Totally Spain Customer testimonials

We just returned from a magical 6 day trip to Andalusia, Spain that Totally Spain packaged for a group of 18 friends including us. We were all celebrating another friend's 80th birthday in Estepona. Ken Baldwin combined that visit with day trips to Marbella, Ronda, and Malaga. The planning and execution were seamless; he pays enormous attention to the daily details and our individual interests that we shared with him beforehand. Activities were varied, creative and fun! I Restaurants were excellent! I would enthusiastically recommend him as a tour planner/ operator.

Re-produced from client's 5 star Google Review here. (7962)

We had a fabulous 16-day trip to Spain planned for us by Totally Spain. We were able to customize one of their itineraries and everything was taken care of and went smoothly. Having private tour guides for each of the major cities was wonderful, and all of the guides were knowledgeable, helpful, and full of passion for their cities. The additional activities planned for us were all enjoyable and high quality (two Tapas tours, a cooking class, sailing excursion, and a Hammam bath). We worked with Ken who was responsive to our requests. We were provided with plenty of information about each destination beforehand. We highly recommend this company and we look forward to working with them in the future when we come back for the rest of Spain and Portugal.

Re-produced from client's 5 star Google Review here. (8047)

Very impressed - everything was so well arranged for us. The transport drivers were always on time and the guides we had in each city were excellent!

Re-produced from client's 5 star Google Review here. (7954)

Belen and Totally Spain arranged a five-week, individualized trip to Spain, Andorra, and Lourdes for my wife and me. Belen handled our hotel, rental car, transfers, and experiences.

Before we left, a giant package arrived with the reservations and with travel brochures and books for every city. We also received electronic versions of the tickets and other materials which were downloadable to the cell phone. On arriving, we had amazing and reasonably priced hotels in Madrid (near Plaza Mayor), San Sebastian (overlooking the ocean), Santillan del Mar (a historic building), Lourdes (a spa), and Santiago de Compostela (a short walk to the town center and cathedral). Every hotel booked she booked was wonderful. Belen managed to get us an private, English-language tour of a cave in Northern Spain with 30,000 to 100,000 year old cave paintings. Everything she planned was perfect.

While we were traveling, we had a few small glitches and she was always available to help us fix everything. The biggest "glitch" was of our own making. We accidentally left my wife's jacket at one of the hotels. Since it had sentimental value, we really wanted the jacket back. The hotel where we left it was not helpful, but Belen persuaded the housekeepers to find our things. Belen then arranged the international shipping to another of our hotels. It still almost didn't happen. The shipper made a mistake and sent the package to the wrong address. Belen intervened and somehow managed to persuade the shipper to redirect the package overnight. My wife's beloved jacket arrived safely at our hotel in Madrid at 8 AM, just before we flew home. I've travelled a lot for work and pleasure over they years. I've arranged some trips myself and used various services and travel agents at different times. Belen and Totally Spain were the best I have ever encountered. I cannot recommend Totally Spain or Belen more highly. I am just starting to plan my next trip, to Portugal this time. Totally Spain also does trips to Portugal. Of course I will use Belen and Totally Spain again.

Re-produced from client's 5 star Google Review here. (8040)

What an amazing 15-day tour of Madrid and Andalusia!! We had beautiful, centrally located hotels everywhere we stayed (the Parador in Cadiz was a gem). The private tour guides in each city were so friendly and incredibly knowledgeable. They really tailored our tours based on our interests. We loved our planned experiences eapecially the olive oil mill tasting and tour, the tapas walking tour, and the flamenco show.  Our drivers were so nice and accommodating. We stayed an extra hour in Jerez in route to Seville as our driver encouraged us to take our time!  I can't say enough wonderful things about Ken at Totally Spain and the package he put together for my husband and I to spend our 35th anniversary. Thanks so much!  Liz and Darryl

Re-produced from client's Google Review here.

