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Shifting Tour Model -

JaneP

I've been looking at itineraries for future travel and it appears that Tauck is shifting from a fully all-inclusive trip to a model with 2 meals per day and more free time. In a number of the European itineraries there was only breakfast provided on some days and rarely did there seem to be three meals a day. I wondered if they were "Roamifying" the "regular" Tauck travel and it does appear to be more of the Roam style with fewer meals and more free time. And that's fine...just an adjustment if you have traveled with them before. I know on some past trips it felt like we got so much food...but, I think it's risky leaving people to find meals on their own in countries where food security is iffy like Peru and India to name a few. I like having full itineraries because it often feels like when they give us "free time" its hard to gauge when you will arrive back at the hotel (for example) and how long we really have...timed tickets can be a problem when things change. As they say, "change is the only constant in life..."

Comments

Mimitravels

We have noticed the same thing. Not sure why it's changing as far as the meals, cutbacks? customer feedback? We don't mind meals on our own as it gives a chance to try things that others may not be interested in, but I agree it may make it difficult for some guests. I think all meals should be offered, but if you choose to do your own thing, that's fine as well.
Another change I noticed was the impersonal responses to the survey at the end of the tour. I have to say that after ALL the tours I've done (14) I've always gotten a letter a couple weeks after I return. I put a lot of thought into filling out the survey, addressing all the things that were outstanding and any mishaps. The last two letters I received seemed like a form letter, where my name and trip title were inserted without any reference to anything I commented on. It doesn't motivate me to put the extra thought into it as it seems it just doesn't matter anymore. Maybe I have to accept that the survey responses have been "Roamified" as well.

Smiling Sam

To some degree the number of meals provided per day is a function of where you are. If you're in a location with several options for meals then it's likely a meal or two may not be provided. Whereas if you're in a location where meal options aren't available it's more likely all of the meals will be provided.

On the more exotic tours (outside of Europe) I think a high percentage of the meals are still provided, partly for the reason I described above.

Mimi - If you haven't already, you might try putting what you wrote above into a tour comment card - about not getting personal responses, seems like it doesn't matter, etc.

Perhaps even make the comment to the Tour Director in a group setting (where other tour members hear your comment and the TD's response). If TD's start to report back this feeling, in addition to getting the feedback on the comment cards, then perhaps management will pay more attention.

British

Tauck have been doing all this for years now, it’s not a new thing. When we first traveled with Tauck, I recall almost all meals were included and that was Italy. I personally want a full agenda, but many here like the free time. It is indeed difficult to schedule other things with timed tickets especially since the pandemic and some singles are wary of having to venture out on their own…that is why tours are a good option.
Anyway, I doubt things will change back, it makes the tours seem cheaper. Tauck is definitely getting more and more high end. I’m constantly bombarded with Roam emails.
We do use other tour companies now which are genuinely all inclusive. At one time I thought I would only ever travel with Tauck.

Mimitravels

Smiling Sam - thank you for your suggestion. I have another big trip coming up early July, so I will pass on my thoughts.
British - I too thought I would only ever travel Tauck. We have two more trips coming up with them this year. Next year we are venturing away with 3 new trips and 3 new companies. Fingers crossed they all go well.

Smiling Sam

British - You're likely near the top of the list in number of tours. Lucky you.

That means that you've done most of the Tauck tours, to areas that interest you, at least once, some of them several times. It seems to me that makes finding other options, non-Tauck, more appealing regardless of the tour model changes within Tauck.

JaneP

I agree with what you say Sam, but it has changed more to the two meals a day plan more recently. And, I agree it has shifted over the last few years -- but noticeably so now (to me). The other thing that has really changed in the last. year or so is the single supplement...they always had one - but as a single I'd pay $1000-1500 more per trip and now there are several trips where as a single I pay $5000 more for a 2 week trip. I think its kind of outrageous and that I should not be penalized to that extent as a solo traveler - I know they could make more from a couple but they allow solo travelers and it simply cannot cost them more for me - I don't eat twice as much as others...the single supplement always sticks in my craw (probably because I'm the one paying it and don't think its fair to have to pay THAT much more for the same experience...but that's just me) ...and particularly since they have really increased it lately. As British says....they are now making other tour groups more reasonable and it makes me kind of sad..if friends ask me about Tauck I do warn them now about these things and I never felt I had to before. To some extent I feel like its "just a business" now and not a family's labor of love...

