I contacted East-West Tours as I live in Bothell and was referred to "Nick" Neeraj Anand for a personal tourist trip to Chandigarh, India. This was my 1st international trip so I was completely inexperienced, but bold, as a female willing to travel alone. I needed a real expert to guide me. I was grateful to have found Nick! From help with selecting itinerary and handicap wheelchair assistance needs all the way to checking on me during actual layover times, assisting with boarding passes and seat selection and meal choices, let me say Nick was "spot-on"!!!! I cannot recommend his service any higher - top notch - A-1! His guidance and travel knowledge was invaluable and I will certainly seek him out again on my next trip to India or elsewhere! Thank you nickanand6@ g mail for a life changing adventure read more

Did extensive reseach and contacted them about a published tour with a side trip to Poland. I got a snotty message back from "bobby" that they did not have anything on those dates and that they had given me what was available. I asked them to clarify we were discussing the same tour as I took the dates directly from their site. Even snottier return email full of highlights and captilization that the dates I was requesting were wrong. I provided them a screen shot of their site with the dates I was requesting and told them the dates they kept highlighting for me for a trip three weeks earlier would not work. And, perhaps they should update their site. No response, no offer to help find another trip, just snarkiness. THIS agency exemplifies why I rarely use travel agencies! Had them in my sights for two seperate trips; their lack of professionalism steered me away. read more

We were very pleased with our Majestic Fjords/Scandinavian Highlights Tour. The hotels this tour arranged for us were quite nice. When we were outside the cities, they were in beautiful settings with expansive views of fjords and/or mountains, and the ones in the cities were centrally located, close to trains and public transportation. The meals were quite delicious. Our tour manager, Yves,was very well-informed, organized, and personable. We saw some breath-taking scenery, as well as quaint little villages and vibrant city streests - in short, everything we were hoping to see on this tour. Dora and Bobby at East-West/Nordic Saga were of great help in setting this up, helping us get plane reservations and hotel reservations for additional nights, and overall, advising us on a tour that would be right for us. They were responsive, easy to work with, and very knowledgeable, helping us compare different options and select what suited us best. We felt that they took a personal interest in our having the kind of travel experience we were looking for. We have recommended Nordic Saga Tours to everyone who has asked us for more details about our tour. read more

My two friends and I booked the 72-hour visa-free St. Petersburg tour through East West Tours. They were extremely efficient and the tour was flawless. Anna Louise handled the arrangements and our tour guide, Masha, in St. Petersburg, did everything in her power to give us a perfect experience. We were whisked through crowds of Chinese tourists and never had to wait in line like everyone else. She even arranged to get tickets to the Kirov Ballet for some members of our tour group. She was our hero. I would absolutely use East West Tours again. Lilio Aragones read more

Another beautiful trip with Eat West Tours! I was in Russia in the middle of the pandemic and my airline kept cancelling with no notice. I called Sasha and he rearranged my flights within day and I made it back to Seattle in time for my husband's birthday. We will visit Israel after the pandemic and our tour will definitely be with East West Tours. read more

Such a good experience! East West Tours arranged everything and it was so smooth. Our guide Masha was fantastic. So glad we booked with them! read more

From the greeting at the Moscow Airport by our tour guide, Marina, to the last good-bye from Elena at the St. Petersburg airport, all went extremely well. Our only hiccup was not knowing who was taking us to Suzdal but that was easily resolved. Every entry to museums, palaces and venues was eased by the knowledgeable guides. Our extra tour to Kizhi Island was amazing and the guest house was perfect as our room overlooked the lake. Food in any of the restaurants or personal homes was plentiful and delicious. Hotels were indeed 5 star. Had we known we could request a view room on a high floor, we would have done that and will remember to ask in the future. All drivers were polite and took care to be safe, yet efficient in time travel. Since this was our first experience with your firm and private tours, we both feel fortunate we were able to go with a first-rate company. read more

I booked a visa free cruise tour through East West tours 4 months ago, and now 2 weeks out from departure date, they have cancelled the tour. Although they have provided a refund but now I have no time to organise Visa into Russia, and no choice but plan for alternative itinerary/accommodation/flights for this 5 day gap, and everything is now at a premium! My whole trip was booked based on the tour and it's just been a waste of my time. Never again. read more

