Italy Globus Tour
 

Has anyone taken a Globus "First Class Tour" of Italy? We will be taking a 16 day Globus tour of Italy in Sept. Any experience you can share would be appreciated. Thanks.

Unfortunately this is a question which should be asked before you book, not after. <BR>We took the Globus Rome, Florence & Venice tour last October and were, in the words of my travel agent, "burned". Had done several cruises and, of course, many many ½day tours in England, France & Holland -- thought Globus with it's ½ day of free time would be very much like those experiences combined -- some dinners with group, morning group tour and then on our own. What a false impression that was! <BR> <BR>Some points for you to be aware of & perhaps it will help you have a better experience: <BR>1) All included meals are in the hotels -- don't expect to have the great Italian food you read about on these forums. Also, meals are heavy on the red meat (poorly cooked). <BR>2) Hotels are located for ease of access by a large tour bus -- that means NOT near the center of the historical cities. And none were easily accessible by public transportation, which we enjoy using as part of the experience of Europe. Use taxies. <BR>4) The hotels themselves were part of an American chain & you could be anywhere, USA. <BR>5) Change $ before join the tour -- one trick to keep everyone in line is to provide $ changing time only toward end of tour -- and then at their "selected" store -- no lira, no freedom to hire that taxi, etc. We had gotten several hundred in lira before we left and were very happy to have local money in our pockets. <BR>6) Some of the local guides were very good. Several were not. -- The driver was great, the driving was safe & he was very accommodating. The tour director used Hitler as her role model, plus she would be pleasant one minute and very nasty the next. <BR>6) Optional meals and activities are pushed VERY HARD. Only good one was the Sistine Chapel tour. If your tour does Florence, suggest you skip the optional "Beef" dinner -- it's bad pot roast, not what non-tour diners were served, although the drive out in the countryside was nice. <BR>7) Pack light & no T-shirts with slogans. see other postings. <BR> <BR> On the plus side, we did stop at places we really enjoyed such as Pisa & Verona but would not have done had we been traveling by train. And we did not have the hassle of driving a car. <BR> <BR>Be aware that most mornings you will be up by 6 am, especially if traveling from 1 place to next. We start early ourselves, but usually "sleep in" until 7:30/8 am, get breakfast in hotel, out by 9 to see garden and at museum by 10. <BR> The land tours lack both the efficiency that cruise ships seem to have mastered and the cruise ship attitude that their patrons are mature adults, with some common sense. <BR> <BR>Perhaps if you list your cities, more precise info could be forthcoming on adjusting to/avoiding the tour dictator. <BR> <BR>Good luck.

We have taken several Globus Tours,and have enjoyed them all. We took the Italian Mosaic Tour several years ago, and it had a great itinerary. We have always had great guides that really make the trips interesting. You can count on a good tour with them. We are trying Insight Tours this year, with one of their "Country Roads" tours (which they have one for Italy, also).

Marion - I was wondering about your comment that you would not have seen Pisa or Verona if you'd done the trip by train. Whyever not? I visited both using the train. Pisa as a day trip from Lucca and overnighted at Verona for two nights. Plentiful trains to/from major towns/cities.

Marion - <BR>So far we have only put a deposit on this tour of $200 the balance is due by the end of July. We have been to England/Scotland 3 times, Paris, the Carribean twice and my husband has been to Rome on business. We have never done a tour like this. I assumed we would be up very early and on the bus. I also thought Globus with their 1/2 day tours would give us enough free time to be on our own but give us the ease of having someone else drive and make arrangements. <BR> <BR>We booked this tour on the recommendations of our travel agent who is Italian and has been to Italy several times. Unfortunately, I found this forum AFTER we booked the tour. <BR> <BR>Thank you for your response and we will change our $ into lira before the tour and stay away from the hotel dinners.

Jan, I think you'll be fine with your Globus tour. It's hard to compare a bus tour to a cruise. While the ship can travel at night leaving more free time during the day for sights, a bus has to travel during the day leaving less time for sights. But they are well organized and you will see a lot which is the point of the trip. (You can always choose not to go on the local tour and do something on your own.) I agree that the food at the "optional" dinners is not that good, but if there is entertainment, then it usually is fun. The meals provided for are usually on the days that you travel, and were okay. (Remember this meal is contracted into the cost of the room and the tour company is trying to keep cost down.) Overall the tour is a good value. Just read the intinerary closely to know what you will visit (go in), and what you will see (passing by). If you know exactly what you are getting, you won't be disappointed.