We've just returned from an almost 3 week visit to 6 cities and I feel compelled to report that Totally Spain knocked our socks off with their level of service and with their highly curated selection of hotels, guides, places to visit, and means of transportation. Everything was attuned perfectly to our interests and our desired level of support vs independence. And with such a complex travel agenda, you would expect something to go wrong at some point, but there were no missed travel connections, no problems at any hotel, no guides who were less than fantastic, no restaurant recommendations that were lacking. One little problem was addressed instantly by Ken, and on a holiday, no less. I have written plenty of Google reviews and very, very few of them have been this unreservedly positive. You can't do better, I promise you, and I found the price quite reasonable. They are the real deal, folks.

Re-produced from client's Google Review here. 7949

We just returned from an 8 day trip throughout Spain organized by Totally Spain. Totally Spain did an amazing job coordinating tour guides, drivers, hotels and every other last detail! They were very responsive before and during our trip and we will definitely be using them again! Highly recommend the use of their services.

Re-produced from client's Google Review here.(7963)

I couldn’t have been more pleased with the phenomenal job Totally Spain did in organizing our trip. Everything was perfect. Belen was very easy to work with. She made sure that all my questions were answered promptly and that everything was to my liking. All the drivers were prompt and courteous. The guides were enthusiastic and knowledgeable. The hotel accommodations were excellent. This was exactly what I was looking for. I was able to use the many resources provided by Totally Spain and choose exactly the experience that interested us. I would highly recommend this company.

Re-produced from client's Google Review here. (7967)

We were completely happy with Totally Spain. The hotels, tour guides and drivers they chose were all excellent. Totally Spain was always on hand to fix any problem that arose. We recommend them to anyone wishing to visit Spain.
Barbara and Ian

Re-produced from their Google Review here. (8025)

We haven't stopped thinking, or talking, about how wonderful the 10-day trip you arranged for us across northern Spain. Everything was so deftly managed by you – the itinerary, the hotels, the guides. We've been unable to settle on the best part of the trip. Sometimes we think it must be Oviedo for all kinds of reasons. Other times it's the foray into the Picos de Europa (Hotel del Oso!), or the food market in Santiago de Compostela, or the beauty of the coast, or the caves of Monte Castillo. The hotel in Santillana del Mar was charming. And we would go back to Toledo, our initial get-over-jet-lag stop, anytime. Your advice prior to and during the trip was the cohesion that kept it all together. Many thanks!

Re-produced from client's Google Review here.(7756)

Totally Spain were brilliant. Belen has a great team involved. All hotels were great , transfers were on time . the activities booked were good and the guides were excellent . Thanks Belen for the hard work you put into your organisation as our holiday was treat.

Highly recommended. .
Philip and Joy

Re-produced from client's Google Review here.(7972)

Dear Belen and Ana,

I wanted to thank you from the bottom of my heart for making my trip to Andalusia and Madrid a dream come true. Everything worked perfectly, except for my own mistake with the change of date of the Cordoba day trip. But you were there for me and took very fast action to make it possible for me to go to Cordoba the following day and do the group tour. Also, even though I missed the group tour of the Alcázar in Sevilla, I was able to visit it on my own, so nothing was lost! The location of the 3 hotels you selected for me was exceptional, and exactly the size and historic charm that I love. My private guides in Ronda, Granada, Madrid, Toledo, and Segovia were all charming, knowledgeable and professional. I felt a special connection with Sonia in Ronda, Maria Angeles in Granada, and Laura in Toledo, as if they were long time friends. Same thing with Rafa who drove me to Jaén, Ubeda, and Baeza. I also owe a big thanks to Francisco for suggesting a non-scheduled stop over in Setenil de las Bodegas on the way to Granada. What a remarkable town built inside caves! All  the other drivers were punctual and professional. I don’t do social media but I will see if I can figure out how to post a 5-star review for Totally Spain. You can definitely count on my person-to-person recommendation to friends and family, and I am counting on you to plan a trip to Portugal in 2025. 
Thanks again for everything!
Sincerely,
Laura Hicks (7977)

Totally Spain is once again honoured to have been awarded Spain´s Leading Tour Company 2024 at the 31th World Travel Awards held on 06 March 2024 at the Ritz Carlton, Berlin. This award we also won in 2022 & 2023.

World Travel Awards™ - the Oscars of the tourism industry - was established in 1993 to acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence across all key sectors of the travel, tourism and hospitality industries. Today, the World Travel Awards™ brand is recognised globally as the ultimate hallmark of industry excellence.

