Your calls always answered within 5 rings.
Very friendly staff
Amazing, thank you Courtney!
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All good as promised and helpful Mr Harvey
Ewan understood our requirements clearly and put together an excellent itinerary. We'll be coming back - once we've saved up!
The flight from London to Manchester was rescheduled by BA as not enough time in between flights.
The itinerary worked perfectly.. some delays of course (as ever) but good flights and seats. Virgin Dreamliner excellent
The attention to detail you get from the staff is amazing. Knowing you have 24/7 back up is very reassuring. Many thanks to Amy and the team for everything. They are always there to help.
When our Air Tahiti flight was cancelled you moved us to Air France quickly and helpfully. Many thanks!
So helpful and efficient and your app is great too!
Excellent work
I recommend you all the time
The trip was amazing and all the flights worked perfectly
Awesome. Just excellent
All went very well
Very good service = been using this for my last three trips aboard and will use them again
Nicole and her team were wonderful! She went to such great lengths to find suitable flights and then willingly helped me with so many issues over the formal requirements. I honestly couldn't have made this trip without her. Always a cheerful and calming voice on the other end of the line when I was on the verge of panic. I can't thank her enough!
All in all, my trip went well. Mission accomplished. Thank you and looking forward to book again in the future.
Grant is a great asset to your company and has been helping us holiday since 2012.
Very good service. Thanks to Jessica and Howard and the rest of the team.
Good experience
Brilliant holiday in Bora Bora and Tahiti!
We were delighted with everything DialAFlight did, from the original organisation and booking to changing flights because of the coronavirus outbreak and alerting us to floods in New Zealand that affected our plans. Brilliant from start to finish and special thanks to Marco who went above and beyond to help and advise. I would definitely recommend DialAFlight.
I’m all in favour of security checks but we had to stand in a queue of about 1000 people at LA to get through immigragtion. Of the 44 kiosks available 2 were in use initially which went up to 6 after 1 1/2 hours as they returned from lunch. One airport I will definitely avoid in the future.
Whole trip went well apart from both Air NZ flights being delayed. Thankfully it did not cause any problems.
Toby was very helpful and picked lovely hotels. Made our honeymoon memorable.
Jake was so helpful and he helped us with a payment plan. I would highly recommend your service to our friends.
Jamie was excellent and very responsive to my queries.
Samuel was very helpful, our holiday was great.
Reece was very helpful and professional. I will definitely use DialAFlight again - excellent
Hiro raises his bare thigh and slams his foot on the ground, spreading ripples across his man mountain of a body.
He bows at his opponent and, in a vision of manboobs and giant wedgies, they engage in combat; wrestling, pushing, heaving and tugging until one emerges victorious.
Suddenly, it's my turn. I step into the ring and stare ahead towards the sumo wrestler a few feet away - all 26st of him. A moment later I'm pressed up against his folds of flesh, my face alarmingly close to his armpit as I push with all my might. My feet scramble at the salt-strewn floor while Hiro - a wrestler for 22 years - stands there chuckling.
I'm in the small city of Katsuragi, considered the birthplace of sumo. Located an hour from Osaka in the Kansai region, this is a corner of Japan that has just become more accessible thanks to British Airways direct flights from Heathrow.
Kansai is an area of misty mountains dotted with remote shrines, tropical beaches and tea plantations which will appeal to visitors keen to explore what lies beyond the capital Tokyo. After putting Hiro through his paces ('You have great potential,' he jokes), it's time to move on to Osaka.
Home to three million people, the city is a patchwork of 16th century castles and 21st century glass skyscrapers. From my room on the 36th floor of the Conrad Hotel, the view of Dotonbori district, the main restaurant and entertainment area, is dizzying.
This 164-room hotel gives off a Lost In Translation vibe – think Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson – and is filled with 389 artworks including one by local boy turned renowned sculptor, Kohei Nawa.
While Osaka is certainly worthy of a few days' exploration, the experiences awaiting further afield prove to be the real temptation.
Travelling south, urban sprawl gives way to delightful rural scenes. Before long we're surrounded by the crumpled green peaks of the Kii Peninsula. These mountains are the gateway to Wakayama.
Occupying the southern tip of Kansai, this city holds the key to much of Japan's ancient spiritual heritage.
For more than 1,000 years, everyone from emperors to humble farmers has walked these peaks seeking peace and purification. The Kumano Kodo Pilgrimage ranks as one of the world's great pilgrim routes. A network of trails, it has several options, from gentle hour-long strolls to arduous multi-day treks.
Opting for the easier and shorter route, I slice through silent bamboo forests and inch along paths that hug plunging wooded ravines. I pause to enjoy panoramas splashed with cherry blossom. I am feeling more peaceful by the moment.
The climax is our arrival at the grand Shinto shrine of Kumano Hongu Taisha, the hallowed ground where all trails meet. The silence of the forest is broken by the rhythmic chiming of bells and the flapping of flags in the breeze.
I watch as worshippers cross the gravel courtyards, clap their hands twice (to announce their arrivals to the deities) and bow their heads in prayer. This is a special, unforgettable place. Just down the road, in the valley and dissected by a stream of healing thermal waters, is Yunomine, an onsen village centred around natural hot springs.
These healing waters were discovered 1,800 years ago and became an important part of the pilgrimage by offering hot water purification along the way.
Pilgrims enjoy a spiritual soaking by stripping off, as is custom, for a dip in the stone plunge pool housed in a rickety shed. Barely big enough for two, it makes for quite the intimate experience.
I choose instead a riverside dip in the thermal rockpool at the Kawayu Midoriya. A spa hotel somewhat stuck in the Seventies, it models itself on the traditional inn, the ryokan. Expect sliding paper screens and legless chairs.
No trip to this part of Japan would be complete without the glittering jewel in its Imperial crown, Kyoto.
Reached in 15 minutes from Osaka by Shinkansen bullet train, this enchanting city was the nation's capital until 1868. It retains much of its ancient character, particularly in the Gion district where geishas once scuttled between teahouses in their elaborate silk costumes.
From the comfortable Ritz-Carlton hotel, it's a pleasant 20-minute stroll along the Kamogawa River to Gion.
Delving into the backstreets, I discover deserted gardens and teahouses serving fragrant cherry blossom tea and sit with elderly locals painting watercolours of a pagoda.
Hunched over their palettes, they look long and hard and produce thoughtful brushstrokes. They seem lost in their individual reveries, drinking in the beauty. It sums up my experience perfectly.
First published in the Daily Mail - November 2019
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