First trip to Europe together

Look at some of the scrapbooks. You will find a lot of your questions answered there.

JJ, We've been on a number of his trips and found the amount of free time was just about right. Never felt we didn't have enough free time, and never felt we had too much time on our hands. Yes, there is a mix of ages with a bit more of the "mature" travelers than the younger ones, but all the ages seem to get on well together. Would not hesitate to take another trip with them. TC

The day-by-day Itinerary described online gives you a pretty fair estimate of how each day is divided. In Amsterdam, for instance, you have a few hours of afternoon free time. In Venice, your morning walking tour probably takes 3 hours, perhaps 9 - 12, then the rest of the day is free. If you have just checked into a new hotel and then are meeting for dinner or another activity, you usually have at least an hour to freshen up in your room before heading back out. Your guide will post a more detailed daily schedule each evening for the next day, and sometimes with longer glimpses ahead.

I'm sorry, but I wouldn't want to experience 21 days of organized tours. One weeks' tours would be fine visiting great cities. Then, I'd want to enjoy a city/region in detail--slowly.

You could then fly on a budget airline to a completely different city for the last week before going home.

Oh my word. I did the 21BOE last Fall and had the best time ever. I actually think about this trip every. single. day. I learned so much, enjoyed so many different things, loved the other people on the tour and had a fabulous time with the guide. I found there was plenty of free time and any day we were not moving from one location to another you are free to opt out of the planned program. However, very few people did that because, well, you might miss something! lol I was not sure I was going to like being with the same group for 3 weeks, but it was really special. We bonded really well and enjoyed each other's company. I have done 5 RS tours, and this one was my 3rd. I love how the guides focus on teaching travel skills. It gave me so much confidence on traveling on my own.

I didn't do a scrapbook, but I did do a Trip Report on my experience. Here is a link to it if you are interested.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/tours/21-day-best-of-europe-8-26-14

I think tours are great for a first time, but this isn't your first time. Rick does have some variants that give you more freedom or you can just pull the rip cord and do your own. It really isn't that hard and you learn tons in the planning. If you are the type that can make something good out of the occasional mistake or lapse in judgment you will have memories that no tour can match. Why not go for broke and do something off the wall like Budapest to Bucharest to Sofia to Istanbul! Or any trip where the journey and the points in between are the highlights. Or look for a theme to tie it together. We've crossed countries, passing the standard sites, just to reach the next river or stream to fish. We've hit four great cities in 10 days only to enjoy outstanding seats in 4 great opera houses and 4 outstanding dinners in amazing restaurants. But we began decades ago with a decent orchestrated tour. Look for amazing festivals or holidays. We once boarded a plane to Moscow for Orthodox Christmas and another time to Jerusalem for the first day of Hanukkah. Both were two day side trips. I would rather have one incredible moment than a week doing the mundane.