Children on Tours
Mar 23rd, 2016, 03:26 PM
#1
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Children on Tours
Hi i was wanting to find out if children aged 8,9 and 14 would be ok to do the 24 day heritage tour off europe, my children have travelled lots to Hong Kong for 2 weeks we did activities everyday and they have been to Fiji all over Australia they are early risers. any feedback on children on these type of tours would be much appreciated ???
Mar 23rd, 2016, 03:40 PM
#2
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Better rethink that. I feel sorry for any children stuck in a tour group that rushes through crowded hotspots of mass tourism at rat-race speed, and confines them to long boring hours inside a rolling box. Rather plan your own trip with activities that suit a family, less travel distances to endure, and time for play and fun in between.
Mar 23rd, 2016, 04:02 PM
#3
That would be a HORRIBLE idea IMO!
>>they are early risers.<<
Will they be early risers for 25 straight days -- no exceptions?
>>children aged 8,9 and 14<<
There will be a few mixed age adults but mostly over 50's. How will they be 25 straight days w/ no other children.
The tour will not be geared to family activities like parks. It will be hours each day on a bus, visits to shopping-centric attractions, and meals will be on the tour company's terms -- no chance to allow for alternatives.
Not fair to the kids . . . or to the other passengers.
You can likely travel much cheaper on your own rather than paying the tour cost X 5.
>>they are early risers.<<
Will they be early risers for 25 straight days -- no exceptions?
>>children aged 8,9 and 14<<
There will be a few mixed age adults but mostly over 50's. How will they be 25 straight days w/ no other children.
The tour will not be geared to family activities like parks. It will be hours each day on a bus, visits to shopping-centric attractions, and meals will be on the tour company's terms -- no chance to allow for alternatives.
Not fair to the kids . . . or to the other passengers.
You can likely travel much cheaper on your own rather than paying the tour cost X 5.
Mar 23rd, 2016, 04:51 PM
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Have you asked the tour company? Many tours ban children under the age of 12 - never mind that the tour would be torture for those kids. And however well behaved they would be - the days are just too long for kids to deal with - you are liable to find a lot of other (much older) tour members not happy with their presence.
I actually took a day bus trip from London (my last) and they turned away a couple with 2 small kids - perhaps 5 and 8 - saying the lower limit was I think 12 or 13.
I actually took a day bus trip from London (my last) and they turned away a couple with 2 small kids - perhaps 5 and 8 - saying the lower limit was I think 12 or 13.
Mar 23rd, 2016, 05:23 PM
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Doing activities everyday is very different from sitting for hours in a bus.
Not sure which company you are thinking about, but every 24 day Heritage tour of Europe that I looked at had bus time nearly every other day, with most stops, even in major cities like Paris and Rome, only two nights. That gives only one very rushed day to see anything, and it may not be things of interest to you and your children.
After three or four days like that, I think your kids would be miserable.
Why not pick a few places that you are all very excited about seeing, research things to do, rent an apartment and stay there for a few days. Combine that with some day trips and one or two places where you need less time and do hotels stays in those places. That way, if there is a museum you think the kids would love, you can go. There are parks where you could rent a boat and let the kids take turns rowing you around (Versailles, Madrid - Retiro Park). Lots of stuff like that, you could do on your own.
IMHO, a tour you plan yourself to suit your family would be a hundred times better than any bus tour.
Not sure which company you are thinking about, but every 24 day Heritage tour of Europe that I looked at had bus time nearly every other day, with most stops, even in major cities like Paris and Rome, only two nights. That gives only one very rushed day to see anything, and it may not be things of interest to you and your children.
After three or four days like that, I think your kids would be miserable.
Why not pick a few places that you are all very excited about seeing, research things to do, rent an apartment and stay there for a few days. Combine that with some day trips and one or two places where you need less time and do hotels stays in those places. That way, if there is a museum you think the kids would love, you can go. There are parks where you could rent a boat and let the kids take turns rowing you around (Versailles, Madrid - Retiro Park). Lots of stuff like that, you could do on your own.
IMHO, a tour you plan yourself to suit your family would be a hundred times better than any bus tour.
