Testimonials

September 2023

I really appreciated Zbigniew’s genealogical expertise, his willingness to work long hours on our days together, and his refusal to give up when confronted with possible leads. I would highly recommend his services! I found more information than I had hoped to find, although my genealogical goals will never be completely achieved!

PolishOrigins exceeded my expectations. Thanks to everyone for a wonderful experience!

August 2023

Thank you so very much for helping us to make the Nadler-Jaffe family heritage trip to Poland a reality and a great success! We are so grateful for everything you did from the planning stage through to the last day of the trip to help make our trip as meaningful as it was.

Our guide, Zbigniew, and driver Marek, were wonderful and so reliable, getting us to where we needed to be to stay on schedule each day. In the Lodz Ghetto, it was so meaningful that Justyna was able to find and take us to so many places of significance for my father and his family. The accommodations were just right and our meal arrangements worked out really well. Most of all, knowing that you were only a phone call away and that we were in reliable hands really allowed us to focus on this incredible experience.

It was a trip of a lifetime! Thank you again so much for helping to make that possible!!

August 2023

First, we must say that this tour would never have been possible without the wonderful efforts of Aleksander Zawilski. We originally planned the tour for 2019. However, due to the COVID Pandemic and international events affecting Ukraine, it was deferred to 2023. During this time, Aleksander made numerous plans, adjustments, and revisions (…), and ensured that all the details were accurate. I have never worked with anyone as cooperative, meticulous, accommodating, and thorough as Aleksander. He kept us completely informed, in a timely manner, throughout the entire process. He selected Zbigniew Stettner as our main guide and he was amazing! Because of Aleksander, this trip was OUTSTANDING! It far exceeded anything that I thought could be achieved!!! I can’t say enough positive comments about him. Polish Origins is extremely fortunate to have him on their staff. He is FANTASTIC! Thanks for everything, Aleksander.

Zbigniew Stettner was our guide for most of our custom tour and made our trip beyond memorable!! He was exceptionally well prepared and knew my family tree and background as well as, if not better, than myself. He was very thorough and resolute in finding information concerning my ancestry. To our amazement, he analyzed the lineage of all four of my grandparents. Previously, he developed a Cadastral Map report per my request. He utilized it to make contact with our family members while we were on the tour and found numerous relatives whom we were previously unaware. The experience of meeting our relatives was off the charts; such an emotional experience that was not expected. Zbigniew’s calm and charming disposition, along with his fabulous translation skills, had us making several new family connections and obtaining additional records for my genealogy research. Sitting in our relatives’ dining rooms, drinking cherry vodka and eating chocolate, while being so warmly welcomed and embraced, was a tremendous experience for all of us. Due to his knowledge, approach and persistence the goals of our research tour exceeded my expectations beyond description. Zbigniew’s patience, determination and ability to pursue all leads for information was so impressive and enabled so many extraordinary moments throughout our trip. He is amazing!

After completing most of the trip with Zbigniew, we met Piotr Zelny, and changed guides for the remaining few days of the tour. Piotr’s background in history was very helpful during the tour. He took us to Poland’s best Open-Air Ethnographic Museum in Sanok, which was very informative. Afterwards, we proceeded to the rural Zyndranowa area, through Slovakia, and then we arrived in Zakopane. Piotr arranged for us to meet with one family, which we did the following day at a local restaurant. Because of Piotr’s efforts, we accomplished more than we expected in that area, which is a beautiful part of Poland.

Preparation for the tour/communication:
This is one of the greatest strengths of PolishOrigins and Aleksander. Words cannot describe how thorough, detailed and PROMPT all of our communications were throughout the entire experience! I cannot imagine any other tour company could exceed the superior customer experience delivered by PolishOrigins.
Furthermore, I would like to say that my wife and I traveled extensively in our lives, including all 50 states in the US, and many countries across the globe. We have traveled on our own and utilized multiple well-known tour companies. Without doubt, this has been our best all-around travel experience.

My wife and I traveled extensively in our lives, including all 50 states in the US, and many countries across the globe. We have traveled on our own and utilized multiple well-known tour companies. Without doubt, this has been our best all-around travel experience.

July 2023

The tour went beyond my expectations. Each day was filled with new adventures along with reconnecting with relatives and meeting new relatives for the first time. My guide, Zbigniew, was wonderful in all aspects. He went above and beyond in seeking out family information. During our visits with the families, he was able to gather valuable information of various family members along with the history of the local area. Those pieces brought the puzzle to completion.

The communication from Kasia was excellent. I greatly appreciated the two Zoom meetings that we had to discuss various aspects of the tour. Her follow up to my questions was prompt and the information she provided helped me to plan accordingly.

