Rick Steves tours
 

We are thing of of a Rick Steves tour.from Germany to Vienna. We normally travel on our own but age is becoming a factor. Seeking general comments, pro or con. Many thanks

Rick Steves tours are not ones that would pamper you. He says that the hotels may not have elevators and that there may be some difficult walking. When I heard him speak a couple of years ago he said that he parents would no longer take his tours. So I guess I would have to look carefully at the tour.

This is directly from the Rick Steves tour website:

"Our tours are physically active with lots of walking (up to 8 miles a day), staying on your feet for at least two hours during museum tours, and even more stair climbing. Age is not a concern as long as you are physically fit and a strong walker. You must be able to carry all of your own luggage, often up a minimum of three flights of stairs. The tour bus is not always able to pull up directly in front of the hotel so be prepared to walk up to 15 minutes with your luggage. In some cases, we leave our tour bus and use public transportation to reach the tour hotel. Whether you are 20 or 80, before you leave for Europe, get in shape. Walk at least an hour every day and hike up lots of stairs."

If physical issues are the part of age that is becoming a factor, this may not be the tour for you.

The physical aspect of RS's tours would rule us out. My husband has some arthritis in his ankles and I've had a couple of recent knee surgeries.

What I usually look for on our 3-week trips are hotels with elevators (not that difficult in Germany and Austria) as well as hotels that are in the "old town" so we are close to the main sites. Also, we usually return to our hotel for a short "rest" in the afternoons.

My husband doesn't mind driving, especially with our Garmin Nuvi GPS. Sometimes it's a challenge to find a hotel that has both parking AND an elevator but we've managed pretty well the last few trips.

I have never taken a tour, but do have a good opinion of Rick Steves tours, guidebooks, etc. But his tours are known to be more active, so not sure the "Age is becoming a factor" comment really matches up with his offerings.

I've taken three of his tours. I like both independent travel and tours and usually I do a combination of both. His travel style is pretty much what I do when I go it alone. I've never thought of them as particularly active but I'm sure to a lot of people they would be. It's hard to see how touring in Europe could be anything but "active". You have to do a certain amount of walking and getting off buses and other conveyances no matter how you go. The thing about schlepping your own bags and walking up hotel stairs is true, so that might be discouraging. I think his website overplays the active aspect to err on the side of caution.

I like his tours for the itineraries, quality guides and interesting travel companions. He attracts primarily people in the 50-75 age range, but I've encountered a few outside the range.

My general comments would be I think you can better adapt a trip to your own speed if you continue to do it alone, rather than join any tour. Tours, just by their nature, move you around alot, see a lot of places in a short period of time. If I wanted a less active trip, I'd go on my own, and at a slower pace, letting porters, taxi drivers, hotel bellhops assist with things. Finding city tours that don't involve a ton of walking, etc.

Like GaryCA, I speak from experience - I usually prefer to travel independently but my husband likes RS tours so we do both and this past autumn took our 6th. I don't think they're particularly active either, but no baggage porterage is included - you're expected to carry your own bags from the coach to your room at each stop - and some of the hotels may involve climbing stairs. However, our more recent experience is that he has upgraded the hotels considerably, particularly those in the larger cities, and every hotel on our last tour had elevators.