Walking tour in France: Backroads or Country Walkers?
Dec 27th, 2007, 05:02 PM
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Walking tour in France: Backroads or Country Walkers?
We haven't been to France in many decades and we're at a point in our life where we'd like to avoid the labor of trip-planning. Are thinking of maybe doing one of those walking tours, something we've never done before. I'd be very interested in hearing from folks who've done trips with either of those companies. Best would be to find someone who's done tours with both, for comparison/contrast purposes.
In short, will welcome any knowledgeable in-put. Thanks very much.
In short, will welcome any knowledgeable in-put. Thanks very much.
Dec 28th, 2007, 10:45 AM
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My husband and I have taken Backroads trips as well as Butterfield & Robinson (not Country Walkers). Backroads is definently more challenging and will be more active. With respect to France, I have taken Backroad's Dordogne (walking) and French Alps (hiking)trips. The Dordogne trip was obvioulsy not as challenging as the Alps but was great with respect to dining, accomodations, options for more challenging routes, etc.
In general, walking trips would have a higher average age/person than hiking trips. In addition, Backroads usually caters to more active types than the other companies. Just my experience, if you have more specific questions please post again.
In general, walking trips would have a higher average age/person than hiking trips. In addition, Backroads usually caters to more active types than the other companies. Just my experience, if you have more specific questions please post again.
Dec 28th, 2007, 04:11 PM
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Thanks for responding, Danielle. And if you would be good enough to answer more questions:
We're pretty much loners, e.g. we're not accustomed to traveling with others. Obviously, to some degree we'd be in a group with Backroads. What I'm wondering is whether there's plenty of time not to be with the other folks. E.g. does it often happen that some people walk/hike just themselves, or does that seem unfriendly? Similarly, are meals always "family style" or can one have a table for two?
I'm wondering if there was anything about the Dordogne trip or about Backroads that you didn't especially enjoy-- or was every aspect quite terrific?
My husband is late 70's; I'm late 60's. What were the demographics like on your trip?
My sense is that B&R is more costly than Backroads. Is that correct? Did you think one company was "better" than the other-- or did you pretty much choose by itinerary?
Thanks ever so much for being willing to answer my questions. Very much appreciated.
We're pretty much loners, e.g. we're not accustomed to traveling with others. Obviously, to some degree we'd be in a group with Backroads. What I'm wondering is whether there's plenty of time not to be with the other folks. E.g. does it often happen that some people walk/hike just themselves, or does that seem unfriendly? Similarly, are meals always "family style" or can one have a table for two?
I'm wondering if there was anything about the Dordogne trip or about Backroads that you didn't especially enjoy-- or was every aspect quite terrific?
My husband is late 70's; I'm late 60's. What were the demographics like on your trip?
My sense is that B&R is more costly than Backroads. Is that correct? Did you think one company was "better" than the other-- or did you pretty much choose by itinerary?
Thanks ever so much for being willing to answer my questions. Very much appreciated.
Jan 3rd, 2008, 07:52 AM
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sorry done loads more with www.headwater.com but you are not asking about them
Jan 3rd, 2008, 11:03 AM
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I think maybe Fodorites don't do Backroads. And I haven't used either company, either, though I've seen their groups while traveling, so I'll offer my comments in lieu of more direct experiences.
On two trips, I've seen the Backroads folks. The most recent was in San Gimignano (maybe this one was Country Walkers; I can't remember); they were doing a walking tour in the area and their group stayed at the same (good) hotel that we were at. For dinner, they ate at two very good restaurants in San G. (the same restaurants we were eating at). It appeared to be the entire group, in each case at one long table (FYI, they were fairly loud, but no louder than any other group of that size). Breakfast was served buffet style for all the guests of the hotel, so they were eating whenever they wanted at whatever tables they chose.
DH and I once did a horseback riding tour in southern Tuscany (actually, I rode, and DH visited wineries). We stayed in one hotel for 6 nights, and did daily rides from there. I'm glad I did it, because I was very much into riding and it gave me a great way to see the countryside. The lodging was in a beautiful location, the people running it were nice and helpful, and our apartment was huge and comfortable.
