What tour company did you use for a European Vacation?

[cordenny]

We've never traveled abroad before and would like some advice on who to use and how to go about it.

Thank you.

[collie1228]

We had a ten day trip to Greece and the Greek Islands two years ago and used a local Athens travel agent, Fantasy Travel. They were outstanding in every way.

[PennBF]

It is sad to see a Tourist standing on the corner in a large city and trying to decide what to do next! When we travel if it is a City we have not been in before we buy maps of the city at Barnes and Noble and study the things to see and circle them. Then check out the best way to travel in the city and use local transportation. Two good ways is to use an on and off bus if they have one or take a 1/2 day Tour and mark the areas/sites you want to go back to. Pre planning for a trip is half the fun and you don't waste time and money when there trying to decide what to do. If you come back with more than 25 cents in your pocket you failed. As the money taken was for the trip not savings. You should try to have a new experience each day in your life. Of course you will not hit that target but it is a healthy goal to shoot for. :coolsmiley:

[Arctic Fox]

We've never traveled abroad before and would like some advice on who to use and how to go about it. Thank you.

You may want to consider a cruise. You can then visit a selection of places (maybe in different countries) without having to worry about arranging the transport and accommodation, and each evening you can unwind back "home" in a familiar English-speaking environment.

Cruise lines offer a range of visits and activities at each port of call which, although expensive, are worry-free.

[Houselover]

We used grand European Travel a few years ago. They planned the whole tour including guides for the cities we visited..

[SIRE1]

It depends on what kind of vacation you are considering. If you want to see all the sights in Europe, I would suggest a bus tour. If you want to have the convenience of a single room and see some of the sights in Europe, I would suggest a cruise where your cabin is your room through the entire trip.

We have taken 2 bus tours through Europe - one in Great Britain and one in Europe, and REALLY enjoyed them. They weren't quite the "If it's Tuesday, this must be Belgium" but you do have to pack and unpack at least every other day. But then, you see a lot of the sites that you probably wouldn't see otherwise. And the really nice thing about this type of tour is they take care of everything for you, so you don't have to worry about language communication. If this is a kind of trip you were considering, I would recommend the company called GLOBUS.

There are several different tour bus companies that we considered - GLOBUS, Trafalgar, Cosmos. What I learned is that you get what you pay for. By that, I mean the cost for each of these tour companies differ but it is usually is based on where they book their hotels. For example, if you wanted a tour to The Villages, one company could use the Waterfront Inn, another company could use the Microtel (next to Oakwood), and another could use a hotel in Leesburg. In the evening after seeing The Villages from the bus during the day, where would you like to be? I would want to be in LSL so I could continue to experience all that TV has to offer. But that would cost more than the other two options, but I think it would be a better experience. So GLOBUS books their hotels in the center of the stop, and therefore cost a little more than the others, but I think they are worth it.

[Carla B]

I think Sire 1 has nailed it regarding different tour companies, i.e., the hotels. If I were trying to decide what to do and wanted to go to Europe I think I would choose a river cruise. That way your cabin is your hotel room, you don't have to be moving luggage every day or two, you don't have to worry about where to eat (it's on board and wonderful) and you stop at interesting towns where you can just walk off the riverboat and be guided by locals.

[PennBF]

Just opinions. The problem with River Cruises is it involves a lot of walking and close quarters so must get along with the other cruisers. Regular cruises are fine and depending on what you are after. It is key to get comfortable cabins, e.g.ones with non obstructive balconies, in the cabin near or under the food courts. You will walk more for food and less for things like the theater, etc. Get cabins on the "Port Side" of the ship so you can see the ports when you dock. Sometimes the ship may dock on the starboard side which is usually less than port. Prepare a list of the things you should take or do at home before you leave and check out each item as it is included or considered and packed.
There are a number of other things I would add but may take up too much of a note. :ho:

[manaboutown]

Globus for bus tours, but consider river cruises, the Danube, the Rhine, as they take you to the central parts of Medieval cities and towns. It is all good. Be flexible and remember, you get what you pay for - hopefully!

[Ricka]

We've never traveled abroad before and would like some advice on who to use and how to go about it.

Thank you.
Try Gate 1 travel, search with Google.

[rjn5656]

We used Trafalgar for a 15 day Italy trip. Best vacation we ever took. We are using them again this year for a National Parks trip.

[carpej]

If you don't want to go exactly where a cruise or bus tour takes you, you might try a Eurail Pass (Multi day) go to cities that you want to see stay near the stations, use hop on/off busses and boats in each city. Riding the trains in europe is fun and very scenic and gets you there efficiently. We have done it first class and it is a pleasure to have the nice seats and service. You can ride slow local trains and high-speed inter-city trains, both of which are fun. The planning is then up to you, but you can stay as little or as much as you want in each place

[cab1948]

We have taken Tauck Tours numerous times and they are wonderful. Would highly recommend.

[Two Bills]

Coach tours are exhuasting. Up early, drive, get the photo, drive, dinner, bed, up early etc etc.
Cruises are fine if you like thousands of people scrambling for local tours with limited time to look around.
My wife and I used to drive all over Europe, but now in our 80's I get tired doing the driving. So we take the trains.
They are marvelous, comfortable, reasonable prices, with flexible runabout tickets, and usually on time.
When you get to a city, study the tour guides and decide what you want to see. If you like a place stay another day, and if you dont, you can move on when you like.
Book hotels ahead when you move on, Booking.com: 1,864,401 hotels worldwide. 155+ million hotel reviews. (http://www.booking.com) is siimple and best prices.
Maybe not for everyone but a suggestion.

