Anyone ever been on a tour group? Seems kind of nice. Don't have to not have to plan out an itinerary or think too much. I was looking at some of the Young Pioneers packages, not North Korea, and they look interesting.
Tour Groups
Anyone ever been on a tour group? Seems kind of nice. Don't have to not have to plan out an itinerary or think too much. I was looking at some of the Young Pioneers packages, not North Korea, and they look interesting.
I guess if you are alone you can join a tour but it would suck if everyone else on the tour knew each other so you were still alone. Still a few hours tour seems fun. I planned a couple tours, one is around the city on these scooter bikes so that's fun, the next is a short tour of castles, and the last is in a cave.
Went on a tour group to Syria as it was require, actually bumped into a young pioneers tour while I was there and they were a bunch of wankers
Why were they wankers? And what company did you use?
This was back in 2019 when tourism to Syria wasn't being pushed as hard as now
They were just the types who thought they're super unique and cool because they were in Syria, didn't really care about the place outside the bragging rights and passport stamp
Like lord miles but less autistic
Yeah. Tagged along with parents a few times. Never did it with drunken lads, but I'm sure all the issues apply just the same.
I'm never ever doing it again, and it's not even about the gross overcharging by tour companies. The first obvious issue is that every minute of your time is already scheduled. Want to stay more than 10 minutes at some amazing world wonder site? Tough luck, we need to go or we'll miss the one hour show at the ethnic dildo factory where you'll have an amazing chance to purchase authentic local wooden cocks at five times the usual price.
The other less obvious one is that you're stuck in an isolated bubble. Everyone will keep talking to you in your own language and being surrounded by a horde of people waddling behind a tour guide will reduce your interaction with the country itself to a minimum. You'll have zero idea how the train system works, what a local supermarket looks like or how the people even are. You're essentially transplanting a fragment of your own country to constantly shield you from the dirty barbarians. It's a lot like a zoo for travelling.
>It's a lot like a zoo for travelling.
Yes, but this is traveling in general. Like there's no way to pierce this veil even if you're slumming it, taking cheap busses everywhere. You're still a foreigner there to see the sites. But having to navigate like a local definitely does force some spontaneous interactions.
>ethnic dildo factory where you'll have an amazing chance to purchase authentic local wooden cocks
Where is this place?
just join a tour for a day or afternoon
but young persons tour group gives you ice breaker with girls on vacation you will repeatedly have interaction with
Is 35 too old for a young persons tour group?
Yes grandad, it is
I've been on two of them, both were pretty fun to be honest. And I was always one of the youngest ones on the group, oldest was a sexpat in his 50's, funny guy but you won't be the oldest.
- t. 27 year old fag
Tour groups always suck
I'd give them a 8.5/10. Honestly depends on the YPT tour guide you get hooked up with.
Seconding this, it's half the tour guide and half the fellow tour group members.
In the case of YPT, you will meet some interesting people in your group, both positive and negative, since their destination are rather "exotic".
Also, curb your expectations about accommodation, they stay true to their backpacker roots where you pay as little as possible for a bed and stay out as long as possible.
I was considering going to Best Korea with YTP but from the photos they have of previous journeys it look like I could either get a band of fat boomers or fellow younger people, I'm not sure which would be preferable..
Any tour to Best Korea will have feature exceptional individuals, just hope that you won't be in a group with a particular annoying person.
I haven't been on a tour group for more than a daytrip. But hate it. It's good if you're good at socializing. I'm better at it when drinking at a hostel though. I prefer to do pretty much everything alone or with someone close.
I did a couple of times. I fly/make kites as a hobby, and went to a kite festival in China. A group of us hired a tour group guide and went about the country doing touristy shit for a couple of weeks. Since we all knew each other at least a little bit before starting, that was not typical, I guess, but it worked well.
Did a "small ship" cruise in SEA, off season so the boat was only about half full. essentially a tour group, I guess -- guide from the boat took us around as a group wherever we stopped, though you had the option of fucking off on your own if you wanted to.
Worked out well both times, had fun, saw stuff, met people, therbligs minimized. Generally prefer to travel without an organized group, but different things are enjoyable at different times and places.
there's nothing better in this world than travelling alone and not being on some CUNT's schedule, be it gf you want to make happy or some group with a schedule
you ever have fun during school trips, what about work trips or teambuildings?
it sucks ASS to not have control over your time, where you eat, taking a break or not etc.
of course you might get lucky, but rather than roll the dice I urge you to try solo travel
it's another case of the freedom - safety spectrum.
