Hiya
I am looking to book an escourted tour though Ireland in July. I realize that a fully guided tour is going to give up some of the convenience and positives of travel. I will only be 19 at the time of the trip, that I have never been to Europe before, this is my first trip alone, and that I come from an area that doesn't have ANY public transportation, I have decided that this would be the best/safest way for me to travel without being wracked with nerves all the time (and prevent the family at home from being even more concerned)

I am looking at a cosmos tour (Ireland Explorer) Do you have any advice/experience with this tour? Do you know of another tour company that might be better while keeping the price approx $1500 and has a roomsharing option? (I looked at a similar tour through CIE but they don't offer roomsharing so it went way above my budget)

I am planning this trip with the attitude that "You get what you put in." I'm determined I am going to have a good time and am not expecting to travel in luxury (that being said, I don't want to travel like cattle either)

Let me know if you have any insight or advice. Thanks!

I hope someone with experience with tours in Ireland will post a reply. I took a Cosmos tour a few years ago, but not in Ireland, and the tour was well-run, we had a good guide and the accommodations while not luxurious were certainly comfortable and clean. We felt it was a very good value tour. I think your decision to go on a tour is a good idea given your age, inexperience, budget, etc. Hope you have a wonderful trip.

Be brave! You can do it (everyone can, and many have.) It's good you recogize the plus-and-minus in escorted touring. So the makeup of the group is as signicant as the itinerary, and age does play its part. Contiki is famous for young groups, see http://www.contiki.com/destinations/...rs/239-ireland
That means partying as well as sight-seeing -- lots of partying, according to my old friend who was a veteran of Contiki back when both of us were a lot younger, while I went my lonely but independent way. Try checking out whatever student travel agencies are available to you. http://www.travelcuts.ca has been serving Canadian students for decades; ditto http://www.statravel.com/ from the US and internationally.
Cosmos is the budget wing of the Globus travel group. You can check out plenty of reviews with a simple search on-line. Most speak of "we", suggesting that many of the customers are couples, a social factor (along with possible single supplements) to consider as you shop. And watch for optional excursions which can bump up the price or leave you on your own anyhow. Bon voyage.

At your age I would have shot myself in the head rther than go on this type of guided tour. Most of the participatns will be more the age of you grandparents than yuor parante. You hae maxium time on a bus and minimum time at actually sightseeing and there will be lots of stops for random "shopping" for ttscotks noboby really needs.

If you must take a tour - definitrly look at a tour for people your age - Kon Tiki and others - so you will have a little more in common with tourmates. (And would you really fel comfortble sharing a room with a 70 yer old stranger?)

When going on this type of BUDGET tour you have to remember that your hotels will usually be outside of town.

So, if you are in Dublin, for example, your hotel will be "Dublin Vicinity" which could mean being 5-10 miles outside the city.

When your tour bus returns to your hotel at night, usually around 5-6 PM, you will be stuck at your hotel unless you want to take public transport on your own into the city for nightlife.

Tschuss,
Pepper

Haven't you asked something like this before? If so, why didn't you look at the answers? People on this board respond to help you and if you don't look at the responses and post the same or nearly identical question again, you're just wasting your time and that of the forum posters.

Only 20 days ago you asked a nearly identical question to the one you posed here: http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...smos-tours.cfm

And this was my answer (it is similar to NY Traveler's above, without as many typos):

DO NOT TAKE A COSMOS TOUR AT YOUR AGE.

You need to be at least triple your current age to be close to the median age of a Cosmos tour - it's a bunch of oldies. My aunt and uncle regularly took Globus and Cosmos tours when they were in their 60s-plus and my uncle would complain that "it's a bunch of old people" on a bus. There may be occasional younger folks but this is NOT for your age group.

Check out Contiki - its customers are 18-35 year-olds, not the Centrum Silver crowd. Plus Contiki isn't dominated by Americans (and no, there's nothing wrong with Americans - we could be German or Russian, after all), its tours include a LOT of Australians (can't swing a dead cat without hitting an Aussie on those tours), and a good number of Canadians. With all the Aussies on board, you'll learn to speak another language. The tours also include the occasional Brit, South African, New Zealander and/or European who's English is better than your ability in whatever language you took in high school.