[bilcon]

My wife and I have taken many Tauck Tours throughout the world. They are pricey, but they are wonderful. The hotels are 5 stars, the guides are great, and you always seem to get into the attractions without long waits. No extras are added on. Tauck.com. They are located in Conn., but any travel agency can book them for you.

[Tom C]

Viking is TOP SHELF. All the people are very helpful and very friendly! Besides the trip, you will learn SOOO MUCH! I can not say enough positive things about our long boat trips.

PS - I have no affiliation with any travel / tour groups - my wife and I are just very happy customers.

[SIRE1]

As some of the people have suggested, train trips thru Europe are really interesting. We, in fact, took an extra week after both of our Globus bus tours to travel on our own. We used the Eurail pass to get from London to Berlin and then back to Amsterdam for our flight home. The one comment I have to make on that method, however, is you may occasionally encounter language issues. Since you have never traveled to Europe before, I don't know how comfortable you will be on interacting with the locals for everything - From transportation, to lodging, to food, or to places to sight see.

If you are the adventurous type, this might be just the trip for you. But if you are a little apprehensive on making your FIRST trip to Europe, maybe a tour is best. Whether that be a big cruise ships that allows you to see the harbor towns and country side, the Rhine and Danube river cruises which gets you into the heart of Germany, or a bus tour that goes to all the "major" sights whether they are along the coast, river, or inland.

I have to say I was apprehensive about being on our own the first time in Europe and I was really glad we were with a tour group. They took us directly to the sights and we didn't have to stand in lines or figure out where/how to get there. So we could enjoy the sights and then got to know and become really good friends with the other people on the tour. Once I got some experience with European ways (like having to pay to use the bathroom) then our week on our own was enjoyable but sometimes stressful because we had to decide what to do next and figure out how to get there. Usually language wasn't much of a problem, but it does add just a little stress if you are having trouble communicating.

So, bottom line, decide what kind of vacation experience you want. Totally taken care of and have the same room - big cruise ships; pretty much totally taken care of but able to see more towns and sights - river cruise; totally taken care of but on the go almost every day - bus tour; or strictly on you own - rail and rental car. But regardless, you will REALLY ENJOY IT !!!! Europe if fantastic.

[SIRE1]

We've never traveled abroad before and would like some advice on who to use and how to go about it.

Thank you.

After re reading your original post, I would recommend that you first decide what kind of vacation experience you want and then go to any of the travel agents in The Villages. They all have access to the same resources and will recommend based on your vacation wish list. They will then handle all the details. So that is how "you go about it". All you have to do is pack.

[hillside19]

I have used Globus, Insight and Gate 1. All were very good. Try to stay city center.

[SIRE1]

Also, after re reading the title of the original post - "what tour company did you use for your European vacation", I have to ask the question - 'WHAT DO YOU CONSIDER EUROPE"???? This isn't as weird of a question as it sounds.

By that, do you think of a European vacation as central Europe (i.e. France, Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Italy) or do you mean the British Isles (i.e. England, Whales, Scotland, and Ireland), or do you mean the Mediterranean coast (i.e. Spain, France Italy, Croatia). I ask this because a lot of first timers might say they are taking a European vacation when they intend to travel around the British Isles. So a lot of the responses, mine included, assumed it meant central Europe and so some have suggested the river cruises like Viking. But if you are considering one of the other definitions for Europe, I think a lot of our recommendations would be different.

So first of all, think about where you would like to travel. Then decide how much "on the go" you want. And then go talk to a travel agent.

[EPutnam1863]

We would never consider a tour because we want to do it on our own time and at our pace. Traveling is exhausting, and we liked taking some time off to rest. We do not want to have to be herded by a shepherd like sheep. We want to be able to spend as little or as much time as we want.

Before taking a trip, we always studied and researched and planned our own itineraries. Not once did we regret not being on a tour; in fact we felt we were able to see more than the tours did.

But I think I would have liked to go on a cruise as long as we can go back to the ship if we did not feel like walking and walking.

[chachacha]

i have taken five trips with Grand Circle Travel, which also owns Grand Circle River Cruises and Overseas Adventure Travel (OAT) they are great and you can view all their trips on GCT.com. i love to make referrals because i get a credit and you get $100 off :) good luck!

[PennBF]

I reread my notes regarding the travel overseas and left out "Security". In a lot of cases traverlers are overly concerned about security. Almost all cities are the same. I worked for many years in NY City and for a while before it was really safe. We always told new visitors to follow 3 rules which were (1) If you see something going down ignore it, (2) If a street does not look safe it probably isn't so don't go down it, (3) avoid a lot of eye to eye contract as in some cases the person sees that as threatening. These are good rules regardless of the city. In Europe you have mostly non violent crimes, like pickpockets, simple roberies, etc. While in the US you get more violent crimes. Make sure you have money belts, etc to protect you passport and currency. When you get off the ship only take enough currency for that shore visit. Make a copy of your passport and leave it at home so if yours gets lost or stolen you can have a copy sent overnight. There are a number of other things to consider but I thought these are some of the critical ones. :wave:

[Rapscallion St Croix]

I used DOD.

[zigzag]

Suggest you start with a Viking River cruise. Can't go wrong. No need to go to a travel agent. Simply go on line.

[EPutnam1863]

If you are going to use credit cards, make sure to let the credit card companies know where and when you will be so your charges will be approved even though you are overseas.