tour guides | don't "settle" for your cab driver

Hector, our exceptional tour guide in Costa Rica (c) 2017 by David Ourisman, all rights reserved

I just read a travelogue by one of my favorite bloggers, Ben Schlappig of One Mile at a Time. Ben's expertise consists of his encyclopedic knowledge of using "miles" to book premium airline flights and hotel stays. Ben, in addition, has a thorough knowledge of various credit cards and their benefits and sign-up bonuses. I've used his service to book award flights.

Ben's story illustrates why arranging tour guides is an art.  While visiting Jerusalem with his mother, they planned to do some sightseeing. Armed with a list of specific sights they wanted to see, they hopped in a cab to their first destination. The cab driver offered to be their tour guide for the day, and they accepted.

The experience was not what they hoped for. The driver had his own ideas of what they should see and refused to take them to some of the sites on their list. He disparaged some of the Christian sites that Ben's mother wanted to visit. And, perhaps most typical of these kinds of "guides," he insisted on taking them to a tourist shop outside the city to buy a few souvenirs they intended to purchase. It ended up being a crappy, tourist-trappy store, its parking lot filled with tour busses. Once the driver pocketed his commission, the tour suddenly ended, and Ben and his mom were driven straight back to their hotel.

There are exceptional tour guides out there who will treat you to a truly exceptional experience. You'll hear stories, see sights, and gain insights that you'll remember for the rest of your life. Hector (pictured above) was our knowledgeable and personable tour guide in Costa Rica. His love for the animals and plant life of the rain forest was obvious ... and he was a hilarious story teller. I'll never forget his account of the two times he gave tours to "Mr. Jimmy" and his wife Rosalyn. (Yes, that Mr. Jimmy, the 39th President of the United States).

When and where do you find the "best of the best" tour guides? Definitely NOT in the driver's seat of your taxi. Likely NOT at the concierge desk the day before you want to take a tour. And most likely NOT if you start enquiring a few months before your trip; the best guides always get booked first ... and you'll be left with the "best of the rest."

My advice: contact your luxury travel advisor six months or a year before your trip. Sometimes we'll have a personal relationship with a great independent guide, and we can connect you. More often, we will turn to our in-country Virtuoso partners; they have the specialized expertise required to pair you with a guide best suited to you, your family, and your interests.

copyright (c) 2017 by Ourisman Travel LLC. All rights reserved. We provide Virtuoso and other Preferred Partner amenities as an affiliate of Brownell, a Virtuoso® Member. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.

saving money is a powerful motive...

our expert guide from Journey Mexico added so much to our visit of Chichen Itsa

Saving money is a powerful motive when shopping on the internet, but as strong as the impulse might be to click on the lowest price for a product or service, it doesn't always make sense. This is especially the case when:

(1) you do not know (or have someone to vouch for) the vendor
(2) you're purchasing a non-commodity item

If you're planning that bucket list trip, shopping for the absolute lowest price is not a good idea. Here's a true account of a trip to Cuba shared by a colleague. A client wanted to plan a tour for a small group, and my colleague quoted a package from a trusted vendor. The group planner, thinking the quote was too high, decided to save some money by booking everything online.

The trip turned out to a disaster. While their accommodations were ok...

(1) The guide he booked online never showed up.
(2) There was no one to contact for recourse.
(3) Communications were difficult.
(4) One member of the group suffered an illness during the trip.

Because of the difficulty with communications, two members of the group left Cuba and returned home early. Maybe they had saved a few hundred or thousand dollars. But because they were "shoppers," buying solely on the basis of the lowest price, they lost the entire investment they had made in their highly anticipated trip.

The alternative is to plan travel with a trusted travel advisor who, in turn, works with recommended and fully vetted suppliers with a track record of providing great service. You will pay more. But here's what you can expect in return.

The best guides. Guides are not a commodity item. While most guides are perfectly adequate (with a few who are unreliable and/or horrible), there will always be a select group of absolutely terrific guides who will take your trip to the next level! What are your specific interests? Whether you want to explore Cuban history, architecture, music, art, rum, or cigars, you can be paired up with a guide whose expertise matches what you want to experience.

Another consideration: do you have kids? Some guides are terrific working with young children. Others are best with an adult audience. How are you going to figure out on your own which "internet guide" to book?

A workable itinerary. Google is a great resource, but it is not a travel advisor. You can get lists of the "ten best things to do" in any destination, but that can't substitute for local, expert knowledge. What day is the museum closed? In what order should I see things? How long should I anticipate spending at each attraction? How long does it take to get to the next? Such information can help you pace your day. But more than this, what hidden treasures await, what authentic experiences unknown by most tourists because they do not show up on the "top ten" lists?

Things can go wrong. While we don't like to think about it, the unexpected does happen (like a broken arm). When you slip and fall, how valuable it is to have a trusted in-country supplier with a 24/7 telephone number who can help you manage the problem.

copyright (c) 2017 by Ourisman Travel LLC. All rights reserved. We provide Virtuoso and other Preferred Partner amenities as an affiliate of Brownell, a Virtuoso® Member. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.

great tour guides = extraordinary experiences

Sally, our extraordinary tour guide in England

We all know (or can imagine) what it's like to have a tour guide who's merely "average." While he or she may be perfectly competent and get you from place to place with a minimum of hassle, the narrative might be, well, just average. Lots of facts, lots of dates, lots of yawn-inducing details concerning who begat whom, and so on.

Imagine the difference when you get one of the best in the business! That was the case with Sally, pictured above, who was our tour guide last week in England. Working exclusively with Noteworthy Events, Sally is perhaps the best tour guide I've ever had. A gifted storyteller, she held my attention throughout the five days of our trip (and I have perhaps the lowest boredom threshold on the planet). She told stories with drama and passion and truly made our England trip one of the most extraordinary travel experiences I've ever had.

Sure, you can book a tour guide through a hotel concierge, and you may save 15%, but you'll get whoever is "left" a few days before your tour. Since all the great guides get booked early, you'll get someone who's "average." If you want a really great tour guide, my advice is to contact your Virtuoso travel consultant as soon as possible.

Now that I'm back from London, you may enjoy reading through all of my blog posts from the trip.

London skyline at dawn
a couple in the Waterloo tube station
English gardens in the early spring
Downton Abbey | I was there!
sitting in Churchill's chair
the changing of the guard | avoid the crowds
St. Paul's Cathedral | behind the scenes access
the crown jewels | up close and personal

Still coming ... luxury hotel site inspections from London and the countryside.

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.