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On this episode we are sharing some of our top tips for finding good guided day tours or special experiences when you are traveling. We will walk through how to find them, how to book, and tips for taking city tours.
Episode Highlights
- On your arrival day, don’t schedule a guided tour since your plane may not be on time and you may be tired from traveling. If anything, look at doing something impromptu like a hop on hop off bus or just walking around on your own.
- On your first full day in a city, it is helpful to take a guided tour to get the lay of the land and get recommendations from a local
- Some common tour booking platforms are Viator and Get Your Guide. Just understand that these are platforms advertising different tour companies or operators, the tours aren’t actually run by Viator or Get Your Guide
- Often you can find the tour operator name on the listing and if you want, you can look up that company and book direct to support small businesses
- Be sure to read the details of what is included on the tour and whether or not you are going inside points of interest or just seeing it from the outside
- Pay attention to the meeting points and end point to choose ones that are fairly convenient for you based on where you are staying
- Make sure you look at the reviews and ratings before booking a tour
- Look at the number of people that are on the tour. It will often list the maximum number of passengers on a tour.
- Some tour companies, like Shore Excursions, offers a back-to-ship guarantee, which is great if you are booking cruise excursions
- Look at what tickets are included
- Put in the date when you are looking at pricing as it can vary depending on the season, day of the week, etc. Also, go through the full checkout screen to see what additional fees or taxes are added when building your budget
- Some other tour companies that we like are: Walks (or Take Walks), Livtours (small groups), Devour Tours (food tours), Eating Europe (food tours), Tours by Locals, The Tour Guy, and City Experiences
- You can also Google “free walking tours” to find pay as you go or tip-based walking tours by locals
- Always plan to arrive 10-15 minutes before the tour starts to check in
- Map out the meeting place before you go and know how you will get there
- Know if you need to be dressed a certain way (headscarf, covered shoulders, etc) or if you can’t bring bags/backpacks, etc.
- Private tours are great for families or if you have mobility issues because it is easier to customize them
- Don’t forget to tip a good tour guide. Group tour tip is typically $5 per person and a private tour is $10-20 per person if it is a half day or full day
- Have small bills handy for tipping
- Rick Steves has great audio tours for Europe, GPS My City has self-guided tours, and VoiceMap is another app for self-guided audio tours that are more cost-effective than a guided tour.
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