Eastern France vs Adriatic (Croation) RS tour

I was surprised how much English is spoken in Croatia. It was never an issue communicating. Yes, it has the positive of being by the water at several locations, and the Plitvice day was spectacular!

The Adriatic tour has about ten more hours on the bus for the same number of days.

I took the Adriatic tour in 2023. I haven’t done the Eastern France tour, but I have been to several of the locations. There’s no wrong choice with either! : )

I've done both, and thought they were both well worth doing.
I think you'll have to flip a coin.

I’ve done the Eastern France tour and after 12 tours, this was one of my favorites. I guess by “sites” you mean Wow moments? Because there’s quite a few extraordinary places you visit. Just my opinion because everyone is different but a few places I was glad I got to experience besides the small villages include: huge champagne caves deep in the ground, the WW1 battlefields and Ossuary and then Mont Blanc. Of course, with the all the wineries included on the tour it might mean more if you were into French wine,,,,and then there was the wonderful food.

Haven't done the Adriatic, but did the Eastern France September 2024.

If you enjoy wine or want to learn more about wine EF is the tour for you. One champagne house and wine tastings at three vineyards. All were very interesting and with one tasting/lunch at a beautiful chateau and the last with a lunch outside with a view which got a lot of the "wows" from our group (and a lot of wine sales).

No, there aren't any large cities if that's what you mean by sites. But if you are interested in Rome, Vaison and Orange have "sites" to see. The hotel on a hilltop in Vaison was my favorite spot, beautiful view over Provence.

We were able to see the night light show on the Reims Cathedral (which is extraordinary) and the light show on various buildings in Beaune. Something you don't see in the USA. Beaune was a lovely city and the Hotel Dieu there and the Musee Unterlinden in Colmar were places where art and life meet. And if you love mountains Chamonix is special.

There were no really long bus trips and the pace was really pretty laid back. The hotels in Reims and Aix were the nicest we have ever stayed in on a RS tour (out of 5 tours). Our final meal in Aix was easily the best meal we have had on any RS tour. We also had a great guide (thanks Chris) and a very fun group to travel with which helped make it even more enjoyable.

Plus there is Paris to see before the tour and the south coast after the tour if you are looking to extend your time.

It was also my experience that English is extremely widely spoken in Croatia. I'd also note it is an extremely easy county to travel in independently and by public transport.
It is just a guess but I think a reasonable one that rural, small village France would be much much easier with a tour (and English would be less widely spoken). That is how I would look at it, but I don't think you can go wrong!

We've done both. I have to agree that you can't go wrong with either. Time is not on our side, age-wise, which was one of the deciding factors for doing the Adriatic tour this year and we loved it. I'm glad we did as it was more strenuous than Eastern France and there were more hotel changes, but the longest luggage drag to the bus was maybe half a block and most of the hotels had good elevators.

We did the Eastern France tour in 2022, and loved it. Haven't done the Adriatic one. I agree everything Jeff from KC said - it was a lovely vacation in the sunshine. We did a lot of basking and eating! If you haven't already, look for RS scrapbooks for that tour and it may seal the deal for you. Regarding English speakers, we encountered a few people in markets that spoke only French, so learning a few words like good morning, please, thank you, etc is always nice wherever you go.

Absolutely LOVED the Best of the Adriatic tour!!! I went with my mother back in 2018 and am planning to repeat this tour with my husband. Slovenia’s Alps are just breathtaking. The Plitvice Lakes National Park is an absolutely beautiful hike (boardwalk trails) with countless waterfalls and “wow” moments, and it’s a place you’d be unlikely to visit on your own because it is a good bit farther inland than the usual places people visit. Mostar, in Bosnia-Herzegovina, was fascinating to learn about, and is also a place you’d be unlikely to visit on your own; our dinner there was amazing.

Haven’t done the villages of France tour, but I can enthusiastically recommend the Best of the Adriatic tour.

I’d add one more thought about the Best of the Adriatic. I would not recommend doing this one in the summer months. We went the last two weeks of June in 2018 and it was extremely hot. I’d try to go in spring or fall.

I did the Eastern France tour in September 2024 and loved it! There are several places we went for World War I memorials and in Reims where the tour began the Surrender Museum felt like a sacred space. It is where Eisenhower moved his war room in Feb. 1945 to conduct the war as the Allies were progressing deeper into France and then Germany.

I agree with Jeff the hotel in Vaison La Romaine at the top of the hill was my very favorite! I learned so much about France and its culture from this tour.

We have done both tours and for us, give a nod to the Adriatic tour. They are both well done, but we enjoyed the pace and diversity of experience visiting Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia. Not to start an international incident, but we found the food on the Adriatic tour more to our liking. On the English speakers, we encountered more English speakers on the Adriatic tour, however, it was explained to us that its not that many of the French can't speak English, its just they don't want to! You'll enjoy either tour!

We have done both tours, both in September. We managed to hit the harvest season from north to south in France. Great weather for both. The Adriatic tour has more history. Our tour guide was Ben who taught the history of this region—very interesting. Our France tour was guided by the fabulous Julie who had been living in France for a while. Her insight into the social workings in France was great.
If you like wine, the Eastern France tour visits several regions. Both are quite relaxing.
I would do either tour again, though I’d rank Eastern France a little above.

Like Patty, I have taken both tours but I would rank Adriatic above eastern France. The history and culture of former Yugoslavia is fascinating and the scenery stunning. If you are really into champagne and wine, the eastern France tour is a hit. While we enjoyed the leisurely visits to vineyards in France, we preferred the excitement of the Adriatic much more. It all comes down to personal preference.

We've done the Best of the Adriatic (2023). We've also visited most places on the Eastern France tour independently. Its very easy getting around in France, less so Adriatic. On that basis, I'd recommend the Adriatic tour and consider France on your own.