Pics from the Monti's trip

I spent two days to visit Barcelona with the Monti, from Italy. They were a lovely couple and they sent me a few pics of their tours. I put them together in this short 30sec. video and I'm sharing it here with their permission. Enjoy it!

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5+ out of 5 for my Gaudí Tour!

A few weeks ago I gave Colleen Conway and a friend of her a Gaudí tour that she booked through Toursbylocals. We had a great time together and I loved answering all of her insightful questions. Here is the review she posted: 

 

I'm always so happy to contribute to create the best Barcelona experience for my guests!

**** To know more about my Barcelona tours, visit Foreverbarcelona.
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Two more great reviews on Toursbylocals!

As many of you already know, I also advertize outside of my website in online tourguide listings and one of the best is Toursbylocals.com. This month I receive their tomorrow wonderful reviews by real clients that booked me through this platform. Check them out!

To see all my other reviews on Toursbylocals click here.

**** To know more about my Barcelona tours, visit Foreverbarcelona.

Am I the tourguide of the year?

 Hi!


It's been a long time since I last wrote: this high season is neverending and I've got so much work to do!

Anyway, last week I spent two days to visit Barcelona with an Italian group. We did the whole city together!

I just received a letter from one of the couples, and I wanted to share it with you:

Beautiful Marta, Anna (the quick lady) and Renato choose you as guide of the year, and as they promised they are sending you the pictures of your wonderful city. We hope we'll come back some day. Happy Holydays for you and your family. Byyyyyye!

Well, of course the "guide of the year" thing was a joke, but... isn't that cute?

Oh, and "quick lady" is the loving nickname I gave her because she was so eager to learn more and more, than she'll make me lots of questions before I even got to develop the introduction for whatever we were visiting. It was so funny! She's adorable!


And here are the pics they sent me:

 

Explaining at the Park Güell

 

At the Olympic Village

**** To know more about my Barcelona tours, visit Foreverbarcelona.

The Anderson share their daytrip to Tarragona and Sitges

On Thursday I took the Anderson to Tarragona and Sitges. They have been traveling for over a month now, taken 2 different cruises and spend several days in two of their favorite cities: Istanbul, and of course, Barcelona.But their ship brought them back to our city, and they took the opportunity to explore one more Roman site in their trip: Tarragona, and on the way back, we planned to stop in Sitges for lunch.

My favorite driver, Ramon, and I picked them up at the cruise pier and drove them to Tarragona. Seing their genuine interest on the Roman heritage, we decided to stop in two little-known Roman sites: the stone quarry of the Mèdol, and the aqueduct of Les Ferreres. Then we arrived to Tarragona, and had a nice walk along the Roman city walls. We then entered the Old Town, and passed the Cathedral where we stopped to see some interesting details of its façade (the interior is being restored and we decided not to go in). We stopped in the square of the Roman forum for a coffee and hot chocolate, and then continue to the Praetorium Tower and so the Circus from outside. We finally walked to the Amphitheater before rejoining the driver and leaving Tarragona. On our way to Sitges, right outside of Tarragona, we also stopped for a picture of the Scipions Tower and the Arch of Triomph.

Click on the pic to see the pictures and read the rest of the entry on  their blog:

 

When we arrived to Sitges, we were ready for lunch and we ate in a very fun restaurant overlooking the beach. It was a cloudy day, and the waves were quite impressive!

After lunch, we had a walk along the waterfront and then we entered the Old Town. As you will have noticed, the Anderson love taking pictures of small details in the streets (windows, door knockers, balconies, streetlamps…), and the alleys of Sitges where a paradise for them! We finally arrived to the beach of St. Sebastià and had a coffee in an outdoors café before meeting Ramon, our driver, and heading back to Barcelona where we dropped them in their hotel (as in the morning we had collected them with the luggage at the pier). 

Again, click on the pic to their Sitges pictures and read the rest of their post:  

**** To know more about my Barcelona tours, visit Foreverbarcelona.

Now you can review me on Tripadvisor!

Featured on Tripadvisor. 

I am thrilled to announce you that I just discovered I have been added to the Barcelona listings on Tripadvisor.

