Should I Tour?

I've traveled both ways and they definitely both have their appeal. I'm the trip planner for my family and I get no assistance whatsoever from them. The positive side of that is I'm free to choose our routing and I come up with routes that are very specific to me and that no tour company covers. For example, my next one is Krakow, Budapest, Santorini, Crete - which you won't find on any tour offerings, but which fits my pattern of city-city-relax.

Another benefit I've discovered is that my lodging choices are ALWAYS superior to those offered on a tour. (I've done a RS tour, Smartours, Perillo and Caravan). At least one lodging on each tour was out of the way and at least one was just kind of crummy. My lodging is always well-located and fantastic - because I've spent hours and hours researching it.

One thing that's hard about my independent travel is transiting around from city to city and then transiting around for each day of sightseeing. There is a certain joy in getting on a bus in the morning and being dropped off at each site for an hour or two to look around and having a guide to walk us through all of it.

It's a tough call. I've just come back from a group tour to China and I did my own travels in April to Europe. Which did I prefer? I guess, in the end, I have a preference for traveling on my own. I do enjoy my tours though - I always have a good time with the people I meet. There's no harm in trying one tour and seeing what you think:)

Jim When younger I used to travel solo independently. Partly as I get older, and with a spouse, I prefer to go with an RS tour.

The advantage of the tour is that it enables you to focus on enjoying the tour. With the tour leaders and the local guides, the experience is much more enhanced, in that I actually learn things and see more. I've been back to some places to which I traveled independently and it was a whole new experience seeing things with others, and without having to dwell on choices. The videos are nice but nothing like being there. The sights are only part of the experience - its the sounds, the smells, the people, the real life experience, that makes it real not virtual.
And it's nice to share the experience with others, even if not close friends or family. You can be as alone as you want to be, or in the middle of a long party.

I have always travelled independently.. for decades.. but about 8 years ago I took my then 11 yr old daughter to Europe on a RS Europe in 14 days Family Tour.

I had been to both Rome, Venice, Florence, Switzerland, and Paris ( dozens of times to Paris before) .. but felt that my child would enjoy the company of other kids and I would enjoy not having to be responsible for all the planning when alone with a child. I sort of figured I would find it a bit "been here done that " myself.. but it would all be new to her.

I loved the tour.. it was fun,, and even places I had been before were fun. .as I enjoyed the not having to do advance buys for busy sights etc.. just show up for breakfast each morning and viola.. the tickets and skip the line privilidges were all arranged by the tour.

I still travel independently.. and will take another RS tour again someday.. perhaps in 10 years or so.

I would try a the RS Tour..its not just about the places you'll see.. its the people you will see it with and the way you will see them !

The guides do give you tidbits you never knew.. no matter how often you have been somewhere.. I had been to the Louvre at least 8 or 9 times before we went with the RS tour.. and the private guide the RS tour provided still gave me great insight into exhibits I had seen many times.

There are pros and cons to both. I've traveled independently and it's a lot more work in terms of researching and booking lodging, transportation, and so on. However, the work is also rewarding and affords great freedoms. For example, you can sleep in if you want, stay an extra day or two in a town that you grow to like, etc. With a tour, you will be on a schedule and may have less freedoms, but you will not need to worry about lodging and transportation and will have a group to travel with. The one and only time I took a tour in Europe, I really enjoyed not having to worry about anything, granted, we spent very little time in the places we visit. I was also fortunate to have a very fun group and really enjoyed the camaraderie.

Do you have time to do both ?

Take a tour and give yourself a few days before and/or after to travel independently somewhere.

You will get to enjoy both experiences !

There are actually good and bad effects of it. But I'll suggest you to tour this time in the way you want and alone without any preparation.

We've taken RS tours, and for the last several years traveled on our own itineraries.

My husband couldn't get away from work one year, so I decided to go to Paris for a week. I ended up joining a RS Paris tour because the cost wasn't that much different (had some discounts), and I liked the idea of being able to have half of the dinners with people instead of eating solo all week. I'm an independent person, so I did enjoy going off on my own during the free time to explore. I felt like that trip was a nice balance between structure & the social aspect of travel.

The Best of Europe trip has a lot of time in buses, and you're moving between locations every 2 days. You can decide if that's too much structure vs. moving at the pace you've enjoyed in the past.

I too have always traveled independently. Now in my 60 's , i find that that for more challenging destinations i would rather join a tour grp.
So for Turkey, latin america and Japan I have done so. I Pay a single supplement and that is ok. Groups are usually friendly and inclusive.
To date i have only used 2 tour grps. It is nice to sit back and enjoy a well guided trip. Most leave some free time if u find a group too much.
I still however do independent trips to western europe.

I have been to Europe 6 times. The first 5 times were on my own and the last time was a RS 17 Day Best of Italy Tour. I think it depends on where you are going.

Most countries are easy to do on your own, but I would recommend taking a tour to countries like Italy, Turkey, or Greece. I know my suggestion for taking a tour to Italy might raise some eyebrows so I will explain. I have been to Italy twice, once on my own and once on a tour. Because of all the history and the fact that you need a reservation in advance for many sights, a good tour would allow you to get the most out of your vacation. You don't want a car in the major cities and a car is very beneficial in getting to the hill towns. A train is beneficial for other locations. Taking a tour takes a lot of the stress out of traveling within Italy.

I never thought I would enjoy a tour. I like planning my own trip. But I must say, the tour I took of Italy was the best vacation I have ever taken. I saw more than I could ever have seen on my own during that time and I consider myself a pretty savvy traveler.

