I stopped in for some last-minute gifts on the final day of my San Diego trip. The Visitor Center…read moreis small and no one greeted me or asked if I needed help, but there were plenty of different T-shirt options specifically. I was able to find those, plus some pens to purchase. Prices were probably slightly inflated but not terribly. Check out was easy. Bathrooms were right outside of the center in the courtyard, and those were clean and orderly.

We sometimes stop by the Balboa Park Visitors Center to grab brochures and explore the little gift…read moreshop. The staff is always nice, and there are some really cute things in the gift shop. Located near the Prado Restaurant, this Visitors Center is fairly easy to miss. Since there is so much to see in Balboa Park, I'm so glad that they have several knowledgeable employees working here. The gift shop contains a small selection of cute souvenirs. There are also drinks, snacks, and some great books on Balboa Park and the surrounding San Diego area. We are planning on getting the Passport to Balboa Park the next time we are here. If you like Balboa Park as much as we do, this Visitors Bureau Center is worth a stop when you are here!

Chillaxing ride to Coronado Island…read more About a 15 minute pleasure taxi with great views of the downtown cityscape and a half loop around the island. Plenty of bike racks for the pedal commuters, spacious seating inside & out, but how can you not sit out on the upper deck bask in the San Diego summer? Saw dolphins cruising on the way back at no extra charge ;)

For our wedding anniversary, we decided to try the sunset dinner cruise - we both were very happy…read morethat we did, it was a truly enjoyable ~3 hours. The service level was outstanding and all team members were very welcoming and accommodating. The food - the 3 course meal was great and was not rushed (this was very much welcomed). We had opted for the cocktail package and we were glad we did (if having more than two drinks, it makes good financial sense). During the cruise they have a DJ and open a dance floor. This is a good addition - we stopped by a few times waiting for a slow dance, but unfortunately we were not able to catch one. All 'n all, a great mini romantic getaway that helps you "forget about life" for a while and focus on what is truly important! We definitely plan on a revisit in the future!

We were planning our honeymoon to Spain and knew what cities we wanted to visit but were…read moreoverwhelmed by all the planning. A friend suggested Purple Light, and Jonathan got on a Zoom call with us that helped is organize our thoughts and priorities. We discussed our budget and within a couple days he had drafted a detailed itinerary for us, listing just enough hotels that we felt we had options but not enough to overwhelm us again. After a few days we decided on hotels and he booked them for us. Then he helped us with a car service and flight suggestions within Spain which was really helpful. He really knew how to time our transportation, which was impressive. Soon before we departed he sent us travel guides for each city designed by Purple Light. Again, really helped us narrow down our excursions and restaurants. When we were actually on our trip I was surprised how hands on Jonathan was. Checking in with us daily to make sure we were OK. Replying quickly to questions we'd ask via email, even though we were 9 hours ahead of him. We loved every hotel he found for us and I can't imagine our trip going as well as it did without his help. And his services don't cost a dime, in case you didn't know!

Purple Light Vacations was recommended to us by Brand g Vacations, when we were planning our first…read moretrip with them - a river cruise on the Seine. Jonathan responded to my email inquiry immediately, and I was speaking with him by phone within two hours. We were pleased that he had extensive experience booking clients on Brand g tours, and was very familiar with hotels and tours in Paris. Within a day he had us booked on the Brand g tour and found flights that included a discount on our hotel stay in Paris after the tour. He also help select and book day tours in and around Paris. On the morning we were to fly out of Palm Springs and connect to Paris, we found that our first flight was six hours late! The result was that we would miss our connecting flight to Paris. I contacted Jonathan early in the morning and he coordinated with the airline to rebook on flights that still got us to Paris the same day and only six hours later than we originally planned. His help saved our trip and we still made our boat cruise departure on time. Throughout the planning and during our trip, Jonathan was always available by text or email. He consistently sent us reminders and updates about our tours and flights. With his help our trip was a great success, and it eliminated a lot of stress and work on our part. We definitely intend to us him again to plan future trips.