In case you're not familiar with it, Tripadvisor is one of the largest developed websites on the net. Travelers from all over the world can post their comments and reviews on attractions, restaurants, hotels, etc. where they have been, and they can prepare their next trip asking in the forums and using the many Tripadvisor tools.

And now you can review my tours there!
So if you have taken one of my tours, or if you have taken a tour with one of my colleagues, please go ahead and leave a little comment. But if you haven't taken anything with me yet, you can still go there and click on the "Like" Facebook button.


Thank you for your collaboration! I am so excited about it!


**** To know more about my Barcelona tours, visit Foreverbarcelona.

I'm recomended in the Fodors forum!

Hi!

I just found out an old client has been recomending my Gaudí Tours on the Fodors forum. Check it out!

**** To know more about my Barcelona tours, visit Foreverbarcelona.

More Toursbylocals feedback!

Some days ago I took the Scheck touring Barcelona and we also went to Montserrat. Christine Scheck had booked me through Toursbylocals, and she left her review and the website. However, she felt it was not enough and she also sent me a private message.

You can now read her e-mail first below:

And here you can read her testimonial on Toursbylocals,together with another review by John Hennessey:

**** To know more about my Barcelona tours, visit Foreverbarcelona.

September client testimonials from Toursbylocals!

As I've commented other times, Toursbylocals.com is one of the online tourguide listings where I advertize my Barcelona city tours and I can be booked. After thet tour, clients can post their comments as a testimonial. Here are my last 3 ones:

**** To know more about my Barcelona tours, visit Foreverbarcelona.

And still more feedback from the Bennett!

 Last June I took the Bennett (second time touring with me!) on a daytrip to Girona and then for lunch at a great place in the countryside. Here is the letter they have just sent me. They are so sweet!

**** To know more about my Barcelona tours, visit Foreverbarcelona.

Postcard by Lory Cogan Utz

Cleaning up my files I found a lovely postcard by the artist Lory Cogan Utz. I gave her and her husband a tour of Barcelona in 2009 and at the end of the tour, she wrote me a note in one of the postcards she sells. Make sure to check out her website!

THE POSTCARD:

HER NOTE:

**** To know more about my Barcelona tours, visit Foreverbarcelona.

And more Toursbylocals reviews!

Now that I had a look, I realize I haven't been keeping you posted on the new Toursbylocals reviews. (please note Toursbylocals might delete old reviews as newer ones come up, so the link might be not showing this precise rating but other ones)
Here you have the ones I forgot to post!

FAMILIES WITH KIDS

MY BARCELONA FOOD TOURS (with kids too!)

 

  

GAUDÍ TOURS

MORE CITY TOURS

**** To know more about my Barcelona tours, visit Foreverbarcelona.

Spectacular review from Craig Weber

Last Friday I had a tour for Craig and Renee Weber. Their airplane was delayed and they couldn't make it for 1pm, as we had planned for the tour. So since I didn't have any other appointment that day, I offered them to start at 2pm instead.
We had a great tour, including a walk of the Old Town and a tour of the Gaudí sites entering the Sagrada Família Church and seeing his appartment buildings from outside. All in all, 4h of a really nice time discovering Barcelona together! And here is the feedback he has just posted in the website where he booked me!

(please note Toursbylocals might delete old reviews as newer ones come up, so the link might be not showing this precise rating but other ones)

*** To know more about my Barcelona tours, visit Foreverbarcelona.

And still some more feedback!

I spent 2 halfdays with Parag Sheth and her family. On our first day we had a walking tour of the Old Town, then the next day we had a minivan to tour the Gaudí sites. Here is the letter she has sent me:

**** To know more about my Barcelona tours, visit Foreverbarcelona.

Feedback from Neil and Marlee Taxy

Neil and Marlee Taxy were part of a larger group I toured with. I took them around on a walking tour, and I also recomended them places to go eating in Barcelona. Here is their feedback:

The Balltron group

Allison and Allen Schneeberger organized a cruise trip for some of their best employees at Balltron and I was their guide in Barcelona. I greeted them at the airport on their arrival and took them to visit the Sagrada Família on their first day, then the next day I scorted them to the cruise pier (helping recovering two forgotten passports as well!), and met them back in town after their cruise was over for some more touring and a fun lunch before taking them back to the airport.

