Italy tours

Old Sep 15th, 2014, 06:57 AM
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Italy tours

What is the most reliable site for reviews of tours of Italy? My sister and a friend (both seniors) want to visit Italy and this will probably be her only trip there and she wants to see the major sights. There is a Perillo tour that uses first class train between cities that seems best for them.

(I know that 98% of the people here are independent travelers and eschew tours.)

Thank you in advance.
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Old Sep 15th, 2014, 08:26 AM
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I wouldn't base the tour decision on whether they are using 1st class on the fast trains in Italy since there isn't much difference between 1st and 2nd on those trains. Seats are three across instead of two with a nicer fabric and you get a free snack/drink. Do they want to take trains? There are lots of tours that use buses and load the luggage for you. The ones that use trains usually are more package deals than tours.

What do they want to see? What kind of budget? How mobile are they? Some tours will have better located hotels than others (some can be 45 minutes or more from the actual city they claim to be visiting).
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Old Sep 15th, 2014, 08:45 AM
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To answer your question, TripAdvisor has reviews about Perillo Tours, but I'm not sure how useful the reviews are. You'll get the typical "Oh, the tour was wonderful" and the "The tour was terrible."

If I were taking a tour, I would research:

The hotels listed in the tour. Operators often will tout them as "5 star," a meaningless designation. Use TripAdvisor or other sources to gauge the hotels.

The itinerary. Does it match what you're looking for, in terms of stops and available time at each stop?

Transportation. Bus? Train? And how is baggage handled?

Cost. Simply divide the number of days into the total cost to get a per-day sum. Does it seem reasonable?
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Old Sep 15th, 2014, 08:55 AM
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Agree that 1st class in the train may mean nothing. Who has to take care of the luggage? How far from the center are the hotels? What sights are included versus optional extras? What about meals?

And most important - what are the times of the trains. Getting on a bus leaving at 8 am is bad enough. But if they have to make 8 am trains (and who gets them from hotel to station?) it will mean being up even earlier.

If they have the money Tauck or similar is a cut above Perillo - which operates a variety of budget and moderate tours. I only know one couple who went with Perillo and they were very disappointed with the food - but I guess it depends on what you expect. (They are picky eaters and at some meals couldn't find anything they would eat.)
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Old Sep 15th, 2014, 08:56 AM
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I would look at Road Scholar tours.

They need to determine their criteria and then choose a tour. What are they looking for? A particular number of days in each location, top notch hotels, good food, excellent guides would be some ideas to narrow down the search.

I would not choose a tour based on 1st class trains between cities.

I take tours sometimes when the tours go where I want to go. That is my first criterion.
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Old Sep 15th, 2014, 08:59 AM
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I assumed the Perillo tours were all by bus. Do you have a link to the specific tour involving trains?

~Liz
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Old Sep 15th, 2014, 09:57 AM
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For what its worth, we used Trafalgar on our first trip to Italy and they were very good. We got to see Rome, Venice, Florence, and Lake Garda on a seven day trip. While we were able to cover a lot we were also on the move quite a bit, and all of our trips since have been on our own so we could soak in the atmosphere of where we were staying.

These tours were with a very experienced tour guide who did a very good job of keeping us all informed and on schedule, as an example, we were dropped off right at the Vatican just before the Pope was to come out.

Be aware that they have several tour options, from a relaxed pace to fairly aggressive pace.

Hope this helps, and enjoy your trip!
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Old Sep 15th, 2014, 10:27 AM
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Trafalgar, Insight (high end of Traflagar), Globus, Perillo, Collette are all reliable coach tours.
You can google Italy escorted tours and come up with many more.
Alot depends on budget and also physical shape of both and where they want to go.
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Old Sep 16th, 2014, 01:46 AM
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Thank you for all your responses:

The criteria:

They want to see at least Rome, Florence, Venice
They wish to spend approx 2 weeks on the tour
The money will not be an object unless extravagant.
They do not wish to move that often.
Perillo specifically cites 1st class trains between Rome and Florence and Florence and Venice.
The more the tour handles their luggage, the happier they will be.
For lack of a a better criterion, 4 star hotels would be fine, 5 star unnecessary.
As far as food is concerned, I think for the most part, they would be content with most meals included. As noted they have never been to Italy and are only familiar with Italian-American cuisine but rarely go to an Olive Garden.
They would like guided tours most of the time.
They do not want If Its Tuesday type of tours.

I will tell her that the bus tours are comfortable and comparable to the trains.

