Masks?

Since they weigh next to nothing and are very small, I would three or four of my own. Just being prepared.

They'll probably have to figure out such details when they decide to actually run a tour.

I’d just go ahead and bring however many needed for that number of days. Also note that many venues, including international flights, require N95s, KN95s, surgical masks, or the like, not just cloth masks.

I would wait and see what the rules about masking are for the places you’re going in July and then stock up accordingly

Why would you expect the tours to provide masks? They have become part of a covid wardrobe at home and away. Besides N95 and KN95 I usually wear level 3 surgical masks. These come in blue, pink and yellow. I’ll probably make a few washable cotton masks with filtered liners to coordinate with my travel clothes for my September tour. (And get a second booster jab.)

In France and the UK over the past couple of months I have seen very few cloth masks. Mostly surgical.

Take some of your own but they are sold everywhere

I would not expect anyone else to provide my personal protective gear, so would plan on bringing an ample supply of my own. Those will be both surgical and KN95s, which should provide more protection than a cloth mask.

I’d plan to supply my own. I did a Road Scholar tour to SW France this October and we furnished our own. There are so many styles and I like mine to fit a certain way.

I was gone for a month and took a supply of 34 N95s plus a few hospital type masks. I only wore the N95s as that was my comfort level both on the bus, outside and inside as was then required by France. I changed them every day. I use the 3M Aura style which are individually wrapped in plastic and fold flat. I took off the wrappers and put them in big ziplocks, then packed in the front slot on my carry on size suitcase.

The Best of Europe tour was one of my absolute favorites. If you can go a day or two early, do that. Plus if you can stay over in Paris at the end that’s awesome too!

I can't imagine they would supply masks, but the best way to get an answer to your question is to call the RS office and ask them.

I had to laugh at the "3 or 4 masks." You need to change your mask daily at a minimum. I strongly suggest bringing a good supply of masks that are good quality, probably N95 due to changing requirements. That way, you will be sure to have what you need. You don't expect RS tours to provide your clothing, why would you expect them to supply your masks?

Carol, did I miss something? 3 or 4? Closest I see is Pam said 34. I indicated I’d be taking 4 kinds of masks, quantity not specified.

Reply #1 mentioned 3 or 4 masks.

When we went to Iceland this summer, we took 20 N95 masks per person. I wanted to make sure that we had extras in case we lost one, etc.

I personally would never rely on someone else to supply something like this. Too great of a risk to not have my own supply.

Masks were for sale everywhere in Strasbourg, Colmar and Paris. I'm sure it will be easy to pick up what you may need where ever you are if masks are still a requirement.

Yes masks are easy to find in France, but seriously - you want RS to supply your masks on your trip? BYOM, if nothing else you're going to need them at every airport, restaurant and hotel, and on every plane, train, bus and taxi. And as noted, only use for a day or so and toss.

And keep in mind you are going to be wearing masks all day, every day. Every time you are not in your own little hotel room, YOU WILL BE MASKING. Find masks that are comfortable and meet all requirements before you leave (like a KN95 or N95) and stock up. Pay attention to how the straps hit your ears, I almost got sores. So you know, no one in France was wearing cloth masks, or scarves, or bandanas, or gaiters. Good old paper masks, worn consistently (and even outdoors quite often).

I wouldn’t expect the RS guide to be packing enough masks for everyone during the trip (21 days * 25 people is 525 masks), and I wouldn’t want to waste any time during the trip looking for a shop that sells them. During my two trips planned in 2022, I will take enough to have a new one each day, plus multiple ones for flight days, bus days, etc. Since I always leave extra space in my suitcase to be able to bring home a souvenir, the bulk of masks will just be the placeholder space for my future souvenir.

Probably well known among some, but the EU near-equivalent to the N95 mask is the FFP2 mask, which is widely available in supermarkets, hypermarkets, and pharmacies, at least in France. Disposable "surgical" masks are even more widely available. Of course you'll need to bring enough with you from the U.S. for your initial needs, but you should have no problem purchasing (at pretty low cost) as many masks as you may think you'll need once on the ground.