Here is a piece of the letter Allison has just sent me (the rest contains personal info and has not been included in this post):

Dear Marta

Thank you so very much for making our time in Barcelona such a memorable one. Everybody had a great time..... their expectations were exceeded. Thank you for being such a great guide and host during our time in Barcelona. I can see why others had recommended you so highly.

I had probably never had such a varied group, and it was really fun showing them around. I hope I'll be seeing them again someday in Barcelona!

Letter from Ron Gentile

Three weeks ago I gave a tour to Ron Gentile and two other couples.
Ron and his wife Betty wanted to have a private minivan tour, and used a very popular cruise travel forum, http://boards.cruisecritic.com, to find some other people to share it with them. They were very different couples, but despite having communicated online only and not having met in person before the tour, it was a successful experience!
Here is the letter he just sent me:

Dear Marta,
Not sure how to post a comment on your BLOG as I am internet challenged so I thought I'd send an E-mail for you to post. We gave Marta a little extra challenge as we three couples were staying in three different hotels. We were the first pick up and she was right on time, 15 minutes early in fact. I'd like to say thank for your extra effort to pick up our friends staying at the Hotel on the Rambla as the street was closed Sunday, April 17th for a parade. You didn't even give it a thought to jump out of the van and run on foot to their hotel and grab them, that's means a lot. For others who are readfing this post, Marta is one of the better guides we used in Europe. She is personal able, knowledgeable and is very clear in speaking English, I only wish people in Los Angeles could speak as while as she. We toured all the Gaudi sites except the Familia which was closed to tours because of Palm Sunday. Everything was just great, tours well timed and we learned a lot. The tour information was provided at just the right pace so we could understand and digest it all. I could tell she is very good and experienced at being a guide. After the tour she escorted us to our ship and dropped us off right at the cruise ship terminal. Our tour was a half day and fit our schedule to a tee, we saw what we wanted and even a little more.
FYI: I have posted to tripadvisor to have you added to their list of Guides for Barcelona, as I believe in letting others know how good you are.

Thank you again for making our trip to Barcelona a trip to remember,

Ron J. Gentile

Harvard group, part 3

Explanations at the Sagrada Família Church

I'm still getting more pics from the lovely members of my Harvard seniors group, and I'm so excited about that!

One of them, Katheryn Doran, sent me two more and... one of them is actually the other side of the "silly posing at the Aqueduct" pic that I posted before! I love to have it!

Silly posing at the Roman Aqueduct, 2

The Cohen's follow up

I scanned the picture they sent me with me, Janice, Joshua and Julia
at the rooftop of La Pedrera, during our Gaudí Tour.

I recently talked about some families with kids I loved working for. One of them were the Cohen, and there's news from them!

During our tours, the Cohen said they thought the Gaudí sites had an air of Dr. Seuss tales. I replied I'd been told that, but I'd never really seen it in Spain so I couldn't really tell. So they promised to send me a book.

I just got it, along with some Maple Syrup (they are from Canada and told me they'd sent me some aswell: again, it's not easy to find it here!), a picture and a note. Here they are!

The Dr. Seuss book they sent me.

My boyfriend made some home-made cottage cheese and we ate it with strawberries and some delicious Maple syrup sent by the Cohen! (it's the little cute bottle in the picture)

Harvard seniors, part 2

Continuing with the group of Harvard seniors from last week, Maribel and Phil from Maribel's Guides (their travel agency) have sent me a few pics of our tours. Let me share some of them with you:

Explaining the Passion Façade at the Sagrada Família, during our Gaudí Tour.

At the courtyard of the Casa Milà.

By the medieval walls on our Girona excursion.

On our way to Tarragona we stopped to see the Aqueduct (top left corner), and Phil took a picture of me while I was doing a silly picture-pose for someone else, haha!

Group picture in front of the Roman walls, during our Tarragona tour.