how much to tip?

Sally, our extraordinary private guide in London

How much should you tip your driver, guide, or waiter when on tour in Europe? Abercrombie and Kent, one of our preferred suppliers of customized, private luxury tours in Europe, passes along the following advice.

If you're on an independent itinerary (as opposed to a group tour), the cost of your tour does not include gratuities. Although not required, tips should be considered when someone goes above and beyond for you. A&K provides the following guide for tipping in Europe:

Transfer Driver — 10€ per transfer

Local Guide or Driver-Guide — 15€ for half day, 30€ for full day of sightseeing

Driver — 10€ for half day, 15€ for full day

Restaurant Service — when service is included on the check, not required. If not, 10% of the total.

Taxi drivers — round up the fare

I hope you find this information useful! For more information about organizing private tours in Europe or anywhere in the world, we are here to assist.

copyright (c) 2016 by David Ourisman LLC. All rights reserved. We provide Virtuoso and other Preferred Partner amenities as an affiliate of Brownell Travel. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.

Glasgow | highlights of our city tour

tower staircase designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh, photo (c) 2015 by David Ourisman, all right reserved

Why visit Glasgow? As this is not a city with which I'm familiar, we asked Jonathan, our UK guru, to set us up with a tour guide for Tuesday — with special emphasis on the architecture and design of Charles Rennie Mackintosh — and we had a fabulous private tour of Glasgow, at one time one of the wealthiest cities in the world (this being the reason for its architectural treasures). Here are the highlights of our day:

George Square was the first stop on our tour. Once we stepped inside the building that houses the Glasgow City Council, we realized that Glasgow offers so much more than meets the eye. An incredibly ornate building, this is a must see. Lavish first floor spaces that are open to the public, and the visit is free.

The Lighthouse was built by Charles Rennie Mackintosh to house the offices of the Glasgow Herald. It is now a museum of his work, containing some of Mackintosh's furniture designs as well as the "tower staircase," pictured above. Admission is free. Be sure to go to the third floor and climb the stairs for the panoramic view of Glasgow from the top.

Riverside Museum. Located on the shore of the River Clyde, this is a museum of different forms of transport in Glasgow — ships, streetcars, trains, cars, and even bicycles. A well done exhibit, and admission is free.

House for an Art Lover, also a building based on a Mackintosh design. We had lunch in a table by the window overlooking the gardens and afterwards toured the house (reasonably priced at 4.50£ for adults and 3£ for seniors).

Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum. This elegant museum has an exhibit of Mackintosh-designed furniture as well as an extensive art collection — including works by Monet, Van Gogh, and the most important work in its collection, Dali's Christ of Saint John of the Cross. Admission is free.

Hunterian Museum, on the Glasgow University campus, offers free half hour tours every 30 minutes of the Mackintosh House, his reconstructed townhouse which was bequeathed to the university. If possible, begin your tour here, as the tour guide is truly an expert on the subject.


I am constantly reminded of how much an expert guide can add to the enjoyment of your vacation. We could theoretically have arranged this itinerary ourselves, figured out how to get from place to place, parked the car, etc., but we would have missed the narrative by a Glasgow native who truly loves his city and had a fabulous story to tell. Private guides can be expensive, but a great guide can literally make the difference between "checking off" items on a bucket list and truly engaging a destination.

copyright  (c)  2015 by David Ourisman LLC.  All rights reserved. We provide Virtuoso and other Preferred Partner amenities as an affiliate of Brownell Travel. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.

guided tours vs. "do it yourself"

crowded Floating Market an hour outside of Bangkok

Guided tour or do-it-yourself? There's a lot to recommend each way of exploring a new destination. Frankly, I've been spoiled by my experience as a Virtuoso travel consultant. Having experienced guided tours on Educational Trips, it's hard for me to go back, especially in a place where traveling is difficult.

There is a huge advantage to hiring a private guide. You don't waste time figuring out logistics, buying tickets, and determining the best use of your precious vacation time. An expert local guide is working for you, to help you make the most of every day. We had an Abercrombie and Kent guide (Sue) and driver in Bangkok.

An experienced guide makes sure everything goes smoothly. One day we visited the Mae Klong Market whose claim to fame is that a railroad track runs right through it. Whenever the local train comes through, all of the merchants using the (free) stall space next to the tracks have to move their merchandise. Our next stop, the Amphawa Floating Market (pictured above) is crowded with both merchants and shoppers. We saw both, without a moment's worry about how to get there or what to do once we did.

And if things do go wrong, a great guide can fix them in a hurry. On our way back to Bangkok, the transmission on our car broke down… but not to worry. Sue got out of the car, flagged down a taxi, and got us to our next destination (lunch at The Siam) without our having to break a sweat. By the time we had finished lunch, a new car and driver were waiting to take us back to the Four Seasons.

