Why a Rick Steves Tour?

I wouldn't say it's worth it for every trip, but the one we've done so far was worth the money. We did the Loire to the South of France tour because it hit a lot of the places we had on our list but would have been frustrating if we tried to follow the same path on our own. My main concern going into the tour was the amount of time each day we would be on the bus, however our guide took that time and made it one of my highlights for the tour by educating us on French Culture, language and politics. It was very insightful.

A bonus is that my wife is a people person and she loved the companionship it gave her to make new friends. I on the other hand, loved that I could escape those dinners and explore on my own, knowing my wife was still enjoying herself. My personal negatives were that in several locations I could have used an extra hour or two, but since we were on a schedule, I had to get back to the bus. The other negative for me were those group dinners which my wife loved. I thought they went on forever. Food is not important to me and I much prefer eating over the sink and getting back to more interesting things.

So far in our 7 trips to Europe we've ocean cruised, the RS tour and 5 trips on our own. In two weeks we go to Portugal for two weeks on our own and then SW France for a week (which is a result of our RS tour and knowing we wanted to spend more time in the Dordogne region). Next May we'll be doing a river cruise and Fall of 2025 were seriously considering doing the RS Sicily tour.

I think there are positives and negatives to all styles of travel and you won't know until you've tried.

Welcome to the forum. I'm also in Boise.

I've done 4 RS tours. One of top things that I appreciate is the Rick Steves website that has so much specific information about each tour. I haven't seen another tour company that upfront gives details of what is (or is not) included on the tours, gives specific costs, spells out expectations, includes tips, generally has no forced shopping stops, and has this forum that answers many questions.

I find the mix of tour time and free time is quite good. I think the tour expectation of carry your luggage, have physical abilities for stated activities, and no grumps policy results in a great bunch of travel companions.

I've seen and done things that I wouldn't have access to on my own. (I have done Europe travel without a tour group too.) If your vacation time is limited, having RS planned ground transportation along with prepaid and arranged admissions is a huge time saver.

I'm about a week out from tour #12.
I think Lynn above says it well, those are the main pluses for me.

For myself, "worth it" depends on a lot of factors - dates, countries, itinerary, mix of free/structured time, logistics (tour vs. on my own), cost of tour, cost of single supplement, etc. Your criteria for "worth it" may be completely different so it's hard to answer your question in a general, helpful way.

There have been many similar questions like this asked in the forum over the years. This one includes a link to a recent Monday Night travel show that answers the question from the company's point of view:

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/tours/is-a-rick-steves-tour-right-for-you

You should ask yourself the broader question, which is:

Am I a package tour kind of person, or not? And is my spouse?

Perhaps check out the RS Trip Scrapbooks- and now that I've written it, I must find the link. Maybe someone will beat me to it.
Overall, you need to be able to climb stairs, and handle your luggage. Some hotels don't have AC. . I think the tours are better for places with poor public transportation, or for folks who don't want to research and plan every day of their adventure.
The tours are great for first-time travellers, and solos have reported great experiences. The ages of most of the tour members would be retirement age, from my experience, but younger folks, and those with children have reported they gelled with the group.
The demands of the tours vary with the country, obviously. I came out of the VFR tour exhausted, as we had early calls and late dinners. The early calls were to wisely get us into the museums at openings, before the crowds. The lingering late dinners are the Italian way. However , late and heavy dinners wreaked havoc with my sleeping, so I was exhausted. This is an individual issue, I'm aware.
The Best of Switzerland had somewhat later morning calls, as it was a tour focused on outdoor activities, not churches and museums. And the dinners were about an hour, as I remember about 7pm, and the lingering folks lingered, and we walked after dinner. And- we fell in love with Switzerland, and have returned twice since, on our own.
The RS Tour guides are pretty universally great, along with the local guides secured.
There are so many individual variables to consider. In addition, I would check each tour company's current COVID policy.
Whatever you choose, have a wonderful adventure!

https://www.ricksteves.com/tours/scrapbooks/tour-alum-scrapbooks

Top thing for me is getting us from place to place, because I do not want the stress of driving in Europe. I also appreciate that logistics for all the places we stay are very well planned, and tickets bought in advance, so we save time. We generally combine independent travel with a RS tour, so we can stay longer in a particular place before or after a tour. We use his books to research hotels, what to see, and where to eat when we travel independently. For me, vacation = less stress, so RS tours are the answer.

