Perillo Tours
 

Does anyone have any experiences or information to share on Perillo Tours? I have read their info and prices, etc., but I would like to hear from any of you who might have actually been on one of their Italy tours. I am not big on tour groups, I prefer to plan my own trips, etc., but was considering this one based on other people who have heard they were good. Thank you.

I'm very interested in the question too. I have it narrowed down to 2 companies for Italy tour, Collette and Perillo. both have the same prices but I need some firsthand knowledge.

I don't like their ads - the older man has rough speech that I find annoying, and it makes me feel like they're targeting somewhat uneducated or simple-minded or "rough" or anti-cultured types as their core client group. I've looked at their itineraries, and they seem to squeeze in too much and go to very mainstream places that are easy enough to go to on your own. I generally take a tour if I want to go to places that are not easily accessible by major train and bus routes, or where the attraction is the countryside and I don't want to wander off alone. My impression is that Perillo is for somewhat unsophisticated or scared or inexperienced or not too healthy travelers. They seem to place too much emphasis on luxury and not enough on the adventure and aesthetic and intellectual stimulation of travel. I also think their groups may be rather large. (PS I think over 20 is large and over 30 is absurdly huge for a tour group).

My family took a Perillo tour in Dec. 1995. This was my first trip to Europe but have since been back numerous times, without a tour. <BR>That said, ours was a fairly large group-about 25 people. It was nice though that there were people of all ages. I was in my 20's at the time and probably one-third of the group was younger than 35. <BR>Our tour guide was great and added alot to the experience. The worry was taken out of lodging, food, transportation, etc. And yes, the hotels and restaurants were quite nice. Also, this particular tour allowed a fair amount of time on your own. <BR>Having navigated on my own since then I probably would not take this tour again. But I really did enjoy it and would especially recommend it to someone who didn't want spend alot of time planning, researching, and scheduling a trip of that magnitude of their own.

On a trip to Italy my husband and I had a terrible time. Poor hotel locations, restuarants and tour guide. Go on your own or with another group. Went with Collette on a free form trip they just booked the hotels and were very happy with them