The tours are not necessarily partypartyparty - the Aussie women don't tend to get drunk and stupid (that's for Aussie men) and the single-country tours are more sedate than the 20 country/50 night cross-Europe extravaganzas. Do you really want to travel with people your parents' age or your own?

If you're "wracked with nerves" about going to Ireland on your own I don't think you should travel. It's one thing to have some pre-trip anxiety but you haven't even booked anything yet and you're concerned about traveling.

Do you think 19 year old Irish women book Cosmos tours when they want a vacation in Ireland? I think not. Would you book a Cosmos tour to vacation in your own country? I think not.

The Irish are friendly, welcoming, and warm people. Book a flight and some hostels; meet people your own age to travel with. There will be other young women on their own that you can hang with. Lots of people travel on their own. I was 20 the first time I went to Europe, the first time on a plane, the first time on vacation w/o my parents. And I didn't have the benefit of the internet, cell phones, travel wisdom that exists today. I had adventures!

What are you afraid of?

I'm a lot older than you and I would never take a Cosmos tour. I once took a Globus tour (upscale from Cosmos) and it was awful!!!

Yes, I did ask this earlier and I did read your response.
Some parts that I probably left out: I live in a retirement community. Sharing a room with a 70 year old stranger does not concern me in the least. I have no intention of drinking/partying. it is simply not my style. I live in a town where my entire graduating class was 68. I don't mind being by myself.

The majority of travel that I have done is in Guatemala, NOT a place that is safe to travel alone, especially having a fair complexion.

And it pretty much boils down to: I can't go if I don't have a tour. My parents are paying for the plane tickets and this is their stipulation. I will also be seeing Greece, Italy, and England (not on tours but with friends who live there)in the 6 weeks I will be abroad.

So thank you for your opinions/comments! Maybe I'm just different than most people my age.

And, does anyone have any actual experience on Continki? I read some very very negative reviews of them (worse than Cosmos)...

Can't get over some of the well ludicrous responses here...whether to tour or do your own thing is a personal decision of course...there are pros and cons.

The fact is I did that exact tour with Cosmos about five or six years ago around Easter time. There were people on the tour of all ages and most assuredly not a majority in their senior years. There were many younger couples on the tour, especially Australians but a few Americans. There were also some senior citizens too on the tour.

The tour does work. Of course Cosmos is considered a budget or tourist class operation. Their hotels are of that caliber. Clean but usually fairly small and yes sometimes (but not always) one the outskirts of town. Meals are okay when included, nothing exceptional when included and I trust you've done a bit of research and understand the concepts involved with optional tours.

Frankly for Ireland, you might wish to look into CIE tours where everything is included. Don't let the naysayers disuade you. You will most likely have a great time.

I went on a Globus tour of Italy with my grandmother last year, and was 20 at that time....and guess what! I loved it! If you want to read about my adventures my trip report is here: http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...the-report.cfm

So yeah.....I'd go for it! It's heaps of fun! I'm not the drinking or partying type either, so I totally get where you're coming from! I met an Australian in Rome who tried to convince me that Contiki tours were the best (he'd been travelling with them back to back for three months solid) but to be honest....it does just sound like all they do is sleep all day then party all night, all over the world's best clubs! Ibiza is probably a mandatory stop for all Contiki tours.....lol.

If you do the Cosmos tour, get the best price of your selected tour and then check www.cheapertravel.com/tours/Cosmos for another discount. We have used this company and they are reliable. Richard

The Ireland tours of Contiki are a little less "party oriented" than the Europe tours, so you will see and do things and meet people in your age group if that's what you want. Besides, they don't hold a gun to your head to drink and party - it's totally your choice what you do on your tour. There is only one Ireland tour offered by Contiki, and it is part of the larger Great Britain and Ireland tour, thus you will start and end in Ireland, meeting up with those who are either starting the Ireland tour like you, or who have been on board for the first week already. It gives a good overview of Ireland and covers a lot of ground in both Ireland and Northern Ireland, but unfortunately not the pretty western Penninsula or Ring of Kerry area. http://www.contiki.com/destinations/...rs/239-ireland

Otherwise, check the Shamrocker Tours website www.shamrockeradventures.com/ and see if their itineraries interest you. They are fun, interesting and offer you a choice in accommodation if you want, which is a little different for a tour, but it works.

"Can't get over some of the well ludicrous responses here..."

