Lorna Hogg looks at the increasingly popular range of escorted tours now available

 

Is your dream holiday free of queues – at the airport, for hire cars, hotel reception, ticket booths, transfers and tourist information centres? How about heavy luggage, and vanished reservations? If you really want smooth, fuss and worry free travel, with collection, planned itinerary and tickets, luggage, hotels and transport all taken care of - you might think of putting escorted tours at the top of your next holiday list.

 

To-day’s escorted tours, thanks to their variety of options, range of destinations and modern luxury coaches have removed the old image of this type of holiday. You can now use a short tour of a few days in length, to get to specific attractions which might otherwise be expensive or inaccessible by public transport. If you opt for a longer tour, leisure time is inbuilt, and care is usually taken that each travel days is not too arduous. You can opt for a tour which includes a variety of transport – train, boat or plane, to general sightseeing, or specialised interest.

 

One of the great attractions of escorted tours is the wide range of holiday interests it matches. Ideal for solo travellers, it allows you to go alone, either with a matched companion if you want to share a room, or with a single supplement. Increasingly, such tours are being used by groups of friends or club members, to take in specialised interests, or as part social outings. To-day’s coaches are luxuriously comfortable, with on-board loo and fridge, and usually ensure smooth travel – forget about bone-shakers or olden times.

 

 

How to choose? Firstly, decide what you want from an escorted tour..

 

Is comfort, indeed luxury your top priority for your money – or would you be happy with mid range hotels, and a wide range of travel to far-flung places you could not see on your own? Would you rather take a short tour, stay in top five star hotels, enjoy a relaxing trip in a coach fitted to ensure leg room than passenger numbers? Do you want full bed and board, or would you prefer to dine out at local restaurants? Do you want to have unusual or specialised sightseeing? Are far off destinations more important to you, possibly with language or cultural differences?

 

Is it important to you to be part of a primarily English speaking group – which can help with queries and also language grouping for local tours. Check that your tour includes this.

 

Do you want to see specific sights, or just take in the overall atmosphere? Specialised tours can take in and allow time at archaeological sites or cities with historical or cultural interest. 

 

Remember – you do get what you pay for. If you really want to go on that cogwheel railway, dance the flamenco, take a gondola ride, or have a private tour at a famous museum, it might be better to make sure that it is an integral part of the tour. Unexpectedly large visiting groups, travel delays and language difficulties can spoil enjoyment at long awaited highlights.

 

Do you hate flying? Escorted tours can provide options. PAB Tours uses sea crossings for many tours, while it is possible to take escorted tours covering wide area of Europe making your own `landbridge’ crossing to starting point.

 

Research how you could include an escorted tour in a general holiday. These days, you could take a short cruise, chill out for a few days and then take in a few days of intensive sightseeing in a particular region.

 

Like the idea of being taken care of – but hate the idea of early starts when you’re tired or not well? You can take tours which include regular days off and leisure time, e.g. Topflight’s `Stay and Explore’ holidays.

 

Escorted tours can be perfect way to enjoy specific holiday experiences – from gardens, opera, sport, history and cultural interests to train travel. Titan Hi Tours and Sunway both offer trips with Canadian Rocky Mountaineer and Switzerland’s Glacier express. Topflight has opera and gardening tours.

 

 

Why leave the country when so many come over to holiday here? PAB excels at offering god value escorted tours in this country – from Donegal and Northern Ireland to Galway, or Kerry and Waterford, to the Ring of Kerry and Sligo. Hotels are 3 or 4 star, and dinner, bed and breakfast are included. There is wide choice in length – from a few days to a week. Good value is paramount – there is excellent choice under €300, and most longer tours abroad are priced under at €700. PAB also offers a variety of UK tours with good choice in Scotland. It’s Holyhead departures for the UK, and the Lake District, Blackpool, Scarborough, down to Devon and Cornwall and Bournemouth. Folkestone has a Eurostar option for an added French break.

 

These tours are ideal for those who want to avoid air travel. Germany’s Rhine and Heidelberg are available via Britain as a landbridge. European Shrines are popular, but use an air connection. There are also flights to Austria – for a Sound of Music tour, and to Germany, Rome, Sorrento, and Madeira.

 

PAB   Dublin - Tel. 01 8733 411 Cork – 021 427 1932     www.pabtours.com

 

Sunway offers a wide range of Escorted Tours, operated by top international company, Trafalgar Tours. Sightseeing and unique experiences are highlighted – and the choice ranges from 7 to 27 days. They’re not joking when they claim that ``we’ve got the world covered.’’ Europe, UK, Egypt, North Central and South America, South Africa, China, Australia and New Zealand. Hotels range from downtown and midtown locations, right up to De Luxe Super. Deals are excellent, such as the 10 day Discover Australia trip. There are also classic American trips - `Route 66’ is on offer, and there is also plenty for train buffs. `Contrasts of Italy’ and `Contrasts of Switzerland’ uses trains for connection, and there also deals on Rocky Mountaineer.

 

Sunway   Tel. 01 288 6828      www.sunway.ie

 

With a wide range of mid priced tours available – good four star hotels are used, along with scheduled flights from Ireland, there is plenty of choice. The range of tours on offer covers Europe, to Latin America, Cuba, Japan, China, India Africa and Cuba, Japan Australia. Here also is plenty of choice for train buffs – Titan High Tours is one of the leading rail specialists, and trips on The Glacier Express and Rocky Mountaineer are also included. Some of the best choice is in North American tours, with good options in Canada, and plenty of choice in America’s Deep South. One of the most comprehensive is the 16 day California and the Golden West tour. It ticks all the boxes – including L.A. San Francisco, Flagstaff Arizona, and Yosemite.