There's much to be said about wandering, getting lost, and making new discoveries on your own. This is my preferred way to travel in lots of places, from Paris to New York to Venice. But if you want to just sit back, experience the destination, and travel in style, there's nothing better than a private guide.

copyright (c) 2014 by David Ourisman LLC. All rights reserved. We provide Virtuoso and other Preferred Partner amenities as an affiliate of Brownell Travel. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.

make the most of your time on vacation

make the most of your time in Paris (or anyplace else)

How to avoid long lines? Rick Steves sometimes comes up with gems collected in one succinct article, and such is the case with a recent travel column he wrote for USA Today.

Time is your most precious commodity when you travel. If you're traveling, say, to Paris, and have just a few days, you want to make the most of your time on vacation. You can easily waste hours in line waiting to buy tickets to various attractions — the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the Musée d'Orsay (Impressionist art museum), the Georges Pompidou (contemporary art museum), Saint Chapelle (and its gorgeous stained glass windows), Notre Dame (the iconic cathedral of Paris), etc. — and you'll be frustrated. Precious time is slipping through your fingers.

Here are some tips to make the most of your time on vacation.


(1) Consider a private guide. Yes, private guides are expensive, but it's an investment in making the most of your stay with the least possible frustration. Not only will your guide be able to procure tickets in advance, she can tailor your visit to your interests and reduce stress immeasurably. I remember a great tour at the Prado Museum in Madrid, a huge museum in which you could spend days wandering aimlessly around. Our guide knew the museum intimately, and she treated us to a great visit of the museum's Velasquez and Goya paintings. Though they were scattered through many galleries, she knew exactly where to go. Not a wasted step, not a misspent minute, and we were treated to an informative show-and-tell of the paintings of these two great Spanish painters. Expensive? Yes… but we enjoyed these highlights of the Prado in one hour … and were off to the next stop on our itinerary.

(2) Buy a museum pass for the city you're visiting. Conventional logic says to compare the cost of the tickets you want to buy and the cost of the pass … and buy whichever costs less. But think outside the box! A museum pass lets you skip the long ticket lines at many of those places, saving you hours. Even if you've "overspent" by 10 or 20 euros, you're buying more time to enjoy everything you want to see — a small price to pay!

(3) Concentrating on maximizing your time, not minimizing your expenses. This may seem like counter-intuitive wisdom in this age of internet shopping. So what if you can save $100 by flying home a day earlier? It's a false economy. If you're spending thousands of dollars on a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Paris, or Venice, or Bali, why cut that experience short just to gain some minor savings?

Travel is one of the most life-changing and enriching experiences in life, and you'll always remember the trips you've taken. What you spend on travel is an investment in your life, just as important (if not more so) than your stocks and bonds, and you measure that investment by its return on life.


make the most of your time on vacation (search here on Google)

copyright (c) 2012 by David Ourisman LLC. All rights reserved. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.

Napier, New Zealand | the Art Deco city

We decided to make an impromptu side trip today to Napier, New Zealand. (We are staying at the Farm at Cape Kidnappers, about 30 minutes to the south). Napier is a small beach town on New Zealand's North Island, known as the Art Deco city. Dropped off at the local tourism office, we learned that we had just missed the regularly scheduled daily walking tour of Napier. We made arrangements for a private walking tour after lunch, then went off on our own.

At 1:30 p.m., we met up with our guide and began our tour. The town of Napier suffered a strong earthquake in 1931 that devastated the town. The 7.8 magnitude quake shook the town for two-and-one-half minutes, destroying everything that wasn't constructed of reinforced concrete. The leaders of Napier decided to rebuild the town using an Art Deco design motif for the new buildings of the town. Our guide talked about the reasons for that decision, described various design elements of Art Deco, and then took us around town. She pointed out the external architectural features of the buildings, noted some of the decisions made by the city planners (underground utilities, splayed corners, street names on the sidewalk), and took us into a number of buildings with extremely attractive interiors. It was a fascinating hour.

I was struck by the difference between the first 3 hours spent exploring on our own and the final hour walking around Napier with our knowledgeable guide. While everything she showed us was obviously there for anyone to see ... with our untrained eyes, we had missed it all. Napier had not seemed like much of a destination, but now through the trained eyes of an expert guide, we could appreciate that Napier was a very special place with a unique story. I highly recommend spending a morning or an afternoon, and be sure to sign up for the daily scheduled tour!

More information on Napier, New Zealand, contact the Art Deco Trust or your travel consultant.

Napier, New Zealand (search here on Google)


copyright (c) 2009 by David J. Ourisman. All rights reserved. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.
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when to use a travel consultant

The August, 2008 issue of Condé Nast Traveler offers Wendy Perrin's list of 128 top travel consultants for various destinations and specialties. I personally know a number of those listed, half a dozen being my colleagues at Brownell Travel. I can attest that they are truly knowledgeable and authoritative travel consultants who can plan over-the-top travel experiences for your next trip.