Initially, I was to go on this tour in the summer of 2021, however, COVID prevented that from happening. The following year, war broke out in Ukraine and I was hesitant to make the trip. After two years of waiting, I looked forward to boarding the plane in Chicago and spending a week exploring my family history. The tour did not disappoint and I came away knowing so much more about my family roots and the areas from which they hailed. I would like to return in a year or two in order to visit again with both sides of the family. The connections made during this trip are priceless. Thank you for providing this opportunity.

June 2023

The tour was more than we could have imagined. We had two main goals: see the houses (especially #53 Długołęka) where my great-grandparents came from and to find out what happened to the daughter my great-grandfather left behind. We accomplished those two goals in a way that we never could have imagined. In searching for the houses, we met fourth and fifth cousins, who invited us in to their beautiful home for delicious homemade food. They treated us like they knew we were coming! In terms of the left-behind daughter, I would have been satisfied learning who she lived with. We found that out, plus found her grave, and spoke to people who knew of her and had up-lifting stories to tell about her. I am greatly satisfied with the research, which will take me some time to go through and get a sense of. I still can’t believe that I and my Dad walked where our ancestors walked. This truly was a trip of a lifetime.

Zbigniew was an excellent guide, starting with the email that he sent me months before our tour began. He explained where we needed to go and which records were available in which archives. Before our tour began, he undertook research to ensure that we would be able to accomplish one of our main goals of this trip, see the houses where my great-grandparents were born and lived. It is evident that Zbigniew loves what he does. The task of each day was the most important thing to him because it was the most important thing to us.

May 2023

​PolishOrigins (PO) planned and executed the trip of my dreams. I had researched my family tree for over 26 years, and had gotten as far as I could with US records and a Polish researcher, and HAD to know more. This was my number one bucket list trip. PO knew exactly what I needed and provided it, anticipating everything. When something went wrong at one of the hotels, PO handled it to our satisfaction immediately at no additional cost. I cannot praise our trip manager, Aleksander, and our guides Daniel and Zbigniew for their patience (I hope we did not drive them totally crazy) and the services and expertise they provided to us. Both of our guides were relentless in helping us find relatives and connections. They also had a good sense of humor as we went along, Bob and I still laugh at the voice on Daniel’s GPS in Polish enthusiastically telling him to turn (something like “Sprinchlevel!” many times). After a while, we’d all repeat it and laugh. Their suggestions at places to see when we had some time away from research were spot on, especially Rumiskes in Lithuania and the skansen in Sanok, Poland. I could visualize my ancestors’ lives after seeing these places with PO’s selected extra guides. PO also arranged an superb guide, Kasia, in Warsaw, to tour the ghetto and POLIN, the Museum of Polish Jews, so my husband could get a better feel for how his Jewish relatives lived in Warsaw prior to coming to the US. My husband, a successful entrepreneur with many clients, has very high standards, and was a little skeptical at the beginning of the trip. Now he says PolishOrigins is the very best at what they do, which is exactly what I think! Y’all are the best for genealogy travel in Poland and beyond!

We would recommend PolishOrigins to anyone wishing to travel to the lands of their ancestors, to learn more about them, and to experience where they lived. PO’s planning, services, guides, etc. were all top notch.

May 2023

May 2023

It was fantastic! Found additional family still living on family property. Key to a successful tour is all the advance research beforehand. While one can still get “lucky” without this knowledge, my experience was that we were able to maximize our time on the tour knowing more precisely what information and who we were looking for.

May 2023

Zbigniew was outstanding, did an excellent job with the people we encountered, and we far exceeded our expectations in continuing to discover relatives in both families, in Poland & in Lithuania. We discovered many more family members than we would have imagined; continuing to grow the trees is ongoing. You communicated well, answered all emails (with a sense of humor :)!)

A great visit – thank you to everyone for their efforts.

March 2023

I am writing to thank you for recommending Aleksandra. We took a trip from Warsaw to Pawlowo and visited the church where my Pszczolkowski ancestors worshipped – and we later met three cousins of mine! It was incredibly moving to be able to see the area where my father’s grandfather was from; we even saw the baptismal font that he was likely baptized in. I had hoped to see the area where my ancestors were from, but to meet relatives was more than I dreamed of! Aleksandra was an amazing guide. She is super knowledgeable and was a pleasure to work with. I cannot say enough good things about her. Without her persistence and charm, we would not have been as successful as we were. I would not hesitate to work with her again. I’m going to continue with the research into my other Polish ancestors (in the Poznan area and in the Biala Woda area). I am hoping to work with you in the future to visit these places too.Thank you so much!