“Sorin was excellent – full of information, always willing to help if needed, and each introduced little unexpected extras – for example Sorin not only showed us a little more of Suceava than expected but managed to find two weddings and a car being blessed.”

“Thank you again for showing us the painted monasteries. We learned a lot and had a truly wonderful time!”

“So a really big thank you for making it such a good two weeks - not only were you constructive, thoughtful and helpful but you helped to make it very entertaining.”

“Well, that was one of the best holidays I have ever had! Thank you so much for all your kindness and for sharing so much with us - the history, the art, the landscape and wildlife and your lovely sense of humour. We felt so lucky that you were able to guide us and look after our every need - we could not have been better looked after, and you are so observant, not only pointing out so much on the way that we would never have seen without you, but even noticing the preference for white wine followed by red!”

“סורין מדריך מוסמך ומאד מעניין. סיור מודרך באיזור בוקובינה. הסיור כולל אתר מורשת עולמית- המנזרים המצויירים של בוקובינה. מתודעים לאיזור הכפרי בו הזמן כמעט עמד מלכת, בארות מים ועגלות סוסים. לפי בקשת הלקוח, סורין גם כולל בסיור את שרידי הקהילה היהודית, בתי כנסת משופצים אך נטושים, בתי קברות בני מאות שנים, שלטים לזכר יהדות רומניה אשר גורשו בימי השואה וניספו בטרנסניסטריה. ההדרכה באנגלית רהוטה. סורין מגיע לאסוף במלון ביאסי או כל נקודה אחרת. המחיר הוגן ביותר והתמורה מלאה. סיור אישי ברכב פרטי עשיר בחוויה וידע. ממליצים מאד.”

“You looked after us, guided, educated and entertained us so well, and I cannot thank you enough for doing so. We saw things which are so far outside my experience -particularly the painted monasteries but the scenery, the farming system, the Romanian way of life equally of interest - that it made a truly inspiring holiday.”

“We wanted to say how much we enjoyed our days with you. You were such a mine of information on the painted monasteries, explaining their history and all the complex iconography of those wonderful frescoes. Thank you so much for all that you did for us. It was a privilege for us to have your company.”

“Just wanted to thank you again for the time and effort you put in during my visit. From my point of view my visit to Bucowina was all and more than I had hoped for and has really given me a much better appreciation of the area that my grandparents came from.”

“Thank you Sorin. You are a star. I hope we can persuade some of our friends to come to Romania and have you as their guide. You made our trip memorable for us and thank you big time for being so knowledgeable, and patient with us. We loved your efficiency and cheerful personality.”

“You were a great host - I think you gave me a very fair and balanced view of life in Romania in 2016. And, of course, an informed understanding of the artistic and historical sources of Suceava's painted monasteries and Maramures' wooden churches. A top quality job.”

“A fortnight on from our tour the images of Romania and its churches are as vivid as ever. Juliet and I were amazed by our adventure and want to thank you so much for your expert, enthusiastic and friendly guidance, showing us the Romanian countryside and its traditional way of life to give us a holiday which will stand out above others for a long time to come.”

“The tour was amazing! The tour guide/driver went above and beyond anything that you could expect and provided us with contacts that the ordinary tourist would never be able to get on their own. The name of the guide was Sorin Fodor – we want whoever arranged for him to know that he is an exceptional guy and should be commended for his effort and expertise. We actually found the cemeteries, the old school house, the old church, the market and finally the yard (with a new house under construction) on which my mother and her lived. It was just beyond anything that we could have anticipated.”

“Once again, thank you so much for taking care of us. Thank you for showing us the treasures of your beautiful country and for welcoming us to your beautiful home and family. A Romanian hospitality is one of the best indeed.”

“Wanted to thank you again for being a fantastic guide & chauffeur these past two days! I'm still absorbing all the amazing sites & people we saw - pretty amazing. Your professionalism, knowledge and insights were much appreciated.”

“I want thank you for the wonderful tour of Moldavia and bucovina. We all enjoyed it so much !! I will put your name with our travel agent in America.”

“The painted monasteries were awe-inspiring and majestic. But your ability to add the historic information behind the art added immeasurably to the experience. And the further historical information as we drove to Brasov gave us more insight to Romania. So thank you for a wonderful experience.”

“Thanks for organising such a great trip for us. It was quite superb.”

“The first thing I thought of this morning was how LUCKY I was to go yesterday. And especially to go with YOU! With all your explanations I saw how really different and individual each one was, and I looked forward to the next church to see if I could spot differences and similarities. It was an incredible experience of a lifetime. Thank you for a fantastic, incredible, informative, enjoyable.. really, there aren't enough positive adjectives to describe this day.”

“The holiday was blissfull, Dragomirna monastery is wonderful and the sisters who looked after us were lovely, making us feel very welcome and couldn't do enough for us. I'd recommend it to anybody. Sorin, our guide, was great, well-informed, entertaining and very professional. We couldn't have asked for better.”

“Hello Sorin- Bob and I would like to let you know how very much we enjoyed our 3 days with you this last Sept. It was the best of the best of our 4 week vacation in Eastern Europe. Your love of your country and your cultural heritage plus your genuine joy and knowledge of the monasteries infused us with an interest we did not know we had before we arrived! Your attention to detail and your caring about every aspect of our comfort was so wonderful. A truly terrific guide- thanks again.”

