommodations and
restaurants was also delightful and provided a variety of settings...
Ute also provided lots of flexibility and when we modified some
previously made plans she was always most gracious and cooperative.
Finally I would add that we simply had loads of fun and with Ute's keen
wit we found ourselves much like Santa, "laughing all the way"." Judy
R., TX (Guided custom German Ancestry and German Christmas Market tour
combination)
"Last spring I contacted you (Donna Sullivan, Sullivan's Custom Tours) and you referred us to Ute Boese. I wanted to let you know that two couples just returned from an independent tour she organized for us. The service she provided was perfect. No details were left out. We easily enjoyed our three week trip in Germany and Austria and all completed by train. We could not have done this without her knowledge and experience. Thank you for connecting us with her. Diana E., OR (Individual Trip Planning Service, Germany and Austria)
"Luckily we found TGAC and their genealogy trip planning services. Our family research had been completed and we wanted to visit the small towns and villages where the immigrant ancestors lived. Ute took the information we provided and planned a trip that met all of our wants and more, as we traveled to 4 locations and 7 towns and villages. We learned the history of the towns and regions, and because of her planning and contacts to local historians we also met numerous cousins and enjoyed a gracious reception everywhere. Ute represents a high degree of professionalism with a personal and engaging touch and her language translation skills are impressive. And always trust Ute to recommend the right food and beer!" Dave and Claire H., VT (guided German Ancestry Tour)
"My wife and I recently took a riverboat trip along the rivers of
Germany. One of the stops was at Wurzburg, a town about 25 kilometers
from Uffenheim, where my late mother was born. One of the main purposes
of this trip was to visit Mother's birthplace. Our travel agent put us
in contact with The German American Connection, a small company
specializing in helping Americans find their German ancestry and history
... Ute did the most amazing things for us. We told her we wanted to go
to the house in Uffenheim where my mother was born, and then also see
the cemetery where her ancestors are buried. Ute contacted the mayor of
Ermetzhofen, where the cemetery is located, and the curator of the
museum in Uffenheim. She set up a schedule of times for us to meet with
these gentlemen ... Ute took us on a walking tour of the old town. She
did a lot of advanced research, and was able to tell us quite a lot
about the town. We then went to meet the mayor of Ermetzhofen. He took
us to his office, offered us a soft drink, and brought out an old ledger
showing who was buried in the cemetery. I was able to photograph each
page for my history. The mayor then took the three of us to lunch at a
little country pub, where we had brats and sauerkraut, with wheat beer.
Delicious! After the visit to the cemetery, where we were able to take
photos of the gravestones, we drove back to Uffenheim to meet at the
museum. The curator had made a display of pertinent memorabilia for us
to look at and photograph. The mayor of Uffenheim also joined us and we
spent a couple of hours talking about the history of the area and
looking at the material. Ute was excellent about translating for us. All
in all, we were treated like visiting royalty by everyone. And Ute did
an outstanding job of taking care of us. She drove us back to where we
were to meet the ship and made sure we were in the right place before
saying doodbye to us. I can't find words enough to describe this day and
the wonderful way we were treated by Ute and the local people. The
absolute highlight of the entire trip for me. I highly recommend The
German American Connection to anyone doing onsite family research and
history. David A., CA (guided German Ancestry Tour)
"Best Bier Trip Ever! Thank you." Jeff D., NY (guided Cultural Beer Tour)
"Thank you for a wonderful trip. It was a good mix of activities,
something for everyone even though it was primarily a beer tour. All our
travelers gave me positive feedback. You did an excellent job taking
care of details and of us, you were the difference between this being an
okay trip and being the outstanding trip that it was." Bob R., NY
(guided Cultural Beer Tour to Germany)
"The trip was wonderful!...Highlight of the German part of the tour
was of course the Emigration Museum in Bremerhaven... Ute, you had
booked us at the Hotel Stadt Aurich, that is owned and operated by a
friend of Karin's (TGAC: her penpal)...That hotel was
superb...Unfortunately, we did not get to visit and do all suggestions
once we got there so perhaps a reason to return someday." Gayl P., LA
(Individual Trip Planning Service, Germany)
"As a graduation gift for our granddaughter, we offered to take her
to Germany. We spent an exhaustive amount of time researching and
planning where we wanted to go and what we wanted to do, but we were
just too overwhelmed when it came time to finalize all the details. So
we called The German American Connection for assistance and Ute Boese
took over from that point. She made all of our reservations for day
tours, hotels, rental car, etc. She then sent everything to us in a neat
comprehensive package that included all tickets, a detailed itinerary,
detailed instructions, and maps of all towns we would be visiting along
with recommendations for places to visit, things to see and even where
we might to eat! I had so many questions and she always answered them
thoroughly and promptly. I was initially worried about how much the
services might cost as we had never used a travel agent before. But I
made a leap of faith and just decided that I needed to trust that Ute
would be able to help us out. It was one of the best decisions we made! I
found the charges to be very reasonable and well worth everything we
received in return - an organized trip package, a knowledgeable resource
and tremendous relief from having to plan and finalize everything on
our own. I highly recommend Ute and The German American Connection."
Linda J., TX, USA(Trip planning service - Tour to Germany)
"Thank you for the trip and experience of a life time. No other trip
will be the same." Marilyn W., CA, USA (guided Porcelain Art Tour in Germany)
"I have thoroughly enjoyed the trip. You have added such personal
touches that has made me feel like we have been one family for these 2
weeks. I look forward to coming back next year." Kay C., TX (Porcelain
Art Tour in Germany)
"I had a wonderful time. This trip has exceeded all my expectations." Jada G., TX (guided Porcelain Art Tour in Germany)
"Working with you to put the trip together has been a pleasure. You are
extremely committed to your work, readily-available to take questions
and supply answers, and your great knowledge of Germany and tourism in
Germany not only made our trip go very smoothly, but you also knew how
to make travel affordable to high school students. ... I couldn't
believe how organized you were with the schedule. I was expecting to
have to look up all that information myself so this was fantastic! With
that information as well as the maps and confirmations of our
reservations, you made our trip so easy for me! Your help and
organization allowed me to concentrate more on the students and their
needs. Thank you so much for an amazing experience. I look forward to
working with you again in 2 years on our next exchange..." Rachel E., NJ
(Trip planning service - Tour to Germany)
"We had such a great time on the tour. We have told many friends about how you made it such a memorable trip with all of the advance contacts and arrangements. I have already researched further some of the information we discovered. It was an amazing experience to see the old towns and churches in which our family had lived and held such important events. The tour of the German countryside and the commentary will forever be a part of our memory. You really made it special..." David R., TX (guided German Ancestry Tour)