I've been to Europe a couple dozen times now and I've been on 4 RS tours. The quality of the guides, the curated experience, the balance of culture, history and cuisine, well, they are outstanding. Rick Steves tours are a bargain.

Happy travels!

Besides everything everyone else has said so far,I’m always very impressed by the great guides and everything you learn and digest about the country/city you are visiting. I used to be a solo traveler and did my research and loved my experiences. I didn’t think I was “one of those tour people” until I took one and realized how much richer the experience was. Now I go early and tour on my own, meet my tour for the specified time, then usually end up with more solo time at the end so I get both ways of travel. Of course, it does help to be retired!

I'm with the others on my main reason being the quality of the guides and the knowledge they bring to the table. I have done 12 Rick tours as well as 13 Road Scholar tours and now coming up on my 3rd Seymour Travels tours. The thing I've enjoyed most is the education from the guides. Generally excellent!

But also:

When I started doing Rick's tours in 2013, I really had not much familiarity with doing public transit. I've never lived in a city where that was available so was apprehensive. One of the things that attracted me was either written info or a youtube video saying the guides teach you how to use public transit. Yes, they do. And my guides have always made sure I understood what to do! Gamechanger for me which might not matter to someone used to a big US city. Now I can hop on the Metro in Paris with confidence that I am standing where I won't annoy the locals and am aware of where pickpockets might be hanging!

I also like that you don't waste time figuring things out. Back in the olden days (pre-computer) I did some travel in England and that was still when you rocked up to a train station Tourist Information kiosk and got accommodations from them. That took so much time! With Rick's tours the bus drops you as close as they can to your hotel and boom,you are ready to start touring because you are generally in the middle of everything.

You can travel more cheaply without a tour. At this point in my "tour" career, hahaha, I combine independent travel with tour travel. I feel like every penny I spend on tours is well worth it for me.

BTW, I don't think you ever know if you are a "tour person" unless you do a tour. I am definitely NOT a big tour group person which to me is an entirely different mode of travel than a smaller 24-28 person group.

BTW, if you are ever in CdA on the 1st Saturday of a month, we generally have a local meet up and everyone is invited.

Short answer are the guides and the format.

To be able to get into the Accademia to see David before the doors opened to the general public was great. We were there for 20-25 minutes with an art historian who talked about and answered question regarding Michelango and the statue.

Similar experience on the Best of Istanbul tour. The guide ( Mert Tanner ) and early entrance into Hagia Sophia.

Hi. I think I am at 10 tours so far. Like others, I value having some of the planning taken care of. I have limited vacation time, so RS taking care of transportation and hotels helps me feel on vacation. While I often travel before or after the tour, I have sometimes felt the vacation relief kick in once I was on the RS bus. Just giving some logistics over to someone else for awhile can be relaxing.

I value learning from the guides. Sometimes, I have not been particularly keen on an activity, but then am pleasantly surprised to have really learned something and enjoyed the journey. I must say, I also value the My Way options which take care of transport and lodging, but the rest is up to the traveler - a good choice between traveling totally on one's own steam and a more planned itinerary. They cost less, too.

I like the unstructured time that is part of pretty much each day. I like the ability when staying in a location for more than a day to take a vacation from my vacation and opt out of planned activities (alerting the guide, of course).

Group dinners are sometimes a stretch for me as I am not fond of consuming lots of food at night, but I can manage around that. However, I like being able to travel solo and yet have some community available. And I do like to augment the tours before and/or after with some independent adventures.