MikeHenderson

I'm in the camp where I'd like all meals provided. Not providing some meals forces you to go find a decent place to eat, and some of the restaurants we wound up at were not great. When you're thrown into a new area, you just don't know anything about the restaurants.

If Tauck provides all the meals and we want to skip one and go to an outside restaurant, I realize that I will have paid for that missed meal in the cost of the tour, and I'm okay with that.

Smiling Sam

Jane, I think the single supplement is driven by the hotel costs, not the food costs. The hotel charges X$ per room. I doubt they offer or at least don't offer to Tauck smaller, less expensive rooms that would be cheaper for a single (like are available in limited number on the riverboats).

If driven by hotel costs then the size of the single supplement would be driven by the going rate of hotels in any given area. In areas like Japan that probably means a large single supplement, whereas it would likely be a smaller hit in areas like India (I'm assuming hotels are cheaper on average in India than Japan).

I feel for you with the single supplement charges. Only realistic way around it is to find a traveling partner. 😁

John Q

Interesting read! I have taken 6 tours now and not sure I am 100% in on the recent trends of more free time and more meals on our own either. I too thought only Tauck when considering travel but now beginning to warm up to the idea of possible considering other companies. Would anyone be kind enough to share who else besides Tauck you use, either here or via private message? It would be appreciated.

gafly26482

Smiling Sam, I disagree that hotel cost leads to the single supplement. Hotels charge the same price for 2 adults as for 1, regardless of room size. Included breakfasts increase costs for doubles over singles. It would be interesting to know how tour costs are allocated. When single supplements exist, I suspect the couples are getting a "discount" for the lower hotel expense.

Claudia Sails

Reading this thread my initial reaction was that I hadn't seen a change in the number of meals provided. So to check if it was my memory I went thru 7 of our 8 Tauck land tours comparing my records from them with the tours in 2026/27. I didn't include Scandinavia because we just took it last year. Best of Ireland, Normandy/Brittany, and Classic Italy have exactly as many meals included now as when we took those tours. Switzerland and England/Scotland/Wales have 2 less than we got. Our Week in Scotland we got 1 more than now and Canadian Maritimes is basically the same since the tour is 1 day less than ours. Basically I'm not seeing any real change. Also that it's tours where the hotel stays are outside of town centers where you get the most meals like Best of Ireland has 32 meals included.

I have more of an issue with the move to very limited dinner menus offered. I always research the tour hotels and their restaurant menus. We used to get virtually the entire menu that all patrons are offered and now there is just the special Tauck menu with maybe 3 main choices. I can see it for lunch or group meals where they need to get us in and out on time, but not for dinner on your own. If there are plenty of local options I'd rather keep my money and make my own choices.

British

I’m sure the single supplement has gone up because they use even higher end hotels than previously so of course the rooms cost more for singles. And then that means laundry and for instance things like spa treatments cost more. I don’t need to stay in a Four Seasons.
I’ve traveled with Tauck since 2003, Believe me, meals are less and free time way more.

Smiling Sam

Gafly - hotels do charge the same for a hotel room for one or two people, but Tauck splits that cost over two tour fees for a couple vs one for a single. That means a single pays Tauck twice as much as each half of a couple to cover the hotel cost. Multiply that by the number of hotels and you get to the single supplement cost.

At least that’s the way I would do the math.

Terry from Boone

gafly26482 Said:

Smiling Sam, I disagree that hotel cost leads to the single supplement. Hotels charge the same price for 2 adults as for 1, regardless of room size.

Yes, the hotel generally charges the same for a room regardless of whether there are one or two occupants (perhaps a bit more for two if breakfast is included). But Tauck prices tours per person. So when there are two people booked in the room each pays half the cost of that room. If only one person is booked that room that one person has to pay the whole cost of the room. The "single supplement" is paying the other half of the room cost.

Smiling Sam

Terry, I believe we are in agreement.