The downside was the group aspect and the meals. We, too, are somewhat of loners, and while I kind of liked eating lunch and dinner with the people on the tour, it was hard for my husband to be sociable enough to do so every day. Our group was only 8 people, so it was smaller than your group would be. On our free day (free from riding), the rest of the group took the tour van to Siena for the day. We took our rental car elsewhere and spent the day and evening out; we ate that meal, plus one other, on our own at restaurants in other towns. We, of course, were still paying for the tour dinner as part of the tour price. None of the other people in the group did this (except one, who went with us to dinner one night).
The food where we stayed wasn't great; I'm sure the food on the tours you are considering would be much better. The other factor, however, was that it was a somewhat set menu. Each dinner (lunches were usually picnic types while out riding) had 4 courses, with 2-3 selections for both the pasta and main courses. When we're eating at restaurants, we only very rarely eat all four courses. So it was way more food than we usually eat. I believe, but don't know for sure, that Backroads and Country Walkers would have the same kind of set menu arrangement.
My parents (now 69 and 70) have taken a number of small group walking or walking & cooking tours, and that's really my mom's only critique of those tours (which she otherwise totally RAVES about). Most of the meals served far more food than she ever eats. So she'd sit through the entire multiple-course meal, and either not eat the food, or eat just some of it, but be sitting through the whole meal nonetheless. In case you're interested, the tours they took were through a small company called the Italian Concierge, http://www.italianconcierge.us/. The woman who runs/leads it, Joyce Falcone, is very good, very knowledgeable, and my parents really, really enjoyed their experiences (they've taken her Campania, Sicily, Tuscany, Cinque Terre and Piemont tours). I don't know how her prices would compare to Backroads or Country Walkers. I do know that her groups are smaller than those companies, probably 8 or so people.
When I was trying to decide which horseback riding tour company to use, I did contact (through the tour company) past tour participants; I'll bet Backroads and Country Walkers can provide you some references, as well as give you age demographics. Of course, the references would be the people who liked the tours, but could/would still provide useful information about how meals and sociability worked.
Good luck - it's good to try something different every once in a while!
On two trips, I've seen the Backroads folks. The most recent was in San Gimignano (maybe this one was Country Walkers; I can't remember); they were doing a walking tour in the area and their group stayed at the same (good) hotel that we were at. For dinner, they ate at two very good restaurants in San G. (the same restaurants we were eating at). It appeared to be the entire group, in each case at one long table (FYI, they were fairly loud, but no louder than any other group of that size). Breakfast was served buffet style for all the guests of the hotel, so they were eating whenever they wanted at whatever tables they chose.
DH and I once did a horseback riding tour in southern Tuscany (actually, I rode, and DH visited wineries). We stayed in one hotel for 6 nights, and did daily rides from there. I'm glad I did it, because I was very much into riding and it gave me a great way to see the countryside. The lodging was in a beautiful location, the people running it were nice and helpful, and our apartment was huge and comfortable.
The downside was the group aspect and the meals. We, too, are somewhat of loners, and while I kind of liked eating lunch and dinner with the people on the tour, it was hard for my husband to be sociable enough to do so every day. Our group was only 8 people, so it was smaller than your group would be. On our free day (free from riding), the rest of the group took the tour van to Siena for the day. We took our rental car elsewhere and spent the day and evening out; we ate that meal, plus one other, on our own at restaurants in other towns. We, of course, were still paying for the tour dinner as part of the tour price. None of the other people in the group did this (except one, who went with us to dinner one night).
The food where we stayed wasn't great; I'm sure the food on the tours you are considering would be much better. The other factor, however, was that it was a somewhat set menu. Each dinner (lunches were usually picnic types while out riding) had 4 courses, with 2-3 selections for both the pasta and main courses. When we're eating at restaurants, we only very rarely eat all four courses. So it was way more food than we usually eat. I believe, but don't know for sure, that Backroads and Country Walkers would have the same kind of set menu arrangement.
