The tour operator provides me with the opportunity to see and experience the best of what many places have to offer, without the hassle of independantly looking for things to do or the expense of booking hotels etc. The tour(though fast pace at times) is good, however the highlight of my trip was the time spent at the Niagra falls. I am unable to express through words the feelings of joy and amazement while there. I would definitely recommend the boat ride into the falls. Larry(I.e the tour guide) and Leo(the bus driver) worked well together and were very personable and attentive to our needs. Larry is very organized and strived to be as detailed with all aspects of the tour. Alternatively, there are some aspects to the tour that should be amended. There are some travel days that are extremely too long(I.e. DC). 11 pm(having being up and on the road from 7:30), is far too late getting back to the hotel. Also the 2 hour stop in downtown Detroit should be assessed as there's not much to do there therefore, lots of time are being spent sitting and waiting for the return of the bus. Another issue I had was the fact that expat did not make sufficient effort in ensuring that the food stops tended to the needs of the vegetarians on the bus. The welcome dinner at dicks and the stop at cracker barrel did not account for the vegetarians, therefore leaving fast food as the most prominent food selections. This information was requested prior to the trip, so I'm of the view that this should have been sufficiently accounted for. Also, we were very disappointed with the "thank you token(I.e. a key chain)" received at the end of the trip. I understand that the US tours are fairly new, however, the operator, as a company is not new. In fact, I have been on a european tour with the company and we received a bag full of items branded with the tour operator's name....with the most important to me, being the passport book with stickers. I was really looking forward to getting a passport with stickers
The 16days USA / Canada tour was interesting and exciting, with many highlights, including nature hikes in Canada, to exploring the streets of major cities and learning about their politics and regional history. Adventure activities included a helicopter flight over Niagara Falls and a boat trip into the magnificent Horseshoe Falls at Niagara, hiking through Flume Gorge and Montmorency Falls in Quebec. Our tour leader Larry, made each day interesting and fun, with his abundant local knowledge and keen sense of humour. Other personal highlights for me were visiting Washington, Alexandria, Quebec City, Detroit and making friends along the way with my fellow adventurers. Many thanks to Larry for all you did for us and a special shout out to Leo, our Driver, for his driving skills and keeping us safe, much appreciated!
We covered a lot of ground and visited 3 major national parks - Grand Canyon, Death Valley and Yosemite as well as spending time in Las Vegas and San Fran.