Five full stars. We love love love our travel agent Aimee! Aimee has helped us plan multiple trips…read morenow that range from full-service where every last detail is thought of and planned to less managed trips where you just need hotels and a few tours and book everything else on your own and she shines in every way. On our full-service trips to Scandinavia and Japan, she took care of every detail from when we got off the plane with a private driver taking you to our first hotel, dinner reservations, private sushi classes, food tours, cultural heritage site tours, transfers between cities and hotels, to when we left our last hotel and go home (in style of course!). We have been privileged to have unique experiences such as riding a bike through Copenhagen with a private chef with a kitchen-bike, to learning how to make sushi with a sushi chef, to private city tours of Stockholm, Kayaking in the Lulea River in Sweden, taking a rigid inflatable speedboat to a Fjord in the Norwegian arctic circle, and touring the most beautiful temples and shrines of Japan with a private guide who can share details and educate you on the history and the culture that you could not find on your own. Travel agents make money when they book you things, but Aimee is never pushy with booking something every single day, and gives you time to decompress and discover on your own if you so choose. (If you want to do something planned every day you definitely can!) While our experiences are not the cheapest (The Four Seasons is always so expensive!) , our vacation time is limited, and we appreciate how we get a full experience of a city / country / culture and make the best use of that one resource that none of us have unlimited amounts of -- time. We also feel like even though the expense is high that we are getting decent value for our hard-earned money. We were with a different travel agency previously who we felt like did not provide as much value for our money and are happy we switched to Avant Garde. When a snag happens on a trip, like the plane delay that got us to Copenhagen 3.5 hours late last summer, Aimee or someone on her team from SD or Denmark jump into action and make sure that we reconnect with the trip and get back on track as soon as possible. We have declined some of her choices for hotels and had her book a hotel that we heard about or read about, and she has never given us any trouble or made us feel like she was pushing us to have to stay at any property that was more advantageous for her business. Her focus is to design a trip that YOU want to take, and we really, really feel like she is in our best interest all of the time. We've also booked less-managed trips with Aimee, where she helps us with hotels and maybe a couple of things in cities we understand and know. A memorable trip we took last year was when we went to Paris and Madrid to see Taylor Swift. We didn't want or need (or necessarily have the budget for) a full-service trip with action-packed private tours but she was happy to book our hotels, provide recommendations on what to do, and let us book other things on our own. From what I understand, Aimee has a team of professionals that work with her who help coordinate and plan and cater to many price points, but she specifically specializes in high-end travel with unique experiences. I love the fact that she always does a post-trip call (our previous high-end travel agent didn't do this) and wants to know what we loved (almost everything) and what can be improved (a few things) and feel like she really cares about your experience and uses the feedback to help us plan our next fabulous vacation and to avoid pitfalls that prior clients maybe have experienced. We are already dreaming of our next trip (with Aimee's help, of course!) and would highly recommend her for anybody who wants a customized, high-end experience (with prices to match!) that provide a good value for money spent.

Jennifer at Avant-Garde Travel was so helpful in planning my trip to Paris. My sister and I had a…read moregreat time. We had so many "bucket List" things to see and do and she was able to fit all of them into the time we had. Jennifer found us 2 great boutique hotels to stay in in Paris before and after the Disneyland part of our trip. She also arranged the day tours to see the sites of Paris. I was so happy to discover she was also in my home town and I was able to meet her in person. She set me up with their Travel App and the What's App that made following the itinerary and communicating in Paris so easy. I will definitely ask her to help me with my next vacation. Jennifer P

Very Impressed with the local Staff at the Agency. Would recommend this Team without hesitation. A…read morebespoke seamless experience.

Lili LeBaron planned an incredible 1 week trip to Cambodia in February 2025 for my husband and me…read more It was above and beyond in terms of the accommodations she selected for us at Shinta Mani in Siem Reap and the Royal Sands in Koh Rong, as well as in terms of the seamless transportation and connections. We never waited for any drivers-- someone was always there to greet us and take us to our next destination in comfort, which made our travel days so easy and efficient. I also wanted to shout out the unbelievable Angkor Wat tours she booked for us-- it was so educational and stunning to be at these ancient temples. They were also timed perfectly so that there were fewer tourists while we there, allowing us to really soak it all in. Lili's attention to detail made our week in Cambodia one of our favorite trips yet. She ensured that each day included tours tailored to us as well as accommodations perfectly suited to our needs. I can't recommend her services as a travel specialist enough! She will take care of you.

James Wigdel and his Honu Adventures have recaptured the lost art of customer service - the kind…read morethat says, 'let me take care of that for you.' Particularly good in events ticketing, even the Hot Ticket stuff, he's also skilled at getting best hotel and transportation rates. And of course he has an App. As you build your itinerary each step is loaded into your App for your easy reference and auto updating if changes are later made. Just when I thought 'Travel Agent' was about to be dropped from the OED, along comes James to male travel easy again.

From the owner: Honu Adventures specializes in UnMassMarket Experiences. Our journeys are designed around cultural…read moreimmersion journeys with a focus on Bhutan, Hawaii, Asia, Mexico and many others. Honu is the Hawaiian word for turtle, a symbol of wisdom and luck. The Honu represents the navigator, and the eternal link among people, the land and the sea. Based in San Diego, CA, Honu Adventures was established to introduce adventurers to destinations with a deep and rich cultural heritage.

Skyfari is a must-do at the San Diego Zoo. It's a quick aerial tram ride that gives you incredible…read moreviews of Balboa Park, the zoo grounds, and on a clear day, downtown. Lines move fast and the staff load/unload efficiently. It's a nice break from walking, especially uphill, and you get a different perspective on the animal habitats. Round trip is included with admission. Not scary at all -- smooth and relaxing. Pro tip: ride it later in the day when the crowds thin out. Great way to rest your feet and see the zoo from above.

The Skyfari is a fun ride overlooking the San Diego Zoo…read more You can take that ride when you first enter the zoo to quickly get you all the way to the top. Or, take that hike to the top and catch that ride down with a view!! ;) We wandered all around and took the ride several times when we needed a break. During the week, there was barely a line!! It's free with your entry ticket in the zoo.

Always a pleasure coming in here! Everyone is so helpful and prices are decent for downtown area…read more Never really any wait. Parking very accessible too.

Be careful here. Staff are not helpful and they are too expensive…read more They charge $1 a stamp (instead of .72 per stamp). They sold my mother 100 stamps for a tidy profit of $24. They did not tell her they were charging more per stamp. I asked if she could return them and they said no.