I’ve written about group travel before, too.

My mom and I went in a group to Machu Picchu. While I probably, usually, would have planned a trip Machu Picchu independently, we decided to go pretty (very) late and during high season. This meant little was available–trains, accommodations, and even tickets to Machu Picchu started to look really complicated and less than ideal. Plus, I was incredibly busy at the time and didn’t really have hours to spare organizing the weeklong trip.  We were both happy to go the group route with a highly reputable company.

I’ve been on enough group tours now to know the pitfalls and benefits to group travel. Choosing the right operator and the right trip can make a huge difference in your experience, obviously. But there are other things that are harder to judge in advance. These things can really make or break a trip. Sure, reading online reviews helps, but I find that online reviews of group trips are generally 1) written by the company, 2) written by people who only travel in groups, or 3) written by people where something horrible, terrible, very bad happened (like that one review where the two teenage children refused to leave a hotel because they got in a fight with their parents and the parents blamed the tour guide…that’s one of my all-time favorites).

But here are five things that you only find out during the group trip that I think make a huge difference in overall trip enjoyment:

Un-Annoying, Non-Difficult Group Members

Given the groups we’ve had in the past before, this group was pretty easy going and did not have a single attention-needing, loud, obnoxious person. Serious relief. While we’ve always met some truly wonderful people in the past, we’ve also had our share of helpless, ridiculous, rude, ignorant, and seriously freaking annoying. This group was a bit less sociable than others we’ve had, mostly due to lots of families, but I’ll take that over annoying any day.

The Itinerary Meets the Expectations Set by the Promotional Materials

Mostly, this trip fit the bill. There were a few misleading things, like “we’ll enjoy a walk to the Sun Gate” (was totally optional and not really suggested). And that we would have a free afternoon in Lima. Apparently that meant just for dinner? Traffic in Lima is awful, and it took us about 2 hours to get to our hotel. But traffic is always awful in Lima, and to not plan this into the schedule is a bit silly. In general, the itinerary was pretty straightforward, lectures on schedule, and everything as advertised. That said, this company was one of those that had 2 sentences, maximum, to describe each day. When that’s all you have, it’s pretty easy to not oversell anything. Some companies send about a page for each day–I guess each has their preferences for their clientele.

We Hiked to the Sun Gate

Accommodations that Are the Level Advertised

In addition to the itinerary, it is critically important that hotels are the level they are purported to be. You know, not the whole “well, five stars here is like two stars in the United States.” While so many places we’ve stayed have been wonderful, we’ve also stayed in some (well, perhaps just a small handful) of dark, dank, dirty hotels that were advertised as luxury. Ha. Sousse Palace I’m looking at you.

This trip’s accommodations were in the other direction–extremely, extremely nice. All of them. Better than I was expecting. You can only learn so much from TripAdvisor, and things I value–cleanliness primarily, comfortable pillows that don’t smell, and nice bath products don’t hurt–were all excellent. While I don’t know if bad accommodations can totally “ruin” a trip (as my mom would say, “only if you let them”), they can certainly make showering an effort in how to be a germ-avoidance ninja. Thumbs up.

Beautiful Belmond Hotel Monasterio

Good Trip Leaders

Oh dear. This is one of those things that is so variable and can make such a huge difference. A tour leader that doesn’t handle conflict well, one that clearly doesn’t want to be there, and those that are so enjoyable you want to take them home with you and show them wherever you live…we’ve had the full gamut.

This one totally missed the mark on our trip. Besides refusing to speak a word in Spanish to me which I found overly offensive as my Spanish is not that bad (this includes basic greetings like good morning), his English was subpar.  We got in a few arguments, including why I needed to just grab something from my luggage, that left a bad taste in my mouth. Not to mention he treated our bus driver like pond scum. Yea, yea culture and all, but if you have a client that understands Spanish, my feeling is you need to make damn sure you at least pretend to be polite, particularly in a small bus of only 12 people.

The saving grace, really, is that we had 2 other guides for Cusco and Machu Picchu that were great. They were knowledgeable, personable, acted like they actually wanted to be there. If it wasn’t for them, this trip probably would have been a dee-sas-ter.

