Just completed small group Ireland - and in fact only had 18 people on the tour - but the coach was a full sized one.
Yes it did make luggage easier. After a couple of days, the TD started giving us an extra 15 minutes time before the bags needed to be ready to pick up. Most also brought down any extra bags themselves and either gave them to the driver to stow in a separate compartment or put them in an empty seat in the back.
We still do not prefer the small groups. In fact, we have met a very frequent Tauck traveler on our current tour and she always avoids tours that have large groups traveling too because of problems with either small group travel or large groups who do not mix with others.
If you want to know in advance, you have to call Tauck. One tour for us was particularly bad, there was only us and one other married couple, the rest were groups. On our one Non Tauck tour it was worse, one other couple who did not mix at all and the rest singles, all women but one, or women traveling together. We ar just ending a tour and have spent quite a bit of time with a single. She has found herself with big groups in the past and now calls Tauck before she chooses a date.
We have done three small group land tours and on only one of them was there a family of four. All of the others on our small group tours were couples or singles and not part of a large group. Maybe we have been lucky so far. We have two more small group trips booked and that format suits us to a tee (or tea)!
We did the Tuscany and the Cinque Terra trip in 2015. This is one of Tauck's Culturious trips (more active and immersive) and is only offered as a small group tour. We used a bus that was an extended Mercedes Sprinter van. It had three across seating (two on one side of the aisle, one on the other). I think this was used to get us into some areas that wouldn't be accessible to a larger bus.
We still do not prefer the small groups. In fact, we have met a very frequent Tauck traveler on our current tour and she always avoids tours that have large groups traveling too because of problems with either small group travel or large groups who do not mix with others.
Our ESW tour last year was supposed to be a full sized, sold out tour. When it started there was a family of 8 who pretty much stuck together leaving 10 other couples who had a fantastic tour together. The joys of a small group without the price.
The family sort of self isolated - which was fine - except one night when the TD made some of us shift around to a different table so that family could all sit together. I mean, god forbid they actually had to talk to someone outside their family.
I read this book a few years ago - "Best Vacation EVER!: The Highs and Woes of River Cruising in Provence by Cash Peters". He went on a Rhone cruise with a group of family/friends. It was kind of funny but by the end of the book it came through pretty clearly that he was rude and somewhat contemptuous of other passengers not in his group.
Thankfully, I've found that most other passengers are pretty friendly and willing to enlarge their circle of friends.
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Comments
Yes. We've been on five and all used standard size coaches.
Yes it did make luggage easier. After a couple of days, the TD started giving us an extra 15 minutes time before the bags needed to be ready to pick up. Most also brought down any extra bags themselves and either gave them to the driver to stow in a separate compartment or put them in an empty seat in the back.
Our ESW tour last year was supposed to be a full sized, sold out tour. When it started there was a family of 8 who pretty much stuck together leaving 10 other couples who had a fantastic tour together. The joys of a small group without the price.
The family sort of self isolated - which was fine - except one night when the TD made some of us shift around to a different table so that family could all sit together. I mean, god forbid they actually had to talk to someone outside their family.
I read this book a few years ago - "Best Vacation EVER!: The Highs and Woes of River Cruising in Provence by Cash Peters". He went on a Rhone cruise with a group of family/friends. It was kind of funny but by the end of the book it came through pretty clearly that he was rude and somewhat contemptuous of other passengers not in his group.
Thankfully, I've found that most other passengers are pretty friendly and willing to enlarge their circle of friends.