I Help People Avoid The Most Common Coach Holiday Issues

Are You Considering a Coach Holiday?

Great – then are in exactly the right place. I am the coach holiday expert after all!

Finding your perfect coach holiday is all about research, knowing your terminology, knowing the differences between coach holiday companies and knowing what questions to ask.

I’ve got resources to help you with all those things.

What Type of Coach Holiday Traveller Are You?

Take this very quick quiz which will help you get an idea of the type of holiday that might suit you best.

What Makes Me a Coach Holiday Expert?

Years of experience!

I have spent 25 years taking coach holidays all over the world. I started taking coach holidays before the internet, before modern computers and before cheap flights came along. We weren’t quite steam driven in those days but I do wonder how we managed and how everything worked!

I have worked with a number of different companies as a Tour Manager. I have lots of coach holiday experience including;

• Taking early European tours before cheap flights.
• Combined coach and rail coach holidays.
• Special event coach holidays including concerts and sporting events.
• River cruise holidays.

Being a Tour Manager has been so much more than a job for me, it really has been a lifestyle and a career and one that I have absolutely loved.

Not only have I met and travelled with thousands of lovely people, I have also seen and visited many wonderful places and have had the chance to learn about them before and from local guides when there in person.

Coach Holiday Expertise

Years of experience are great but they don’t necessarily mean you are a coach holiday expert.

I have also invested a great deal of effort into honing my skills and knowledge when it comes to coach holidays including;

• Taking first departure tours which involved on the spot problem fixing due to itinerary and supplier issues.
• Taking private group tours including alumni groups.
• Training other tour managers.
• Updating tour manuals and information for other tour managers.
• Providing tour briefings to other tour managers.
• Taking over coach holidays at the last minute in the event of illness or accident of tour manager or coach driver.

Coach Holiday Experience

Over my 25 year career I have taken holidays to;

• Most of Europe including France, Portugal, Spain, Latvia, Lithuania, Sweden, Finland, Belgium, Holland and Italy
• Russia
• Australia and New Zealand
• China
• Singapore and Bangkok
• Plus plenty of trips to the UK, special events, sporting events and much more.

Coach Holiday Expert Recommendations

I’ve got a huge number of notes and cards from passengers I have travelled with over the years. These are always a great reminder of a happy trip and helping someone to enjoy their experience. A couple of notable recent experiences;

I travelled with a first time traveller who had never been out of the US before. She was very nervous but enjoyed her trip and wrote me the most wonderful note saying how I had helped her gain the confidence to carry on travelling.

A husband and wife travelled with me on a recent trip. The husband had absolutely hated the idea of a coach holiday and was really going along because of his wife. He didn’t really think he would enjoy the experience. At the end of the holiday he did a speech on behalf of the group saying what a great Tour Manager I had been and that he was converted and was now looking forward to lots more holidays with his wife.

Who knew Tour Managers could help marriages too!

Check out a couple of testimonials from my most recent tours

Coach Holiday Expert Resources For You;

If you haven’t got it already I would really recommend my 10 Things You Absolutely Need to Know Before You Book a Coach Holiday. It’s based on the most common issues experienced by guests I have travelled with and how you can easily avoid these. Just hit the button below to get your copy;

Quick links to coach holiday articles and guides – all here to help you find your perfect coach holiday and all written based on my +25 years experience.

Coach Holiday Comparisons & Itinerary Insights

Knowing the right questions to ask and understanding what you are buying are key to finding the right holiday for you.

To make it easier I have done some side by side comparisons of coach holidays, so you can compare itineraries, included extras, costs and also get insider insights to help you understand the itinerary.

Itinerary insights also helps you to understand areas where you might want to ask more questions before you travel.

Coach Holiday Considerations

There are lots of things to think about before you book a coach holiday. If you haven’t already got it I would recommend my 10 Things You Absolutely Need to Know about a Coach Holiday. This will help you avoid some of the most common issues I have seen guests experience on holiday, by ensuring you get the best holiday for you. The article will help identify areas of the itinerary you might want to ask more about.

Here are some other things you might want to consider or ask more about too;

Given the uncertainty around any travel at the moment it is probably worth being clear about deposit terms, current travel advice in relation to travel in the UK and also overseas, and how any advice differs in relations to coaches and coach holidays. You may want to check any advice, requirements, restrictions in relation to seats, hotels, tours, toilets and more. For more detailed information on this topic check out my article Coach Holidays and Covid19.

How do you join your coach holiday? Are there local joining points or do you make your own way, fly or take the train and then start your coach holiday?

If there are local joining points how much coach travel is involved before you reach the starting point for the holiday? Some companies operate local joining points which could be for more than one holiday, with all passengers meeting up and then changing on the right coaches for their holidays. Local joining points can also mean that the coach takes longer to reach the starting point for the main holiday because it has to go round and pick people up.

Does the coach have reclining seats, an onboard toilet or air conditioning? While you might expect these things as standard they are not always. This can be the case when using coaches for pick ups (known as feeder coaches) and it can also be the case if using coaches overseas. Not all coaches in other countries have air conditioning, they may have forced air cooling systems too.

Coach Holiday Companies

If you want to jump right in and start looking at coach holidays right now then check out the following companies, all of whom I know;

Saga Holidays

Titan Travel

Travelsphere

Maynes Holidays

Coach Holiday Blog Articles