Is traveling with 50+ twenty-somethings all it’s chalked up to be?
You are in the best years of your life, but traveling with a group seems a bit harder than it used to be.
In the past it was easy – field trips with your class, senior trips, study abroad – you were always bombarded with group travel opportunities when you were a student.
But now, in your twenties/early thirties, you might want to find a group to travel with, but you don’t want to be stuck on a bus with an odd mix of singles, families and elderly couples.
Luckily, travel companies noticed the need for age-restricted travel.
G Adventures, EF Ultimate Break, FTLO Travel, Under 30 Experiences – the list goes on of companies that aim to give you the best travel experience of your life while you’re in that awkward spot between being a student and being a real full blown adult.
Each of these types of companies have their own niche. Some are for singles only, some are for under 30, some allow up to age 35, and some even require a 50/50 split of men and women!
Read to the end to find out which tour company I went with… Hint: It’s not any of the above listed.
I did extensive research into many of these travel companies prior to choosing. In the end I am glad I picked the tour I went with. I am planning on writing a full review of my trip as my first experience with that tour company soon!
Why would I travel with a tour group, when I can plan my own trip?
I think most people would agree traveling with your own nuclear group of friends, significant other, or family, is a great way to see the world. You have the ultimate flexibility to do and see what you want with people you already care about. Who wants to have some of the best travel experiences of your life with utter strangers that you may not even like??
Well, there are reasons why a growing number of young adults get hooked on group travel. Here are some of the pros to group travel:
Meet new young people
It’s like a mixer, but abroad…and from anywhere between 5 days and 45 days… so you’re bound to meet a whole variety of interesting people.
Make friends in different parts of the world
Suddenly you have a like-minded friend in every continent who could potentially host you in the future? Count me in.
Minimal planning required
The only thing you’ll need to worry about is getting yourself to the meeting point on day one.
Get out of your comfort zone
Start at square one with 30+ strangers – Prepare to discover a lot about yourself!
Cost savings
Though you pay for the convenience of the tour planning and the services of tour manager/drivers, you can also stay at nicer hotels for less when you opt to share a room with a roommate.
Are there any downsides to traveling with a young adults tour group?
While I personally recommend everyone try group travel at least once, I will be upfront about it – It’s not for everybody! There are certainly drawbacks to traveling with a young-adults tour. Here are a few:
Social exhaustion
If you are an introvert, the fast-paced and constant nature of socializing on these trips can draw much needed energy away from you enjoying the sights and experiences.
Catching an illness
It happened to me and it could definitely happen to you – When you are traveling with 50 people on a coach, if one person gets sick, odds are it will spread like wildfire before you even see the signs. It sucks being sick when you’re trying to get the most out of your trip, and sucks even worse when you’re worrying about getting back home.
Loneliness or Homesickness
It’s very easy to get nostalgic for our loved ones when traveling with strangers. You may find yourself wishing your S/O or family were around you as you have some of the most awe-inspiring moments of your life!
What about free time? Will I have time to do the things I like?
After my experience, I would say that – yes – I was pleasantly surprised to find that there is often ample time to do the things you want to do on your own. Even though things can get cliquey, you’ll never be judged for wanting to do your own thing on some days. In most cases, you’ll even find a few others who want to do that thing with you!
Which tour did I take?
Thanks for reading up to point! As a little thank you I’ll let you in on which company and tour I took 🙂
As my first “young adult” tour, I wanted to go big – with Contiki!
Contiki caters to travelers from all over the world as long as they are between the ages of 18-35. They offer a great variety of trips on their website, which are updated all the time. With my trip, we traveled 100% by coach and stayed in 4-star hotels every night. Pretty sweet!
I decided to take a tour called “Italian Espresso,” which was a 10-day tour starting and ending in Rome. We never spent more than 2 nights in a single location, so we got to see a ton of amazing Italian towns/cities north of Rome. I went to places that I never dreamed I’d be able to go in my lifetime!
The group was nearly 50 PEOPLE! AKA the coach was almost fully packed. The only Contiki employees on our trip were our fantastic tour manager Francesca, and our coach driver Mickey.
Since coming home I’ve been overwhelmed with thoughts about the trip, so I’m planning on writing a few follow-up articles about my experience with them. If you’re interested stay tuned! I post on Instagram whenever I write a new blog post. Follow me @themonthlymigrant to see my new posts!
In the meantime you might be interested in some of my recent blog posts:
Can You Learn a Language by Watching Netflix? Read my article on this here!
Want to know what I’m reading during my mid-twenties gap year? Read my article here!
