Just wanted you to know we are frequent Gate1 travelers, and we KNOW excellent guides from satisfactory guides. We have close to 30 Gate 1 trips completed. It was important to us to make you aware of our tour manager, Pepe. Pepe is THE best guide for a tour of this type. His knowledge of Mayan history is second to none. History of ruins can be extremely tedious, but Pepe was able to present facts and educate us in such a way, as to make it fascinating and interesting. He presented Mexican history in a realistic way, helped people to understand different viewpoints, and although he was direct and did not mince words, he was always soft spoken and never overly emotional. He handled all requests regarding difficulties, immediately, and took a genuine interest in resolving matters to our satisfaction. I was just SO impressed. He IS Gate 1 material, and, in my opinion, one of the best. You should be very proud of this gentleman-

The Aztec/Mayan Illumination Tour is one of the best Gate 1 tours I've taken. Julie was an outstanding Tour Manager. Her tour booklet provided vital information about the tour and the daily schedule. Her archaeological background added to a higher-level perspective on what we saw and experienced. I appreciated her "culinary tour of snacks", a real treat. Julie went the "extra kilometer" consistently. Jesus was an excellent driver--skilled, safe, and helpful. The hotels were great in all respects. The local guides were superb, adding greatly to our understanding. Their knowledge and passion for their towns were obvious. Highlights were the stop at the Anthropological Museum in Xalapa and the Hacienda de Pacho coffee farm. The local musicians who performed at our semi-final dinner in Chichen-Itza added greatly to our enjoyment and set a warm tone for the evening. A great tour! I highly recommend it!

The Aztec and Mayan Illumination tour was an exciting adventure and an excellent itinerary. Our tour manager Ivan was a very professional yet approachable tour director. His interpersonal skills were admirable, and his easy-going personality did not interfere with his efficient and effective tour direction. He was quite knowledge about the various stages of civilization and development of the Aztec and Mayan cultures that made Mexico the country we visited in 2025. The local tour guides introduced on our trips were highly prepared for their presentations with photos, diagrams and a wealth of history. Each guide introduced their location with a true love for the cultures they represented. Their overall knowledge of their subject was in depth. The stop for lunch and tour of the Pacho Nuevo hacienda was an interesting story of the other cultures in the area; that of the Europeans influence in and love of Mexico. I highly recommend this tour for all the reasons above. And our bus driver Eduardo/Lalo was an excellent driver and very helpful assisting the passengers on his motor coach.

This was near or at the top of the list of all our tours, including several with Gate 1. Tour manager David was outstanding! I would recommend him without reservation!

Just wanted to say that Aquilino, the tour guide for the Guatemala trip, was fantastic! His knowledge about Mayan history was incredible, and he had great stories! He cared about our safety and that we were having a great time! I've had many tour guides with gate 1 and other companies. He is definitely in my top 3 guides. I would like to take more tours to central America with Aquilino as the guide! I'm super impressed with Guatemala! Love this country!

We had a great time with Belize and Guatemala! Our tour guy, Luis, is a gem. He worked hard keeping our group organized, on time, and safe with all our adventures. He's so proud of his country and thrilled to share his knowledge with us. We have traveled with Gate1 many times and I would have to say Luis is one of the best tour managers we've ever had. Gate1 is lucky to have him on the team. Belize was amazing. We learned about Laminai, the Mayan ancient ruins. We enjoyed the boat ride on the New River and identified all wildlife. Cay was wonderful at snorkeling, and the best was the cave tubing adventure! Guatemala exceeded our expectations with Tikal, Livingston, and especially Antigua! What a beautiful city! We were in awe seeing smoke coming out from the active volcano behind our hotel too. Thanks to all the local guides and drivers who helped with our tour, especially Oscar1, Oscar 2, Nate and others. Our group of 14 were harmonious. We formed many new friendships with lots of nice memories and lots of laughter. We really recommend everyone to book this tour. You won't regret it.

My trip was great and the tour guide Carlos was excellent. Very knowledgeable, courteous and friendly and helpful. Super organized. Really superb!

This trip was fantastic! I must highly commend Julia; she was an amazing travel manager. I felt very privileged to have had her as the tour manager for this trip! Her expansive knowledge base and personality, plus her experience as an Archeologist contributed to making this my best Gate1 trip so far. She is an asset to the Gate1 family in Mexico. She truly raised the bar of my expectations for travel managers for my future Gate1 trips. Thank you!

Trip was excellent. NO issues. Tour Guide Clemente did an excellent Job. Very accommodating to all in the group. Will take another tour with him without a doubt. Excellent driver also. Very experience and awesome skills maneuvering on sometimes tough spots.

