small ship group atmosphere

Robin8

Thinking about doing a small ship tour. Wondering what the atmosphere is when Tauck group books only part of a ship. Will the group and non group guests share activities? Will the group eat separately in a different venue? Will there be special events that are held excluding some guests? Are any shore excursions or shuttles be shared by group and non group passengers?

Kathy18

I have done two small ship cruises with Tauck and have scheduled two more. I will answer your questions the best that I can.
The atmosphere on the ship has always been friendly. Tauck has been giving a small pin so that you can recognize other Tauck guests, however everyone seems friendly. Most people, whether with Tauck or not, say hello when passing in the halls.
Tauck has their own activities scheduled for their people. These have been in the forms of lectures about the places we would visit. There are also usually evening get togethers just for Tauck guests. The ship also has some activities for anyone to participate.
Everyone eats at the same time (7:30 on the previous cruises). Seating is at small tables where you can eat with whomever you wish. One evening four of us from Tauck sat next to a table of people from France. We had a brief conversation.
The tours off of the ship are with the Tauck director that you are assigned. Usually there are four Tauck groups. The shore excursions are done in a rotating manner so that everyone is not at the same location. On one tour as my group was leaving, we said hello to the French group that was arriving.

I hope that this clarifies your concerns. I have enjoyed the small ship cruises as you can tell since I keep returning to them. If you have other questions or if something is not clear, write again and I will answer.

Kathy