Organization and Scheduling

One of the big keys, to me, of a good tour is ensuring that people generally don’t feel rushed or overscheduled. I hate being herded and hurried through museums, archaeological sites, cities, etc. Often, having lots of “free” time in a place is my preference. If I want to go for a run, I go for a run. If we want to go see another museum, shop, whatever–we can do those things at our leisure.  It’s hard to have back to back to back activities and enjoy each of them.

On the trip to Peru, I never felt particularly rushed at Machu Picchu, or in Cusco. During our time at the Sacred Valley, however, it did sometimes feel we were scheduled like sardines. Our time in Lima, until we were dropped off at our hotel, was awful. Rush, rush, rush, rush. The other thing that was particularly annoying was that our Tour Leader wouldn’t tell us anything about our schedule for the next day until the night prior (like what time our flight was), when we all sat down and discussed “what we would do tomorrow”. That made me feel like a kindergartner.  I hated kindergarten.

(Do you know how absolutely tormenting it is to spend an entire day learning the letter H when you can already read full books? It’s awful. Just saying).

Overall Verdict on Peru

We definitely enjoyed the trip. I mean, I think it’s hard not to enjoy Machu Picchu and not to enjoy Peru. The rudeness of the trip leader did take a toll after a while, as did his inability to tell us anything you can’t find on Wikipedia (actually, I take that back, there is WAY more to learn on Wikipedia than what he told us about Peru). But we enjoyed the time we spent with our other guides in Machu Picchu and Cusco. The accommodations were wonderful, unique, and the food was fantastic. While there are definitely certain places I’ll go on group tours again (i.e., Antarctica and the Galapagos), I’ll be avoiding tours in cities where we prefer to explore on our own time and own pace.

I’ve had a few friends ask me for advice on booking air travel in the last few months, as well as some fun recounting a few horror stories I’ve learned from, so I’d thought I’d write down what I suggest to avoid air travel problems. Yes, they may cost a bit more. However, I think the anxiety, stress, time, and frustration caused by air travel trouble surpasses the increased fare in more cases than not, particularly on quick trips.

1. Go non-stop.

There are very few occasions where putting in a layover or an unnecessary stop is a good option. The more stops you have, the more chances you have to be delayed/miss a flight (and to lose baggage, if you check a bag….which you shouldn’t). Not to mention, non-stops are quicker. While flights with multiple stops may be cheaper, weigh the pros and cons. Is saving $100 worth 4 hours in an airport? For us, when we travel for 4-5 days, the answer is almost always no.

The only time we’ve opted for an unforced stop in the past 2 years is because I couldn’t redeem miles for business class straight from Tokyo to Dulles (so we stopped in Chicago). That stop was definitely worth 13 hours in a lay-flat seat.

More stops=more chance of delay.

2. Avoid problem airports.

Oh, the problem children. ORD and MSP, I’m looking at you in winter. MIA and MCO have issues in summer (thunderstorms). Here’s a list made by the Weather Channel if you want to see statistically who has the worst delays and cancellations. If you have choices, do not fly through these airports during seasonal weather problems– think hurricanes, snow storms, tornadoes. You can’t always avoid them, but when you can, you should.

I’ve spent multiple nights in Chicago, and had a delightful run-in with a tornado with crazy-size hail in Dallas a few years ago (yes, this is the storm they reference in that link). Neither are something I yearn to repeat.

Weather=cancellations.

3. Book the earliest possible flight.

There are two reasons for this: 1) if your flight is cancelled or delayed, you can hopefully get on the next flight out rather than be stranded overnight, and 2) air delays often pile up throughout the day, so issues in the morning can be big problems in the afternoon. No one likes to get up for that 6am flight, but what I like even less is to waste a day in the airport or not get where I’m going at all.

Early flights=more chances to make it to your destination.

4. Pay attention to what’s going on.

I can’t believe how many people are always at the airport during a snowstorm with a bewildered look on their face because their flight was cancelled. Why they ever make it as far as the airport….I do not know. Pay attention to the weather and the news. If things look dicey, most airlines will allow you to rebook with no fee (one time) to other dates to avoid the serious weather events. For leisure travel, this is almost always the best option, especially if you can do it online. Without elite status, you are likely to spend hours at the counter at the airport with a sea of grumpy travelers. No thanks.

Being informed=more options to change plans and less time wasting.