I just wanted to say how amazing my trip was. My tour guide, Bacho, was exceptional, and I would absolutely do another tour with him. Our driver was incredible, the hotels were clean with great locations, and the meals were delicious. I look forward to traveling with Gate One again soon!

Applause to Gate 1 for the great tour & service. Love the LOCAL tour guide explaining the cultural & uniqueness of each city. They are all excellent & friendly. My travel goal is to learn more about the town, culture, history, education system & country after the tour. Gate 1 achieves that. The added surprise of dance show, music band during lunch in the town of Tequila. Our tour manager, Jared, is excellent. Clear communication, well time management. Always on time with schedule & relaxation.

Our Discovery trip to Mexico was FABULOUS! Bacio our guide was one of the best guides we have ever had and we travel A LOT! The itinerary was perfect and the small group made it that much better. Love Gate 1

Fantastic!!! The guide, Rodrigo was amazing, the hotels were fantastic- perfectly located so we could walk to sites, the tour program was SO interesting, Monte Alban was breathtaking! The number of people ,23, was perfect to travel with & everyone was friendly! I've been telling everyone to sign up for this trip.

My trip was amazing! Everything I had hoped for and more. Our Tour Manager Aquilino was amazing, wonderfully kind, perfectly professional and a wealth of knowledge. Our driver Edgar was skilled and friendly. The tour itself was well planned and captured the breadth of the Mayan culture that I hoped for. The sidestep into Honduras to visit the archeological site of Copan was a bonus. Copan Runias is a charming mountain town and a wonderful respite from the hustle and bustle of Guatemala City's traffic before setting off to our next destination. The trip was fantastic!

Liliana is an amazing, outstanding and super-professional guide for the Colonial Mexico tour! I can't say enough good things about this wonderful trip that's inspired me to go on more Gate 1 Mexico tours and more. What an outstanding time, value, fun, food and culture. Kudos to driver Aurelio too, a big hug and thank you too all. I'm a fan for life, can't wait for my next trip. I've learned much and look forward to learning more about beautiful Mexico!

We had an amazing trip. It was much better than what we expected from accommodation to the travel guides, who were exceptional. Our travel manager Daniel was so organized and made the trip seamless and fun. The Cuban guide and the driver were also excellent and we enjoyed their hospitality and conversation. Wouldn't change a thing with this tour. Thank you so very much.

Luis provided excellent tour experience. I nicknamed him "ambassador" because of his ability to share his innate curiosity, intelligence, lived experiences and love for his Mayan heritage and Guatemala. He represents his country well. We are blessed to have toured with him. We think he is extra special. Gate One is fortunate to employ him. This was a special tour, and we are grateful

It was fabulous! I've been going to Mexico on and off for over 50 years and never learned as much history and culture as I did on this tour. Douglas, the TM, is a master of organization; warm, friendly, accessible, and funny. The width and depth of his knowledge of all things Northern Mexico is astounding! The bus driver, Omar, was genius at navigating the bus into small spaces to park us near where we were going. Overall, a great experience. Copper Canyon was actually the least of it! All the little towns a visits with indigenous people really made the trip.

The Gate 1 Trip to Colonial Mexico was fabulous. I enjoyed the itinerary to so many interesting and charming historical towns which were loaded with history, art and culture. The local Mexicans we met were so friendly and kind. The Tour Manager and local guides were exceptional. The quality and choice of the food was truly outstanding, and the accommodations were magical.

Carlos was the BEST tour director we have ever had (5th Gate 1 trip). His knowledge of the area was amazing. The best part for me was getting into the culture of the ethnic groups and he knew that very well. He continually talked and gave very interesting, great information of the area. He also entertained us with personal stories. He was very compassionate and attentive....a great guy!

It was a FANTASTIC trip. Would highly recommend it to anyone. Our Gate 1 Guide, Javier, was absolutely the best Guide I have ever had with Gate 1.

The trip was Amazing! Great itinerary! Great tour manager: knowledgeable, patient, ... - best of the best, as always. Mexico is beautiful country, and I feel absolutely safe there. This was my 4th trip to Mexico with Gate 1 and I will definitely go again.

We thoroughly enjoyed our trip. Our guide Marta, was excellent and our trip manager Xavier was very very good. We had wonderful cultural experiences through the people-to-people program and I would recommend this trip to everyone. We came away from Cuba feeling like we understood their challenges, but also their strengths. It is my favorite of our Gate 1 trips because of all the cultural experiences. We are so glad we chose the longer trip that allowed us to see more than Havana. I hope these trips will continue. Cuba needs tourism and we need to explore and experience Cuba.