For me the extra price means I'm not spending lots of time figuring out where to go, how to get there, where to stay, what to see.....
All the biggies at stops are generally covered and there is usually enough free time at a place to see or do something else that really interests you.

Long ago, I'd plan the trips, use paper maps to navigate (remember long ago), and in the evening watch for B&B or Zimmer or similar signs. Plus, the hassle of driving or catching a train. Which worked well for me back then.
Now I appreciate all the history and information that the main guide and city guides provide. And moving easily from place to place. I've learned so much more.
At first, I worried about bus time but learned that I generally enjoy that. I can watch the scenery, listen to the guide, or even snooze a bit with no worries about getting to the next stop.
But it is a bit of an adjustment to travel in a group. But I've found that I've made some great new friends on these tours.
My daughter came with me on my first RS tour back in 2009. She came because she had promised to come but was expecting to spend all day on a bus with a bunch of 'old' people. I told her that I'd heard they were very active tours. Anyway, she loved the tour and we are about to take our 12th together. They also work great for solo traveling.
Touring with a group is not for everyone, but for me at this point in my life it's the best way to explore new or large areas. However, I still 'do' cities like London (several times) and Paris on my own.

I agree with what everyone says. I have taken 10 tours and have a hard time telling folks which was best. I am a solo traveler in my 70's, but Rick Steves taught me how to travel back in the 1980s thru his books. So when I finally took a tour I knew what to expect. I like the amount of free time and don't feel afraid to opt out of an activity if it doesn't harm the tour's schedule. I just tell my 'buddy' and the tour guide and go off on my merry way. The hotels are generally good in great locations. The dinners and picnics or lunches are good and as a vegetarian I have never had a problem. I have learned to love the bus time and all I learn (or just to have time to rest.) I, too, go before and after the tour on my lonesome and love the fact I've had time to share my experiences with other like minded folks. When I'm on my own I can sleep a little later and take more tea & wine breaks. I've been on Road Scholar tours and they were OK (except for Cuba which was fantastic.) I also went on a tour sponsored by the Acorn Streaming service. I loved their itinerary, but found that company really didn't have a travel style I liked as much as I do Rick's because there were 50 folks crowded on a bus and 1 night stays which weren't near 'the action.' Try a short, city tour maybe like in Paris and see if you like the way we 'travel with Rick.'

I personally found doing a trip without being on a tour more not less expensive. The hotels were more, dinners more, and just the time it took to plan everything was a lot more
. We also like to do a few days before & a few days after on our own. Not retired so we don’t have long stretches we can be away. RS tours are the most bang for our buck.

Down side is many times you only have an hour or so at a location. We like to linger & really see a site or museum. There are early mornings. Love that usually have free time in your tour day to do what you would like to do.

As others mentioned read the scrapbooks. Also a large % of people are repeats. Love the repeat discount too

We didn't consider ourselves tour people, but decided about 7 years ago to try a Rick Steves tour. We chose Munich, Salzburg and Vienna. It wasn't particularly high on my "I want to visit these places" as I looked for something on the shorter side in case we didn't care for a group tour. And I considered that they've figured it out, so why not let them do the work. I'm outgoing; my husband more introverted. Wasn't sure how any of it would play out. We had an amazing tour; a fabulous tour guide; a great tour group. You can be as friendly or quiet as you like. People are simply nice; interesting and interested. We saw so many things that I could have planned, because I do love to plan trips; but it took so much worry out of things and honestly getting on the bus and not trying to navigate ourselves is a real treat. Also, I don't love figuring out restaurants all the time; and that was a great experience as well. There's plenty of free time, and you can opt out of something as long as it doesn't mess up the group schedule. Be respectful and on time and you'll have a marvelous experience! We've always felt well taken care of!