“Thank you for being a fabulous guide to beautiful Romania. I cannot believe all the wonderful things we saw and did. The trip was a feast for my soul. I really appreciate your kindness. That was above and beyond. I have taken a lot of private tours all over the world, and yours will remain in my mind as the best.”

“We were happy and fortunate to have Mr. Sorin Fodor as our guide. His knowledge is simply impressive. Sorin goes above and beyond to accommodate his clients. A day tour of Painted Monasteries with Sorin was a memorable experience for all of us.”

“Sorin you were the most wonderful guide, deeply well informed which you delivered to us in such an interesting and accessible fashion, you were always I know thinking of how best to achieve all the things we wanted to do, and your mind racing in how to do it in the time available, and you achieved it! ”

“Sorin is a first class guide.  We had a fabulous day with him, visiting the monasteries.
Thank you for all the careful planning in our behalf!”

“Our visit to Romania was memorable! We should thank you for being a wonderful guide in Bucovina. Your explanations about the frescoes made our visit so interesting, that we found the Saxon Lutheran churches rather dull by comparison.”

“Our guide was excellent. He was very friendly, genuine, knowledgeable about the monasteries and the stories that the paintings tell and also about Bucovina in general. His English is very good and he was extremely helpful with everything, including buying our tickets.
We couldn’t recommend him more! First rate.”

“Our guide not only gave us assistance in finding the painted monasteries of Bucovina, but he also shared with us wonderful stories and info. His presence definitely made our visit to Voronet, Humor, Sucevita, Arbore (my personal favorite) and tiny Patrauti amazing.”

“What a trip, the best yet, both successful and enjoyable. It was the best balanced trip out of out five visits. Sorin was the best guide ever. Although it was our fourth visit to the painted monasteries, he taught us a lot and provided a first class introduction for our friends”

“We feel we have received 150 percent of what we were expecting from out visit. This is entirely due to your enthusiasm and professionalism. So many, many thanks from both of us and best wishes!”

“We all had a wonderful time and enjoyed ourselves immensely. We will highly recommend your tour to all our friends and family. Thank you so much for allowing us to see your beautiful country, family and people on a level which we would not been able to do without you being our guide. We have some fantastic memories and stories to tell when we arrive back to England”

“Sorin was excellent – can hardly praise to highly. He had a constant desire to help and first class knowledge of history and religion. Very good English to go with all that. We did everything we wanted.”

“We enjoyed or tour of the monasteries very much. It was wonderful and it was and added bonus for us to have you answering all our questions. You showed us a wonderful part of Europe and I hope it doesn’t get spoilt to soon.”

“Thank you so much for being such an excellent guide and driver. We could not have enjoyed ourselves more.”

“I want to thank you for being such helpful and enjoyable guide on our recent visit to Romania. It was my third visit, but it proved every bit of pleasure and a challenge. You have excellent organizational skills and such good personal skills.”

--- from beyond the forest’s guestbook --

www.beyondtheforest.com

“We are now back from our MARVELLOUS visit to Romania. Everything went like clockwork thanks to your superb arrangements. We were blessed with heavenly weather every day and all enjoyed ourselves hugely. Mirela Iurca's cooking was particularly enjoyed by us all at the expense of our waistlines and both George and Sorin were superb and thoughtful guides. Both the Fullton and Hilde's residence were excellent and convenient choices to stay. The staff in both places were nice too. The painted monasteries were beyond magical, speaking as someone who was underwhelmed by the noisy and unspiritual atmosphere of the Sistene Chapel the monasteries of Bucovina are for me a great wonder of the world with which the Sistene does not stand comparison. I can't wait to go again and am just thinking shall it be Iasi or Timisoara.”

“We thoroughly enjoyed the itinerary you provided for us for the past 2 weeks in Romania - a beautiful and fascinating country. Our guide to the Painted Monasteries, Sorin, was excellent, as were our stays in Bucharest, Voronet, Cluj and Sighisoara. We found enormous contrasts between city and country which we thought didn't exist in modern Europe, Thanks very much.”

“Just to let you know that we had a fabulous holiday in Romania. What a wonderful country it is. All your arrangements went like clockwork except that we got off the train at Suceava instead of Suceava Nord - but Sorin came and collected us. Sorin was a wonderful guide and took good care of us, as did all the staff at Miclosoara. They couldn't have been kinder and it has a wonderful atmosphere. Many thanks.”

“This is just to say what a wonderful guide Sorin was for the Painted Monasteries; he really made our trip. His technical knowledge of the icons as well as his enthusiasm was wonderful. All the meet and greets went well so it was very unstressful.”

“It seems so trite to say "thank you" but nevertheless true for arranging such a varied and interesting itinerary for us during our stay in Romania. Sorin Fodor was a splendid guide - always punctual, courteous and helpful in answering our endless questions about Romania, and his love and knowledge about the monasteries.”

“This was a most enjoyable and interesting holiday. The tour of Bucharest and, in particular the visit to the village museum was of great interest, and our young English speaking driver was able to give us an insight into the recent history of the country. The main purpose of our visit was, of course, to visit the Painted Monasteries of the Bucovina. This surpassed all expectations. We found the monasteries marvelous. Our visit was greatly enhanced by Sorin Fodor, our guide and driver, of whom neither my wife nor I can speak too highly. Quite apart from being a skilled driver and a good English speaker his enthusiasm and knowledge of the area and the monasteries was excellent and we would be grateful if you would pass on our thanks to him for the wonderful time he gave us. The friendliness of all the staff at Casa Elena also added to our enjoyment of the area.”