My parents (now 69 and 70) have taken a number of small group walking or walking & cooking tours, and that's really my mom's only critique of those tours (which she otherwise totally RAVES about). Most of the meals served far more food than she ever eats. So she'd sit through the entire multiple-course meal, and either not eat the food, or eat just some of it, but be sitting through the whole meal nonetheless. In case you're interested, the tours they took were through a small company called the Italian Concierge, http://www.italianconcierge.us/. The woman who runs/leads it, Joyce Falcone, is very good, very knowledgeable, and my parents really, really enjoyed their experiences (they've taken her Campania, Sicily, Tuscany, Cinque Terre and Piemont tours). I don't know how her prices would compare to Backroads or Country Walkers. I do know that her groups are smaller than those companies, probably 8 or so people.
When I was trying to decide which horseback riding tour company to use, I did contact (through the tour company) past tour participants; I'll bet Backroads and Country Walkers can provide you some references, as well as give you age demographics. Of course, the references would be the people who liked the tours, but could/would still provide useful information about how meals and sociability worked.
Good luck - it's good to try something different every once in a while!
Jan 4th, 2008, 08:16 AM
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It sounds like you might like an "independent" or self-guided tour. Everything is arranged for you, but you go on your own, not tied to a group. Here are a couple tour companies that offer self-guided walking tours in France:
http://www.breakaway-adventures.com/tour/walking/
http://www.utracks.com/index.php?sec...&id=139319
(You'll have to enter "France" and "self-guided walking" as the activity).
As for the companies about which you asked, I know from others that Backroads has a good reputation. I have seen their groups in Switzerland and the participants seemed to be mainly in their 40's - 50's. I receive mailings from Country Walkers and like their approach, but have not taken a tour. Butterfield & Robinson is definitly at the high end, both in cost and amenities.
http://www.breakaway-adventures.com/tour/walking/
http://www.utracks.com/index.php?sec...&id=139319
(You'll have to enter "France" and "self-guided walking" as the activity).
As for the companies about which you asked, I know from others that Backroads has a good reputation. I have seen their groups in Switzerland and the participants seemed to be mainly in their 40's - 50's. I receive mailings from Country Walkers and like their approach, but have not taken a tour. Butterfield & Robinson is definitly at the high end, both in cost and amenities.
Jan 4th, 2008, 09:36 AM
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we've done two biking trips in france with backroads and they were both wonderful trips. we will travel with them again in the future. something like 75% of their clients are either repeat clients or are referred from former clients which i think says a lot about the company.
biking is different than walking and i just don't know how different. while biking, you can be alone just about all day. they do usually have a couple cultural events during the trip that include everyone.
breakfasts are done buffet style and people come and go at their leisure. you do have a meeting time in the morning to go over the day's route.
most lunches are on your own. there are usually one or two picnic lunches prepared by your leader that everyone enjoys.
almost all dinners are included and are fabulous! depending on the restaurant, you could be at one big table, split between two tables or at table for 4. i don't recall ever dining alone with my spouse. if asked our preference, we would have said we would have wanted to dine alone. but, in actuality, really enjoyed having the company of others enjoying the same trip. it really was quite enjoyable.
while not hiking, you are free to do whatever you want. even skip the hike that day if you just want to relax. they really leave everything up to you and accommodate your every whim. i can't speak highly enough of their leaders. wonderful, charismatic, energetic, fun people.
biking is different than walking and i just don't know how different. while biking, you can be alone just about all day. they do usually have a couple cultural events during the trip that include everyone.
breakfasts are done buffet style and people come and go at their leisure. you do have a meeting time in the morning to go over the day's route.
most lunches are on your own. there are usually one or two picnic lunches prepared by your leader that everyone enjoys.
almost all dinners are included and are fabulous! depending on the restaurant, you could be at one big table, split between two tables or at table for 4. i don't recall ever dining alone with my spouse. if asked our preference, we would have said we would have wanted to dine alone. but, in actuality, really enjoyed having the company of others enjoying the same trip. it really was quite enjoyable.
while not hiking, you are free to do whatever you want. even skip the hike that day if you just want to relax. they really leave everything up to you and accommodate your every whim. i can't speak highly enough of their leaders. wonderful, charismatic, energetic, fun people.
Jan 4th, 2008, 09:39 AM
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as for age range, our first trip was to the dordogne and at 33, we were definitely the youngest. the range was probably 45 to 65.
our second trip was to provence and at 40, we were still the youngest but just quite. i'd say the range was 40-55.
dordogne was my favorite though i loved provence too.
our second trip was to provence and at 40, we were still the youngest but just quite. i'd say the range was 40-55.
dordogne was my favorite though i loved provence too.
