Reasonably priced travel tours/groups

[Amethyst]

I just checked, and there are tour groups that cater specifically to people with physical and/or cognitive disabilities - which can apply to people at any age. You pay for a very high staff-to-customer ratio (like, one staffer for every 3 travelers). Travel Agents Specializing in Accessible and Disability Travel

 

[braumeister]

Not Tauck, but I took a river cruise up the Danube with Avalon Waterways in 2014. I loved the cruise and the service was excellent. But.....there was an American woman on the ship, travelling with a friend, who had a mobility problem. She needed to push one of those walker-chair thingies. Our guides made every effort to accommodate her needs, but in Prague, which is full of cobblestones and thresholds, it was a problem. She insisted, against advice, in joining in the walking tour, and spoilt the experience for everyone else. She then complained about not being accommodated.

I saw that once on a Viking river cruise, and they were quite firm about not allowing such a thing. The person was told which excursions they could not go on (just one or two of them). Same with Lindblad. They don't want to spoil the trip for the majority.

 

[OldShooter]

All the difficulties with group tours are the reasons most of our travel is custom. Just us, a driver and a guide. It can actually be quite a bit cheaper than the high-end groups and comes without the waiting, the lowest-common-denominator tourist food, etc.

We have been getting the lavish Nat Geo brochures for many years and DW really wanted to try one of their trips. So a couple of years ago we spliced a week with Nat Geo to a week of private travel in Ethiopia. The Nat Geo trip was probably the ultimate in group travel considering service, accommodations, etc. but we still had a fixed schedule. We had to eat tourist food in tourist restaurants, everybody waits for late-arrivers and those with weak bladders, etc. Our private travel, another week, was HALF the cost of the Nat Geo trip and we gave up very little in creature comforts. We did just what we wanted to in terms of destinations, detours ("Please stop for a photo!" "Let's look for somewhere to eat."), ate in local restaurants ordering local dishes off the menu, etc. There were a couple of featured things that the Nat Geo folks arranged that would have been difficult for us to do on our own, but all in all the private portion was a far, far better value.

 

[Meadbh]

I saw that once on a Viking river cruise, and they were quite firm about not allowing such a thing. The person was told which excursions they could not go on (just one or two of them). Same with Lindblad. They don't want to spoil the trip for the majority.

Avalon told her NOT to go on this walking tour, and she read them the riot act about discrimination. She was not a nice lady!

 

[audreyh1]

I have several friends in their 50's-60s who swear by the OAT trips (Overseas Adventure Travel). Some do 2-4 OAT trips/year...sometimes doing 2 trips back-to-back. They like the size of the smaller groups and feel that the OAT attracts an educated clientele.

omni

One of our neighbors (couple) who travel a great deal overseas almost always travel with OAT. They are probably in their late 60s, getting closer to 70.

 

[Gotadimple]

One of our neighbors (couple) who travel a great deal overseas almost always travel with OAT. They are probably in their late 60s, getting closer to 70.

I have travelled with OAT and seen healthy vigorous 80 year olds participating on the hiking days. At the same time, I've seen the Program Director let an 88-year-old know that an optional hiking event was too strenuous for her.

I really like this subsidiary of Grand Circle Travel, primarily as it caters to more active travellers and in small groups. This year, tho, the no single supplement has become an issue. OAT has reduced the number of available single spots, so one has to book out far in advance to get a solo room. Or play the 'lottery,' and ask to be matched to a room mate. If they can't find a room mate, you travel in a room by yourself.

There are many other group tours with low/no-single supplement fees - see https://solotravelerworld.com/solo-travel-deals/

- Rita

 

[explanade]

I considered an OAT tour. Wanted to go in August using miles for the ticket.

But they didn't run the biking tour of the Italian lakes in August.

So planned a DIY trip to Switzerland instead.

 

[braumeister]

I have travelled with OAT and seen healthy vigorous 80 year olds participating on the hiking days. At the same time, I've seen the Program Director let an 88-year-old know that an optional hiking event was too strenuous for her.

Yep, it all depends on the individual.
One of the most impressive things I've seen along those lines was during a Grand Canyon rafting trip. One afternoon we stopped for a hike that was a nearly vertical climb up a steep cliff for close to half a mile. I remember being impressed by one older gentleman who stayed up front, right next to the guide, and wasn't even close to out of breath when we got up there. The next day was his 80th birthday!

 

[Scuba]

All the difficulties with group tours are the reasons most of our travel is custom. Just us, a driver and a guide. It can actually be quite a bit cheaper than the high-end groups and comes without the waiting, the lowest-common-denominator tourist food, etc.

We have been getting the lavish Nat Geo brochures for many years and DW really wanted to try one of their trips. So a couple of years ago we spliced a week with Nat Geo to a week of private travel in Ethiopia. The Nat Geo trip was probably the ultimate in group travel considering service, accommodations, etc. but we still had a fixed schedule. We had to eat tourist food in tourist restaurants, everybody waits for late-arrivers and those with weak bladders, etc. Our private travel, another week, was HALF the cost of the Nat Geo trip and we gave up very little in creature comforts. We did just what we wanted to in terms of destinations, detours ("Please stop for a photo!" "Let's look for somewhere to eat."), ate in local restaurants ordering local dishes off the menu, etc. There were a couple of featured things that the Nat Geo folks arranged that would have been difficult for us to do on our own, but all in all the private portion was a far, far better value.

