Just returned from Best of Italy and found the going extremely difficult. Am thinking it may have to be my last bus tour.

Considering river cruises - obviously the cruising part would be delightfully easy but so is the bus ride. Could anyone who has done both comment on how strenuous the tours are when you stop to visit places?

I have done both kinds of tours and by far, I prefer the river boat cruises. On the ones that I have been on, there was usually a morning tour (included) of wherever you docked. Then you returned to the boat for lunch and the afternoon was free to do whatever you wished. That was usually when the optional tours were offered. The things that I loved the most was unpacking once for the two week trip. No bags out or anything like that. And, if you feel like doing absolutly nothing other than watching the scenery passing by, that is all you have to do. Usually the included tours were walking tours of the places where you docked...or at the most, a short bus ride.

Hi there, LTT,

Also having done both, it depends on what part you find strenuous...living out of a suitcase...getting up for the bus every morning...or walking up hilly cobblestoned pathways?
I agree with NYJ that river cruising is much more to my liking and can be more leisurely...if that is what you chose.
Try it!

RitaBob

quote:

Originally posted by RitaBob:
Hi there, LTT,

Also having done both, it depends on what part you find strenuous...living out of a suitcase...getting up for the bus every morning...or walking up hilly cobblestoned pathways?
I agree with NYJ that river cruising is much more to my liking and can be more leisurely...if that is what you chose.
Try it!

RitaBob

Sorry, I should have been more explicit. Living out of a suitcase and packing up each morning does not bother me. My problem is with the walking particularly hills and stairs.
If most river cruises do tours in the morning and then have free time in the afternoon then that should be less strenuous compared to bus tours which usually have much walking both morning and afternoon.

The cruises we have done with Trafalgar and Insight, Russia and Egypt, have been fairly relaxing with one or two excursions a day and plenty of time to just sit and watch the scenery go by.

The cruises we have done in Asia, the Mekong, Burma and India, have been much more strenuous, involving scrambling up river banks and navigating muddy paths.

I agree, Tangatta. River cruises are at a decidely more leisurely pace than bus tours. The cruising part is far more relaxing than the bus portion of a bus tour.

As for excursions, they are similar to the options on a bus tour...so you may have to investigate the level of difficulty of each one, LTT, before you decide on what excursions to do.

Thanks Tangata and Penny1, that's the sort of information that I am interested in. It does sound like I would do better with a river cruise.

Does anybody know how TT classifies the tours by levels of hardship? Leisure/comfortable/lively, I always thought it had to do with the number of nights in each location, because the walking seems the same to me, most tours have the same optionals or not? maybe that on some tours the bus takes you closer thus less walking, climbing?

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Californian,

It's difficult to get these descriptions just right because they're never going to apply to everyone. The factors that make a trip comfortable or strenuous are so subjective and no two destinations are alike, either. And something that is easily accomplished in one climate may be horribly difficult in another. (Think climbing the Acropolis in cool weather versus the heat of Summer). Sometimes over scheduling can be stressful all by itself. I know I prefer a comfortable breathing space between activities.
It might be useful in these tour descriptions to be more specific about the amount of stair walking, hill climbing, time/space between activities and let people decide for themselves what tour pace it all adds up to.

Aah, but Caitie, climbing the Acropolis when one suffers from mobility problems would be difficult even in cool weather, although I recognize the point you're making. I just wonder why there couldn't be a "caveat" added to the descriptions, or more of a caveat. Italy can very well be more problematic than some other places because it's so mountainous, and old, with uneven cobblestone streets the rule rather than the exception. I took a nasty fall in Lucca hurrying on uneven cobblestones, landing solidly on my knees. Believe it or not, seven months later I still have the bruises.

Still, that's the advantage of this BB--we are the early warning siren for many if not most of T's tours.

Brenda

Oh, I do believe it. My husband's knee still hurts more than a year after a fall from a ladder.
The point I'm trying to make is that there's really no universally acceptable formula for evaluating how leisurely or strenuous any tour is because these concepts are entirely subjective. I also believe that tolerance for physical and mental stress can be affected by the excitement factor, and that just can't be quantified. I have multiple back problems and will avoid walking uphill at home, but just the fact of being in Athens delivers the adrenalin jolt necessary to get me up the hill. I managed the Acropolis fine with the assistance of trekking poles, but maybe that's because I know I won't have to do it every day.
I'm not suggesting that tour companies shouldn't take a stab at describing tour pace, just saying that it's really impossible to be all things to all people. The brochures could probably mention the obvious - hilly cobblestone streets, lots of stairs and long distances to cover, but there comes a point where they have to be careful not to scare people off. Quite a number of times I have seen TDs put passengers in taxis if they were struggling up a hill, and this may be TT's preferred way of handling the situation.

Yes, you may be right, your last comment, that is, about TDs putting people having problems into a taxi. On our tour, the ones who needed a taxi (in Assisi mainly) still had to pay and I was a little disturbed by that. I thought that TT through the TD might have shown some compassion and paid for it. One of our tour mates was recently out of a cast for a broken leg!!!! Still, I suppose that might encourage everyone to take cabs--I don't know--it's an awkward situation isn't it, and you're right, entirely subjective.

Brenda

I noticed that, too, in Assisi. It's probably up to the individual TD to make that sort of call. All I can tell you is that whenever I've seen people put in a cab in France, (and I've seen it many times), it has always been at the expense of the TD.

quote:

Originally posted by Californian:
Does anybody know how TT classifies the tours by levels of hardship? Leisure/comfortable/lively, I always thought it had to do with the number of nights in each location, because the walking seems the same to me, most tours have the same optionals or not? maybe that on some tours the bus takes you closer thus less walking, climbing?

I agree, I too thought it was more to do with the number of nights in a location, rather than the steps taken.

I always look at the 'rating' given to a tour but I seriously wonder how many take any notice. On a TT we took last year we had a lady, travelling with her husband, who was in her mid 80's & could not walk up or down stairs or steep inclines without assistance. She said she simply did not realise how much walking would be involved.

Caitie,

Having just returned from the Burgundy Provence river cruise I can confirm each time the TM discussed the availability of taxis or alternate forms of transportation for those with mobility problems, he always included the cost of the fare. (not cheap)
RitaBob