42 ~ Sunday, December 25, 1988 — North Shore News

"TRAVEL

DESPITE SOME SETBACKS

Tours can be cheaper than travelling om one’s own

From page 44

popular member on any tour it just might be the chronically late. One of the most biting remarks 1 ever heard regarding a frequent ‘‘late’’ was, ‘‘Pity she doesn’t have any other way of getting attention.”’

Be a light traveller. Even if the tour advertises, ‘‘Baggage han- dling,’’ they don’t mean six pieces. One bag, please, with a possible carry-all that you carry yourself.

Dress for the climate and the terrain. Don’t hold the group back because ‘‘Your boots aren’t made for walkin’’’ or you don’t have a windbreaker.

Quit your bitching. No tour is ever 100 per cent. If ever I’ve con- sidered murder with 30 people to swear to my innocence, it is with a chronic complainer on a _ tour. These people give the rest a pain you-know-where and wonder why nobody wants te sit near them.

Get your baggage out of your room and into the hall when it’s called for.

This may sound like a small thing but a tour leader is faced with a mountain of baggage.

Every stop.

After a week, I can’t blame hira if your bags are still in Paris and everything else is in Brussels.

Do your ho: zwork. Every guided tour includes a leader who entertains the party with patter about the places you’re seeing. He doesn’t need some doze asking questions that any six year old could answer.

Mind your possessions. Keep track of your tickets, passport, wallet and watch. Clear your hotel room carefully and don’t leave cameras lying around.

Many a tour has gone sour when the whole group is grounded by the local police for one idiot who has left some object on a park bench.

Make friends, but don’t make them too quickly. Take time to assess the personal qualities of fellow tourists.

The worst scenario I ever en- countered was a lady who was perfectly charming unless someone poured her a glass of bubbly.

No one did for the first day of the tour and we became chatty.

I spent the next eight days sad- dled with a sloppy drunk who relied on my sobriety to keep her out of trouble.

For months after my return home I got blitzed with midnight phone calls from Toronto.

Special rates now in effect. Call toll free for reservations:

1-800-663-7302

GET AWAY WEEKEND

On tranquil Rathtrevor Bay, just south of Parksville on the Island Highway, Madrona Beach Resort offers everything from long walks on the beach watching the eagles soar, to quiet evenings by the fire. For the more active. a round of golf or a days skiing is just a short journey away.

Lend a hand, if you can. I can’t remember the times when a tour guide struggled with a list and ap- preciated the words, ‘‘Can I give you a hand?”’

It comes back to bless you when the person in charge makes sure that you get the best seat at the concert or a special trip into the kitchen at a famous restaurant.

Tour guides can be wonderfully funny people and can give you some insights into travel that will shock you, entertain you and cer- tainly open your eyes.

Take notes. Watch everything as it is done and ask questions.

By the time you're finished a tour you ought to be smart enough to handle a voyage on your own. With great relief, you won’t be saddled with late-comers, whiners and losers.

eee

Tours can be wonderful. They can also be awful.

Protect yourself as best you can by following my ‘10 Command- ments.””

Remember, too, that tours can be booked from wherever you’re at — short-term — and are often cheaper than gaing on your own.

For example: We were in Rome. ‘Co see Pompeii, Capri, Sorrento and the Amalfi Drive on a do-it- ourselves basis would have taken a week and plenty of cash.

Inconvenient? For sure. Hell, Id never been there and it takes a bit of planning to find hotels, res- taurants and get the geography straight.

Instead, I bought a three-day tour from our hotel in Rome that included everything for far less than I'd pay to fumble around. Sold.

An added bonus: Buying a tour “fon site’? means that the group is truly international. It was great fun te get io know a group of people that were from everywhere and, even better, enjoyed the company of three Canadians:

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myself, my mother and an It- year-old kid.

Best, though, was the freedom of knowing that after three days we were back on our own and could book another tour — if we liked!

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Merry Xmas, Safe & Happy Holidays! from all of us at Tilley Endurables

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Ph. 732-4287 or SEA-HATS

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