Depending on where you’re traveling to, you’ll have the opportunity to go places by yourself or to book an organized tour. I love going places by ourselves. Just taking a taxi or rickshaw (if you’re in Asia). And also Über is available in more and more countries these days. Public transport is also a good way to get more insight in the way the locals live and can be an experience on it’s own.
Sometimes however, an organized tour is just the way to go. For example, when we were in Beijing, we booked a really well organized tour to the Forbidden City and the Great Wall of China. We were with a group of only 4 people, so a really small group, which made it really relaxed and nice to get to know a few new people. Going from Beijing to the Great Wall of China on your own is possible, but it takes a lot of effort to get there, so this was just really convenient.
If there are a few tours you want to make on your travels, or you want to find out which tours are available, then this post is for you. I have some tips and a few things to be aware of, when checking the tour offers.
1. Useful sites for booking and comparing tours
These are one of my favorite sites for booking and checking out tours:
Here you can find tours, sightseeing activities and other things to do. Also you can read reviews, see photos to get an impression of the tour and compare different tours.
Extra tip: even if you don’t want to go on an organised tour, checking out the available tour can give you a lot of inspiration and ideas for things that are fun and nice to go to. So you can also use the tour booking site as a reference and guide for creating your own itinerary.
2. Prices
When it comes down to prices, you have to pay attention. In the overview page of tours, you often see way lower prices than you actually are going to end up paying.
First of all, they show you a price, which seems really low, but is only that low if you book it for a lot of people all at once. So if you only go with two persons, the price may end up tripled!
Also, not all tours are the same when it comes down to what’s included. So if you’re going to compare different tours, look closely at what’s included. For example:
- Entrance fees
- Lunch / Diner
- Free water bottles / soda drinks
- Train or bus ticket (if your tour includes local transport)
Entrance fees is an important one. It can make your tour instantly more expensive.
Also, sometimes in the description of the tour is stated that you’re going to have lunch in a local restaurant. Don’t just assume dat this is included in the price of the tour. Because often, the lunch itself is not included. And you have to pay your lunch and beverages yourself.
If you know whether these examples are included in the price or not, then you can make a real comparison and (after checking the reviews of these tours on Tripadvisor) choose the one you like the most.
3. Group size
The size of a tour group can play an important role in your experience and to which extent you can fully enjoy what the country has to offer. It can really make or break your trip.
Avoid large groups
In my experience, the larger the group, the more time you loose on just standing around. If you get time to walk around somewhere and they say that the bus leaves at 1 p.m., you already know that in the end you’re going to have to wait for people. There are always people who are always late. Which can result in less time for the rest of the group to enjoy the next sight. But then again, some tours are only offered in larger groups, so if you just know this to be a fact, that there are always people going to be late, just don’t worry to much about it.
If however, there’s something you want to see that is really important to you and you want to make the most of it, you are better of choosing a tour that only takes on smaller groups or an individual tour. For just you and your travel companion. That way you have more control over the time you spend somewhere and the freedom you’ll get to view something yourself and at your own pace.
Overenthusiastic guides
Another reason I’m not a fan of large group tours, is because of the overzealous guides. Don’t get me wrong, it is great when you have a really good guide who knows all there is to know about a place or a monument. But when the guide is really enthusiastic about the subject, in our experience they just want to share as much knowledge as they possibly can. Which makes them want to talk non-stop. And go on and on. I mean, some explanation is fine, and very interesting to learn a thing or two about whatever it is you’re going to see. But we personally are more ‘viewers’ than ‘listeners’. If I really want to know all the details, I just get a book myself. Or search the internet. But maybe that’s just me.
My point is, sometimes the guides of longer groups can stop at a stone and talk 15 minutes about that stone, when all I want is to know the basics, take a picture and continue walking to take in the rest of the complex. And when you’re in a smaller group, or individual tour, you’re more able to let the guide know what you want, and where your interest lies.
4. Pick-up location
When comparing tour offers, check whether you’ll get picked up and dropped off at your hotel. Usually when your hotel is located in the city center or a fairly touristy neighbourhood, pickup and drop off is included in the tour. But we have also encountered that we had to go to another hotel or a central point where we got picked up. This doesn’t have to be a bad thing, but you could take in into account. And sometimes it is useful to know in advance whether you get picked up or you need to walk somewhere. Or take a taxi or subway or something. Because that will add time and money to the day tour.
5. Tour company’s website
Always check if the tour company has it’s own website. I rarely choose a tour company that doesn’t have a decent website. Because I think it’s important for companies to have a good website, because it demonstrates professionalism in my opinion. (It could have something to do with the fact that I’m a webdesigner and marketeer ;-)). And if it’s a small tour company or just a single guy who will drive you all over Bali in it’s own car, showing you all the great places, that’s also fine. You’ll at least get a better impression of what kind of tour company it is and whether it appeals to you.