We will look at Roads Scholar, Insight, and Tauck.
_____________________

We have been to Italy three times and have been traveling independently for over 40 years and I have no idea which tour companies are better overall or for specific aspects, since we have never been a tour that lasted more than a day. Although we have traveled extensively by train in other European countries, in Italy we have always rented once we leave a major city or used a inter-city bus for our own day trips.
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Old Sep 16th, 2014, 03:00 AM
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Hi IMDONEHERE

"They want to see at least Rome, Florence, Venice." These cities will be visited in just about all major tours of Italy.

"The money will not be an object unless extravagant." Good, so any offering with "cost saver" or the like is to be avoided.

"We will look at Roads Scholar, Insight, and Tauck." Good choices.

"The more the tour handles their luggage, the happier they will be." That will be no problem. They will leave their luggage outside their door about 45 minutes before departure time each morning. Their bags will be delivered to their room usually within 15-20 minutes when they arrive at the next hotel. No tipping necessary.

Hope they have a great time....
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Old Sep 16th, 2014, 06:36 AM
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Can you provide a link for the Perillo tour? I don't see any tours that are by train unless you click over to their independent tour section. The Perillo website rolls over to Italy Vacations. In these independent travel trips, they would be transferred to the train station, but it seems they would have to get their own luggage to their train (I really doubt they would go in the train station with them) and on/off the train. I think before they commit to a tour with trains, you need to make sure of exactly what's provided on luggage transport.
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Old Sep 16th, 2014, 04:43 PM
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I think they need to look very carefully into the itinerary - although every trip would hit Rome, Florence and Venice - but how many other places will it go - and how many days will they have in the places they want to see most.

Might be better off with a package deal like Gate 1 that let's them pick their own hotels for as many nights as they want and provide transfers and allows them to buy what day by day tours that they want.
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Old Sep 16th, 2014, 06:15 PM
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My parents are 79 and 81 and did this Trafalgar tour of Italy this past summer. https://www.trafalgar.com/usa/tours/...ly/summer-2014 This was their 4th Trafalgar tour and they really enjoy their tours and speak highly of the guides. They especially enjoy the interaction with the group. They also sign up for just about all the optional activities as they like to keep busy and don't really enjoy time on their own.

This trip was all by bus-- no trains.

Kathy
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Old Sep 16th, 2014, 06:46 PM
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Thank you all for advice and experience, it has been extremely helpful. Will take a look at them.

Here is the Perillo tour that uses trains.

http://www.italyvacations.com/vacati...-italy-10-days
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Old Sep 16th, 2014, 08:45 PM
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Awful lot of free time on that tour, doesn't sound much different than a Gate1.

You say senior, but that covers a lot of ground. How energetic are they? Can they pack light and handle their own luggage? I'm a senior and if I actually wanted a tour for Venice-Florence-Rome I'd take this one, but you need to be fit: http://www.ricksteves.com/tours/ital...-florence-rome
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Old Sep 16th, 2014, 11:03 PM
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I do not know my sister's friend, but some days, my sister has trouble walking around for extended periods of time, other days she is fine.

After reading the basic requirements of the Rick Steves tour, it does not seem like a good fit for them.
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Old Sep 17th, 2014, 06:50 AM
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A lot of seniors do go on those tours, but they are certainly not for everyone, which is why I asked. However, before they sign up for any tour, they might should read this cautionary tale:
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ircle-tour.cfm
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Old Sep 17th, 2014, 08:41 AM
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>>>Here is the Perillo tour that uses trains.>>After reading the basic requirements of the Rick Steves tour
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Old Sep 17th, 2014, 11:48 AM
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Looking carefully at this tour - but I would call them and ask - it sounds like a driver drops the travelers at the door of the train station - and leaves them to find the train and get their luggage on in the first city and off in the second city.

You need to determine if this "private driver" is a bus driver taking a number of people and that someone will be in the station to guide them to the train and deal with luggage (doesn't look like it) or this is just a cab driver and travelers need to cope from the door of the station (not saying they can't - but if so - why do a package?).

Also - exactly how fit the travelers are is a big issue - since hauling groups around by bus usually requires more walking than independent travelers taking taxis.
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Old Sep 17th, 2014, 02:07 PM
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Thank you again for your suggestions.

As noted I do not my sister's friend nor her level of fitness or energy. My sister's ability to walk long distances varies from day to day.

The tour model where the traveler places her luggage by the hotel door appeals to her.

I looked at Untours but I think she would like security of a guided tour. She will take a look at Insight, Tauck, Gate 1, and Roads Scholar and see which one she is most comfortable with.

I read some of the Grand Circle Saga as it unfolded. Although I have never been on a tour, I simply assumed, it was most a disagreeable situation that can happen with any service organization.
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