We used East West Tours for our trip to Scandinavia, Russia, and the Baltics. Bobby helped us with the tour to St. Petersburg and with hotels in Helsinki, Tallinn, Riga, and Copenhagen. He and East West were great in every way. The St. Petersburg tour was excellent: well planned, excellent guide and drivers, responsive to our needs, good value, great hotel, no problems. It was great. The hotels in the other four cities were all excellent as well. They were nice, 4 star hotels that we enjoyed very much and the locations of all four were spot on. The prices were better than I think I could have gotten on my own. All the paperwork and vouchers were prepared accurately and delivered in plenty of time. Everything came off without a hitch and we were totally satisfied, would use them again, and would recommend them to anyone. read more

I paid $11,000 as a deposit in December to Dora for the Golden Eagle Train in Russia. She kept $6,000 for herself, and only forwarded $5,000 to Golden Eagle. Golden Eagle cancelled the trip due to Coronavirus. Golden Eagle refunded the $5,000 to Dora. Dora now refuses to refund the entire amount to me. She first said that the refund was being kept for an administrative charge. WHAT? I understand if I cancel, I have to pay a cancellation fee. But if the vendor (Golden Eagle) cancels, she must reimburse me my full $11,000. I have submitted a complaint to the Washington state attorney general's office. I understand that she has done this with several travelers---if she has done this with you, please contact me directly to file a class action suit! read more

We have been using East West Tours as our travel agent/agency I think since they opened. We have not booked a tour package with them however we use them both for business and personal travel, and have never been disappointed. They are very convenient for us. -Instead of spending hours on the computer searching for flights overseas, they do it for us saving us lots of time. - More often than not they save us money as well because they are able to get better pricing. -They save us the hassle researching what countries need visas; they have all the information and are able to get visas for us. They know the ins and outs of the business and they really do strive to get you a great deal. read more

I traveled to both Moscow and St. Petersburg Russia with my partner and 2 other friends in May/June this year (2011). I'd been given the name of East-West tours but had not used them before. From the beginning, i had an excellent experience. They made some great recommendations on how to spend our time and make all of the land and in-country transportation arrangements. The stand-out of their service, however, was the two different tour guides when we arrived. In Moscow, we had an excellent guide who is in the process of getting a Master's degree in Russian history. She gave us what we consider was an insider's tour of her home city. She knew when to arrive at museums, knew all the best spots for a photo, etc. We walked, rode the subway system and had a terrific experience. St. Petersburg was my favorite spot and the home of the most learned tour guide I've event encountered. Marta has such knowledge of art and history that she could teach advanced classes. She guides us effortlessly through the various museums, especially the overwhelming Hermitage. She made the artwork come alive by putting its creation or purchase by the Russians into context. She also helped us understand the Russian culture and mindset by telling us stories of her own family and how it deal with the war and more recent prosperity. In our 9 days in Russia, we came to really discover and understand the arts, history and culture of the people there. Thank you East-West. Dave read more

We just booked out trip to Mexico with Alex at East West Tours! Not only is he great to work with, we got an amazing deal! HALF the price of Expedia and Travelocity! Connecting room as requested (websites don't do that for you) and our friends booked with them as well! We cannot wait for our trip to start! Next travel definitely going to be with East West Tours - and Alex in particular! read more

Excellent arrangements and guides for St. Petersburg and Moscow. The St. Petersburg hotel was "over the top" in a converted palace. The overnight train was a technical wonder with card entry, fresh fruit and transport to our hotel in Moscow. The cultural aspect of the tour was also top notch. Bobby did everything in a timely and competent manner with no surprises. The tour was just for the two of us. read more

East West Tours has wonderful customer service and great selection of tours. Small private group tour of St. Petersburg was educational and really once in a life time experience for me and my family. The price was also amazing. I can't wait to explore other parts of the world with East West Tours. read more

Enjoyed a one-week trip booking with East-West Tours. Their locally- contracted personnel at their destinations are simply top-notch. Extraordinarily knowledgeable, personable and fascinating tour guides. read more

For anything travel - East West Tours is your final destination. Be it simple airline tickets, or a very well planned vacation with tours, transportation and local tickets East West Tours agents will make it happen. They will take care of you and you won't need to worry about anything. I have used their services for over 15 years and was never disappointed. Safe travels! read more