Good morning! My birthday vacation was incredible! Our guide lady Virginia was just amazing! Knowledge about Cuba history, architecture, the people. This trip would not have been the same without her! I'm planning to send my daughter with her on her next Cuba trip. I am so blessed to have experienced such an amazing group and guides ( Virginia and Jorge). Lazaro at the hotel was amazing, always smiling and professional. Thank you Gate1!!!!!!

Our trip was great. Joshua is an exceptional guide who is very knowledgeable about his country, its history and was very amiable and pleasant to all the guests. He made our trip that much more enjoyable Would recommend this trip to anyone who is interested in Mexico s history.

My Guatemala tour was wonderful. Our guide, Estuardo, was very helpful, thorough, and friendly. All was good. Traffic is terrible, but nothing Gate1 can do about that. Thank you

Excellent. Lilianna was an outstanding tour director. Hotels were first rate. Tour agenda was great.

Julia was beyond excellent!! Her enthusiasm and energy, even after particularly long days, was amazing. Julia even helped the bellman deliver luggage after a long day! She had so much to contribute about life in Mexico. She gave us so much insight into what life was really like that made the experience so much richer.

The trip was great....the tour guide Adrian was fabulous...one of the best in the industry as I have gone on other travel tour groups too. The first hotel Barcelo was awesome!!!

We just returned home from our wonderful Southeast and Central Mexico Tour and would like to thank Gate ! For providing us such a pleasant and safe trip. We enjoyed visiting the historical sites, knowledgeable tour guides, excellent driver and above all our fantastic and helpful Tour Manger, Mr. Carlos. Another fabulous trip with Gate 1 !

I just wanted to say a few words about the Tour Manager, Douglas. Douglas was outstanding as a Tour Manager. He was very concerned about the safety of the participants, extremely helpful when asked for anything. His knowledge of local history, culture and places we visited was par excellence. He had a good sense of humor which made it very pleasant. We were very happy and fortunate to have a tour manager in Douglas and he was ably assisted by the Coach driver Omar. They both made the trip very memorable.

The Colonial Cities Tour was great and also our flights with United were very good. My husband and I were pleased with all hotels and food. Rubin, our guide, was well organized and very knowledgeable. This was our first trip with Gate 1 and are looking forward to our booked tour of Iceland in September with Gate 1.

This was a memorable tour. I learned so much about the Mayan ruins, the people, their culture. None of this would have been possible without the deep knowledge and love that PEPE, our tour manager, has for his heritage. From the hotel locations, dinners, restaurants locations and lunches to the comfort of the motorcoach and service from Alex, our driver, this tour rates as one of the best I have ever experienced. Alex and Pepe are definitely assets to your travel service. I look forward to another tour with Gate 1!

I have only the highest praise for this tour, the carefully selected sites, local guides, hotels, locations and types of meals, and the comfort and safety of our terrific group. Alex, our driver was superb. But the most accolades of all must go to our incredible manager and guide, Julie. She made the trip a once in a life time experience for all of us - even the most experienced and well traveled guests. I would advise you to do everything within your power to retain her - to have a PhD archeologist educate us every day about what we were seeing and experiencing, and then to tour the actual town and site of her work in Palenque was extraordinary and unforgettable. The materials she prepared for us were terrific. I came home DETERMINED to stay in touch with Julie and many of the other people in our group, AND to schedule my next tour with Gate 1 as soon as possible. I also have highly recommended my experience with Julie and Gate 1 to a very wide circle of my family and friends. Thank you for the thrill of a lifetime as I turned 80 on this trip. Julie even made arrangements for a cake and candles and a celebration on January 27th while on our trip. Unforgettable!!

The Havana Express tour was jam packed with Cuban culture and history. A huge thank you to Gigi and Marti for a great trip. They were both helpful, knowledgeable and fun during the tour. They answered all questions and went above and beyond to make sure we were taken care of and stressed being healthy and having a good time. They dealt with all types of personalities on the tour graciously. Would love to return on one of the longer tours.

We really enjoyed our small group Discovery Tour- 13 Day Mexico's Mayan & Aztec Illumination. Manuel, our veteran tour manager was amazing. Ismael drove our new coach expertly throughout this beautiful area of Mexico. In our first 2 days we enjoyed seeing many beautiful and historical sites of the Mexico City area. We especially enjoyed our boat ride in the floating gardens. After leaving Mexico City, we then toured many sites that were inhabited by the Mayan and Aztec Civilization such as Puebla, Veracruz, Palenque, Campeche, Merida and Chichen Itza. The lodging and the food throughout the trip was exceptional. We have done many trips with Gate 1 and I can't say enough good things about this Discovery Tour.

