Cathinjoetown, I also prefer the CIE tour (16 days icon of britain), but it will be years...., before I get the chance to fly up north, hence why I'm deciding to combine both Ireland and England.

The cie tour (which combines ireland and england together), unfortunately does not include the cliffs of mother, oxford, or even stratford.....which is a must see. These are included in the Globus tour only. (not even trafalgar have these all included into one). Insight, is a tad bit long to fit into my itinerary.

Feel free to suggest any other companies that I may have missed out? And thanks for your input and brief analysis of the tours I mentioned above, very appreciated.

Generally I think. Tour is the worst way to see London. It doesn't give you enough time at any site and you get stuck in traffic on a bus. If you only plan to have 1 full day in London (which I think is a shame!) the pick 2-3 must see sites and get a 1 day transit passand use the efficient tube to get between the sites. Absolutely no reason to waste time and money on a tour. Most tours are over priced and try to fit too much into a day.

I'm confused now about which tour you prefer. One does include the Tower of London.

You can so easily get around London on your own, the bus and underground systems are so good, you can walk many places--the tours are a waste.

So, if I use public transport.....is there a one day card that allows multi admissions into a few attractions including museums, tower of london etc?

No you will need to buy a transit pass for transit and then pay entrance fees at each place. The London Pass is generally a waste of money so don't get that.

What you want is a 1 day paper ticket pass for zone 1-2 purchased at any national rail station - not an oyster at a tube station. Train stations like Victoria, London Bridge, Charing Cross - the part of the station where the trains leave - not the underground/tube parts of the station. You will get a paper card printed on orange paper and you put it through a slot in the barrier to get on tubes or trains, or show the bus driver. This will get you and 1 other member of your party (if they have the pass as well) 2for1 entry in lots of sights like the Tower. See www.daysoutguide.co.uk and print out as many vouchers as you think as might use.

Oh and most museums in London are free

Hi Sophie,

As someone who does both escorted tours and independent travel I have a lot of European travel experience with guides. When traveling independently I often take docent-led tours of sights or walking tours and have taken enough tours to know when the tour guide is knowledgeable and interested in his/her work. An enthusiastic guide makes or breaks the trip or tour and adds so much to the travel experience.

With that said, I would beg you NOT to take a Globus tour. I realize that many people do take tours from this company and enjoy them but these tours are very low end in hotel locations, food, and tour guides. This company may provide the itinerary you're looking for but will not provide knowledgeable and enthusiastic guides. You may go to a lot of places but you won't see very much as your time will be on the bus.

The people posting on this thread are very travel knowledgeable and willing (and wanting) to help you experience the best trip and you should heed their advice.

Hi Adrienne, which companies have you done an escorted tour with that you have been satisfied with?

I am still in the early stages of planning......but we would still prefer an escorted tour.....with an knowledgeable guide...

For the city London I would probably get a one day pass, suggested above.

But any place out of London, and through ireland, etc, a tour would be best.

Good gosh, this is quite complicated.

Here's a new idea: an independent tour. Get a tour company to set up an independent trip for you and the oldies that will cover all the transport from destination to destination while allowing you and them to wander each destination on your own with some sights included in the arrangements (Tower, Windsor, Edinburgh Castle, blah blah blah).

This will help with the navigation factor although the fact that you're all Pommies (as the immortal Dr. Greg House said "You put the Queen on your money, you're British") and speak a semi-cognizable variant of the mother tongue means you can still get help from pick-a-Brit. It should help with the cost factor too. And you can pick and choose what you want to do WITHOUT being subjected to the commercial presentations (e.g., "see MacGuff Emporium's intricate how to make a kilt demonstration").

The tour company I've used most often does not do escorted tours of GB. They have a 12 day Ireland tour (land only as the flights originate from the US). The people who take tours with this company will be quite a bit older than you (decades older) as the travel is leisurely. Although most people who take tours will be quite a bit older than you and even than your parents.

Tauck, Insight, Collette get great recommendations.

With any tour company be sure to spend time reading the fine print to see what is included and, more importantly, what is excluded.

<< A family of 3 (all adults)....including flights, would cost us heaps....so wanting to do the most in the time we have >>

I'm guessing you mean that it will cost heaps for independent travel? It will be far more costly to take a tour for 3 people. As to wanting to do the most in the time you have...on tours there is a lot of waiting time and a lot of bus time and you may have too much time in some places and too little time in other places. On a tour you're not in charge of your vacation. You can actually see and do more if you travel independently.

You should take the trip you want to take but do not make assumptions about escorted tours, particularly about the cost and the number of activities/sights.

http://www.gct.com/Trips/2014/ireland-guided-tour-EID/

I forgot to add something. Independent travel is a lot more work up front but I always remember those independent trips much more vividly and for much longer than the tours I've taken.

I have friends/acquaintances who have taken tours and even a few days after their return they can't remember a thing they did or saw.

I know you are really REALLY set on doing a tour. But honestly - three of you can travel to the UK for a LOT less money if you forget about a group tour.

That doesn't mean you have to do every single thing independently. There are good orientation tours of individual cities, and walking tour, and 2 and 3 day tours in Scotland from Rabbies or Timberbush - things like that. Say you flew to London and rented a flat for the 3 of you, then took a London Walks out of town tour to the cotswolds or Bath or ??, the the train to York for a couple of days, then to Edinburgh for a few days (w/ a one day or over night tour to the Highlands from Rabbies/Timberbush), fly home from Scotland . . . and spend thousands of $$$ less than that nasty Globus tour for three of you.

I've read some not-so-positive reviews on Insight...which is why I'm not so sure on using them.

Mmmh.....I will go back and rethink my options.

I've taken into account everything....

and I've found an escorted tour with 2-3 nights in a majority of places (this is only Brtain though)....and seems to be less rushed than Globus.

http://www.albatrosstours.com.au/itinerary/670/154

That tour looks good if these are places you want to visit.

The cost will be about 19,000AUD plus extra money for airfare, lunches and some dinners plus tips to the driver and tour guide and any misc expenses. About 400AUD per day per person plus airfare.

That is very expensive - could easily manage on half that or even less if you did it on your own.

But if it must be a tour, this one is nicely paced. And most of the hotels are very good/better than typical group tour accommodations.

However if you want to actually see anything in London as well, you'd have to add on a few more days - which would add even more ££££/$$$$

Oh no! We will be paying separately. So, let's say around 12000 person, including spending money (for food, gifts, flights).

The tour ends at the station, so hopefully, we could book a few days in london, and just explore by ourselves.....Like you guys said, London should be easier to do without a tour.

Yes, the Albatross tour visits all the sites I want to see. The only thing is the dates, there are only about 4-5 departures.

Sophie - "<i>Oh no! We will be paying separately. So, let's say around 12000 person, including spending money (for food, gifts, flights).</i>"

Yes, I understand you will be paying separately. But no matter how you figure it, the total is VERY <B>VERY</B> expensive - what each of you is paying or the total for all three. It is a fortune. However, as I said the hotels on that tour are more upscale than the typical tour.

Yes.....altogether, would cost a lot.

Okay! Thanks guys for all the suggestions!

I will take these all into consideration.