BKMD

I am currently on the Paris, Normandy, Brittany... tour. We start day 5 shortly and this is the second day, already, with starts at 1030, and only breakfast included. It's definitely a change from the past (tour 17 for me).

Like British, I prefer the all-inclusive model. In the last 11 years, I've done 17 tours with Tauck and one with another company (I liked the itinerary better for that one tour). My next two tours, one in the Fall of this year, and another in the summer of '27 are with other companies.

Just my opinion, but I think the changes are pushing away a good number of long time customers. I've been hearing grumbling from others.

loves2travel2

I totally agree the model has changed. We started traveling with Tauck in 2012 and have completed 20 tours. They have definitely reduced the number of included meals and increased the amount of free time. Neither of which I like. I'm ok with an occasional lunch on our own if it's combined with the free time. But I want a full itinerary. I research the areas we are going to, but I didn't travel that far to figure it out on my own.

The Hope and Trust cards have just been boilerplate responses.
Tauck has shifted their focus from "word of mouth" advertising, to standard advertising. We "old timers" are not the demographic they are seeking. They need to entice a younger traveler.

I was a Brownie, and one song sticks in my head. "Make new friends, but keep the old, one is silver and the other is gold."
I spent 20 years working for a Fortune 500 company that was owned and operated by the family who created the company. They retired and the last 10 years was a revolving door of outside CEOs. There was a significant difference between the two approaches.

MCD

The solo supplement also has to cover things like bus rental and local guides. I imagine that when Tauck prices a tour, they divide those expenses among all of the expected guests, so I have to pay for my own seat on the bus plus the empty seat beside me.

JaneP

Claudia - I’m not sure looking at the same trip itinerary to see if it has changed is the right analysis - it’s looking at trends across various itineraries. For example, the Best of Ireland is a long term itinerary with 14 days and 31/32 meals. The Brittany Normandy tour is relatively new (or revamped and reintroduced) with 13 days and 24 meals - that is nearly 25% fewer meals for a similar time period and would be statistically significant in math/economic terms.

I also feel like they are chasing a younger, perhaps less demanding clientele and pushing some longer term clients away. They seem to be charging more and providing less and asking us to give more in gratuities as well. I do not intend to be stingy with TDs because they are by and large pretty fantastic, but if I have a free day or four free half days, what am I tipping on those days?

ginger_201

Tour size also matters in the cost structure. Extra-small and small groups definitely cost more. To me, a smaller group makes the travel experience both wider and deeper, second only to independent travel.

I used Tauck for the first time three months ago on their Patagonia trip (13 people). The "dinner included at the hotel at your own leisure" option works very well for me, as long as Tauck sticks with premium lodging and takes care of food and water safety in places where it's only safer to travel as part of a tour. That way we can simply relax.
With that positive experience, we came back and chose Tauck's Botswana, South Africa & Zambia itinerary (11 people) as part of my upcoming Africa trip.

Capstar

FYI .....some of the trips for 2027 (not 2026-2027) do not offer solo savings, at all!

British

I find absolutely no difference between the Tauck classic tours and their small group tours of 24. There is even more chance of their classic tours not being full. So why pay at least $1000 each for a small group you will likely get on a not full classic tour.
I have to say, I’m surprised so many people are speaking up about the changes bow,,because previously people were saying they liked free time. .
Ginger, I appreciate your contribution to the forum, but wow, you only have the experience of one tour, how much more would you have liked Tauck twenty years ago.

R_from_S

I'm not convinced that the meals issue is as widespread as some people are stating. Some of the comments simply don't align with what I'm remembering over our 19 years of Tauck tours.

My non-scientific analysis: I chose three of my Tauck tours that still have similar tour lengths and itineraries, and compared to current (2027) tour offerings.

Switzerland, Europe's Crown Jewel, 2027
Bx10, Lx6, Dx8.
Switzerland, Europe's Crown Jewel, 2017
Bx10, Lx4, Dx7.
= They include MORE meals now than 10 years ago.

Best of Ireland, 2027
Bx13, Lx7, Dx12.
Best of Ireland, 2014
Bx13, Lx5, Dx11.
= They include MORE meals now than 13 years ago.