An interesting sidebar to Perrin's article lists 5 reasons to hire a travel consultant (and 5 reasons not use a travel consultant, the subject of my next article). Here's my commentary on the list:

Do hire a travel consultant for...

1. Start-to-finish customized itineraries with all the bells and whistles

Putting together an itinerary that flows is the single important thing a travel consultant does. Time is your most valuable resource, and a travel plan that makes the most of your time is well worth the trip planning fee that your travel consultant will charge. You'll have a true travel expert looking out for you: avoiding travel connections that may not work in real life, making sure that the museum you want to see is actually open on the day you're scheduled to be there, getting you advance reservations that will enable you to avoid waiting in long lines for tickets, and obtaining dinner reservations at celebrated restaurants. Want a VIP airport welcome on the jetway that will whisk you through immigrations and straight to your waiting limousine? Ask your travel consultant.


2. Once-in-a-lifetime splurges using 4 or 5 star hotels

You want to stay at the world's best hotels, but you also want the most for your money. Luxury travel consultants produce results you simply won't get browsing the internet. How? Someone who specializes in booking five star hotels knows where the best values are. He or she has access to contracted rates and exclusive amenities such as complimentary daily breakfasts (and more). She or he personally knows Sales Managers at top five star hotels and uses those connections to get you VIP service and upgrades whenever possible.

3. English-speaking guides and drivers

There are three kinds of guides — excellent, average, and poor. A great guide can make your trip the experience of a lifetime. A luxury travel consultant has the connections to get you an excellent guide with great English-language skills. Through repeated experience working with local on-sites (travel experts who live and work in the country you're visiting), and through the shared experience of our colleagues, a travel consultant knows which companies most consistently provide the top guides.

4. Special access to monuments, events, or people

Want an exclusive experience you'll remember for the rest of your life? Exclusive, after-hours access to busy attractions just for your family or group? A private visit to the Sistine Chapel or the Louvre? A private romantic dinner and concert in the Library of Ephesus? A tee time at St. Andrews? A cooking lesson with a three-star Michelin chef? A visit to an exclusive winery that normally does not admit the public? Access to private gardens and chateaux? The opportunity to meet foreign nobility? Such experiences are not inexpensive, but a luxury travel consultant can arrange them.

5. Cruises with private shore excursions

There is an alternative to being part of a busload of tourists following a tour guide with a flag. Your travel consultant can arrange a private guide who will meet you at the dock and host your own private, exclusive experience. And if there are as few as four of you traveling together, the price will be competitive with the cruise lines' own shore excursions.

Even in this age of the internet, you don't have to plan your own travel. A travel consultant can save you time, money, and frustration ... and plan a vacation you'll never forget.

travel consultant (search here on Google)


copyright (c) 2007 by David J. Ourisman. All rights reserved. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.
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what to do in Bangkok

Exploring Bangkok is a fascinating experience any way you do it, but the ultimate luxury is to see Bangkok with a private guide and driver. We benefited from a carefully orchestrated itinerary that flowed naturally from one sight to the next. Our guide arranged all the details, took care of admissions, offered informed commentary on what we were seeing, suggested activities, and even provided bottles of cold water for us. We were incredibly well taken care of.

After meeting us in our hotel lobby, we visited a local street market that most tourists will never find. Walking through stands selling flowers, fruit, fish, candles, and incense (among many other things), we saw floral garlands being made, savored the wonderful aromas of the food stands, and experienced a slice of the everyday life of many residents of Bangkok.


The Grand Palace is a must-see for every world traveler. The grounds of the palace occupy 54 acres, and its temple, Wat Phra Kael, contains the famous Emerald Buddha. The Grand Palace is an incredibly ornate complex of buildings decorated with gold gilt, ceramic tiles, and jewels. It rivals the opulence of Versailles.

Although most of our transfers were provided by an air conditioned minivan, a welcome respite from the heat and humidity, we were given the opportunity to experience a ride in a tuk-tuk for the short trip to Wat Pho. Tuk-tuks are small three-wheeled motorcycles that provide taxi service throughout Bangkok.

Wat Pho is the home of the Reclining Buddha, an immense gold-plated statue 150 feet long with inlaid mother-of-pearl in the soles of its feet.

We then enjoyed a private ride on a colorful long-boat through some of the canals of Bangkok, seeing homes and temples built at the water's edge. Our tour ended with a wonderful lunch at Supatra River House.

How to arrange a great private tour? The Virtuoso network has on-sites in virtually every country in the world, knowledgeable local experts who know their destination thoroughly. Virtuoso on-sites have access to the best guides, the most reliable drivers, and can provide access to exclusive experiences. Every private tour can be custom-designed to satisfy the interests of the most discerning travelers. Just contact your Virtuoso luxury travel consultant.

Virtuoso luxury travel consultant (Search here on Google)



copyright (c) 2007 by David J. Ourisman. All rights reserved. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.
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