Steph

Looking for those who have travelled across Europe with Contiki. My husband and I (in are late 20's early 30's) are looking to tour Europe with Contiki in June. This particular itinerary sees 10 countries in 16 days. Can anyone comment on Contiki? I'm interested in any feedback you can offer.<BR><BR>Thanks fellow fodorites!!

Yikes

I know nothing about Contiki, sorry, but even if you SEE all those countries in 10 days, you won't learn or experience much about any of them and you will spend LOTS of your time in transfers -- riding a bus (or whatever) from one city to the next and checking in and out of hotels. You will definitely suffer from "If It's Tuesday, This Must be Belgium" syndrome.<BR><BR>So I guess I do have a comment on Contiki: They promote an intinerary that will probably NOT provide a good experience of Europe.

Dick

Ditto Yikes comments - also, you're far too young to get involved with a tour. My wife and I are in our 50s and we figure we've got another 20 years or so of bumping around Europe on our own before we'll think about joining a tour group.

elaine

Steph<BR>I admit to having an anti-tour leaning, but given that, I still have to second "Yikes"!<BR>I fear you will be spending the vast majority of your time on a bus.<BR>There are other tours that concentrate on smaller areas, or that pick a few European capitals like London, Paris and Rome. In 16 days more or less, you could experience a very nice slice of fewer places, with much less time on buses, less packing and unpacking, and much more time actually seeing the sights.

John G

If you like to PARTY, you will love Contiki by Trafalgar Tours. My friend, Alison, went across Europe with them about 5 years ago and loved it. She was single and 21 at the time, however. If you are looking to explore and learn this tour might not be for you, though. The emphasis seems to be on meeting other people and going out to the discos until 4 in the morning (then getting on the bus at 7--OUCH!!). My friend liked it because she met other people her own age from other cultures. But, like I said, she spent more time in bars than in museums. Is this what you want?????

Vita

Steph, Not to pass the buck, but did you know that Contiki has it's own forum where you can talk to people who have been on the tours? It may be a bit biased but it's a reference in any case. I thought about doing a Contiki tour, but I'm not much of a partyer (partier?) and I didn't think I'd enjoy the pace. I've already done one trip to Italy independently which turned out wonderfully and I'm planning another to London for May.

Steph

Hi Vita,<BR><BR>Yes, I am aware of the forum on Contiki. I've tried obtaining some information and/or feedback from their forum without success. It seems that it is more suited to meet people before you travel rather than obtaining feedback from them afterward?? Thanks anyway!!

xxx

I did a Contiki tour last summer. It was my first trip ever to Europe. I wouldn't do a tour, much less a Contiki tour, ever again. Contiki is known as the party tour. There were some party-hearty, drinking types on the bus, but fortunately for me, there were mostly older (late 20s) couples on this particular tour. You really don't get much quality time to spend in each of the places you visit. It is true that you spend most of the time travelling on the tour bus, packing/unpacking, and getting up really early. Yes, it is an affordable tour and you get to meet different people, but overall, I'd have preferred to spend more time in fewer places. At the end of the tour, I swore to do future trips to Europe independently (which I'm doing this year). It requires more research, but I think it's worth it. If you are interested in the cultural and historical aspects of Europe, you won't really get it through Contiki.

Clare

Hi Steph,<BR>I went on a 21 day european Contiki trip a couple of years ago. My group was pretty much half US and half Australians, most people around the age of 20, but a couple of couples and a few older singles. The emphasis seemed to be on bars and how to score with your fellow bus mates, however for those who didn't want to party all night and sleep all day - you could ignore the others and try and jam pack all the activities into the day time when everyone else was hung over. I used it as an introduction before moving to europe so I could get a quick idea of which countries/cities I liked so I could go back to them later. It served it's purpose and I only keep in touch with one other person I met on the tour who was not into the drink-a-thon like me. I wouldn't go on another contiki trip but having said that it was precisely what I needed (a quick trip) and was relatively hassle free (I couldn't be bothered at that time to do my homework but these days find it's quite fun to venture to cities having done heaps of research and credit ones self). If you go - just be prepared for the usual schoolyard stuff of peer pressure, the "in crowd", parties, scoring and the occasional sightseeing interest. Pack your vitamins - almost everyone catch's colds after continual partying and sleep deprivation.

Nina

In other words the Contiki way is the wrong way? My friend and i are in our early 20's and yeah we want to party but still enjoy these beautiful places, we are thinking of taking the contiki tour to rome,paris and london; should we not? How is the lodging on Contiki tours? thats another one of my concerns. If anyone can spread some more lite on this subject it would be great, also tried the message board on contiki but i agree with Step; mostly people that haven't yet experienced this tour

suzanne

My best friend did a month-long Contiki tour when she graduated college (at age 21). She went on her own and loved it. She partied a lot and hooked up with a cute Australian guy. *But* it was her first time to Europe, and it inspired her to go back 5 or 6 times since (she's 32 now).<BR><BR>I took an ACIS tour (a whirlwind tour for students) when I was 18. We got drunk every night and made complete idiots of ourselves. And it inspired me to go back to Europe 5 times since. <BR><BR>So...if it's your first time to Europe and you want to get a little "taste" of everything, and you want to party every night with the just-out-of-school crowd, you will have a blast, and it just might inspire you to return to the places you didn't see enough of the first time around! However, if you don't want to put up with the antics of the younger crowd, it may not be right for you!

