My Way Italy

We have been on the MW Italy and MW Spain tours and scheduled for MW France in 2022 and love the format. With the MY Tours you will be able to go at your own pace and see the sights you want to see and sit for as long as you like at that piazza cafe and even return to your hotel for an afternoon siesta since the hotels are centrally located. While the tour guides are always a highlight for many travellers on RS Tours, just be sure to do a little homework about what you expect to see before you go. I do hope to "one day" experience RS guides on a regular (non-MW) tour. The MW tour manager will assist with your day's plan (take this metro/train to El Escorial) you will need to 'do that' and not expect to be led to 'do that'. The MW tour manager will offer an optional walk upon arrival in the city, primarily to indicate the transportation options, close favorite restaurants, and city orientation. The MW tour manager will also offer optional social times (happy hour or gelato break) for the group, plus hold morning office hours at breakfast time for last minute Q/As. Group meals are fun but if you want to eat earlier (not 8 or 9 pm as the locals do) or lighter fare (osteria or tapas bar/cafe) then you can easily do that on your own. We found that some travellers on the My Way tours wanted to join together for a shared activity (touring ancient Rome or shared gondola ride) and even meals; you just have to ask!

We took MyWay Best of Europe in 2013 with our daughter and it was fantastic. That tour covers A LOT of ground in 14 days and we could never have experienced so much on our own. And our manager and tour mates were great.
We took MyWay France in 2016 and was far less impressed. We felt we could have easily done on our own better than what we did on that tour. Our tour manager was .... not the best. A couple of the hotels were ... not the best. (A couple were fantastic, to be fair.) There were a couple of mid-way stops at sites that I felt were not timed as well as they could have been, or departure/arrival times were not planned well. And we were not very simpatico with our tour mates either.
Summarizing - you have to have a clear idea of what you want to see and why you'd take a MyWay vs. just do it yourself. We decided after our France tour that from hence forth, we'd be independent travelers. We can do it far cheaper and more efficiently on our own. We do supplement with local guides and on-site tours in some places.

We were going to do the My Way Italy until we got off the waitlist for Best of Sicily. I’m still hoping we can add that, or do it in the future. I looked through the scrapbooks - there was 1 from 2019 and more in the archives. They are on the “Our Tours” page. That gave me a feel for how the groups functioned. We’ve done the highlights for Florence, Cinque Terra and Rome, but still wanted to see other things in those cities. The additional stops look like things we can do on our own and at our own pace, but have the luxury of hotels and transportation taken care of. We’ve gotten better at arranging our own small tours related to our various interests wherever we visit.

Hi, I took MyWay Alpine, during its first season, 2013. How time flies! I think our group jelled really well. We had many couples and quite a few singletons. Our tour manager was very accessible, and to facilitate tour members getting to know one another suggested things like a group "cocktail" party - not sure there were really any cocktails, probably not, though maybe somebody brought wine. But we got to know each other and often found we gravitated to the same restaurants. When that happened, we often joined tables. I was on my own but never lacked for an invitation for a meal or how to spend some time - unless I chose some time out.

I had been to a few of the tour locations previously, but not all. I am an over planner so had a detailed to-do list. But I actually happened to kick-back and have a vacation on this trip. About half way through, the to-do list was scrapped. I spent time with tour members lunching and dining in a relaxed manner. I went on a leisurely stroll/hike in Gimmelwald and spent the afternoon at the restaurant patio of the local hostel - just taking in the beautiful scenery and a few beers. I enjoyed myself.

Pros: more leisurely pace if you want it; hotel and transportation taken care of (works for me in helping reduce travel-related stress; also fewer wake-up calls); access daily to tour manager; ability to eat when and how late you want (I really like this as I often think the RS group meals are too, too large - as if the restaurant thinks it should stuff us to make a good impression). Cons: nothing really. It took a few days to get into my stride. Did I miss how much tour guides can teach me? Meh, not really, Our manager was accessible and super helpful. I will probably take this tour again.