Went with a tour group once to china because my uncle got sick and he rewrote the whole stuff on my name.
It was ok, I have seen a lot with a professional guide, I am pretty sure that I wouldn't be able to do such a program alone.
On the negative side I was the only young with many boomers while they were ok, they were always crying about seeing too much stuff and they are tired and shit like that.
It was great for a country like china where I don't know how to roll around and withoout google maps, but I prefer more freedom
I was a private tour guide for boomers before the coof, personally i don't think it's worth it, around 3/4 of places they take you to, you can find them yourself by googling "10 places to go in {city}", and you can learn as much or more than they're going to explain to you by googling "{place} history"
Some of them are decent and will show you a nice place to eat or drink, but a lot of them have deals with the owners to refer you there, most of times those places are tourist traps with microwaved food and expensive as fuck
Maybe the only reasons i'd tell you it'a worth it is that you want to meet people, don't know the language and not much people speak english, or you find a decently-priced private tour (~20-40 dollars for 3-5 hours is a good starting point on touristic cities, and they will ask you for tips, be aware)
>be me
>autistic speedwalker
>travelling in old city with very narrow streets
>want to get between sights/restaurants/bars quickly
>nonstop infinite number of boomer tour groups
>they're all moving at a leisurely shamble
>be tall enough to see over all of their heads and hats
>there's no visible end to the boomer tide
I once joined a group on a day hiking trip in gran canaria, the rest of the group were all germans who already knew each other so it was pretty awkward for me, mostly just stayed in silence and enjoyed the scenery or talked to the guide. although they did get a good laugh out of finding out the name of pussy willow plants
Did a contiki and it was great fun and worth it considering it was around NZ and I don't drive. Was more about experiencing new places and doing things with new friends that most of them came solo or with another mate. The most boring part were the people on the tour that were couples. If you're in some regular old tour, you'll find 90% of the people are together and you'll not have any decent interactions with them.
I actually went with YPT to Mauritania (going with them to Syria soon since I'm friends with the guide) - also did Macchu Picchu and Northern Lights hunting with G Adventures. I've also done plenty of solo travel in the first, second and third world.
Most of these replies are retarded and don't seem to know what actually happens on group tours or are deliberately choosing the shittiest. You most definitely have free time to yourself in the evenings and often the mornings - fuck sometimes you get whole days in cities to do anything you want, but in addition you have someone to share the experience with, likely someone who shares your interest since they're on the same trip as you. You are more likely to get into hijinks because your confidence has gone up since people are there to back you up. I've made friends I still contact to this day which I likely never would have made in the limited settings of solo tours. I've never been a situation where I found myself demanding more time at a site.
I've had a few people on tours I've hated and have heard genuine horror shows from others, but there's invariably plenty of people to bond with that will more than compensate. YPT is actually really fun for group tours because only really eccentric people sign up, and the guides are even more insane and willing to bribe and break the law just for kicks since they know a guy at the ministry that's going to bail their ass out if it goes south.
I do a healthy mix of both solos and groups depending on which I feel would be more enjoyable.
Tagged along on a couple Tauck tours with my parents. They were marketed for younger crowds/active outdoors but everyone was 70+ because boomers are the only ones who can afford them. Did a northern Cal national parks tour recently and it felt like checking off a list of national parks 1-2 hrs each, get a passport stamp and buy a tshirt while 3-4 hrs were spent in tourist trap shopping centers and eating. Got chastised by the guide for not being on the bus 5mins early after getting only 45 mins in Muir Woods. Otherwise the old people completely ignored me which was kind of nice
Yeah, I did a Gate 1 tour a few years ago for Peru. It was a small group of maybe 10 people so it was easier getting some 1:1 time with the guide. I loved it honestly, just having the whole schedule planned out and all the transportation/hotels planned out as well. Plus the guide was a Peruvian native and knew his shit. I think the only complaint I had was a stop near Lake Titicaca where I guess Gate 1 has a deal with a local vendor to stop by his shop for a demonstration on how they make clay pots or some shit, in hopes you'd buy something. There was zero pressure but felt like a waste of time.
I would do it again for a sketchier location like Egypt but seems like a waste for basically all of Europe and maybe Asia.
I went with YPT to Syria, it was fun. Good group of people, everyone got along well. Would recommend. Will probably go with them again to North Korea whenever it opens up, and am considering maybe another trip later this year. It is nice to travel by yourself as well though. I'd recommend having some extra time in another country to explore on your own as well.