novice European traveler

Tiffany - I have been on 5 RS tours including both Ireland (07) and England/Scotland/Wales (04) and would like to send you lots of information if you can set up a "Private Message" account with this site or e-mail me.

I suggest you read through the uncensored comments in the tour section - people are very honest. Also, solo travelers often post comments specific to their perspective. I've taken one RS tour (Best of Italy) and am booked on another (Ireland) this year, both solo.

In my opinon, the pros of the RS tour are: no "single supplement" fee, plenty of free time to get out on your own, big stuff (transportation, hotel) taken care of so you can focus on the fun parts, super interesting tourmates (who keep an eye out for you because they know you're solo), excellent guides, great locations, honest up front listing of what the tour package price covers (lots!)

Cons are pretty limited, mostly that you "room" with another solo person of the same gender (if there is one). As long as you have an open mind, can be flexible about sharing space, and a good set of earplugs, this isn't a huge drawback.

PM me if you want more info, but I say go!

Tiffany,

I've usually travel solo but took a RS Ireland '07 tour and found that I really enjoyed it. Given the number of places we visited and all the information we received about local culture and history, I felt it was a tremendously good value. Our Guide and Driver were both fantastic (Rick hires only the best!).

At first glance, Rick's tours might look a bit pricey compared to some tours, however if you consider everything that's included I feel the cost is justified. As someone else mentioned, about the only disadvantage is having to possibly share a room, but that's much like staying in a Hostel.

I combined my RS tour with some self-guided time in England, and found that to be a good combination. That might work for you also - RS Ireland and organize Scotland on your own. Using open-jaw flights would be the most efficient option.

Good luck!

A disadvantage is that the tour itinerary is your itinerary. While you get free time, the overall decision of how many days to spend in each locale and which locales to pick is not up to you. On the other hand, many people have no good way to decide how much time to spend in a city or which to visit, while tour companies are experienced at deciding this.

I've gone on a RS tour and have traveled on my own, and I have to say that the time multiplier is at least 50%; that is, on a 10-day tour you'll do as much as you would have done in 15 on your own, really dropping the true cost of the trip. A lot of little efficiencies really add up. You don't get lost getting to the hotel, the guide takes you on a beeline to the sites you're visiting instead of wandering map-in-hand, when you have group dinners you're not waiting for the table or poring over books picking where to go, the guide explain hows to use local transport, and so on.

As a first timer to Europe, I heartily recommend you take a Rick Steves tour. I have been on 2 tours and loved them. You will have a great time and gain all the travel skills you need to travel by yourself next time!

Hey Tiffany. I tried my first RS tour last year and will do another one this year. I thought I like to do it on my own too - but it was great having what seemed like extra "extended family" and new friends from the RS gang! I still keep in touch with many I met - and will even meet some on the next tour this year!

Perhaps you can try what I did - which was do a first week (or 2) with the tour - then stay an extra week or few days to explore on your own. This way you have aclimated to the local culture and have a feel of how it works - and build up the confidence to go it on your own. I try to add a few days before or after an organized tour - since you may not get to all the things you wanted. You cant go wrong with Ricks groups!

I have traveled in on my own in Europe and took my first Rick Steves tour this summer. It was exactly as advertised. So, read the comments, read the warnings, and then if you like what you read, go for it. I had a great time on the Berlin, Prague and Vienna tour. The guide, my tour mates, the hotels and the places visited were terrific. The weather--very, very hot--took some getting used to! ; )

Pam

I travelled to England/Scotland as a teenager with my aunt and cousins. I also just recently took RS 7-day Rome tour. While I loved both experiences, the RS tour was by far a better investment of money and time.

Unless you are completly comfortable with the idea & gung-ho to do Europe on your own, I'd say go with the tour. They're the experts, and the tours are exactly as advertised--from the fun to the sore feet.

Our tour guide told us that the goal/philosophy of the RS tours was to 'orient' us so that we would be comfortable returning to a place on our own. I'd say it worked--I'm taking my dad to Rome for three days on our own in November! (followed by RS 7-day Florence tour) I feel perfectly confident & capable about handling Rome now that I've been "guided" through it.