This is interesting to me. We avoid group tours as we are not afraid to drive ourselves in other countries and we enjoy the adventure of exploring on our own. However I’m sure we miss things sometimes that we would learn if we hired a local guide. How do you find your local private guides?

 

[Souschef]

Not Tauck, but I took a river cruise up the Danube with Avalon Waterways in 2014. I loved the cruise and the service was excellent. But.....there was an American woman on the ship, traveling with a friend, who had a mobility problem. She needed to push one of those walker-chair thingies. Our guides made every effort to accommodate her needs, but in Prague, which is full of cobblestones and thresholds, it was a problem. She insisted, against advice, in joining in the walking tour, and spoiled the experience for everyone else. She then complained about not being accommodated.

So they are used to people with mobility issues, but those people need to be realistic, too. I have a friend whose husband uses a wheelchair and is quite frail. I advised them not to spend their money on such a cruise, because a lot of the value is in exploring places that are not handicap friendly.

I subscribe to International Travel News. In one issue, there were a series of comments by tour guides about people on their tours who would not admit their impairment. It was sad to see whole groups held up by one or two people.
Disclaimer: Right now my wife is mobility challenged, and we accept the limitations that are entailed.

 

[OldShooter]

This is interesting to me. We avoid group tours as we are not afraid to drive ourselves in other countries and we enjoy the adventure of exploring on our own. However I’m sure we miss things sometimes that we would learn if we hired a local guide. How do you find your local private guides?

Well, we have done it several ways. Sometimes we drive ourselves, but we limit that to countries that use the Roman alphabet. My Arabic, Tamil, Vietnamese, etc. skills aren't good enough to read street signs.

Our first resource for this is International Travel News. ITN publishes articles and letters from readers who report on guides and tour companies. I search back issues on line and have found these reports to be very reliable.

So .. where we're driving or on a river boat, we go to the internet and browse for local guides in their towns. There are web sites that list guides, but we look for guides' own web sites and emails. There's no point in paying a middle man, plus I think the more popular and higher quality guides do not need to list themselves in a "meat market" type context.

Most of the time we travel independently, though, we find tour companies in the destination country and work out an itinerary that suits us. I go in-country to eliminate the middleman fee of a US agent, plus a US agent eleven time zones away is not going to be much help if a problem arises.

After we've picked a country I go web surfing. With most tour companies the web site is clear that they only do groups and/or they only do fixed itineraries. Some, though, mention doing "private," "custom," or "independent tours. We then inquire to them. Most come back with fixed itineraries or communicate some kind of rigidity. A few come back sounding interesting, so I downselect to just two based on various factors including cost, then start working on itineraries. In maybe ten trips like this we have never had a "failure." The ITN articles are a big help in this success rate. In January we went to Vietnam and Myanmar, selecting an agent who had been recommended multiple times in ITN and the trip was great. Her reviews were so good that I didn't even look for competitors.

One of the things I always ask for is a couple of references from customers who have traveled with the guide or company within the last two months. (Everyone has a few good references in their pockets but those are typically not recent.) I then contact the references and attempt to have phone conversation with them.

Sorry so long. Hope this helps.

 

[Scuba]

Well, we have done it several ways. Sometimes we drive ourselves, but we limit that to countries that use the Roman alphabet. My Arabic, Tamil, Vietnamese, etc. skills aren't good enough to read street signs.

Our first resource for this is International Travel News. ITN publishes articles and letters from readers who report on guides and tour companies. I search back issues on line and have found these reports to be very reliable.

So .. where we're driving or on a river boat, we go to the internet and browse for local guides in their towns. There are web sites that list guides, but we look for guides' own web sites and emails. There's no point in paying a middle man, plus I think the more popular and higher quality guides do not need to list themselves in a "meat market" type context.

Most of the time we travel independently, though, we find tour companies in the destination country and work out an itinerary that suits us. I go in-country to eliminate the middleman fee of a US agent, plus a US agent eleven time zones away is not going to be much help if a problem arises.

After we've picked a country I go web surfing. With most tour companies the web site is clear that they only do groups and/or they only do fixed itineraries. Some, though, mention doing "private," "custom," or "independent tours. We then inquire to them. Most come back with fixed itineraries or communicate some kind of rigidity. A few come back sounding interesting, so I downselect to just two based on various factors including cost, then start working on itineraries. In maybe ten trips like this we have never had a "failure." The ITN articles are a big help in this success rate. In January we went to Vietnam and Myanmar, selecting an agent who had been recommended multiple times in ITN and the trip was great. Her reviews were so good that I didn't even look for competitors.

One of the things I always ask for is a couple of references from customers who have traveled with the guide or company within the last two months. (Everyone has a few good references in their pockets but those are typically not recent.) I then contact the references and attempt to have phone conversation with them.

Sorry so long. Hope this helps.

This is great information! Thank you very much for taking the time to provide this. I’m going to do some research on Greece as we’re going there this fall.