 

Titan Hi Tours - Tour America, Tel. 01 817 3500 Cork – 021 242 9222 www.touramerica.ie

 

As one of Ireland’s leading and longest established holiday companies, you can expect an excellent offers and choice – and will not be disappointed. If you’re looking for something unusual, the `Sicily Escorted Tour’ ticks the boxes – 7 night accommodation in a four star hotel in Catania, breakfast and evening meal included, with a full day tour to Siracusa, full day tour to Mount Etna and Taormina, and a full day tour to Aeolian Islands. There is complimentary travel insurance up to 85 years of age, (conditions apply) . Dates - 5^th October, at €1049 inc for 7 nights.

 

Long haul – the 21 day trip to Australia is remarkable value, covering Sydney, Brisbane and the Gold Coast. It includes 3 nights in Hong Kong, 15 nights in East Coast Australia, including a 5 day coach tour from Sydney to the Gold Coast, plus a 2 day tour to Frazer Island. The internal flight Brisbane/Cairns is included. Dates – 6^th October to 27^th October. Price - €3744, pps, plus tax.

 

Joe Walsh Tours Tel. 01 241 0800     http://www.joewalshtours.ie

 

 

 

Topflight is famed for its Italian holidays, so unsurprisingly, Italian escorted tours are some of the best on offer, including special interest breaks. Garden lovers will especially enjoy the access on Topflight’s `Stay and Explore’ Holiday to Lake Maggiore. At €1,029 pps, incl. taxes, the tour departs Dublin for Milan, on 16^th September for seven nights, with plenty of time for your own relaxation and sightseeing.

 

There is a chance to see the three Borromean Islands. Ioslo Madre has exotic trees and flowers, and Isolo Bella is home to the Italian Gardens of the seventeenth century Borromean Palace. Lake Orta is also on the list of visits. A trip by cable car lift takes you to Mattarone, and an excursion Villa Taranto and its superb plant specimens is also included, and there is plenty of free time for your own relaxation or sightseeing.

 

Topflight   Tel. 01 240 1700 www.topflight.ie

 

 

Mention Insight Vacations to experienced travellers, and the phrases `personal service,’ ..`top hotels,` `great dining,’ and `fantastic excursions’ are mentioned. Add on exceptional sightseeing, top rail and cruise travel - and the term luxury springs to mind.

 

The new brochure for 2012 is just out, with an exciting variety of tours on offer in North America, Alaska, Mexico and Hawaii. What’s new? The 8 day `Mexico’s Colonial Cities’: 10/12 day Hawaiian Dreams, and a splendid sounding eight day tour, labelled `Southern Elegance.’ This exclusive tour visits Charleston, Savannah and New Orleans – and the world of Gone with the Wind, with plantations, mansions, carriage and trolly rides. You can live like a Vanderbilt, on the elegant Biltmore Estate, and visit the Cajun swamps in New Orleans.

 

Think you’ve seen the great American East Coast? Check out the deluxe Insight Gold eight day tour, `Cities of the East Coast,’ with hotels like the Waldorf Astoria in New York, and the Grand Fairmont in Washington. Good tours, local city guides, drives and great dining can be expected.

 

Good news for singles – the initials ST in the new brochure highlights dates suited to single travellers. Singles now have the option of Room Share, which means avoiding expensive single supplement hotel costs. Insight Vacations will match a single traveller with another of a similar age and gender. For the month of September, Insight Vacations are offering all readers of Senior Times €150 off per booking. This offer extends until 30^th September 2011.

 

Insight Vacations Tel. 01 775 3838 www.insightvacations.com

 

 

 

 

``Sunway are specialists in Escorted Tour Holidays, offering holiday makers a wide selection of unforgettable vacations worldwide. From start to finish, we carefully plan, arrange and co-ordinate every aspect of your trip, including flights, transfers, hotels, meals excursions and any optional extras you may require. Imagine visiting popular or exotic spots where you don’t have to book rooms, plan meals, find transport or stand in long lines for tickets to museums, shows and landmarks. All that is up to us, including guaranteeing you low rates for the services we provide... So dream your perfect vacation, pack and leave the headaches to us....’’

 

 

 

 

``It is our policy to make a Joe Walsh representative available to travel with each group, and ensure that the tour runs smoothly, from start to finish. Our experienced Irish representatives have lived abroad for many years, acquiring valuable knowledge on the sites. They will escort your group, and will always be on hand to ensure a truly enjoyable tour....Our escorted tours include an abundance of guided tours and excursions and remain great value for money.’’

 

 

 

``Our stay and explore holidays include flights with generous baggage allowance, transfers from airport to destination, top class 4/5 star hotels on H/B and 3 interesting excursions, plus the services of a Topflight representative. Customers have nothing to worry about, all needs are taken care of, and thanks to our relationship with our suppliers on the ground, we have negotiated the best prices at preferred hotels by Irish travellers. Guests travel with like indeed customers, and Topflight representatives on the ground are on hand to provide the best possible service...

 

 

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