“My Way” Tour with Children

Under "Family Tours": RS also suggests My Way Tours for people with small children who are at least 8, so that may work for you. I would check what is available on the Family Tours, which would include entry tickets; while you would have to pay extra for these on My Way. It might be a break even situation with less hassle for you. And this would guarantee that there would be other kids. RS offers $200.00 discounts for each kid on the Family Tours, however they are not quoting Tour prices yet for 2022.

I’ve looked at the Family Tour itineraries but they cover a lot of ground and have some long travel days. I think we’d more enjoy focusing on one country, and having shorter times on the bus. I’m also not sure if we’re “guided tour people” (we’ve never done one). Was just hoping for some feedback from anyone who has been on a My Way tour with younger kids. Thank you though!

The bus can be a lot of fun for kids. We had a few older kids on one of our guided RS tour and they had a great time. The bus stops every 1 1/2 to 2 hours at interesting stops for a break!

Take a look at the trip reports for the My Way and family tours to get a good overview. Most are positive accounts.

We don't think of ourselves as group tour people either. But decided to give it a try with a RS tour. The Best of South Italy was our first, and it changed our attitude. We got so much out of that experience that it wasn't our last group tour. While we haven't taken a family tour, we have now found that the My Way tours really suit us. To do them right you need to spend time on your own prior to leaving doing research. We did the Best of Europe My Way and there was family (grandparents, parents and two early teens) that really seemed to enjoy it. They did not do much planning before, but instead planned the day on the bus between stops with the help of guidebooks and advice from the tour manager. It seemed to work for them. We planned one major experience before the trip including plotting local transportation and ticket reservations for each day leaving time to just explore. That method gave us control of our days without having to worry about the hotels and transportation between cities. We have decided that this is a great fit for us and I would imagine that when traveling with children a My Way would be a great format especially if you want to visit places where there isn't a family tour. Good luck and have a wonderful time.

To add to what Pat said, the My Way tours are not guided tours. There are no organized plans for the days. That is totally up to you. As they say, you have the freedom, and the responsibility of planning your own days. They provide the transportation, hotels, breakfasts, and a tour manager. The tour manager will help you with your plans--for example our manager came around to each group while on the bus prior to arriving in a new destination. They ask if you have plans, or need help. They also have "office hours" each morning at breakfast so you can consult. They don't do things for you, such as book tickets, but they tell you how to do it.
So the days are yours to do with your family, no set schedules.

Our first tour was the RS Alpine My Way tour. The only young person was a young lady who had just graduated from high school. She got on great with the others, and we lived vicariously through some of her experiences, such as paragliding. That tour has things at each stop that kids would love. After signing up for the tour, they send a book they complied from each country involved, so you don't have to get a book for each country.

We took our daughter on the Best of Europe My Way tour in June 2013 after she graduated from high school. We are typically independent travelers, but we covered a LOT of ground on that trip, and not having to deal with hotels and transportation was the real selling point for us. There were at least 6 other kids on that trip, ranging in age from around 12 to 18. I admit that this would typically sound like a nightmare scenario for me, but the kids were really nice, mature, well behaved, respectful. The kids all got along really well, and hung out together playing games in the back of the bus (this was practically the olden days, so not everyone was glued to their phone), and in the evenings, as we did with the adults. We had a fantastic time and made some good friends. I think our daughter still keeps up with some of the kids via social media, too. As long as the kids understand to behave themselves and not get on people's nerves, it can be a great way to take some of the stress out of traveling with kids but still have flexibility to do what you want during the day.