5. Book directly with the airline.

I know, I know. Heresy. But seriously some of the worst problems we’ve had is when we’ve booked through Expedia. As a result, I no longer use Expedia to book flights, though II occasionally still look there for fares (much prefer Google Flights, now). Using a second party to book can be cheaper, but it also can send you to the vicious garbage disposal of “it’s not my fault, it’s theirs” when there is a problem.

Like when AirTran refused to rebook us because we booked through Expedia, and Expedia refused to rebook us, because AirTran had to do it. Neither were willing to budge, even after 3 managers and hours on the phone. (Needless to say, I don’t fly AirTran/Southwest anymore either).

Direct customer=no he said she said BS.

What’s your best story of air travel trouble?

But when it comes to non-nature shots, particularly of things–like outfits or food or sometimes buildings or cityscapes, I’m a total expert in how to take photos.

Shitty photos that is.

Everyone writes about how to take better photos. Better light, better composition. But I’m going to write about what I know.

Make sure it’s rumpled and dirty. You know that new purse or scarf you are dying to stage for a cool new shot or a blog review? Stuff it at the bottom of your laundry sack for about a week. Or take it to a baseball game and make sure it gets beer and ketchup on it. And then try to scrub it out in the bathroom. Now pull it out and prep it for an outfit photo–awesome, right? No one will notice that looks like an elephant sat on it…promise.

Wait for the worst light of the day.  Do you live in a home that gets either morning sunlight, afternoon sunlight, but not both? Are your overhead lights weird and strange? Do you dread editing photos just to fix what shouldn’t have been wrong? Then definitely wait for that time of day where there is no light in your home, and that glow from your fluorescent bulbs make everything look eerily miscolored. Take all your photos then. If they all look alike, people won’t notice how bad they are.

Eat & mix your food before taking photos. As soon as the food arrives, dive in to the middle and take an enormous bite, smearing food from one edge of the plate to the other.  Pick all of the good stuff out, whether it’s pieces of lobster in that risotto or raspberries off that crème brulee. Then stick your fork in it just a few more times for good measure. Now it’s ready for photo-time..I’m sure it came out of the kitchen looking only marginally better.

Crop, crop, crop…and then blow up. Photo editing is for people who take good photos. Have a photo of something or someone you need–but with 10 other people or it’s hiding in the corner in 1/10 of the space? Just crop that desired puppy out, and blow it up! Hell, even MS word does this! Yea, it looks all grainy and awful, but people can totally still see what it is. Right?

I guess/hope the first step in getting better at something is recognizing your mistakes?

Soooooooooo I’m a big proponent of flying whenever possible. DCA makes it so easy to get in and get out and not spend hours at the airport. But we drove to upstate New York for Thanksgiving.

Two words: the dog.

I’m a big old pushover when it comes to our pup, and as she gets older, I have a harder and harder time leaving her–especially over the holidays. Nothing makes me smile more than a fuzzy dog at my feet while eating delicious food, or watching her pour over wrapping paper while attacking her new toy. Yes, of course she has her own stocking.

Growing up in Wyoming, and then living in upstate New York for the next five years, I’m pretty adept to winter road trips, and winter road trips with the dog in tow. Somehow I’ve made it all these years with only 2 really horrible winter driving experiences where I should have stayed home, though the recent drive on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving did leave something to be desired.

Here are my suggestions for making those trips where the weather may be questionable:

Flexibility: Never, ever plan a winter road trip to somewhere that frequently has bad weather without some flexibility in your schedule. You are setting yourself up for frustration. Ensure you can have some time on either end, should the weather turn sour.

Water: Always, always travel with water in the car. If you get stuck during a storm with no where to go, and have to hunker down in your car, you’ll be pleased that you have some unfrozen water and don’t have to go all boy scout and try to figure out how to melt your own. If you are traveling with a pet, take some extra (and a bowl, unless they drink from a bottle).

Clothes: Don’t travel in a snowstorm without a coat and some appropriate footwear. Isn’t this self explanatory? Always better to have and not need then find yourself needing to walk 2 miles in Toms, sweater, and no hat or gloves. Don’t be silly, plan ahead and take clothing that will protect you from the elements. Of course, traveling with our dog she always has an extra set of outwear too.

Scraper: I don’t need to explain this one. If you don’t know what a scraper is, I suggest you get thyself to Target and acquire one.

