Switzerland: Crown Jewel- August 26, 2018

Bonnie Gordon

My husband and I are on this tour and I would love to chat with others on the same trip. This will be our first Tauck tour and first group tour after traveling independently for many years. We're very excited to try this tour and after reading all the reviews, I know we'll be in for a great time with incredible scenery. We are coming in a day early and staying at the same hotel in Montreux. We are also staying 2 nights extra in Lucerne and will do a day trip by train to Zurich for one of those days.
Bonnie & Steve

SisterMM

I can’t compare the experience of traveling independently to taking a group tour. We have taken several Tauck “land journeys” so I will share my thoughts from those experiences. Over the years, we’ve heard many comments comparing the convenience of cruising to a motor coach tour. For some, putting luggage away and unpacking one time as compared to changing hotels every 2-3 nights is seen as a plus for cruising. We have considered Tauck river cruising and may take one in the future, but for now, we prefer the more “immersive” experience of staying in a centrally located hotel where we can take advantage of the free time to explore on our own. Tauck arranges for baggage to be picked up from inside your room so no worries with luggage sitting out in the corridor.

Although my husband rarely remembers the hotels we stay in, I consider Tauck’s selection of accommodations as one of the reasons it would be difficult to consider traveling with a different tour company. As the saying goes, location, location, location! From classically, elegant grand hotels right in the center of town to amazing, unique resorts in the countryside or overlooking the water, the hotel/resort selections are top notch.

From our experience, the Tauck tour director is the key ingredient to the success of the tour. We have been fortunate to tour with outstanding tour directors. I’m sure there are occasional tours when a new, less experienced director might not offer quite the same experience. The task of keeping 35-40 people on schedule requires organization and attention to detail and the best directors possess those skills.

Another big plus with Tauck tours...nice travel companions. With few exceptions, we have enjoyed meeting and traveling with very pleasant people. On the rare occasion when someone was less than pleasant, our tour directors dealt with the situation in a professional manner to insure the comfort of the entire group.

We are looking forward to experiencing the Crown Jewel of Europe. When I talk with friends who still travel independently, I realize we see way more with Tauck than we would on our own. That works well for us.

Bonnie Gordon

Thank you for your thoughtful response. I think this Tauck tour will be a good fit for us and set the tone for our future travels. I'm excited to try something new and after our last few land trips, it will be a pleasure not to handle our luggage or navigate the roads. Are you on this tour?

travelingirl

Hi Bonnie: I am on this tour and also arriving a day early. I am leaving out of WDC. Would be happy to meet up with you the day before. LMK. I am thinking of doing a 3 hour tour somewhere or open to suggestions. Best, Lynda

Bonnie Gordon

Hi Lynda. We are flying out of MIA and won't be arriving in Montreux till late afternoon on Saturday. We plan to do our sightseeing on Sunday. I'm not sure what we're going to do yet. At the very least I would like to take a boat ride to the town of Vevey, which is close by to Montreaux. I also want to plan some time in Montreaux, and I'm not sure how much time I'll have the day before, when I arrive. I found this pdf file, which gives a wonderful description of the Montreaux Riveria, Lavaux vineyards, and all the surrounding areas and how to reach them. It's a good read, however, very long. It might give you some ideas of what to do and see.

http://static.montreuxriviera.com/16ac204d429c89ef99716b6930291daba30a2570.pdf?1507897199&_ga=2.210614557.965171759.1508101281-1207791519.1508101281

I saw on trip advisor that the hotels in Montreaux offer all guests a Montreaux Riveria Card which offers free local transportation by bus and train and maybe boats? The conceirge can most likely explain it better. Nice to meet you.
Best, Bonnie