Jan 11th, 2008, 11:00 AM
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I apologize for my late follow up to your additional questions, but in my line of work, I am very busy until mid-January.
First off, my husband and I are truly independant travellers, we do not typically care for touring with groups. Occasionally, when planning our trips (usally 3-4 weeks at a time), we like to inlcude a 5 day or week long Backroads trip to up the aerobic portion of our travelling. Afterwards, we use the remanining time to eat, relax and sightsee.
With Backroads and B&R you do not have to stay with the group for any activity. After the first half day with the guides you can pretty much see who is hardcore and those types will stick together. There are always those who wish to linger and/or do their own thing. Either type of person will feel comfortable on these trips. No one ever took any of these preference as being "unfriendly": it's your trip and you should do what you like.
Not all meals are family style, typically lunch can be but some may have come and gone before you get there if they are on a faster track. Dinner is usually several tables with groups of 4-6 but you can always get a table to yourself. This was done quite often in both companies. No one took offense or should.
There was nothing about the Dordogne or either company that I did not enjoy. The food, lodgings, guides and itineraries are wonderful. I would also say that B&R usually costs more but that is because it's level of luxury can be slightly higher than backroads. Please note that this is not a slight on Backroads as it is high on luxury also, it is just B&R is slightly higher. For example, Backraods might book Palazzo Sasso in Ravello, where B&R would book Hotel Caruso. The difference would be just degrees of luxury.
Dordogne is a fabulous trip for anyone at any age. I cannot speak highly enough of the food, accomodations, wine, countryside, etc. You cannot go wrong here. The demographic would be lower on Backraods and on any trip which has a higher activity rating, hiking vs. walking, rolling hills vs. mountains, etc. However, you can end a hike/walk at any time.
My husband and I are generally the youngest in the group (in either company). We travelled on six trips in our thirties. We never felt out of our element and enjoyed the people as well as the trip. We always had a couple or two in their seventies and eighties on each trip, and I must tell you, they were quite impressive and never looked close to their actual age.
In conclusion, you cannot go wrong with either company so I would choose by itinerary. Hope this helps you further!
First off, my husband and I are truly independant travellers, we do not typically care for touring with groups. Occasionally, when planning our trips (usally 3-4 weeks at a time), we like to inlcude a 5 day or week long Backroads trip to up the aerobic portion of our travelling. Afterwards, we use the remanining time to eat, relax and sightsee.
With Backroads and B&R you do not have to stay with the group for any activity. After the first half day with the guides you can pretty much see who is hardcore and those types will stick together. There are always those who wish to linger and/or do their own thing. Either type of person will feel comfortable on these trips. No one ever took any of these preference as being "unfriendly": it's your trip and you should do what you like.
Not all meals are family style, typically lunch can be but some may have come and gone before you get there if they are on a faster track. Dinner is usually several tables with groups of 4-6 but you can always get a table to yourself. This was done quite often in both companies. No one took offense or should.
There was nothing about the Dordogne or either company that I did not enjoy. The food, lodgings, guides and itineraries are wonderful. I would also say that B&R usually costs more but that is because it's level of luxury can be slightly higher than backroads. Please note that this is not a slight on Backroads as it is high on luxury also, it is just B&R is slightly higher. For example, Backraods might book Palazzo Sasso in Ravello, where B&R would book Hotel Caruso. The difference would be just degrees of luxury.
Dordogne is a fabulous trip for anyone at any age. I cannot speak highly enough of the food, accomodations, wine, countryside, etc. You cannot go wrong here. The demographic would be lower on Backraods and on any trip which has a higher activity rating, hiking vs. walking, rolling hills vs. mountains, etc. However, you can end a hike/walk at any time.
My husband and I are generally the youngest in the group (in either company). We travelled on six trips in our thirties. We never felt out of our element and enjoyed the people as well as the trip. We always had a couple or two in their seventies and eighties on each trip, and I must tell you, they were quite impressive and never looked close to their actual age.
In conclusion, you cannot go wrong with either company so I would choose by itinerary. Hope this helps you further!
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