We love to travel, and 2020 was supposed to be a big travel year for us. Like the rest of you, that hasn't happened.
We're still dreaming about travel, reading about new destinations, and making (tentative) plans for the future. We hope all of you are well and staying safe... and that you find some inspiration here for YOUR future travels.
With vaccines arriving, let's hope we can be traveling again in 2021!
Is a group tour for you? You've decided where you want to go on your vacation. Time to move to the next step of your trip planning.
Now you
need to come to grips with how you're going to get your hotels, get
around, see the sights.
The next decision in your trip planning is...
Do you want to join a group tour or be an independent traveler.
We've traveled both ways.
Some destinations work best with a tour. There may be many visas to get, difficult borders to cross...
...and you may want someone with you who knows the territory.
Other destinations easily lend them selves to independent travel.
You need to decide how much of the trip you want taken care of for you.
Both options have pros and cons.
Your hotels will be taken care of, as will your transportation during the tour.
Depending on the package, most meals will probably be taken care of too, so you won't be looking for a restaurant all that often.
Air fare to and from your destination may or may not be included.
All of this can make it easy on you for trip planning; you don't need to worry about making reservations or finding hotels and restaurants on the road.
You don't need to worry about that foreign language, though that is truthfully not usually a problem.
You will be traveling with a group of people.
To be perfectly honest, the tours we have taken have been small group tours... custom tours in fact, with just four or six of us traveling. You may have read about one or two of those trips on our custom tour planning pages.
If group size is important to you, be sure to check on just what the group size will before you book the tour you're interested in.
Most tour operations call 10-12 people a small group.
Depending on the operator and package, group size can range from that all the way up to a bus full of about 45 to 50 people.
Large groups can make it fun, or it can slow things down as you're waiting for everyone to get up in the morning and get on the bus.
You'll probably see all the highlights, but you won't be able to get into small venues that can't accommodate big groups.
You'll have your group to interact with.
That can insulate you some from interacting with locals, but...
Let me add this...
Some group tours introduce you to locals or even get you into ceremonies or places that independent travelers don't have access to.
And hopefully you'll have knowledgeable tour guides...
Guides who can teach you about the area.
That's something that independent travelers might miss.
We've had great guides when we have arranged tours... they do add something.
Tours can be an economical way to travel.
Tour operators get good prices on hotels and transportation.
But if you want to sleep in and the tour is moving on... you'll just have to get up and get going.
You might learn things you wouldn't have learned otherwise.... and if you're a first time traveler, one of the things you might learn is that you don't need a group tour.
Sometimes that first tour group experience is more than worth it... it can give you the confidence to travel independently.
On the other hand, if you learn that you like the company you're traveling with, and you like group travel... you've come up with a great shortcut for your trip planning in the future...
Just find more of their tours that you like, and you'll soon be traveling the world.
Happy travels... even if you don't travel the world... just remember that life is a journey... embrace and enjoy it! Judy and Mark
Curious about what else we've written about? Search our site for a destination or travel tip.
But... We'd love to have you share this page or comment on it…
Thanks, Judy and Mark
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The New Year is here...
And we're ready to put 2020 behind us.
What are your resolutions? To lose weight? To Exercise more?
We're hoping for an end to this virus and the travel restrictions so...
Why not a FUN resolution!
Resolve to TRAVEL!
It's a good time to plan your travels...
We have lists to help....
Custom Tour Planning List
Destination stories....
Europe Travel Tips
Africa Dream List
See America
Travel Planning
International Travel Planning Tips
Guidebooks can help you plan
Don't Forget Valentine's Day
Romantic Weekends
What About Your Passport?
Time to get one... or renew...
Answers about Passports and Visas
Dreaming of Warm Weather or Snow?
Packing for a Tropical Vacation
Cold Weather Packing List
…Or just make a resolution to explore more pages here and get ideas for travel destinations and how to get there.
NOW is the time to start planning for a great trip this year.
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Travel questions or destination info?
Find our answers faster...
We want you to feel comfortable out in the world and on our pages - so surf away in your own language...
Our 2020 travels were slim. COVID kept us home too. One trip to the Three Guyanas, but dreaming of travel next year.
Love discovering less touristed regions? The three Guyanas are tucked up in the north east corner of South America that doesn’t get much attention.
On our 2019 travels, it was independent travel, a custom tour and a group tour. All work beautifully... just depends on where you’re going and what you want.
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