EllinK
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 28, 2012
In addition to Thomson, you may want to take a look at Austin Adventures. We're traveling with them for the first time in June to Yellowstone
Please report back -- we are also interested in that trip.
In addition to Thomson, you may want to take a look at Austin Adventures. We're traveling with them for the first time in June to Yellowstone
Agreed. We have done many ABDs and are happy with them, but they don't cover all of the locations we'd like to see. I was looking at the Thomson Thailand trip recently, it looks great! I wonder if there's a place to see reviews and get info about them like this forum is for ABD?
@Calfan traveled with them to China and had a fabulous time. She wrote about it in the "other options" thread, I believe.I think I'm going to book Costa Rica with Thomson for February and would love to hear feedback from anyone else who may have traveled with them. They're running an anniversary special, so I'll get 10% off the trip price, plus for booking 9 months in advance, I'll receive flight insurance (in addition to the already included trip insurance) and a more generous cancellation policy (cancellation up to 120 days before with no penalty). Although there are no other families currently booked on this trip, the trip will be guaranteed with just DS and me. I'll still look at the ABD trip, but the itineraries are similar and the smaller Thomson size and more flexible cancellation policy is likely to win out in the end.
I think I'm going to book Costa Rica with Thomson for February and would love to hear feedback from anyone else who may have traveled with them. They're running an anniversary special, so I'll get 10% off the trip price, plus for booking 9 months in advance, I'll receive flight insurance (in addition to the already included trip insurance) and a more generous cancellation policy (cancellation up to 120 days before with no penalty). Although there are no other families currently booked on this trip, the trip will be guaranteed with just DS and me. I'll still look at the ABD trip, but the itineraries are similar and the smaller Thomson size and more flexible cancellation policy is likely to win out in the end.
@Calfan traveled with them to China and had a fabulous time. She wrote about it in the "other options" thread, I believe.
Thanks so much. It’s been such an easy process with them so far. After booking a few cruises on DCL on opening day and watching the ABD board, it’s nice to be reminded that booking a vacation doesn’t have to be stressful.Yes, we had a fabulous trip to China with Thomson. We loved that our trip was guaranteed with just our 4. For a while, I was hoping we would end up with a private tour to China, but in the end, they paired us with another family, and it was fantastic. I think Thomson does make an effort to steer guests they think would be compatible onto trips with each other. Even though they guarantee their trips from the first booking, it obviously makes more financial sense for them to possibly run fewer trips and have some kind of critical mass on the ones that do end up getting booked. I had the distinct feeling that Thomson steered the other family toward our date. Our kids were 11 and 13 when we went, and the other family had kids 12 (almost 13), 10, 10 and 7. We ended up being very compatible and I think the trip was a lot more enjoyable with two families. So our trip had 10 total guests, 2 full-time guides and an extra guide in each city who was with us from airport arrival in that city to airport departure in that city. We would definitely travel with Thomson again, and likely will in 2020.
We actually decided to go with the new ABD trip. They must have listened and heard our request and we are now booked on the ABD Canadian Rockies for next summer. our biggest rationale for sticking with ABD is the hotels definitely are nicer than the ones Thomson had for this itinerary. WE are also very scared about there not being a lot of kids on Thomson. We were currently the only people who had booked and for us having other kids to hang out with is a big draw for our daughters.
We decided to book with Thomson for the Canadian Rockies lol. A little nervous but only because we are so accustomed to ABD. It’s pretty comfortable to blend in with 38 other people. We think it might feel awkward to be one of only two families.
Calfan’s China Thomson review definitely had influence!
I know a lot of people don't like the big groups with ABD, but I actually prefer the bigger groups because there's more opportunities to mingle throughout the tour (the adults can sit with and chat with different adults at dinners, etc), and more likelihood that the kids will find someone else to hang out with.
I agree with your concerns about feeling awkward with the smaller group. I know a lot of people don't like the big groups with ABD, but I actually prefer the bigger groups because there's more opportunities to mingle throughout the tour (the adults can sit with and chat with different adults at dinners, etc), and more likelihood that the kids will find someone else to hang out with. We really haven't been on a tour yet where the numbers made it feel like we were missing out on anything or too delayed waiting for people. But definitely a plus that Thomson tries to match families with similar aged kids.
We decided to book with Thomson for the Canadian Rockies lol. A little nervous but only because we are so accustomed to ABD. It’s pretty comfortable to blend in with 38 other people. We think it might feel awkward to be one of only two families.
Calfan’s China Thomson review definitely had influence!
I've never really thought of it that way, but it makes sense. We are a family of 6, and frequently travel with my parents. We would be the majority of the group for a very small group. That might be weird. That said, we also really don't need a big group, since with 4 kids they tend to mostly get along with each other anyways. Youngest ds would appreciate a buddy, but his oldest sisters are pretty good about including him.
Yes, I imagine it changes as they get older. I've noticed the older teens on our trips tend to keep more to themselves than the younger kids. I think we'll get there soon with mine. This summer they are still 13 and 14, and very excited about being with young teens.Was discussing trip possibilities last night with dd16. When I mentioned some tours with larger groups she looked at me like I had 3 heads. She has no need to go meet other teens apparently. LOL