Guided Bus Tours

Hi Danielle, Have you checked out www.busabout.com? I think they do trips where they drive you around, and you have your days free? I don't know anything about them, but I believe someone here on the board has used them? Also, Rick Steves has a new kind of tour, called 'My Way' which may be what you're looking for, but I'm not sure it's the locations you want. Hope this helps. :)

Hi again Danielle, I realized I neglected to mention the 'regular' RS Tours as well. They are GREAT! Most of the time, you have mornings with the group and your afternoons are free to explore what you want. I really recommend them! Good Luck!
:)

Danielle, I "second" the recommendation from Gretchen regarding the Rick Steves tours. If you feel that you'd prefer an un-guided tour, the new My Way 14-day tour would likely be a good fit. They take care of all the transportation, Hotels, etc. but you're on your own for sightseeing. The "regular" tours are awesome, and provide a lot of free time, so you might have a look at those too. If you're interested, order the free Tour DVD to see what the tours are typically like. Depending on your age, you could have a look at Contiki or other tours, but IMHO the RS tours are the best (I'm signed up for my fifth RS one this year). Happy travels!

Known a couple of people who worked their way through Europe using Bus About. Really recommend the experience. Gives you more flexibility to do your own thing, as opposed to a 'guided' tour.

There are also some tour companies that cater to under 30. I've only taken one guided bus tour and it was my last. The My Way might be a little better but I find no one matches my preferences for lodging, transportation and itinerary as well as I do.

Careful with tours that cater to the under 30's or 35s.(Contiki is one). My 18 yr old nephew took one last year, and two young girls where I work ( I think they were 18-19) took one year before. They SEEM cheap, but there are tons of nickel and diming extra fees.. The hotels are out of city center so harder to explore on your own, the food provided was dismal, and the pace is HECTIC ,, I think they got 1.5 days for places like Paris or Rome,, insane. Plus there is alot of partying going on.. most people are under 25 or so,, so just a heads up on that. I am not saying they are bad tours, my nephew had fun, but he is going back to Europe this year and definately decided against taking that tour company again..

You do know that you could easily take frequent, comfortable trains from city center to city center, right? But if you really, really want a tour, you might look at Gate1.

If all you are looking for is someone else to make your hotel and transportation reservations, then my suggestion is to find a good, experienced travel agent who knows Europe. If you can check in and out of a hotel by yourself, and don't mind taking taxi's the short distances between hotels and train station, then this may be the way to go. The travel agent can book your hotels and even issue you train tickets. All you have to do is show up. I've spent many years working in the tour business and don't know of anything like you're requesting for a regional area. Most people who take tours do so because they want a guide to show them the sights.

Hi again Danielle, I didn't know about this company when you posted this a few weeks ago. However, my coworkers just signed up an 'Independent' Tour with http://www.virgin-vacations.com/ It looks like they drive you around and you have your days free. They also offer some optional day tours that you pay extra for. It gives you some flexibility also to choose some hotels. They also have 'escorted' tours where the itinerary is more set. This may work better for you that busabout as at least it is part of the larger 'Virgin' company.

Gray Line bus tours are great. They are located in numerous cities and countries. They are based in the U.S.