We just completed our third Rick Steves tour. What I would suggest is not decide that you aren't a tour person until you take one. Go for something shorter, like 7 or 8 days. But we've now done 11 days and 14 days. All marvelous. I'm not sure I agree that it's more expensive than planning your own travel.

Did you read this?

https://www.ricksteves.com/tours/the-most-value-for-your-money

Based on my tour experience, I have no quibble with any of the statements.

...is the extra price worth it?

I cannot give a yes/no answer for what you define as 'worth it', but I felt I received good value in return for the price.

Last year I planned the activities for 17 days of our 28 day trip. By the time I was done navigating a world that relies on apps and timed-entries I was so in awe of how easy the guides on our 10 RS tours make it look. It all came together and I was proud of myself for pushing through recalcitrant websites to get the attractions and events that filled our time, but appreciated that knowledgeable guides who frequent sites regularly and share info within their community would have known that a sites advertised elevator was not a current option or that a certain holiday would mean a site was closed outside of advertised hours. We love the tours for a first-time visit to an area or to areas posing more difficult without a car or easy train connection. The guides have been universally top-quality and travel groups have always been convivial. We appreciate not being force-fed every meal and frequently find that a group lunch or dinner is enough for the day with small additional snacks or dessert. We’re happy repeat customers after sampling other options.

I echo much of what others have said and will add I am not retired, so the "bang for buck" with limited vacation time, the great guides and that logistics and tickets are taken care of help make the decision and easy one. I took my first one with my wife (she is older) when I was in my 40s and this year we just did our 5th with the 6th planned for next year already. We are comfortable with doing some of the planning and appreciate the RS does not book the flights so we can choose to arrive early and see things not listed or just walk around and explore on our own, and we usually stay later as well.

In fact as the Scotland tour was the 8 day one - there is a longer version too, we opted to go to Copenhagen and explored there after the tour since we were already "nearby".

Only by taking one, can you determine their "worth" to you.

Why a Rick Steves Tour? Is it worth it? In my opinion, I chose Rick Steves Tour for many reasons. After spending years of watching Rick Steves either on TV, internet, Facebook, or seeing him in person at special events we felt his tours can be trusted. Who wants to invest your vacation money in a tour company you never heard of or know little about just to save money, only to find out there really wasn't a tour, but instead a scam. Previously I had taken a Rick Steves Tour and enjoyed every aspect of the tour itself. The no grump rule was my favorite! Overall, it is nice to be able to chat with someone other than my husband and everyone on the tour suddenly becomes a temporary family member or a life long friend. The great part of a Rick Steves Tour is they open the door to many possibilities (interests) without being overwhelming. The hotels, transportation, some dinners with the group, and guides are all done for you. With a Rick Steves Tour the extras are appreciated like the no tipping policy or after taking a RS tour getting additional cost off your future tour. If you book far enough in the future you can get additional $$ off. The next planned tour with RS I saved $250. My husband health is preventing him from future travel, however taking a 2025 RS tour the Best of Sicily in 11-Days with my daughter is a tour that certainly is bringing a smile back to my face. Suddenly, my 30 something daughter and I have developed a closer bond since planning the Sicily tour together. The worth weaves itself around the journey like a gift to myself, thereby leaving me virtually stress free. The ability of having free time within the tour itself is a plus. Never forget, you can always pick the brains of the guide for ideas on how to spend your free time.

Saturday I’m flying to Poland for my fifth RS tour. I’ve visited Europe on my own and with other tour operators. Rick Steves tour style fits my (our) needs nicely. The guides are great and the days are filled with wonderful experiences that I would not be able to accomplish on my own.
I used to love every second of months of planning with maps, books, and internet searches. I just don’t t enjoy doing that anymore. I will return to Paris, London, etc on my own to spend some in-depth time. I’ve been to each of these cities several times that I don’t feel the need for a tour to do so.
I’m meeting a school friend in Gdansk a few days prior to the tour and will spend extra time at the end.