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Does ~$1600/person (includes air/hotels and some meals, tours and transfers are extra) sound reasonable and is this a reputable site to plan and purchase a vacation package?
I'm sure if we stalked Expedia and hotel websites we might be able to save a few bucks here and there but I honestly don't have the patience for all that and just want to get this planned sooner rather than later.
Does anyone have any firsthand experience with Virgin Vacations and would you recommend them to unseasoned travelers abroad?
I just looked it over, and I think there's a lot of just riding around in a bus or on a train looking at the countryside instead of really spending time at the sights. i just wanted to say "Moooooooo" for the herd factor.
I would concentrate on Rome and Florence for this trip and actually spend some time exploring them instead of waving as you run or ride by the sights. The best part of Rome is just wandering and getting lost in the less traveled, less touristy areas. That tour sounds frustrating and tiring. Just my two cents.
That said, Virgin is reputable, the price is decent. Keep in mind that a three star hotel in Europe is more like a one or two star in the US, and if it matters to you, you might not be able to specify smoking or bedding preferences when booking through a tour.
I just looked it over, and I think there's a lot of just riding around in a bus or on a train looking at the countryside instead of really spending time at the sights. i just wanted to say "Moooooooo" for the herd factor.
I would concentrate on Rome and Florence for this trip and actually spend some time exploring them instead of waving as you run or ride by the sights. The best part of Rome is just wandering and getting lost in the less traveled, less touristy areas. That tour sounds frustrating and tiring. Just my two cents.
That said, Virgin is reputable, the price is decent. Keep in mind that a three star hotel in Europe is more like a one or two star in the US, and if it matters to you, you might not be able to specify smoking or bedding preferences when booking through a tour.
Thanks for your thoughts, annerk.
I guess we don't really have to do the city tours they offer (they are option$), I mostly just wanted this package as it takes care of all the air and ground transportation to/from/between the destinations (things I don't want to have to worry about when we get there). Except for the train transfer, I believe we're pretty much free to explore when we get to each city if we choose.
Oh and thanks for pointing out the hotel star rating disparity, I think we have a bit more research to do now!
No, I actually did not end up using them because I priced out the flights and hotels and could get them cheaper paying for them myself. I did however use the hotel choices they listed for Florence and Rome and it worked out pretty well plus we were free to see the sights and explore on our own time.
We are looking at this tour, did you use this tour company? How was it if you did? If you used a different one, which one did you use?
Our trip isn't until next May, but I booked w/Go Ahead, it's an 8 day Paris and Rome trip, and we're doing Barcelona on our own dime.
It's (I believe) 3 nights in each city, you do the general sight seeing tour, optional excursions, so it really depends on how much you'd want your hand to be held. I think out of the 7 or 8 excursions they are offering, we're doing 2 or 3 of them (Vatican is one that I can remember off the top of my head) so we have a lot of time on our hands. It's flexible. I think between the airfare, hotel, free breakfast every day, some dinners, and flight from Paris to Rome, it came out to about $4800. And they're booking our flight from Barcelona back home, which they didn't have to do. Our flights would have been around $2500 if we had booked on our own.
I've posted about this topic before, and a lot of people here don't really like being herded around, and would recommend doing it on your own. While I understand that POV, if you're into the tour thing and you way the pros and cons of it, I think it's a good thing to do as a way to dip your toe in the water and see what its like. Even if you did a 2 week Europe trip on your own, you're never going to see everything you want.
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