|
Our trips are great personal adventures, filled with new treats around every corner, fun surprises, delightful touches at just the right moment, music to fit the mood, wonderful food, and the feeling of being right at home in Europe.
Here Are the Differences:
- True Customized Escorted Tours
- Small Group Size
- No “Middle Men”
- No unpleasant surprises
- Music and Magic
Want to find out more? Read on…
-
True Customized Escorted Tours: No two Your Man in Europe trips are ever identical. Great effort is put into making the trip just right for you. Every traveler is asked to complete a pre-trip survey in order to get a good idea of likes, dislikes, and expectations. And then - wonder of wonders - guess what? We actually use the survey information to plan the details of your group's trip. We really do want you to have the best trip you've ever had! We pride ourselves in supplying plenty of personalized details impossible to pull off with big tour groups. You're always in good hands. Relax. Don't worry; be happy. Try it and you’ll never want to visit Europe in any other way.
If you do a Google search for "escorted tours to Europe", you will find more than 500,000 pages. Almost every "escorted tour", however, involves cramming yourself onto a 45-passenger bus with 44 other people. Of course, they're not called "buses" in Europe, but "coaches". So, you ask, "What does 'escorted' mean in that case?" Simply put, someone will board the bus and ride with you for a while using a tinny microphone to explain what you are whizzing by. But it's unlikely you'll be able to hear them, anyway. They'll also herd you around to make sure you get off, and back on the bus according to schedule. Sometimes you get the same person for the whole trip, and sometimes you get a dizzying array of different "guides" - some of them hired just moments before jumping onto the bus. Referring to this mode of travel in Europe, many of you have heard the funny saying: "If it's Tuesday, it must be Belgium."
The real down-side to this way of "seeing" Europe is that you miss all the little things that make the place so endearing. Mass feedings, undistinguished chain hotels, and "You've got two hours - then be back on the bus" restrictions are the rule. All the glamorous and romantic advance descriptions in the slick travel brochures take on a different complexion when you're slumped in your bus seat, exhausted.
And the prices are not especially cheap! If you do get a chance to get away for a quiet private meal, you usually have to find a restaurant in a hurry, and then it's not included in the trip price. Sometimes you have good luck, and sometimes you don't. The large nametags or neck wallets and the "follow-the-tour-guide's-red-umbrella" are always so much fun, too.
Some tour companies pride themselves in "The Uncrowded Bus" approach. Another way to put it is "same bus, fewer passengers". Even with empty seats around, when a huge bus is part of the equation, the routine is going to be pretty much the same whether it's full or not. There are just a lot of places in Europe where those behemoths can't go... We do include coaches from time to time for tours we feel are well-suited for them. As a rule, however, we use coaches for the occasional side tour or city tour - and then we make sure there’s plenty of flexibility to ensure the intimate group feeling. Our main longer-distance travel is done by rail - usually high-speed and first-class. We use taxis, subway systems, or private mini-vans for most day-touring. Occasionally we take advantage of local European air travel or overnight sleeping car trains. Imagine seeing the places of your dreams with no worries and no hassles. That's how it is with Your Man in Europe.
-
Small Group Size. Except for specially-arranged tours, most Your Man in Europe tours are for 8 to 12 people. Much larger than that and our groups would have a much harder time going to cozy restaurants, petite bed and breakfasts or charming little hotels, or any other small venues. We travel as a happy family would. In fact, the best way to organize a tour is to make it a group of relatives (those who can get along for 2 weeks!) or friends who already enjoy doing things together. If you already know everyone in the group, you can be more comfortable and relaxed traveling together. But even with "mixed" groups - those where individual travelers or couples just sign up for pre-planned trips - we find that it's not long before you've made new friends of all your fellow sojourners.
Our trips can be physically demanding, often very active, and require a certain amount of "taking care of yourself". We do not offer so-called "luxury" travel for the pampered world traveler. We find that luxury travelers are in a way insulated from the very flavor and charms of the places they spend so much money to visit. It's been said before, "When you travel with Your Man in Europe, you feel like you own the place." You’ll feel at home, relaxed, comfortable, and a real part of the countries you visit.
We make a real effort to take you to those little out-of the-way places that are “our little secrets." We seek out the real flavor of Europe in uncrowded, un-touristy places whenever possible. Only individuals or small groups can explore Europe in this way.
-
No "middle men". One reason Your Man in Europe can offer reasonably- priced but genuinely custom tours is that there are no "middle men". Large tour companies often work with re-sellers that are vendors for a variety of travel products, and usually have contracts with major hotel or motel chains and restaurants or caterers that can handle big groups. You can be certain that they will book their tours using their best profit-generating suppliers, even if they don't provide the most charming side of Europe. When – on very specific tours - we do partner with other travel suppliers we take care that they are a perfect fit, and can provide exactly the kind of European experience for which we are best known.
One promise Your Man in Europe makes is that every place we go, everywhere we stay overnight, and everything we do has been carefully chosen - not because we have an "inside deal", but because they are the right choices to fit the mood or theme. Of course Your Man in Europe is a for-profit company, but a reasonable profit is factored in after all the travel arrangements are made solely on their individual merits.
-
No unpleasant surprises! (Lots of pleasant ones, though) Any tour organizer who tells you that there will never be any hitches on tours to foreign countries thousands of miles from your home is being overly optimistic! When those unexpected turns do happen, because our groups are small, we're able to deal with them in creative ways - often leading to unplanned fun and adventure! Your Man in Europe trips are priced up-front to include virtually every cost that could come up. Travelers with us enjoy the fact that they don’t have to worry about money. Since so many meals are included, figuring out restaurant checks and tips, and calculating exchange rates aren’t big hassles. You can accurately and realistically plan your travel budget using the detailed information we'll provide.
Many big tour companies entice you with low advertised prices. The real profit is made through costly "add-ons". These unpleasant and unexpected extra costs can ruin the fun and leave you broke. "Optional" extra tours too often turn out to be the only way you actually get to see the things you came to see! The big chain hotels are frequently so far from the town center, an optional side tour is required just to get into town center. Another problem is that guides are allowed to supplement meager incomes through "shopping kickbacks" from merchants. Tours often are diverted to shopping venues at the expense of missing the real sights! Regrettably, underpaid guides frequently exert not-too-subtle pressure for big tips from tour members. None of this happens when you travel with Your Man in Europe.
It's all about flexibility - allowing the trip to take you. If you have trouble enjoying the moment because you are more comfortable with strict minute-by-minute schedules, you might be better satisfied taking your dream trip to Europe with another tour organizer.
- Music and Magic. We love Europe; and we want you to love it as much as we do. So throughout our trips, musical and "magical" touches are part of the experience. Music is all around you in Europe. We just help focus it so your trip will have its own "soundtrack". Long after you go back home these little touches will serve as pleasant reminders of all the fun you had in Europe. But don't expect too much information on this in advance. Good magicians never reveal all their secrets...
We want all our travelers to explore Europe with us again!
|
