Planning a trip abroad

bigdog · 08-19-2019, 10:17 AM

This is off topic from usual Winnie Forum subjects, but I thought I could get some valuable feedback from Forum, sine there are over 10,000 members !

I'm planning a trip abroad in the Spring (April or early May), to either Italy or a Greek cruise.Italy trips hitting the major tourist stops: Rome, Florence, Venice, , Tuscany, Lake Como, etc. Greek cruise: Athens, Santorini, Myokos, Corfu, Patmos, Turkey, etc.

I've been abroad before (Israel), and had the good fortune to be in a very small group, 14 people ! I didn't plan it that way, it just happened !
The tour operator I used does not have the itinerary I want for the Spring 2020 trip. I want to go or 9-12 days. In that amount of time, it’s going to be a fast paced tour, but that’s OK.

On our last trip, I saw massive amounts of tourists, climbing on grey-hound type buses, carrying 40-50 people. and driving from place to place in a caravan, it looked like a horrible way to travel, not something that appeals to me !!!! I don’t want to have to deal with the mass crowds, which would be a negative side of such a trip.

Our group of 14 on our trip to Israel, was fantastic, as we were on a 16 passenger mini-bus and were able to zip ahead and around the big buses. I’m looking to travel in this style to Italy and Greece.

If any Forum members have been on trips to Italy or Greek cruises, I’d love to hear your comments and suggestions, especially Tour Operators, Shopping, what to be cautious about etc.

08-19-2019, 10:17 AM	#1
bigdog Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Central MA-Gilford Posts: 1,411 Thanks: 308 Thanked 117 Times in 94 Posts	Planning a trip abroad This is off topic from usual Winnie Forum subjects, but I thought I could get some valuable feedback from Forum, sine there are over 10,000 members ! I'm planning a trip abroad in the Spring (April or early May), to either Italy or a Greek cruise.Italy trips hitting the major tourist stops: Rome, Florence, Venice, , Tuscany, Lake Como, etc. Greek cruise: Athens, Santorini, Myokos, Corfu, Patmos, Turkey, etc. I've been abroad before (Israel), and had the good fortune to be in a very small group, 14 people ! I didn't plan it that way, it just happened ! The tour operator I used does not have the itinerary I want for the Spring 2020 trip. I want to go or 9-12 days. In that amount of time, it’s going to be a fast paced tour, but that’s OK. On our last trip, I saw massive amounts of tourists, climbing on grey-hound type buses, carrying 40-50 people. and driving from place to place in a caravan, it looked like a horrible way to travel, not something that appeals to me !!!! I don’t want to have to deal with the mass crowds, which would be a negative side of such a trip. Our group of 14 on our trip to Israel, was fantastic, as we were on a 16 passenger mini-bus and were able to zip ahead and around the big buses. I’m looking to travel in this style to Italy and Greece. If any Forum members have been on trips to Italy or Greek cruises, I’d love to hear your comments and suggestions, especially Tour Operators, Shopping, what to be cautious about etc.