Another amazing trip arranged by Belen and the Totally Spain team! The hotels she selected, the tours she arranged, the guides / drivers......all were perfect! This was the second trip Belen created for us, and it was as good as the first. She truly knows her business, and works hard to put together options that meet the customers' needs. We're looking forward to the next Totally Spain adventure!!!

Re-produced from client's Google Review here. (7987)

I cannot say enough good things about Belen Encinas and Totally Spain's work on our trip to Spain and Portugal in January of 2024. The process of negotiating and executing the itinerary was very professional. Our drivers and guides during the trip were also very professional and courteous. I highly recommend Totally Spain's services.

Re-produced from client's Google Review here (7941)

There was no way we could have done this trip without Belen’s expert help! She totally customized it to our needs, including several last minute changes which she graciously accommodated. Not only did she include key sites, but the drivers and guides she booked were fabulous. They included some unplanned stops which turned out to be highlights as well. We intend to go back to Spain and Portugal and we will absolutely use her services again. Thank you, Belen!

Reproduced from client's Google Review here. (7889)

My childhood friend and I recently returned from Spain, on a trip organized by Totally Spain. This company offered exactly what we wanted; private guides, transportation, customized itineraries based on our interests.  Drivers were prompt, guides were knowledgeable and wonderful, the hotels were very good, helpful and in great locations.

We traveled for ten days and visited Madrid, Toledo, Seville and Barcelona. We had excellent walking tours, tapas tours, saw a great flamenco show, enjoyed a vineyard tasting and, a day trip to Montserrat.

Totally Spain was very responsive to our questions during planning and returned emails quickly. They were clear on how to reach them if needed during the trip. And, importantly, they efficiently moved us around the country. I don’t think we could have seen as much if we had planned the trip ourselves. Their expertise was extremely helpful.

We are already thinking about our next trip and will absolutely use Totally Spain. Thank you, Belen!

(7893)

Totally Spain helped us plan and implement a twelve day tour of Jewish Spain. The guides were knowledgeable, touring places we had both heard of and would not have otherwise located. The itinerary worked like clockwork, with events timed to the minute.  In addition, we were able to make last minute changes.

Belén and her team were extraordinary!

We highly recommend reaching out to Totally Spain for your custom itinerary and an all-around marvelous experience!

(7935)

We just finished our third trip with Totally Spain and all three have been amazing! Belen and her team have coordinated our trips to Spain, Portugal and most recently, Italy.  We don't always know what we want to do or exactly where we want to go in a country, so their knowledge and recommendations are incredibly helpful.  Additionally, they are so patient and answer all of our questions as we can be a bit indecisive.  One of our favorite parts of each trip have been our private tour guides and drivers. The guides TS selects are very personable and so incredibly knowledgeable and this expertise adds so much to our travel as we gain a deeper understanding and appreciation for each location we visit!  Highly recommend Totally Spain for your travel needs - the attention to detail is impressive and reassuring. (Last thing, your trip excitement really begins when you receive the detailed TS Travel Document Package on your doorstep!).

Reproduced from our Google Reviews.

We had a perfect trip, Totally Spain did a fantastic job! Hotels were great and our guides and drivers were fantastic. Alway on time and extremely knowledgeable. Also your suggestions on the itinerary was excellent. I can’t thank you enough for making our trip so memorable.

Reproduced from cleint's Google Review here. (7929)

We recently spent thirteen days visiting Madrid and Southern Spain on a journey organized by Totally Spain.  Belen was a pleasure to work with.  She listened to our preferences and was candid and responsive in her answers to our questions.  All the arrangements  -- hotels, transfers, guides, drivers -- were as promised.  Totally Spain's services were excellent and we would encourage anyone looking for an exceptional experience to use their services when planning a visit to Spain.

Reproduced from client's Google Review here. (7901)

Wonderful trip. 3 couples, 2 week customized trip with private transport and guides. Every detail taken care of and all transfers and guides were on time, professional and great. Several guides mentioned Totally Spain best company to work with. Highly recommend them.