Classic Italy, 2027
Bx13, Lx5, Dx8.
Classic Italy, 2008
Bx13, Lx5, Dx8.
= Meals are IDENTICAL to 19 years ago

I didn't include tours to Spain, Portugal, and some Asian tours because the itineraries have changed too much to allow fair comparisons. But, looking at my day-by-day schedules for these tours 10-15 years ago, they all had numerous lunches and dinners on our own, just like they do now.

JaneP

Again, comparing the same tour from different years does NOT look at shifting trends across all tours. There may be specific reasons for specific tour arrangements that do not translate company-wide. Looking at many tours from across countries, there are far more days than before that have breakfast only or breakfast/lunch or breakfast/dinner - some tours do offer more meals. You can never make everyone happy…I can thoroughly enjoy a tour but at the same time find things I would do differently. I’m sure some like more meals on their own and more free time - seems they should check out Roam because that’s the model. I hope they do not turn the “regular” Tauck program into Roam… but it feels to me like it is headed that direction.

British

Agree with you Jan. My kids in their forties fit the Roam profile but would never pay those prices. They arrange fun vacations themselves for far less just as fancy.

ginger_201

Britsh,

I've never claimed to know everything about Tauck (who cares?), and I'm always mindful to emphasize that what I share here is purely from my own experience. "WE DON'T KNOW WHAT WE DON'T KNOW" — let's be a little less judgmental.

JaneP

We're all entitled to comment and have opinions - let's not snipe at each other. I don't quite understand your comment, Ginger , that you think smaller groups make the trip experience wider and deeper? Why do you feel that way and what are you comparing it to? And, just to be clear, when I talk about meals on your own, I am not talking about the Tauck provided dinner at your leisure in the hotel dining room - I'm talking about when Tauck does not provide the dinner and you have to find/make your own reservations and pay as you go. The dinner at your leisure is still provided by Tauck.

Smiling Sam

Another data point on the number of meals provided.

The Paris, Normandy, Brittany,... tour that BKMD references above provides 24 meals - 1 on Meet and Greet day, 1 on departure day, and and average of 2 per the other 11 days of the tour (some of those have 1 per day and others have 3 per day).

The South Africa: An Elegant Adventure tour that I just completed provided 28 meals - 1 on Meet and Greet day, 1 on departure day, and 26 on the other 10 days of the tour, an average of 2.6 meals per day.

This is only one data point, but it does reinforce my conjecture that when you take tours outside of Europe (so called Exotic tours) then more meals (on average) are provided each day.

Within Europe the availability of numerous meal options are much higher than on the 'Exotic' tours. I believe this plays into the tour model as well.

Perhaps availability, ease to find and get to, etc. with respect to meals has changed in the 20+ years that some people have been touring and that plays into the model now employed vs in the earlier tours. As technology, communications, transportation, etc. evolved over those decades of travel they have impacted lots of items on a tour, not just the meal model.

kfnknfzk

I am a long-term client who has traveled exclusively with Tauck since the early 1990s. Granted, I have not taken a land tour recently because river travel works better for us as we have aged.

I did not notice a change in either free time or meals in the 30+ land journeys taken. However, we are of the opinion that free time affords us the opportunity to explore on our own, eat more regional food and experience the local culture—a more immersive experience and a delightful departure from being escorted from place to place.

All of our guided tours have either been in Europe, Canada or the U.S. Perhaps the “exotic” tours are different. Perhaps it is a perception issue. Regardless, embrace the fact that we have different likes and dislikes and that we are still able to travel.

And let us be mindful that whether an individual has taken one hundred tours or one tour, our opinions should be acknowledged and respected.

BKMD

Sam - I'm not going to contest your numbers, but in real world day 5 on this tour, we've already had 2 days that included breakfast only.

And loves2travel2 said, "Make new friends, but keep the old, one is silver and the other is gold." On a realted note, I once learned in a marketing seminar that it costs 10x as much to acquire a new customer vs. keeping an old one.

This is a bit of an exaggeration, but I don't want a tour company that only books hotels and provide transportation between cities.