Tracy

I am still trying to decide which tour company to go with on a China/Yangtze river trip. Is there any one of the major tour companies that normally has smaller group sizes than the rest? I have heard that the companies themselves are sometimes less than truthful about how many people are going on each tour, does anyone have first hand information they could relay? Thanks for any info, you can e-mail me directly at [email protected]. I made an Excel spreadsheet that lists tour comanies and all major details along with prices for this trip this fall, if anyone would like a copy let me know!

bbb

Go with a company that specifices in writing their maximum group size. Once the comitment is made in writing, they can't backtrack, or you can go to bbb to file a complaint. Over the years we have travelled with many credible companies such as A & K and Adventures Abroad, we were never disappointed because they always delivered what they promised.

carol

Went with OAT (Oversea's Adventure Travel) to China, Tibet & Bali--there were 10 in our group (8 to Bali)-- their largest group is 16.

bbb

There you have it Tracy. It's a waste of time asking around here. Go check with the companies you listed. I've done some work for you - China Focus never promises small group size and it is not fair for us to ask for that considering their price is so much lower than anybody else's. You get what you pay for.

LEANNA

I had 9 people including me on a recent Pacific Delight tour of China and YR. It was one of the upscale PD tours.

Vicki

Laurus Travel guarantees a maximum group size of 20. <BR>We are booked on the September 2 China Panorama tour and the company has been excellent at updating me on exactly how many people are booked on it every time I have asked.<BR>I would highly recommend them.

gail

We did China and the Yangtze River cruise with Pacific Delights - 14 in our group. Hotels and guides were awesome. The ship was from the Regal Line called the Princess Elaine. Very satisfied with all they did for us. We also did Hong Kong, Bali, Singapore and Bangkok with them. On that trip we had a total of 12. Very satisfied with that as well. We used Smartours for Australia and New Zealand -group of 34. We were not happy with our tour director at all. Hotels and bus drivers were great though. Hope this helps you decide. <BR><BR>PS Just booked Borneo and Penang Island with Smartours - 20 in our group so far.

Norm

We have gone with both "Pacific Delight" and smarTours. We had a great time with both. I do not remember the exact number of people on each tour, but I believe there were 30 or more on the smarTours tour. They are a great bargain in proce so you cannot expect them to have small groups. I do not mind 30 or so. One can make new friends and enjoy visiting with the group. It seems as if the tour with Pacific Delight to China was about 20-24 people. We had a great time!

steven

We were 11 people on a Pacific Delight Deluxe tour with the yangste River Cruise etc. 2 guides. Highly recommended.

Susan

Hi, we are going on a 22 day Panorama trip with Laurus Travel. <BR>The maximum number of people is 20 except on two trips which they<BR>specify.<BR>We chose this Canadian company because; they limit the group size, they go down stream on the Yangtze River, include items that other companies charge extra for and for us they went to two places that were on our must do list - Dali and Lijiang. Lijiang is a UNESCO Cultural<BR>city and has a culture unique to that area as with Dali. For the cost of the trip we found it a "great buy." Transportation in China is expensive and we are going to many places.<BR>The contact person I have consistently spoke with is Julius. I have found him to be knowledgeable, friendly and very responsive. http://www.laurustravel.com <BR>If you have any questions please write and I would be curious to see<BR>your spread sheet.<BR><BR>