Hey there, fellow travelers! Today, we’re talking about package tours. Traveling on group tours is a popular way to travel for many people. As you know, here at Wolters World, we like to prepare travelers with the good, and the bad, about different aspects of travel. So these are the five things you’ll love, and the five things you’ll hate about group tours.
Hate #1: Losing the Local Flair
When you travel with a tour group, you miss out on a lot of local interactions. Typically, these package tours travel pretty quickly, so you are hopping from one attraction to the next without much time to meander between attractions. The tour is selling you seeing a ton of locations, but they usually do not mention the lack of time to take those many sights in. With a large group, you also miss out on some of the mom-and-pop restaurants in favor of larger places that can accommodate a large tour group.
Love #1: Seeing All the Sights
Tour groups intentionally hit all of the highlights of a region. The tour company does all the research so that you can get the most bang for your buck. While you may have less time at each stop, you will get to see the best of the best in whatever region you are visiting. This is why many people take a tour to get a feel for a country or region, then come back later on their own to see the places they enjoyed the most on their tour. So, the tour works as a “tasting” of a country.
Hate #2: Little Independence
When you take a package tour, you are on their schedule. This can be good for travelers who don’t like to plan, but you really don’t have any flexibility in your schedule. If you are really enjoying one attraction, you won’t have the option to linger and skip something else instead. Some tours really pack a lot into their travel itinerary, and it can feel rushed. And the lack of ability to spend time in spots you enjoy on the tour in order to get to the next spot can be rather annoying for independent minded travelers.
Love #2: No Planning or Research
This is probably the best reason to take a package tour. You don’t have to do any planning at all! They do it all for you! For most travelers you either love planning your trip or you hate planning and researching all those travel destinations. When you take a package tour, they do all of the work. They procure tickets, set the schedule, make reservations, and all those annoying bits of traveling while you get to just show up and have fun without a care in the world.
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Hate #3: Rushing Through Sights
On a package tour, you don’t have a lot of time to savor the moments of travel. They want you to see as much as possible as quickly as possible. If you only have a week and you want to see several countries very quickly, then you will love this aspect of tour groups. This can be quite stressful when you get a total of five minutes to see a UNESCO World Heritage sight from the outside, and then you are off to a local market where you can spend more money.
Love #3: Cultural Learning
If you are traveling to a different culture, or to a destination with a different language, the tour company will take care of ensuring you can make your way around. They’ll ensure you have English-speaking guides, and will likely brief you on the local culture and customs before you depart for your tour. Some tour companies pride themselves on sharing as much local information as possible to a large group. So I recommend you listen to those guest speakers that come and talk about the destinations you will be seeing on your trip. They can let you know what to grab at the market or at lunch when you have a bit of free time to yourself.
Hate #4: Traveling in a Large Group – Everyone’s problems are YOUR problems
When you’re traveling in a large group, you are generally eating at larger, sometimes impersonal, restaurants that can accommodate large groups. Instead of quaint boutique hotels, you’re generally staying in mega-hotels on the outskirts of town. Inevitably, in large groups, there’s always someone you’re waiting on every day or one person who likes to complain about everything. One bad apple in the group can really affect your time on the tour, and this is definitely the case on package tours. Do be prepared to never want to see some of the people on your tour ever again.
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Love #4: Group Tour Pricing
There’s something to be said for having one price to pay for an entire trip. It’s a reason why cruises and all-inclusive resorts are so popular. You know upfront how much you’re going to spend, and this makes it easy to stick to a travel budget. You won’t have to agonize over which hotel to choose and how to save money at restaurants because you’ve already paid for almost everything upfront. The all-inclusive aspect of tour packages can be very appealing. Though, not everything may be in the original sticker price, see our 5th hate for that.
Hate #5: Hidden Fees & Extra Excursions
Whether it’s the overall price of the package tour or the hidden expenses, you are paying a premium for the convenience of someone else doing all of the planning. Most tour packages will offer additional excursions above and beyond the base price of the group tour. However, you have to pay for those in addition to the package price you pay upfront. And those excursions can add up over a couple week tour. You may look at getting your own private guide for some spots on your itinerary if you really want to spend more time at a certain destination. And remember, at some locations you don’t have to do the excursions, you can explore the city on your own.
Love #5: Tour Guides
A good guide can make a huge difference in your travel experience. Most travel guides are extremely passionate about sharing their local culture with you. You’ll find history majors, architects, and artists all moonlighting as tour guides. If you can, try to choose a tour operator that uses local guides, as it really helps open you up to the local culture. When you read reviews on the tours you may take, make sure you read the reviews on their guides. Some companies we have worked with have incredible guides and make sure that all their guides are top notch, while others seem to be happy with whoever shows up at the tourist sight that day.
There are many things that make package tours worthwhile. Group travel is not for everyone, but there’s something to be said for taking a laid-back “easy” vacation and letting someone else do all the research and planning. Want more travel tips? Check out these blog posts: