A Review by a River Cruiser
We took this tour starting on Sun, Jul 25th. After completing 3 Tauck river cruises this was our first land tour. We were nervous about the amount of bus time and number of hotel changes. For the most part, neither was a problem.
We were impressed with how smoothly the check in process was handled. Except for the Edinburgh Sheraton, in every case our bus pulled up to the hotel, the TD got out and received a stack of envelops with room keys from the hotel staff and we headed directly there. Except for the Savoy, our bags were already in our rooms before we arrived. I’m still not in love with living out of a suitcase, but packing cubes did help. Our impressions of the hotels on the tour:
- Edinburgh Sheraton – very modern, seriously confusing light panels, the best breakfast buffet
- Lake District Langdon – beautiful buildings and setting, dinners excellent (Sticky Toffee pudding – yum), read the room safe directions BEFORE using, spa/gym needs work
- Oxford Randolph – great location, lovely room, confusing upstairs layout i.e. you needed signs every time to find your room/lobby, restaurant Meh!
- Bath Francis – another lovely old bldg in a great location, fun/quirky décor, great restaurant
- London Savoy – the best of the trip – careful ordering at breakfast – they believe in giving you your money’s worth
Yes, there is a fair amount of bus time especially on the days between hotel stops. But our TD did a good job of keeping us entertained and educated on what was to come. This was also our first experience of the Tauck bus rotation plan. It’s not a bad idea, although it might need some tweeking. I believe it was back 1 row on the driver’s side and up 2 rows on the door side. We were a small group (29) and actually did not get a chance to sit next to everyone.
We enjoyed pretty much everything on the itinerary. Some more than others in part due to cool and/or rainy weather. The best was probably the day we spent touring Stonehenge followed by lunch in the Bath Pump room then a tour of the old Roman Baths. For both tours we were provided with the audio devices where you punch in the # and listen to the recorded info. Tauck guides are great, but we really enjoyed being able to go at our own pace. Was surprised at how much we enjoyed the tours of Blenheim and Windsor. Our least favorite was dinner with the former MP, although the food was outstanding. I’ll never deride mushy peas again.
Will we take another land tour? Not sure, but this gave us a good impression of them.