Through East West Tours (EWT), I booked The Grand Tour of Russia. The tour was very good but East West Tours (Dora) needs to improve on details. I will start with the fact that I sent a similar review like this to Dora to post on the testimonial page of the tour. After 2 weeks, I inquired and it appeared. Checked a few months later and the review before and after mine were still on the site but not mine. * It seems like EWT is a "middle man" and more focused on selling the trip rather than fine tuning the experience for the traveler. * Travelers were told we would be met at the airport by drivers holding signs with our names to drive us to the hotel in Moscow. Except for one couple, no one was met and we all had to find the transportation desk at the airport that was supposed to supply the drivers. The transportation service did not have the name of my roommate and after 2 hours of haggling they took her to the hotel. (we flew separately) Other than this, all transportation to and from the hotels, optional tours, and to the airport to return to US were prompt to the minute. * I signed up for the "Grand Tour of Russia" trip after talking to Dora about some of my interests which she said would be offered as options. (home host dinner, symphony, & ballet). However, once the options list arrived, there was no ballet, symphony or home host dinner. * The Option list consisted of two optional events and I signed up for both. One, a river/canal cruise in St P. on the night of our arrival. However, 2 hours prior to the cruise, the tour guide distributed the tickets & informed me she did not have my name and would not do anything to help. She said I could contact Dora on my own; a little hard with no phone, from a bus, two hours prior to the event and the middle of the night in the USA. I was not going to pay twice. Dora responded to my email the next day, apologized, said she sent my name to the tour guide. * The other option: Folk Show "Kostroma" in Moscow, included roundtrip transfers to/from hotel, total duration with transfers is 4 hours. It was Excellent.There was an intermission & they sold wine, and cake. Very long and slow lines. * After the initial deposit was sent, EWT only sent receipts for the trip, airfare, VISA, & options if you asked. My credit card was charged twice for the deposit & was refunded quickly after I pointed it out. * Dora was very patient and provided good information about adding extra days and countries to my itinerary. She paired me up with another solo traveler to save costs. * Responses were slow in coming after the deposit was made. Dora does not seem to work consistent hours due to child care. She will always get back to you but will tell you she needs to go to pick or drop off. No one picks up her voice mail if she is on vacation.. * In Moscow, our September trip was during the city anniversary and you could feel the excitement with all the booths, parades, dancing, bandstands etc. But the Kremlin was closed to the public. Our tour guide talked to numerous guards trying to get us in. He said we might not be able to get in during our stay. Thankfully, we were allowed in the next day but we didn't know until we got there. It should have been explained that we might not get into one of the main attractions when we signed up for the tour. Lenin's tomb is not part of the tour and should be. I believe it has limited hours so check it out. Everyone in our group wanted to see it but it could not be worked in. It should be part of the tour. * The first tour guide did not orchestrate any kind of introductions between the travelers; it took awhile for the group to bond. * The tour visited a lot of Churches and almost everyone in the group stopped going in and stood outside after a few days.They should consider adding other attractions. Perhaps going into an apartment or country home. . Everyone on the trip agreed that EWT needs to improve their service, but no one took the time to mention it. * VISA process -I started the Visa process mid July for a Sept 4 departure date. Amanda from EWT helped (fee) and the process went smoothly. The VISA was returned to me on August 14 with my passport. The documents were not sent signature required as I was told. * The final documents (agenda, hotel contact info, train tickets etc) for the trip were emailed on August 11th, for a September 4 departure. The options were sent out on August 19, in an email that included the passport numbers for some of the travelers. * One document sent from EWT for the trip, was entirely in Russian with no explanation. After calling EWT, I was told it was the train ticket. Several people on the tour did not bring it. * Aeroflot Airline - Does not assign seats prior to airport arrival unless you want to pay an additional $500. I was a bit uneasy not having a seat assigned but it was a perfectly fine airline brand new plane; ignore the negative reviews. read more

Let me just start that my friend and I had an overall favorable experience on our vacation. The sights were amazing, the tour guides knowledgable and accomodating. My biggest issues were with the handling of the details by East West Tours... more specifically, Bobby. I had to actively pursue communication with him and was often met with an attitude, incorrect information and confusion. My friend didn't obtain his Russian visa until two days before departure which made if quite stressful. Our accomodations in Kiev SUCKED. The hotel room was tiny (not even enough room on the floor to lay your suitcase flat) and we found out from another person in our group that the hotel was changed from a nicer one right in Independence Square (prime location) to this crappy one further away. Multiple people on the tour had complaints specifically with Bobby. If I would offer a suggestion to East West..... cut out some of the churches and add a few more cultural experiences. We loved going to the ballet and Ukranian dance shows but those were extra. The cathedrals and monestaries were all beautiful but after the 50th one, its not as memorable. Another suggestion to East West..... IMPROVE YOUR CUSTOMER SERVICE!!!!! I would not recommend this company to a friend but I would definately recomment Russia! read more