I'm a confirmed Riknik so factor that in on my opinion. Are you looking at the 21 day BOE? I took that in 2014 and out of 8 tours that is my favorite. Another RS guide told me it was his favorite tour because there were blockbuster sights every day. He was SO right. This is fast paced and there are days that are really busy. We walked 10-12 miles in Amsterdam and Rome on the tour. I am still FB friends with many of my tour mates and still think about it often. I traveled solo on this trip.

The video gives you an idea of what it's like but in no way tells the whole story. Every guide and every group develops a rhythm and buzz that you don't get from the Video.

I do suggest getting to Amsterdam/Haarlem a day or two early and staying in Paris for extra days as well. I travel solo and this is often how I structure my trips.

You've gotten some great responses here. Instead of reiterating what was said, let me throw in a few thoughts:

1) If you are an independent traveler, you have to ask yourself if sticking to an exact schedule is something you would enjoy or would you prefer to have more leeway? Are you an early riser or would you prefer days where you could sleep in? Do you go all day or do you prefer some down time to recuperate? Do you like fast paced travel or prefer to take it slow?

2) If you have never taken a tour in the past, do you want to lock yourself in for 21 days? Perhaps starting with a shorter tour would an an alternative. Choose something more regional that you might find difficult doing on your own. Then a tour would be worthwhile.

3) Another alternative is to do what I like to do:Travel independently but book one day tours. I like the idea of having a knowledgable guide telling me what I'm seeing but I also like my alone time. This can be anything from a hop on, hop off bus to a focused walking tour. I can pinpoint exactly what I want to my interests. In general, tours that cover a lot of ground in a short amount of time can feel rushed. They are mostly just "highlight" tours and don't really let you explore the areas visited. Some people like this concept and others hate it.

4) Read the daily itineraries for each tour that you are considering. Are you spending time seeing the things that interest you or are most of the days filled with stops that you might skip on your own? We all have different interests and ways we'd prefer to spend our time.

5) Lastly, look at other tour options. RS isn't the only game in town. While the people here swear by RS tours, other companies give great tours as well. Roadscholar has more focused tours and the reviews for them are usually excellent. (For an independent traveler, I would not suggest the big mainstream tour companies as they are geared towards people who really need hand holding and having everything done for them. )

I didn't think I would enjoy a tour after several successful independent trips; however, I found myself on a RS tour in 2013 and really enjoyed it. I enjoyed the free time on the bus and really enjoyed having half of the meals arranged. It is really nice having other like-minded travellers around as well. Even during free time, it is fun running into your new friends while out and about. On my first RS tour, I went to two places I would not otherwise been I interested in that I really enjoyed.

I went on my second RS tour with my husband earlier this year but we did a week on our own first. That worked out really well because after a week we were ready to let someone else handle the logistics. It was also really nice to meet some new friends. I will say that after the 14 day tour was over my husband was little tired of the set schedule!

I would agree with many of the folks here. Take a shorter tour than 21 days to see if you like it. We have been on 5 RS tours. On each one we had time either before or after on our own. We like the small groups. We like that half the time you are on your own, and you learn to use public transport in each town. The bus does not take you from site to site in a town as one person mentioned in an earlier post. You use public transport in a town.

You will see a lot more and do much more than honestly you could ever do on your own. As for seeing something you have seen in videos for me that is part of the fun. I feel the more you know the more you can enjoy a place. We have been to Paris 3 times now on 3 different RS tours. Each time we saw and did something different or even if we went back to old favorites there was a new take on it. We just did the BOE14 day tour and we never felt been there done that because of the video. Each guide by the way does change some things and you do often stay in different hotels than what you see in the video.

When you are reading these posts not all are talking about RS tours. Some are a mixture of other tour companies. Good luck on whatever you decide.

I have taken two RS tours - 7 days in Istanbul, and 8 days in Prague and Budapest. I've traveled completely solo as well. I've also hired a private guide for certain specialized tours/activities. I have enjoyed all these experiences, but I have to say, it's really quite delightful not having to figure out all the logistics yourself! You really do cover much more than you could on your own because the guides are so good at organizing the best routes and times. I like that RS tours have a good balance of group tours and activities with time to go off on your own or with some of the other travelers in the group.

In the case of Istanbul, I added an extra day at each end of the trip. The first day was spent getting over jet lag, but the last day was great for visiting at greater length those places that were especially intriguing during the tour or that were missed. By that time, the guide had given me great confidence that I could travel around the city on my own, and gave me good information about the places I wanted to go to. I also arrived in Prague a day and a half early (from another part of Europe, so no jet lag), and then added an extra day in Budapest. These days were also well-spent, doing things that were missing from the tour.

I wouldn't worry about what you've seen on the videos, or for that matter, all the pictures and such available to us in our modern world. It really is different being somewhere in person, and there's always surprises, good people-watching and so on that makes it a whole different experience.

One thing that I really enjoy on the RS tours is the friendship that happens with your tour mates. Because the groups are small, you really develop some great relationships. I've learned as much about my own country by meeting new people, as I did about the country I was visiting. You will meet people from all over the US as well as other countries. We have remained close to many of these people, in fact we've stayed in the homes of some of our new friends.
Also, bus time might sound boring, but your tour guide will be teaching you things that you don't get from travel guidebooks. . They will tell you about food, politics, education, family life, personal stories of their own families, local legends and the list goes on. Rick Steves guides are like Wikipedia in human form. They are awesome!