Thank you XYZ for your comments. I couldn't agree with you more. I have taken 2 Cosmos tours and am booked to go on another in Italy in May. They are fantastic. Your hotels are very adequate 3 star establishments. They may not be central so you will need to take public transport or a cab to get to the town centre. The coach is modern and comfortable. The drivers are amazing! The Tour Directors are knowledgeable and helpful. My only negative is that I found the food ordinary but no one else seemed to so maybe I just missed my home cooking. You will have organised activities but also plenty of free time to do your own thing. Yes the age group varies. There are some young people but mostly folk in their forties and fifties (us) and older folk as well. We are fit and active but the "oldies" had no trouble keeping up! You will interact with guests from different walks of life and countries which makes the tour experience more rewarding. TIP: Should you proceed to book a coach tour (any for that matter) check with your booking agent that it's for a Guaranteed Departure (GD) date. This means the tour proceeds irrespective of numbers.

I did a cosmos tour in 2007 to Ireland with 2 17 year olds, a 20 and a 21 year old. There was a wide range of ages - couples and parents with a few kids as well. We all had a blast. you tend to pair up with individuals who are similar in interests for outside events in the evening. There was a good mix of touring and free time and lots of guide information from a local person. I had signed up for this based upon a great Cosmos trip the prior year in 2006 to Italy. I am going to plan a Cosmos trip to Ireland for 2013 as soon as plans come out on their website.

Yes, I have Contiki experience twice over. The Italy tour was minimal partying, much hanging out and wandering about to see the various Italian towns at night, chat, have some good wine. The Spain trip was more party heavy on some levels - a core group of 15 or so who went out every night, but there were 46 on the trip.

The single-country tours that are NOT for Greek Islands or Spain tend to be relatively reserved. The groups are large enough that you can find your niche. And I'd pick a young group over a bunch of oldies any day.

Wow, haven't seen so much preaching on a travel thread in a long time. The person who would rather "shoot themselves in the head" was particularly embarrassing.

To add some more positives in a general way, I went on a Cosmos tour with my elderly friend from Florida several years ago, and although I'm not fond of getting up early, it was extremely enjoyable. It was the easiest way for her to get around with her limitations, and that was the most important thing. I happened to make some forever travel friends, one from Australia and the other from France, and on the occasions our hotel was a ways out, we simply took public transport in for evening dinner and walkabouts.

I since have returned to several of the quick stop locations we saw on that trip, so a tour is not the end of the line or anything like some of the hysterics are painting it to be. I hope you have a great time with your parents. My other general advice is don't listen to travel bullies who think their style is best for everyone.

I took a budget Contiki tour in 2001 and had a good time. I was similar - didnt feel confident enough to do it alone at that time and my parents were MUCH more comfortable about me travelling alone if I went on a tour. I am from a small town of 17k people with no public transit and although I had lived in big cities during university I just felt more comfy doing a tour the first time.

My review of Contiki - lots of fun, lots of young people as well. The hotels were out of town, which I didnt like, but this was a budget tour and I think their single country tours offer better locations - but definitely something to compare with Cosmos. Yes there were lots of people who wanted to party - and they did. I wanted to see Europe and not be hungover so I had a couple of drinks then went to bed. No peer pressure at all and there were some non-drinkers too. But yes, there were lots of people who did want to do that and got on the bus grey the next morning! Amusing for us sober ones!

Would I do it again - NO. I prefer the freedom to spend my time how I want to.

Do I regret - not for a second. It gave me the confidence to travel on my own and my parents comfort as well.

Best of luck with your decision!

Thank you guys for your reviews
And I'm sorry if I offended anyone with reposting this. Quite honestly, I forgot about the other post.

I realize that this isn't the ultimate way to travel... but something is better than nothing, right?
I have a travel agent looking around and I will see what she brings up, I'm also looking into Paddywagon tours. Different caliber of tour, but perhaps will work equally as well.

and Jamikins- You didn't grow up in a small town.... We have 8k.... and our median age here is 65.

Thank you guys very much for your comments
Emm

Ah yes, should have also mentioned Paddywagon tours in my last post - how could I forget?!. Good that you're looking into them as well, as they may be the best "fit" for you based on what you've described you're looking for. They have more of a mixed group of ages, still aimed at a younger market but also at those who aren't yet ready for the early bird special! Their 10 day tour looks good and would suit your timeframe, plus they are a little cheaper than Cosmos - bonus!