We booked and just came back from a 2 week trip in Russia all organized by Alex with East West Tours. Alex was amazing. When we started to inquire about arrangements, Alex was very responsive, helpful and patient with all our questions. While over there, Alex checked with us that we were happy and responded to a few questions we had. Every thing turned out perfectly as planned. The hotels and guides were great and very dependable. I would absolutely recommend East West tours. read more

East West Tours planned our Russia trip this past May 2011 and did a great job. They were very helpful in planning the trip, cities, tours, hotels, and even in acquiring our Visas. We loved our guides, Claire in Moscow and Masha in St. Petersburg. I have been to Russia two times prior and the guides and tours on this trip were by far the most qualified and interesting. I know a bit about Russian history and it was great to have helpful informative guides from which I could learn more. East West handled our transfers, all transportation, and even put together the overnight trip for us on the train from Moscow to St. Petersburg (recommended). We very much appreciated their attention to detail on all things. I would highly recommend them if you are planning a trip to Russia. read more

East West Tours, we wanted to let you know that we enjoyed the "Splendid Baltic Capitals" tour. We feel like we now know these beautiful countries, a part of the world we knew little of before. So much history and culture, not to mention all the beautiful architecture, my favorite was art deco streets in Riga. We both liked the trip to Trakai Castle. My husband really liked the Suomenlinna Fortress and military museum in Finland. Guides were good, and easy to understand. I want to point out some negatives on our trip. When we arrived in Helsinki it took forever to find our driver, and when we finally found him, he took us to the wrong hotel. Apparently he wasn't notified that we changed it last minute. After some discussion he took us to the hotel we were supposed to be at, it was only few blocks away. I am glad we stayed at Glo Art, very nice hotel with great service and perfect location. Although the guides were good, sometimes we felt very rushed moving from place to place, in order to keep up with the set schedule. Maybe visiting 4 countries in 7 days wasn't such a great idea. Hopefully when we retire we will take less paced vacations. Thanks for all your help, Barb and Bob Schiffer. read more

I booked through this agency on my first trip to Russia. The cost of the tour is on the expensive side, but I figured that this is for a nontraditional trip and it would be worth it. At first, everything was very smooth with the application and booking. Got the visa in no time without any hiccups and I felt it was worth the cost. Alex was fantastic, very experienced and knowledgeable. He was also flexible in terms of customizing my travel dates and booking specific hotels according to my preferences. Once in Russia, however, things seemed a bit less smooth. I learned that East-West contracts through Academservice, and they seem a bit uncoordinated, though the individual tour guides were fantastic-- warm, friendly, and highly knowledgeable. On my arrival at the airport, the driver did not show up. Nobody at Academservice could figure out what had happened. I ended up contacting the hotel, which sent their own driver to pick me up at the airport at an additional cost, which Alex later apologized for and offered to reimburse me for as a true professional. Once in St Petersburg, Masha the tour guide was absolutely amazing. I learned so much from her and really appreciated her personal perspective, care and attention to detail. She really made the tour in that city worthwhile. Once in Moscow, everything went fine except that the tour again seemed to be a bit uncoordinated. Nikolai the tour guide was great and really found a way to maximize every minute of the tour. He took me to see so much of Moscow and astounded me with his thorough knowledge of the items in the Tretyakov Gallery. Unfortunately, the assigned driver spoke no English at all and had an old, basic car that reeked of cigarette smoke, which I happen to be very allergic to and I wasn't impressed with that. [For comparison, I've been in poorer countries (Costa Rica, Morocco, Turkey, etc), have paid far less for the tour package and have still had drivers who spoke English, drove clean, luxury cars or vans.] Further, on the last day of the tour, the tour guide did not show up and there seemed to be a failure of communication from the travel agency about it. I had the hotel concierge contact Academservice to find out what was going on and they sent a different tour guide, Lena, over a few hours later, and she was wonderful. Though I lost out on several hours worth of touring, East-West declined to reimburse me. On the last day of my stay in Russia, the assigned airport driver showed up and the hotel and sat in the lobby silently, without any indication/sign whatsoever about who he was or what he was there for. So I sat and again had to have the hotel concierge contact Academservice to find out what was happening with the driver. Of course, I had no idea that he was sitting in the lobby the whole time. Once I located him, I realized he spoke no English. Lol! The whole thing seemed so bizarre. Despite this, I was very impressed by the individual tour guides and grateful to have been to such an amazing country, having traveled safely and in comfort for the most part. Overall, I feel that the cost of the tour is very inflated, as the excursions/options were limited (Folk show) or not presented at all and it seemed that many things were haphazard and very rough/basic, in sharp contrast to the experience I've had in other countries with other tour agencies at far less cost. Aside from arranging the visa, I feel that I could have arranged the entire trip myself for perhaps half the cost. The few hiccups that were there I did not expect to encounter having paid so much for this trip, but on the whole, I feel very enriched by this experience and a lot more knowledgeable about Russia and its people. For that, I am very grateful! read more

