I was recently referred by a friend to contiki tours. I just checked out their website and I'm a little skeptical. It seems like they visit too many places in too few days, constantly jumping around. Has anyone else had any expereinces with this tour group? <BR>thanks! <BR>Ang

My son, and several of his friends, both male and female, have all taken Contiki tours at different times. and they all had a great time. <BR>I think the accent is on fun (for the under 30s) with glimpses of the major sights, rather than a serious educational travel experience. Having said that they were taken to lots of places I would never have found on my own. They are a very well organised company.

Hi Ang, <BR>Perhaps you could consider one of their regional tours that concentrate on 1 or 2 countries - I did their Simply Italy tour 3 years ago & had a fantastic time & I can happily report that my experience travelling with them certainly wasn't the party-hard/drunken-orgy Contiki tours are sometimes made out to be. I would recommend however you stick to their superior 'hotel' tours which tend to attract a more mature crowd. <BR>Cheers...

Hi, <BR> <BR>My experience with a regional tour was similar to Lucy's. I did the Turkish delight tour in 1998. It was fun, the sights were fabulous, and almost everyone was 25-35. I was pleasantly surprised by the hotels on this tour. I thought they would be more budget, but included some 5 star places. Bus time was broken up by numerous stops at interesting places, movies, and games organized by the tour director. <BR>

I took Simply Italy tour also and I really didn't like it. To little time in each place, hotels way out of the city, poor food. Bus time was broken up by multiple half hour stops at roadside bathrooms. The tour manager was clueless. You can do much better on your own!

I also have a question about Contiki; on their website it says their tour groups are 25-50 people. That seems huge to me, especially since I cringe when I see a huge tour bus pulling in anywhere. Are the groups really that big? I'm particularly interested in the Turkish Delight or Greek Island tour.

I have taken 3 Contiki tours--1 just to Italy, one to just Greece and 1 that went to like 20 countries in 35 days. The 2 solo country trips were much more enjoyable. More time in each place and an older crowd (26-40) who were interested in traveling and not partying all of the time.

Sandy, I took Greek Island Hopping (Athens-Santorini-Paros-Mykonos, 14 days) last fall and it was fantastic--I had an amazing time. I agree with what other posters have said about the "regional" tours, that spend more time in a few places and don't race around like Scooby-Doo on amphetamines, being preferable to the zillion-countries-in-20-days thing. We had three days on each island, which was great. There were 16 of us on my tour; some tours are bigger, but I know the Greek island trips aren't supposed to be larger than 30. We had a terrific group and I'd love to do a Contiki tour again. <BR>Sandy, if you're curious about that specific itinerary, feel free to e-mail me and I'd be happy to answer questions.

Sandy, <BR> <BR>I forgot to mention. As I mentioned before, I did the Contiki Greek Island hopping tour which I really enjoyed. However, my sister did the AESU Greek Island Hopping tour and she really enjoyed it. She said there were about 16 people on her tour. We had 20 on mine. Hope this helps.

hello..... these tours are for drinking and vomiting only. Someone always sleeps with the bus driver.... <BR>Ang, go with some friends but not on a Contiki tour

What rubbish ohdear! Have you ever even done 1 contiki tour, let alone enough of them to make such a ridiculous generalisation?? Its due to such misinformed opinions that i replied to this thread in the first place to let Ang know my experience which was very positive as others have commented here also. The main negatives with my tour was that hotels were far out in major cities but no different to the budget offerings of other tour companies (eg, cosmos, insights high value etc) &amp; more than made upp by one on the banks of Lake Como...pure bliss!! Needless to say I know of no-one who vomited or slept with our bus driver...

I did four Contiki tours in my twenties and early thirties and enjoyed them for the most part. Some were better than others, as you really don't know what kind of mix will be on your bus. It's a crap shoot. Some mixes are great, some not so great. My first Contiki tour was right out of a high school memory, we had the popular girls, the football players, and the wannabes. Then there was the rest of us. I kid you not! <BR><BR>Contiki will probably have every seat filled. 49 to be exact, 51 with the driver and the guide. On the plus side a Contiki tour is one of the cheapest ways to see Europe.<BR><BR>It IS a party crowd and if you're into it, it's great. I do know that Contiki was not going to be allowed to book rooms again at some of the hotels we stayed at. I think that speaks for itself...