Reproduced from client's Google Review here.(7929)

We are two artist friends who have wanted to see the Paleolithic cave paintings in Northern Spain for many years and Gaudi’s buildings in Barcelona. We decided to take the trip and combine it with some other experiences. Having found Belen and Totally Spain online we really lucked out.

Barcelona

Hotel Granvia in Barcelona is a beautifully restored historical hotel with the best breakfast of the entire trip! We were entirely comfortable, and it provided a place to unwind with fellow travelers during several busy days of walking in Barcelona. Belen had provided us with valuable information for museums, restaurants, tours, and shopping recommendations. We felt completely at home in this friendly city.

Cantabria

The car service was always prompt and reliable with friendly drivers. We flew to Santander after 5 days in Barcelona. Our hotel in Santillana del Mar was charming, and a country experience that was forever memorable. Our host at the hotel, Raffa, became a friend, and the medieval town was picturesque, built around a 9th century monastery, and the perfect home base to travel from. Belen lined up a rental car for us, so we could drive to the six caves, all scheduled for us by Belen with English speaking guides. These were fabulous experiences that go beyond words and we felt as if we had special treatment with these guides who were knowledgeable and proud of their history and heritage. The caves were wonderful and so was driving around in the countryside.

Bilbao

We left Santillana to drive to Bilbao for one night, and stayed in a hotel that was right next door to the huge football stadium. On that night Madrid and Bilbao played and we could hear and feel the roar of excitement coming from the stadium, making us feel a part of the crowd. At first we weren’t sure about staying next to the stadium, but Spain loves their football and so do we! (2 to 2 with no tiebreaker that night). Belen also booked our Guggenheim tickets ahead of time making the experience as smooth and complete as ever.

San Sebastian

In San Sebastian our hotel was conveniently located in a chic shopping district which definitely invited us to great shopping and taste pintxos, Basque tapas. Belen set up an evening tasting tour. It was all delicious! She also recommended Diego, a Basque tour guide who spent the day with us taking us to three wonderful French Basque towns along the coast. It was wow! And we will never forget it!

We were welcomed everywhere we went with friendly good manners and kind helpful people.Thank you, Belen, for such a wonderful trip! We would not hesitate to recommend Totally Spain to all of our friends; and our next stop with you is Portugal!

Re-produced from our Google Reviews. (7923)

5th Trip with Totally Spain!

Belen organize the perfect trip for us, starting in San Sebastian and working through Asturias, Basque Country, Cantabria Gipuzkoa and Madrid.

This is the fifth trip I have arranged through Totally Spain and don’t think there is any better company to help you navigate perfectly Spain and Portugal.

Reproduced from our Google Reviews. (7871)

Many thanks and well done to Totally Spain!  Our 13 day trip was expertly planned and the pace of the itinerary was just right.

We toured 4 locations in Andalucía, departing from and returning to Madrid. The hotels were wonderful; locations perfect for walkable exploring. Special thanks to Belen for her expert planning.

Also, many thanks to our private 1/2 day tour guides Wallada, Maria, Sonia, Cristina, and Esther, and our driver between two locations, Francisco.

Group tours were excellent and hit our wish list including, LA Organic olive oil farm and tasting, wine tasting at Bodegas Lunares (we will order both now that we’re back home), Tejada Reservatauro bull and Andalusian horse ranch, Paella cooking class at Taller Andaluz De Cocina, and Walking Spain Tapas tour and more.

The entire Totally Spain team was punctual, professional and personable. So glad we chose Totally Spain over other companies that are NOT located in Spain.

Reproduced from our Google Reviews.

***SECOND TRIP WITH TOTALLY SPAIN***

In 2018, Belen planned a wonderful custom private trip in Spain for my husband and I. During our month-long trip, we stayed in eight different cities, and also had numerous day trips to towns outside of the eight cities. All the accommodations and transportation (both private drivers and trains) were perfect and made our trip stress-free. We enjoyed the many half-day city tours that Belen arranged for us. The guides were very knowledgeable and accommodating.

This September, Belen planned another outstanding private trip for us… Portugal.. The 16 day itinerary for our trip was perfect. Again, the accommodations that Belen found for us were in perfect locations and had all the amenities that we needed. The drivers and city tour guides were exceptional.