East West Tours designed a wonderful vacation for us to Russia with a side trip to Kiev last summer. The accommodations and travel arrangements were perfect and the guides outstanding. Alex from East West worked with us to accommodate our tour extension so that we could see everything we wanted to while in Russia and the Ukraine. Our guide in Moscow was very helpful when one of us (who is afraid of heights) panicked at the top of the Moscow Metro escalator. He was understanding and wonderful. In a pinch he provided welcome assistance for one of us to return to our hotel and be able to relax for the rest of the afternoon while the remaining group members enjoyed the fabulous art in the subway. We enjoyed our trip so much that we are returning to see Siberia next summer. Alex has already sketched out most of the details! We are looking forward to our return to Russia with East West Tours. We are sure to come back with many more terrific memories! Moscow and St. Petersburgh are must-sees but we really enjoyed Kiev, Volgograd, and the Moscow Ring Road towns as well. read more

My wife and I recently traveled to Russia on their Grand Tour of Russia. We had originally reserved space with a cruise line, but ultimately decided that the all-land package made more sense: it covered essentially the same territory in four fewer days and at about $800 per person less cost. I made the reservations through East-West, dealing exclusively with Alex. Alex was a pleasure to deal with. Everything ran smoothly on the trip. It was easy to make connections at the Moscow airport. We had three different tour guides, all of whom were highly qualified. East-West delivered everything they promised and I would not hesitate to use them again. The biggest shortcoming on the trip was the failure of the guides to use "whisperers" to amplify their voices. Even though our group was small, it was often difficult to make out what the guide was saying, especially in crowded areas where other discussions were occurring. Olga, our Moscow guide, was particularly soft spoken. Of the three guides, Julia spoke the clearest English and was the easiest to understand. The hotel in Suzdal, the Sokol, had a number of shortcomings (I have reviewed it separately on Trip Advisor). There might not be a choice in Suzdal, but if there is, East-West should consider upgrading the hotel. Finally, we were told we would be staying in a Marriott Courtyard in Saint Petersburg. However, when we arrived there, we saw that we had been switched to the Rossi Hotel, a smaller, boutique hotel. It turned out that the hotel was OK (I have reviewed it separately on Trip Advisor) and much more conveniently located than the Courtyard, but it would have been nice to have been told in advance about the change. read more

My 12-night East-West tour to Moscow, St. Petersburg, and the Golden Ring was great with one important exception. The location of the hotels in both Moscow and St. Petersburg was awful. From the start, we made it clear that being centrally-located was our number one priority. Alex at East-West assured us that was the case. But close to our departure date, he switched our Moscow hotel from the well-located Courtyard Marriott to the Aquamarine, a hotel that was lovely but was a good 30 to 35 minute walk into the main part of the city (specifically, Red Square). There were no restaurants, shops, etc. where the hotel was - just office buildings. It was deserted at night and getting into the city required a long walk along the river, then crossing a major bridge. I contacted Alex from Moscow and was assured that the next hotel in St. Petersburg would be closer to the city's downtown area. However, once again it turned out to be a pretty lonely 30 to 35 minute walk into the city, along the river and across a bridge that was under construction, with no place to cross safely and one side of the bridge completely closed. The area around the hotel was better in terms of restaurants, and we learned how to take a public bus into town. (Meanwhile, another couple on our tour was in a hotel that was RIGHT downtown. Our tour bus drove from the hinterlands into the city every morning to pick them up. I have no idea why we weren't allowed to stay there.) The hotel arrangements were not at all what we had been told to expect and we were extremely disappointed. I feel as if we were tricked and I wouldn't trust East-West enough to book another tour with them. read more