I guess Jane is right - it is all luck what your tour group will be like (regardless of which tour company yo travel with). I only went on the one to Italy but there was only 25 people on it which was fantastic. We all got on really well &amp; would organise our group ourselves to seek out local restaurants &amp; cafes together &amp; weren't really into all night partying &amp; the like but who knows, if I'd maybe gone with a tour group a week later it may have been a completely different experience. I'm looking at another tour this year but most likely it will be with Trafalgar just because I prefer its itinerary for where I want to go. I will very likely be one of the youngest there but its no big deal as everyone has travel as a common interest regardless who you choose. Just out of interest Jane did you do regional or multi-country tours? Camping or dorm or hotel tours? The reason I ask is the concensus seems to be the a more mature crowd seems to be attracted to the regional, 'superior' tours. Cheers...

I feel as old as Methusalah admitting that I took a Contiki trip 20 years ago.<BR><BR>It seems some things are constant over the years!<BR><BR>In May, 1981, my group size was 39, including the bus driver and tour guide. The youngest was 18, the oldest 34, the average age 24.<BR><BR>Many of the group were indeed interested more in partying and shopping than in sightseeing. I often split off on my own to do things, but if I wished there was always someone of a like mind. <BR><BR>I took a 'pan-European' tour of several countries in 30 days. I realized that I was only going to get a quick overview, rather than an 'in-depth' experience. But, this was what I wanted. However, I would think twice about recommending their multiple-country tours today. In the interest of keeping costs down, they are trying to cover the same territory in less time.<BR><BR>Unfortunately I don't think they offer any of their camping style tours in regional format. This was my mode of travel back then, and it really was the cheapest way to go.<BR><BR>

Hi again. I'm responding to Lucy's request for more info on the type of tours I took with Contiki. All tours I took were the Superior Hotel class. <BR><BR>The first two were in 92, regional Italy, and the Greek Island cruise/Athens package. The regional Italy was very comprehensive, although I've noticed they've recently cut back on the freebies and sites that they visit on this tour. This is the tour with the memories of high school, alot of very immature people. The bus was full. <BR><BR>I then took a 10 days on my own and toured Italy, then Corfu and made my way to Athens for the Greek Island Cruise. The cruise was very nice, I enjoyed it. After we left Athens we didn't have a tour guide, but you don't really need one on a cruise anyways. I've noticed the pricing on the Greek Island tour has jumped considerably since 92, so I'm glad I went when I did. There was only six of us, which was a nice change!<BR><BR>In 97 I took the last two tours, European Discovery (I think) - the ten day tour of continental Europe and then the Great Britain Discovery, other 10 days. I took a week off in the middle and a few days at the end of the last tour as well. The European Discovery was an endurance race with a full bus, I still can't believe all that we saw and did in 10 days! The group was bed hopping on this tour, climbing on the roof from bedroom to bedroom, it was a great laugh to watch. It was very fast paced and I was dead on my feet by day 10, and glad to see London again. I don't recommend taking any tour that stays one night in each place, it's very draining on your system. The Great Britain tour was a blast. I really recommend it, slow paced, and focuses mainly on castles, history and pubs. Great way to see England and Scotland and you can add on Ireland if you like. Again, bed hopping, and there was some competition going on regarding the bus driver. I don't know what it was, and frankly I didn't want to!<BR><BR>I came back from the 97 trip realizing I had outgrown Contiki tours, and have since taken a Trafalgar tour. I really enjoyed having mature travel partners, and there was no arguing amoung us. <BR><BR>There you have it, my take on Contiki. If I've missed anything, let me know and I'll respond further.

topping for Sheila...

I have done two Contiki Tours (one in the US) and the other from London to Greece. The LOVED the tours. I went with my husband on the European tour and we have made some great friends. We were into sleeping with everyone and getting drunk everynight but, it is fun to spend time with people your own age (average age was about 26). I really enjoyed Contiki but each to their own. Also I found the tour guides to be well informed and I learnt things I would have known known if I went on my own ! <BR> <BR>I thinking of doing another Contiki of the Scandenavian countries next !!

OPPS - I meant to say that we were NOT into sleeping with everyone and getting drunk every night ... damn keyboard .. hehe <BR> <BR>Enjoy your trip whatever you decide !

My friend and I will be leaving this weekend for a Contiki tour. I blindly booked this tour (my first trip to Europe) on the recommendation of another friend who booked a Contiki tour last October. She had no problems. After reading the comments about the drinking, the partying and the high school kids I am now having regrets about Contiki. I am primarily interested in the historical/architectural sights and NOT where the nearest bar is. All I can do is hope that my tour group is not too crazy. I wish I was traveling independently, but what's done is done. C'est la vie.