In order to end up with the perfect coach tour for you, you have to clearly understand what you are looking for and what options are available to you. This is done by researching in two areas.
Firstly, you research the market to find out what kinds of coach tours are available, familiarizing yourself with the different features, styles and price ranges etc. Secondly, you examine your own unique requirements in a coach tour.
Research the market: Coach Tour essentials
The first part of the research step is to investigate just what's available in the coach tour market. The range of options can seem daunting, but you can make a good start by understanding the following major features:
Length of trip: You can take a coach tour of a single city, or an extended tour of another country. The length of the trip helps determine its cost.
Itinerary: Each coach tour should list all the stops made during the day at various sites. Each overnight stop should include a description and rating of the hotel in which you will stay. The meals that will be covered in the price should be mentioned, along with the meals you will buy on your own. Free time in any location should be specified. Any special events, such as a champagne reception or a skiing evening, should be mentioned.
Amenities: Buses or coaches vary greatly in the amenities they offer. Some offer comfortable reclining seats with lots of legroom. Others may be more cramped. Some buses have seats with individual monitors for movies. You will want to investigate whether they have on-board toilets as well as air conditioning.
Lodging: Tours offer a wide range of overnight accommodations. Some tours offer lodging in hostels and bed-and-breakfasts. Others make arrangements with hotels in a certain price range. Ask for the names of places you will stay. Then you can obtain information about them on the Internet or through your travel agent.
Traveling Companions: Many tours are designed to cater for specific age groups such as senior citizens or young people. You might want to travel with people your own age, or to enjoy the viewpoints and interests of several different age groups.
Free time: All tours allow some free time for shopping. But if there are sites you look forward to which are not listed on the itinerary, be sure you can have free time in which to see them.
Versatility: You can purchase a tour that includes all lodging, most meals, and the admission price for many of the sites you will visit. These package tours are more worry-free and require less planning on your part. In many places you will find “hop on, hop off” tours. You can leave the tour bus for a length of time to explore on your own, and then rejoin the tour itinerary with another bus. You can also plan your own tour. Many tour bus operators will tailor-make a package for a small group (you will probably travel in a van, rather than a full-size motor coach). For the utmost in flexibility, you can charter a bus and driver and go as the spirit of travel moves you.
Experience: A smoothly run bus tour is a pleasure. But if you are constantly late to your hotel, or miss sight-seeing opportunities, then you are not getting what you paid for. You need to know not only the overall experience level of the tour bus company, but also the experience level of the driver and the guide. Be sure that experience is directly related to the tour you will take. You don't want to be the guinea pig for an untried itinerary.
References and Reviews: You can learn about the quality of the coaches, the knowledgeableness of the guides, and the reliability of the driver through references and through on-line reviews. Take notice the date of the review to be sure that it is current and that the same conditions still apply. A coach that was new ten years ago might be pretty dilapidated if it is still in use.
Price: Coach tours vary widely in price. Better hotels can easily double the price of an economy tour.
Research your needs: Questions to ask yourself
Now it's time to determine what your requirements are in a coach tour. For example, will you use the coach tour only for a short trip en-route to somewhere?
You can start this process by considering the following questions - as well as any others you think of yourself - and recording your answers.
| Have I had a coach tour before? |
| | If you have, work out what you did or didn't like about the tour. You may be looking for one exactly like it, hoping to upgrade, or even trying to avoid any particular features that you found inconvenient. |
| How much time will I spend on the tour? |
| | Remember to include any travel time to and from the point of departure. If you're traveling overseas, you will need to factor in the time it takes to travel there. This could influence how much time you actually spend touring. |
| What sort of sights do I want to see? |
| | You might want to see nature in the countryside or you may prefer to spend your time in cities, touring museums and enjoying the nightlife. By determining this you can make more decisive decisions about the tour you choose. |
| Do I want a special interest coach tour? |
| | Some choices may be history, art, shopping, water painting, geology, etc. Tours can cater for people with special interests, and take you to places that let you immerse yourself completely in your own special interest. |
| Do I want to travel only with people near my own age? |
| | Most coach tours are organized for groups of similar ages or interests. Think about the activities you want to be involved in and consider how age differences might impact on them. |
| What do I need in overnight accommodation? |
| | You could have luxury hotels or less expensive rooms. Consider what you really need to enjoy your vacation. Do you need plush towels and bathroom slippers, or will a modest bed-and-breakfast be sufficient? Perhaps you are willing to sacrifice room comfort for spending more on shopping. |
Understanding your needs is the key to a successful purchase and you can revisit your list of needs at any time during the buying process.
Once you complete this Research step, having informed yourself about the essentials of coach tours and identified your needs, you are ready to move on to the next step: Evaluation.
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