Restaurants

I haven't taken a Rick Steves tour, but by all accounts here, the guides are very flexible. If you are not going to be at a dinner (for any reason), just be sure to tell them earlier in the day, so they don't worry about your whereabouts. Of course, there's no refund for any missed meals.

However, you should be aware that much Indian food is not spicy at all, although they do use herbs that may be unfamiliar to you or not agree with you. You should also know that, by all accounts here, you will asked about dietary issues when you book your tour and again on the first day, and the guides do their best to accommodate. For instance, people with gluten sensitivity and vegetarians have posted here that they had no problems.

That is really good to know. I've only heard good things about the RS tours and it's good to know that they are really accommodating, especially with dietary issues. Thank you for answering my question. This has been really helpful.

Thanks Emma! That makes me feel more at ease about booking a tour with RS.

Alison,

As I recall, there's a space on the application form for the RS tours to indicate any special dietary needs. Even if you don't indicate any preferences, I've found that the guides are very good at arranging alternate choices if a few tour members can't tolerate items served at the group dinners. For example, a few of the group on one of my tours couldn't eat shellfish at a group dinner, so the guide arranged a nice alternate choice with prosciutto, cheese, etc.

Not too worry, your guide will ensure that you're well looked after. Be sure to indicate your preferences well in advance though, as sometimes the dinners are arranged a day or so before they take place.

Go for Saag Paneer, sopped up with plenty of Naan, Alison. Even my dad (who never even has black pepper when he can avoid it) enjoys a meal of that occasionally.

Alison, yes you can opt out of meals or skip tour events if you dont want to participate - you just need to let your tour leader know, so that they can account for everyone. Not everyone feels like a big meal every night, and some times, people are just too tired to go. Its meant to be fun, not forced.

Hi Alison,
After signing up for a RS tour you will be providing them wth more information. One question they will ask you is about food allergies, food preferences, etc. On our first RS tour I noticed that a member was being served a different meal. It looked delicious! This tour member never missed a group meal as they took care of her dairy and gluten allergies. Once you are on the tour you won't want to miss the meals either as they are so much fun!
We are going on RS Basque and Spain tours this year and I don't particularly like most seafoods but don't have any reservations about it as they will provide an alternative.

Just one more reassurance that you will be fine and well-taken care of.
I have only been on one RS tour, but there was a teen-aged boy on that one who would eat nothing but buttered noodles and that was exactly what he got at every group meal.

Let's just hope that the kid who's allowed to eat nothing but buttered noodles (after surviving scurvy) doesn't develop 'dairy and gluten allergies'...

Actually, the poster said that she couldn't eat "spicy" food, she didn't say "hot" food. I know for many people the words are synonymous, but they actually refer to two different things. One of my colleagues does not like spicy food, and even when it is not hot, Indian food has a lot of spices in it. So really the answer to this question depends on what the original poster was referring to. Indian food is almost always spicy (perhaps the naan isn't spicy, but just about every entree is spicy). It's not all hot, however, that can vary quite a lot.

Alison: if your problem really is the heat, then you should try non-hot indian food, it can really be great. But if your problem is the spices, you're better off skipping the dinner.

At any rate, I hope you have (had?) a great tour!