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What has your expirience been?

Katie JKatie J
in France

Hi! My name is Katie. I am really excited to be making my first international trip with Tauck. I was wondering what your expiriences have been. I will be attending the Castles and Kings tour from London to Paris. I hope some of you will be on my tour!!

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    BritishBritish
    I have been on many Tauck tours, all over the world. They have always been outstanding, and good value. We just turn up at the appointed time and Tauck does the rest. My best advice to you is to arrive in London at least two days early because you will experience jet lag going from West to east, I've been doing it for years have tried all the tricks and nothing improves the feeling. It can take about three days to switch over. London is easy to get around and there is enough to do before the tour starts that you can do at your leisure if you feel up to it. The tours are very full, so you don't want to be tired before you begin. By the way, going back home from east to west is much easier
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    jdurkinjdurkin
    edited June 2014
    Hi Katie,

    You will find that most of your group will be US citizens, and a goodly number of those will, like you, be making their first trip outside US borders. Some of your fellow travellers will only have travelled a few times, others will be very experienced travellers, like British.

    As an Australian and an experienced traveller, I travel with Tauck because they are very, very good at what they do. As tour designers, managers, wholesalers and retailers I decided that the total control Tauck had over their products was the comfort I needed. I first travelled with them to Yellowstone, figuring that Tauck would know their own territory better than an Australian company that simply retailed (in Australia) a trip wholesaled by an unknown local (American) one.

    Tauck will take care of everything for you. You could, if you wanted to, simply lie back, cocooned in your Tauck bubble, and think of home. On the other hand, you can enter into the spirit of world discovery and throw yourself headlong into the cosmopolitan experience. Eat and drink new things. Discover the wonders of well-made tea. Real scones! A Sunday roast with real gravy. Pain au chocolate to die for. Mille-feuille from heaven. You won't have to worry about not being understood, in the UK or France. Your TD can even smooth the way for you there. Soon you will be able to make yourself understood almost everywhere, except probably in Ayrshire and Cumbria. Luckily, I don't think your trip takes you there.

    You will have a wonderful time as an innocent abroad.

    Cheers,

    Jan
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    RichardbRichardb
    I agree totally with the previous two responses. Being from the UK, we had our first Tauck experience across the Rockies which was booked for us through a UK tour operator. Since then we book direct with Tauck and have done six further tours. There have NEVER been any problems. Your Tour Director will be absolutely Top Drawer and if you have even the slightest issue during the tour you should mention to the TD who will sort it for you as a priority. They are so efficient. The term "Tauck bubble" is absolutely correct. Once you have registered at the start EVERYTHING is taken care of including baggage, connections, and even arrangements to get you to your flight at the end. Just sit back and relax. You will be told where to be and when, so as long as you comply along the way you will have such a relaxed time to enjoy the experience.
    I'll bet one thing........after your first experience you will go for more in the future.
    Enjoy.
    Richard
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    BritishBritish
    Hi Richard, though we are now Americans, we have still never encountered any Brits on all our Tauck tours, just the occasional but always delightful Australian, though not Jan yet. Our last tour was India, and soon Tanzania, pushing the boat out this year for our fortieth anniversary We also always book direct with Tauck, noticed others have had issues booking through Travel agents on our past tours. Met some Tauck staffers doing a tour as vacationers once and they were the ones who lost their luggage, and guess what, they did not bring emergency clothing in their carry on. Our tour director at the time gave them 'emergency' kits that did include a t shirt, but of course they got teased. Their luggage eventually turned up
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    RichardbRichardb
    Hi British.
    I guess you are right that not many Brits "do" Tauck - they seem to prefer cheap Med sun trips. When we go with Tauck the one thing we enjoy is meeting up with our American cousins who are always so welcoming. Usually we are the only Brits on a tour, but every time we have made long term contacts with some of our fellow travellers. It is so good to keep in touch over such a long period. Like you, we have done India a couple of years ago, and last autumn we did the Grand Australia/New Zealand. Also done the Scandinavia and Switzerland.
    Never looked back and Tauck is always our first choice for a search.............once the bank balance has recouperated, but absolutely no problem with that. You get what you pay for and Tauck ALWAYS delivers excellence.
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    RJS666RJS666
    Agree with the comments about the quality of the "Tauck bubble" and how much it adds to the trip. While Katie is going on a trip designed for families with children, I'm sure the care provided will be up to Tauck's high standards.
    As for the Brits not seen on Tauck tours while Aussies are (16 on my last river cruise) it's probably a language issue: "British and Americans separated by a comment language."
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    jdurkinjdurkin
    edited June 2014
    RJS666 wrote:
    As for the Brits not seen on Tauck tours while Aussies are (16 on my last river cruise) it's probably a language issue: "British and Americans separated by a comment language."
    And we don't even realise we are bilingual until an American rolls their eyes and answers a totally different question … just like Sir H.u.m.p.h.r.e.y might experience. We know what they are saying, but it seems that unless the heard accent is totally familiar, incomprehension results.
    Katie, with kids in tow, should be multi-lingual in no time!

    Edit: The system has some hysterical parameters! :)))
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    Katie JKatie J
    Hi guys!!

    Will all of you be on the Castles and Kings: London to Paris Tour?? I would love to get to know you on it!!

    Thanks,
    Katie!!
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    BritishBritish
    Sorry, no Katie, not heading to Blighty this year, going to Africa. Have a fabulous time! Hey and when you come back let me know what you think of the country I was born in!
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    Katie JKatie J
    British-

    I definitely will!! I bet it is amazing!! I will probably love it!!

    Thanks,
    Katie

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