Lex

My boyfriend and i went on a contiki tour in 2000. We did a 14 day(?) tour of 10 countries and had a wonderful time and would do it again. We only had a limited time and wanted to see as much as we could. We experienced all the major sites and museums, as well as having enough free time to wander the cities. We had many expereinces that we would never of had if we went by ourselves (The hotel at Mt Pilatus is the most amazing site)and learnt more they we would have. The hotels were fine and the meals were typical european. We also met another couple and travelled with them to Greece after the trip. <BR>BEST THING: Our tour guide was full of information about history, city orientation, general info about the cities which was invaluable, as it allowed us to experience the best of the cities and without her we would have wasted alot of time making mistakes.<BR>DO a contiki tour if you want to meet new people and experience the major sites of europe cheaply (could never do it as cheap by yourselves) in a limited time<BR>DON'T do a contiki tour if you want freedom and want to experience everyday life in europe (small towns etc)<BR><BR>I can not say enough good things about Contiki if the tour experience is what you are looking for but I also realise the advantages of individual travel. <BR>Good luck with the decision - I would be happy to answer any specific question you have.

Steph

Hi Lex,<BR><BR>Thanks so much to you and others for your post - and especially for offering to answer any questions.<BR><BR>Since I have never been to Europe, I would like to see as much as I can, with all the major museums and sites. Then, I would like to go back over the years and do two week vacations in each country to see and learn about them more in depth.<BR><BR>I thought this would be a good introductory tour, and the fact that it is 'guided' would help us get around more quickly and smoothly. How much freedom did you have? <BR><BR>I'm not too interested in the partying - and much prefer venturing out on our own or with other couples to dine in quaint restaurants and see the sites. Is there a lot of pressure to remain within the group or is there a lot of time to venture out on your own? One of the things we plan to do is to meet my best friend and her boyfriend who live in Rome, for the two nights in Rome of the tour. Would you think this would be a problem?<BR><BR>Thanks so much for your help.

Sue

Steph, I took a tour with Contiki 21 years ago. I have been reading the responses to your thread with interest, to see if or how things have changed. Not much, it seems.<BR><BR>My goals were similar to yours. Were they met? Partly. What would I do differently? <BR><BR>I'd have chosen Cosmos or Trafalgar or Insight Costsaver over Contiki, because these companies attract a clientele with interests more similar to mine. Not that I didn't find a few people on the Contiki tour whose principal interest was in sightseeing. <BR><BR>The most important lesson: I would also have gotten maps of the places being visited ahead of time (even if only a guidebook photocopy) and planned an independent SS strategy. Complete with a generous budget for independent transportation, i.e. taxi if necessary.<BR><BR>One important note: my itinerary was busy but more relaxed than yours - 2 nights in Venice, not 1, and 3 nights in Rome, not 2, in fact most stops were at least 2 nights long. So unless you change to a more regionally focused itinerary, having a strategy planned so as to make the most of your time in each place is critical. good luck!

dcr

I did a Contiki tour when I was 25 and I was the one of the oldest in our tour group. It was a party the entire time. Everyone was drunk and sleeping around. There was only ONE married couple on our tour and they were thoroughly disgusted. I thought the hotels were pretty shabby (as I was already traveling on business at that time and used to nicer hotels.) One hotel had bugs in it and the food was okay, but not always included in the tour price. The time at the sites was very limited and didn't get to enjoy what I wanted to see. I would NOT recommend Contiki if you want to dine in quaint resturants and visit friends in Rome. I would do a tour with another group, such as those mentioned above and either begin or end with a few extra days in Rome to visit your friends. Most tours have a set schedule and do not deviate from it.<BR><BR>I did make a nice friend from NY and we kept in touch for a few years, but mostly it was too wild for me when I was 25 and single. It was cheap, but you get what you pay for. <BR><BR>Good Luck

Steph

Sue,<BR><BR>Thanks for the references. I took a peek at the Trafalgar website - When you say Trafalgar - are you referring to the 21-38 tours? They seem to offer quite a variety of tours, but I would like to try to focus on adult only tours. Any insight?? <BR><BR>Thanks!!

Sue

Hi Steph. First, bear in mind that it's been many years since I've taken a tour with any company since we travel independently now, so my information may not be up-to-date in every detail. What I know is gleaned from various messageboards, which I visit out of curiosity from time to time.<BR><BR>It's my understanding that Trafalgar actually offers 3 types of tours, something called Breakaway which I think is 21-38, and two non age-restricted branches which vary by the type of hotel booked. Costsaver is their budget hotel version, the way Cosmos is the budget hotel version of Globus. High value is the budget hotel version of Insight. If you go onto Trafalgar's Europe board and search back to March 29, there's a question just like yours, and if you keep going back, you'll find others. Best of luck.

Lex

Hi Steph<BR>It seems that not everyone had a good experience with Contiki like we had so I guess it depends on what mix of people you get. I had friends who were a married couple and they went on a trafalga tour and they enjoyed it. <BR>We had enough free time - a day in Rome, day and night in Paris, day in amsterdam, day and night in Nice, couple of hours in florence. When there were arranged tours you could go off on your own. <BR><BR>A tour seems like the way to go for what you want - but I would probably recomend a TRAFALGA tour instead of Contiki tour.

Betsy

Steph, check out www.busabout.com. It's the same company as Contiki, but with a more independent travel approach. My 22 year old son did it last year and really enjoyed it.

John G

Trafalgar allows children on their "regular" tours. So, unless you go on a "age restricted" tour you could be traveling with kids.