Belen did an outstanding job in working with me to plan the itinerary for both our trips.

It would be great if Totally Spain gradually became Totally Europe, as I would definitely be calling on Belen again!

Re-produced from our Google Reviews.

Hi Belen,

We just got home last night and I wanted to send you a quick note thanking you, your staff and support team for an AMAZING vacation!  We had an absolutely wonderful time and could not be more happy.

The hotels were in perfect locations and VERY comfortable; the private tours were extremely informative with wonderful guides and a pleasure to be on; the drivers were exceptional - always on time (most often early) and very helpful with luggage and assisting at the train stations and airport.

You and your team did a terrific job planning and scheduling everything down to the finest detail which made our part extremely easy and enjoyable.  I can’t think of a single thing we would change!

Again, thank you so much for EVERYTHING - we are very happy customers!

Neil and Gloria Springer (7829)

Hi, Belen!

I wanted to send you a personal thank you for such an incredible trip. We had such a fantastic time. Really appreciate the hard work and thought you put in each step of the way! I enjoyed each city very much— for different reasons, as each had their unique highlights and character. We sincerely appreciated the wonderful accommodations and assistance with transportation. Every effort was made to ensure we were comfortable- right down to the train tickets and the wonderful hotel selections. The hotels were great and we appreciated your careful consideration to the part of town. We were able to get many steps in exploring each city to the max with the time we had and the help of your map! Truly appreciated the information you provided on each location. We felt we saw everything we hoped to see in each city, between the tours and our free time! The guides were fantastic— especially Adriana in Sevilla and our guide for the good tour in Lisbon. We learned so much! I came home so happy with the entire trip and the whole experience and can't wait to explore more! You did such a fantastic job and thought of every detail. Everything went so smoothly and I would definitely recommend you and Totally Spain to all planning to visit. Really can't say enough and am so appreciative and grateful!
 
Thank you so much!!

See also Lindsay's review in Google Reviews.

Belen was fantastic to work with from day one. She made every effort to put together the perfect itinerary based on getting to know our travel plans and preferences. Every detail was thought of— well paced itinerary with a great mix of guided tours and free time, wonderful accommodations in great locations, and seamless travel accommodations between the cities we visited. The selected guides were fabulous. The guides were fabulous and we saw so much in a compact visit! Belen truly thought of everything and was so kind and caring! Will reach out again for future travel and definitely recommend to others!!

We returned home last night from our trip. What can I say but WOW WOW WOW!!!

Every city we visited was absolutely wonderful in its own way. Lisbon, Porto, Madrid and Barcelona. Not to mention the trips to Sintra, Vinho Verde, Toledo and Girona.

All of our guides were just wonderful, Elsa in Lisbon and Sintra. Lucia in Porto and Vinho Verde, Carmen in Madrid, Alejandra in Toledo, Angel in Barcelona and Cristina in Girona. We felt as though we made new friends of them all! We couldn't have asked for any better.

The drivers who did the transfers and assisted the guides were all professional and friendly as well.

The hotels were great, a mix of the traditional in Lisbon and Madrid and the modern in Porto and Barcelona. They all accommodated our specific room and bed requests. The location of the hotels was great for getting around and having restaurants, shopping and attractions nearby.

All of the tickets were perfect in detail and we experienced no issues whatsoever, with the exception of the tapas tour in Madrid, which was entirely MY fault (I thought I read a 630p meeting time, not 6p, but it was all taken care of and a great time was had!).

We couldn't have had a better time visiting these 2 wonderful and different countries.

If we ever return to your part of the world I will definitely use you and Totally Spain for the bookings. Thank you Belen for having the patience to work with me during the entire process. You listened to our input and designed a trip full of memories that we will cherish for a lifetime.

Re-produced from our Google Reviews

Totally Spain is once again honoured to have been awarded Spain´s Leading Tour Company at the 30th World Travel Awards held on 29 September 2023 at the Sheraton Batumi Georgia, an award we also won in 2022.

World Travel Awards™ - the Oscars of the tourism industry - was established in 1993 to acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence across all key sectors of the travel, tourism and hospitality industries. Today, the World Travel Awards™ brand is recognised globally as the ultimate hallmark of industry excellence.