Welcome to Tauck’s Cruising the Land of the Rising Sun – Southbound Forum

Tauck Emily

Welcome to Tauck’s Cruising the Land of the Rising Sun – Southbound Forum- Find the answers to your trip questions, answer questions posted by fellow travelers, plus share your Tauck experiences and stories. Stop by often and join in on the discussions.

jdurkin

Hi Emily,

I'm really interested in this new itinerary … but the web page has mysteriously eaten all the departure dates and pricing information … for both north and southbound trips. The information did appear briefly yesterday, for just the northbound journey, but now … nada. Gotta luv those web cookie monsters!

Cheers,

Jan

AlanS

They are probably not done making some sort of revision. That happened last year when they changed a few hotels on the Ultimate Alps tour just as I was getting ready to make a reservation.

What gets me is that more departure dates start appearing on the calendar later in the cycle. I worry I could possibly lose my second choice of departure if I wait for a specific date (from last year) to be added to this year's calendar. I don't know for sure, but it doesn't appear Tauck adds more small group departures, either.

jdurkin

AlanS wrote:

What gets me is that more departure dates start appearing on the calendar later in the cycle. I worry I could possibly lose my second choice of departure if I wait for a specific date (from last year) to be added to this year's calendar. I don't know for sure, but it doesn't appear Tauck adds more small group departures, either.

You make a good point, Alan. I guess from Tauck's point of view, by releasing a small number of early departures, they can estimate their financial break even point early (and then decide whether or not to increase departures) and they satisfy those travellers who want or need to team departure dates with the purchase of long haul international flights. They often need to be purchased up to 12 months in advance. Of course, these early date releases are often not the optimal ones for individual travellers. Like you, I wish there were more small group dates in the first release. You wait for a departure date to suit you better and then you lose out on the small group date. Or miss out altogether. Just think how hard it is to combine different tour dates way in advance. And then try and get 2 small group departures that will dovetail. That both have solo occupancy available! Without a perpetual calendar on my Apple, I'd never be able to plot anything! Not that I'm very successful at doing that, anyway! I can't tell you how many trips are on my list but I'm not going to travel half way round the world for a single 6 day (effectively) trip. It's not worth the effort, and cost, of the airfare for anything under 3 weeks at least. Short business trips are one thing … sure don't indeed to do that for pleasure!

Iceland is proving my biggest challenge. It's really hard to find something that will actually combine with that one. And believe me, I really do know how to use an atlas along with that perpetual calendar. One day I'll get there, probably on the way to somewhere else entirely!

Cheers,

Jan

British

Hello Alan and Jan, I had the good fortune of visiting Japan twice over twenty years ago when my husband travelled there for business frequently, he was even offered a job there but we did not want our children to have to potentially go back to school in England and the family separated. But they got to visit too and my husband spent several months there on and off. It is a fantastic country to visit. Of course when I went I had done far less travel than I have now, but it is still one of my favorite places but of course way down on my husband's priority list. It is a very safe country, I even braved a train ride with the children to the most amazing aquarium I have ever been to in Osaka, to see a huge whale shark was awesome. The temples and shrines and gardens are unforgettable. We stayed with a Japanese colleague of my husbands for several days, I can't tell you how many times I forgot to change my in home foot ware for the bathroom foot ware and had to run back and change before the family saw me. When I got back to England I bought a rice cooker like I had seen in their home and still cook rice in one. Our home has many Japanese souvenirs, I particularly like Kokeshi dolls, they are a really nice thing to being back as gifts-- carved wooden dolls in many types of decoration.
I stayed in some kind of Monastery up in the mountains with an international women's group one time, bathed ind a traditional bath house, stark naked with all the Japanese women sitting on a low three legged stool and drying myself with the provided minute towel. I ate food that looked so strange, having no idea how it might taste, but it was lovely. We got back to Osaka and an American on the trip took me into a Hard Rock Cafe by the station, it was like stepping into America for half an hour.
So too many memories to recount here, you will love Japan, would love to go back