Best Of
Re: Romantic Germany
We were on this tour in 2010. Because of the Passion Play, it was slightly different. We thoroughly enjoyed the trip and did not think that we had too much free time. I think it's good to give you free time because what I want to do is not what others may want. We walk a lot and explore using public transportation. We go into neighborhoods to see how the people in various countries live. As an example, in Munich we went to the Englisher Garten to see the people surfboarding on the river in the park. We had an ice cream cone and walked around. In Dresden we walked along the river. We prefer this to being totally scripted.
Meals are similar. If the tour provides lunch, there is no need to have an included dinner (and vice versa). In Germany you can stop at a stand and have a bratwurst for lunch without taking much time out of your explorations.
This tour includes some top notch highlights. The museums in Berlin are phenomenal. Choose the Pergamon museum. In Munich do not pass up the excursion to Dachau. It's included in the price but is listed as optional because some people do not want to go to a concentration camp. On another tour some people opted out of the visit to Auschwitz.
Any time you have three meals included you are likely traveling a distance and this is the most time effective way to set up the day. If you have a day like that followed by two nights in a specific hotel with dinner in the hotel and only breakfast the next day, you may be given the option of which night you want to have the dinner in the hotel.
I'd suggest that you get out some library books and look at what you'd like to see in the places with significant free time. You can easily craft options that are specific to you.
Take the trip an have fun!
Kathy M
Re: Certified Tauck travel agent
You basically have only two arrangements to make- book the tour and book air. Tauck takes care of EVERYTHING from airport transfers to on-tour lodging, most meals, and all activities, so unless you are planning something exotic before or after the tour there is no need for a TA. Tauck also does air, though many of us book our own air for more flexibility. Some folks like to use TA's though I don't know why (some TA's violate their agreement with Tauck and give discounts or share a portion of their commission(?). Booking a tour with Tauck is not like booking a vacation at Disney!! It is a very simple process. In nearly 20 Tauck tours we have never used a TA.
AlanS
Re: Trip Report, June 2024 Botswana, S Africa & Zambia
I just did this for the Wildlife Odyssey tour. We flew SAA into Vic Falls from Johannasburg and purchased a single visa at the airport. We crossed the border into Zambia for our stay at the Avani, a Tauck approved hotel. We booked this hotel on our own, but since it was a Tauck approved hotel, Tauck provided transportation. We changed vehicles at the border. While in Zambia we walked to the falls a couple of times and went on a safari to see the guarded almost extinct 4 Northern White Rhinos. On the grounds of the Avani are zebras, giraffes, baboons and impalas. Our tour 2 days later began at The Elephant Camp so we crossed back into Zimbabwe from Zambia. This time we purchased a double visa at the border and did not have to change vehicles at the border. We purchased a double visa because the tour returned to Zimbabwe from Botswana. Some of the group had purchased a KAZA and were required to purchase a single visa when we crossed back into Zimbabwe from Botswana, which delayed our crossing.
SAdivr
Re: Grand Family Safari
Hi Polly, My family is on the same Bridges Africa trip as British. I have a 7 year old grandson who is a very picky eater so I’m happy to hear that British’s grandson is an adventurous eater. Maybe some of that will rub off on my grandson. They are both 7. The restaurants often have pasta and I remember a lot of rice and beans even for breakfast when we went on the K & T tour in 2018. Hopefully he can fill up on those things because I doubt that they will have his usual chicken nuggets. We did the balloon and it was amazing. My grandson has expressed a little concern on having to get in the basket while it is laying it’s side before it takes off but I’ve been showing him pictures and I’m sure he will be fine. It was so fun to look down at the giraffes below us. We can’t wait!
CASueK
Re: Romantic Germany
Again, if you have recently returned from this tour, would you kindly post your review.
GM
Re: Switzerland: Europe's Crown Jewel - September 2024
SueTimAltoona
June 26
. . . how you know that the hotels were switched for your trip. We are on the Sept 6 Crown Jewel trip, and we have not received any info about the trip at all.
There are several ways you can learn about or be notified if changes have been made. If a change or changes have been made before you book they will appear on the Tauck main website in a pop-up window (see below), they should also be noted somewhere on your Financial Summary which you can get to by following a link in the "Tauck Journey Confirmation" email you should have received within a few minutes of booking with a Tauck agent. Changes will also be shown in the "Journey Summary" in "My Account" on the Tauck website (not the forum website). If changes are made subsequent to booking, Tauck will send you an email. If you are not getting emails from Tauck, either Tauck has the wrong email address for you or you booked using a Travel Agent and your agent, who gets all the communications, is not forwarding them to you like they should. This happens more often than it should.
If you go to the Tauck main website > your tour pages (Switzerland: Europe's Crown Jewel) (make sure you have selected the correct year) > then select the "Pricing and Availability" tab > and finally click your specific departure. You should get a pop-up window that looks like the screen capture below- Note there are a lot of changes to this tour but it looks like none affect your departure!!!
AlanS
Re: Switzerland: Europe's Crown Jewel - September 2024
We are on the Sept 1 Crown Jewel trip and received notification from Tauck about the Glacier Express and the earlier stop in Chur rather than Andermatt. We were also looking forward to the GE because it's so famous, but Tauck's notification said that the regional train would showcase the same incredible scenery. We have never been to Switzerland, so we are looking forward to lots of gorgeous scenery no matter what form of transportation.
Re: Parthenon
Believe it or not, the Parthenon in Athens is heavily restored. In 1687, the Venetians lobbed a mortar shell into it. The Turks had been using it as a powder magazine (!) and the whole thing blew up spectacularly. It remained a pile of rubble for many years, during which Lord Elgin (then ambassador to the Ottoman Empire) made off with the "marbles" (allegedly with the permission of the Ottoman Turks, but certainly to the ongoing chagrin of the Greeks). It was later rebuilt over many years, but a portion of what you see today was replaced with new stone.
Re: Grand Australia and NZ--days 9 and 15
Debi -- I flew from Boston to Melbourne via San Francisco and Auckland to Boston via Denver on United first class for continental flights and Polaris business class for trans-Pacific flights. The Polaris flights were great; the first class, very good. I wouldn't hesitate to do them again. (I just checked the United website. It looks like the one-stop return flights are all either through LAX or SFO now.)
MCD
Re: Grand Australia and NZ--days 9 and 15
Debi - We went in March and the weather was just great. Nice sunny days. Unable to help or make suggestions regarding airlines as we live in Tucson but we were able to fly on United using miles for first class. This would be impossible today!
Noreen