What Makes a Tour a Great One

It is a leap of faith booking excursions and day trips when you are travelling.  Regardless of how wonderful the written description sounds and the number of positive (or negative) reviews, the tour can provide a different experience for each person.

I wish I had a magical formula to make it easier, but I don’t. We too have had some excellent days and a few really bad ones.  What I can tell you is what makes a tour great for us, so you can consider these points when making your choices.

1. The Guide

If only we could choose the one that has the best reviews! Guides come and go with a particular company, they may be assigned to a number of different tours, and even a great guide can have a bad day. Tour guides should be enthusiastic, knowledgeable and personable.  Guides often feed off the response from their groups as well.  I remember one exceptional guide telling me that he was good for us because we were good for him; asking questions, keeping pace, showing our enthusiasm, even laughing at his bad jokes.

2. The Site

The purpose of the tour can be what originally draws you.  Doing your own research about your destination and knowing that it suits your travel goals is important.  We often have a theme that we work with, such as learning more about the Second World War while in Munich.  All of our tours worked toward that end and thus fit nicely into our time.

3. OR The Story

Sometimes it is not necessarily what you see but what it represents and the stories offered that make a tour great. This is where a knowledgeable guide becomes even more important. Their own research and connection to the information provided brings the site to life. We have found this to be the case in everything from a cathedral to a castle to a coliseum.  Even ruins can be relevant when you know what they represent.

4. The Pace

Too slow and we get bored.  Too fast and we are exhausted.  The right pace on a tour, although not a huge consideration can make or break it for many.  Hot and humid locations or long walking tours require breaks in the shade, a place to rest and rejuvenate, even if its only for a few minutes.  This gives the guide time to tell a compelling story or offer tidbits of information. We try to avoid tours with too much free time as I can shop and eat anytime; I am there to see and learn.  Others will prefer free time to do things on their own.

5. Met Your Expectations

I rely on the written description of the tour or excursion to make my decision so the accuracy of it goes a long way towards determining if it has met my expectations.  Too often however they are vague or misleading.  That is when the reviews come in handy.  Like the point about free time, knowing certain facts in advance is essential for me.

6. The Rest of the Group

A tight schedule requires each and every member to be on time.  Wandering off or being tardy means that it cuts into the time allocated at each stop.  Something will unavoidably suffer.  Be prepared for what you are planning to do; comfortable shoes, hats and sun screen, rain gear, water and snacks are all important considerations. And a watch! Know the activity level required and be on time for the scheduled events.

Although there are many points here over which you have no control, it is important to control what you can.  Going into a tour with the same level of attention and enthusiasm as you expect to get out of it and you inevitably will.