It was an excellent trip - this was my 61st trip with G1 and have now done all five Mexico tours that G1 offers, and G1 does Mexico extraordinarily well! This Classic Yucatan tour goes to towns and sights that I have seen before, but which are always good for a revisit and some new ones too, such as Coba with the surprise of traveling the large site by tricycles and stopping for commentary and photo ops, which was very welcome in the afternoon heat, and the optional trip to Edzna Ruins which was fantastic, uncrowded, very well maintained and with an interesting small museum at the start. I enjoyed staying in Playa del Carmen and found all the hotels to be comfortable bases. The hotel location in Campeche was fantastic and always love the Villa Mercedes hotel in Merida, which is a very appealing city. Included food was plentiful and delicious, and especially always love the visit to Kinich in Izamal which specializes in Mayan cooking techniques and is a lovely setting in this yellow magical town. The regional pibil, whether chicken or pork was always really tasty and enjoyed it several times. Our tour was led by Pepe, who was excellent, kind, knowledgeable and with a ready smile that is always so nice to see. Our driver Alejandro (Alex) was skilled and an amazing driver of the large and comfortable tour bus that was used. He was super friendly and always greeted us with a smile and fun music to board the bus. So all in all a wonderful trip covering many UNESCO sights and welcoming towns and cities. Would take any of the five G1 Mexico trips again without hesitation - always a great time - thank you as always!

I am so happy I chose to learn about Cuba! In a nutshell, my experience was educational and emotional. To me, Cuba means pride and poverty, music and mojitos! Gigi is devoted to the country and her Cuban guide Jorge. And Jorge is honest and kind, obviously well educated and able to answer all of our questions regarding the country including history, current events, education, art, or community groups. Thank you to People to People for being willing to navigate the trials of touring in Cuba. The community projects and studios were delightful. My particular favorites were the Afro-Cuban Dancers and the "Orchestra" (In Cameguey). I will recommend this choice to anybody who is interested in seeing the realities of Cuba.

Our trip to central Mexico was absolutely wonderful! Rodrigo was a polite, kind and attentive guide. Our local guides in each specific area were friendly and provided a wealth of background information. All the hotels were excellent, as were the restaurants chosen by Gate 1. We had an amazing time! Thank you. I know I will be traveling with Gate 1 again. You provide quality service and exceptional value!

The trip was great. I had no idea that Belize and Guatemala had so much to offer. We've done the Mexico tours covering Mayan civilization, but didn't realize how much there was to cover in these two countries. We enjoyed all the hotels we stayed in. Alejandro did a great job as Tour Manager. I hope that Gate 1 will offer more tours to cover Nicaragua, El Salvador and Honduras.

My trip to Guatemala was one beautiful adventure. Thanks to the wonderful Estuardo (tour Manager), I got to know a country that amazed me with its beauty and very interesting culture. The trip was well organized, everything was in good time (even toilet stops). Comfortable, beautifully maintained hotels, delicious meals, excellent company, very interesting places with wonderful views and very nice local people: what more can you ask for?

We recently returned from our Mexico Mayan and Aztec Illumination tour, and I had to let you know how pleased we were with this trip. Many little side trips that were not part of the itinerary were included and unexpected. They were all wonderful. We loved the guidebook that was made up for each of us explaining the sites we were going to visit and the culture. I would love to see them on all our trips. We have been on eight gate one trips and have loved them all. Excellent guides, transportation, accommodations and itineraries. We love you guys

Honestly, all our trips with Gate1 have been top shelf - truly, this one exceeded our expectations on every level: places, dining, people, activities, information. We have, and continue, to recommend Gate1 to everyone we meet.

This trip was better than I could have ever imagined! Everywhere we visited, there was so much to see and do. The views of the Copper Canyon were unreal, and I learned so many interesting things about Mexico and its indigenous communities. Our tour guide, Jared, helped transform this trip into an unforgettable experience. He was so unbelievably kind, engaging, and accommodating to the needs of every traveler. He consistently went above and beyond to ensure that this trip was special and memorable for everyone. Another noteworthy aspect of the trip was our outstanding bus driver, who worked very hard to get us where we needed to be! I HIGHLY recommend this to everyone!

Cuba was absolutely fascinating. Excellent people-to-people cultural travel with a super packed itinerary of professional music, dance, boutique art galleries, lovely people and amazing food. The guides were top tier. I highly recommend a 6+ night trip for the full cultural experience and to gain insights into the their challenges and joys.