Tour companies for National Parks (Western)

Unfortunately, I can't answer your question about a specific tour, but I'm going to give you some unsolicited advice. Skip the tour and break this into smaller trips. My children are close in age to yours and they would hate being cooped up on a bus with most likely a bunch of grandparents. I looked over the itinerary for GoAhead Tours and it really is a drive-by tour.

My family has been to all of the places on this tour (except Monument Valley) and what makes these places so special is getting out of the bus or car and exploring. One day in Yellowstone won't even scratch the surface, especially on a tour guide's schedule. It is easy to spend days walking the geyser basins, watching the mud pots, discovering wildlife, attending ranger programs and taking short hikes.

What does the Mesa Verde tour actually entail? The itinerary mentions "viewing" the cliff dwellings, but does it include a ranger guided tour into the cliff dwellings? Climbing ladders into the dwellings and and crawling through short tunnels was a highlight for my children.

www.nps.gov/meve/planyourvisit/guided_activities.htm

I've seen the tour buses at Yellowstone, Zion & Bryce. Most make a stop at the main attractions, the passengers hop out and take a few pictures, get back in and then it is on to the next destination. You'll view the highlights but you really won't see anything.

If this is what you really want to do that is fine, but $10,000 is a lot of money to spend on a trip when you may only see a little of each park. Maybe you'll consider some other options.

Good luck.

AdventureBus does a "Best of the National Parks" tour that covers the following in approximately two weeks time:

-start in Salt Lake City, 1 day
-Zion, 1 day
-Bryce Canyon, 1 day
-Grand Canyon North Rim, 1 day
-Monument Valley, 1 day
-Arches, 1 day
-free day, Moab UT, 1 day
-return to Salt Lake City, 1 day
-Yellowstone, 2 days
-Grand Teton, 2 days
-free day, Jackson WY, 1 day
-return to Salt Lake City, 1 day

Note that this is a "roughing it" tour to some extent, as:

-you sleep outside or lying down in the bus (the latter sometimes while being driven overnight to a destination), not in a hotel/motel.

-you shower at campsites where the bus is parked, and you get a chance to do laundry at allied facilities about once a week.

-a flashlight for after dark and a sleeping bag are a must.

-the people running the tour cook breakfasts and dinners for you campfire style.

What's really good about this tour is that you can and do get out and hike trails a good bit, and on the days off you have options to do anything ranging from from river rafting to town strolling. You don't just roll up, step out of the bus, take a couple pictures, then climb back on the bus again. Also liked the people who ran the tour -- I found them very knowledgeable, helpful, and friendly.

They have other tours as well listed on their website. Also, this two-week tour can be done as a "one or the other" single week trip. The listed price this year for the two-week version appears to be $1495 plus tax plus tip per person.

I thoroughly enjoyed the time I went (did the two week version) and would enthusiastically recommend this tour. Their website is here:

http://www.adventurebus.com/ap_home/index.asp

12 days from $2,249 - $4,500 for 2 people, are you ready to spend $9,000 for 4 people, mostly breakfasts only included.
Sorry but to me this tour looks awfully overpriced.

And it's not just the money. The Best Western at the Grand Canyon is in Tusayan - nowhere near the rim, not in a walking distance. With only one night there, it's not where you want to be. Best Western in Zion - the same, only close to the park.

I was on a similar only budget tour with Cosmos. Being a budget tour, it had more young people, not just 60 and over.

I would keep looking, depending on how much you can spend. I found "AffordableTours" website helpful where you can sort the tours by budget, first class, luxury.

If you have fun and intersting family trips the kids will always want to come. We have found that no matter how old they are - pay and they will come.

mdv86,

If you take your kids on this tour, they will want to stop spending time with the parents much, much sooner! That's as nicely as I can possibly put it.

As suggested, spend much less, drive yourselves and cut the destinations in half. You will all love it!

I agree. Don't spend all your time driving (whether you or on a bus). Pick 2 or 3 spots and you can find enough there to do over 10-14 day period.

I would do a 4 corner trip (arches/canyonland/Mesa Verde/Monument Valley, if you are doing it early in the summer. July and August is hot.

I would do Grand Tetons/Yellowstone/Mount Rushmore/Wind Cave/Badlands or Grand Tetons/Yellowstone/Glacier after June 15.

Yosemite/Sequoia/King Canyon is another possibility after june 15.

Zion/Bryce/Grand Canyon is another great possibility.

Really do your homework on hiking and things to do. Get you lodging ASAP whatever you decide to do.


Spend quality time in each park. I would imagine the tours are hit and miss(mostly miss). I can give you a list a mile long for things I have done in the parks and things I want to do.

Agree w/ almost everything said above. IMO, that would be a deadly awful trip w/ 11 and 14 yo's. Just dreadful. Think about it -- hours and hours in a bus seat almost every single day. A lot (LOT) of money for the privilege of having your bags out in the hallway at 7:00 or 8:00 every morning. How do your kids deal w/ very early starts every day?. You get to see some of the sites from the moving bus - w/o even stopping/getting off. Note in tour brochure-ese -- "see" means exactly that. Not "visit".

If you don't like driving - then cut the destinations in half or more and concentrate in parks that are nearer each other.

(I am not always anti-tour BTW. But families w/ kids don't fit that well on many tours. They are either aimed at seniors and the kids could be bored silly - or they are aimed at young adults and you might not enjoy the party scene)

I agree that you can see these wonderful sites on your own with a better time had by all. You can do what you want, when you want. Tour packages are great for some people, perhaps seniors and those who may have physical limitations, especially a drive by tour which lets people see the sites but not actually get involved.

If you are going to go ahead with this -- or something similar, you may be better to fly into Albuquerque. There are few flights into Santa Fe.

Deb

Since you don't want to do a bunch of driving, I would choose fewer parks with more time in each to give everybody plenty of time to see the sights without too much forced togetherness

Thanks all for the recommendations/advice. I asked, and was told by the Tour Operator, that my kids would definitely be the youngest in the group and my wife and I probably the next youngest. That doesn't sound appealing at all--to me or for the kids. I think I will definitely look into driving it ourselves and visiting fewer parks, closer together (distance-wise) and spend more time at each.
Thanks again,
Mark

Good decision!

(It is good the tour company was honest w/ you. Otherwise you might have had a rude awakening at the welcoming reception )