Don’t be superman: This is hard, I know, even for me. But when the weather gets bad, consider stopping. Don’t be all macho and try to keep going if you can’t see the road or your car is up to it’s belly in snow. While I think I’m a good driver, even in horrible conditions, seeing people drive in the best of conditions here makes me realize it’s not me I’m worried about–it’s them. Find a hotel if you need to and hunker down for the night. If you are traveling with a pet, be familiar with what chains take fido.

Don’t listen to fear mongering family and friends: While you shouldn’t be superman, if you are accustomed to driving in less than ideal weather and are comfortable with the conditions, don’t listen to the family and friends (you know who I’m talking about) who see a snowflake and shriek. Or those that make you fear for your own life every time you get in a vehicle they drive. They mean well, but sometimes road conditions are just going to be less than perfect and you know your own limitations better than anyone. Particularly if they have a self-interest in keeping you for another day (cough…the holidays).

Know your car’s limitations: This also seems totally self-explanatory to me, but you’d be amazed when it snows somewhere it shouldn’t (North Carolina, I’m looking at you), how many people don’t know if their car is 2, 4, or all wheel drive. Chances are, if you don’t know, don’t try. Also, some cars just handle better in snow than others. Your truck may be awesome, but an empty bed can cause all kinds of difficulties in snow and ice (no weight, no good).

Please note, these suggestions are mostly suited for east coast driving and weather–out west, where you can drive for 3-4 hours with absolutely no where to stop (I mean NONE) and no cell phone service (I mean NONE), driving in winter requires a bit more caution and more supplies (like emergency blankets, and maybe even a tiny propane stove to melt snow for drinking water). In the east, chances are that if you get stranded or stuck you’ll be retrieved relatively quickly.

All this said, I still stick to flying in the winter where I can…driving in crappy weather isn’t a whole lot of fun.

While there is more and more information out there about Bhutan, when I was planning I found much of it was out of date as things change quickly. I also had some questions that weren’t really answered until we arrived in Bhutan!  So here are some things that would have been helpful to know before our trip.

1. Airlines may not have transfer agreements with Drukair in Bangkok. What does this mean? It means you can’t go through the transfer counter in the airport in Bangkok, and will have to completely exit, including through customs, and then completely re-enter through security (including through customs). This is the case regardless if you have checked luggage or not (we did not). It also is the case regardless of whether or not you have a boarding pass (we had ours). Thai Airways does not have an agreement with Drukair, so build time into your itinerary if you have connecting flights and there isn’t an existing agreement.

2. When Drukair says flights may leave early, they mean it. Be on time (meaning arrive 2 hours early as recommended) to the airport. I know Paro is a tiny airport, but when they want to get the plane out, they leave. When you see the maneuvers they have to perform to get out of the valley, you’ll understand why–just go with it and be thankful that unlike airlines most places, they not only have the flexibility to leave when they essentially please, they will do so to avoid cancellations.

3. Be prepared for bad roads if you are going anywhere beyond Paro and Thimpu. I have an entire post on motion sickness, but if you are at all prone, make arrangements ahead of time, as the roads get bad quickly beyond Paro and Thimpu. They are unpaved, with huge elevation drops and gains (like 5,000 feet), and equally huge potholes. When it rains and dries, they get ruts. There are tight switchbacks. You’ve been warned.

4. While it cools off at night, days are hot. In September, plan to either wash your clothes and hang dry them (I bring powdered detergent), have them washed, or carry enough that you don’t have to re-wear things. You will not want to re-wear things if you are hiking. We were absolutely drenched from head to toe in Punakha, and not much better off in Paro.  It does get into the high 40’s and low 50’s at night, but by 9am it was close to 80 already.

5. Being in shape makes hiking much more pleasant. We saw some visitors who were really, really struggling. Particularly at the Tiger’s Nest, but also on a shorter hike (albeit, mostly uphill) in Punakha. Do yourself a favor and do some walking, hiking, and aerobic exercise before you go. While everyone traveling from lower elevations will notice the change in altitude, being in shape helps. You don’t want to be panting and drenched in sweat 15 minutes in to a 2.5 hour hike.

6. Hiking boots are not necessary unless trekking. There seem to be lots of questions out there about whether you need hiking boots for the Tiger’s Nest or other day hikes. No. They are not. DH and I both had lightweight trail running shoes and were more than comfortable. There are not areas of loose rock or boulders, it’s a trail and then mostly paved stairs. Hiking boots are truly over the top (and annoying to carry) unless you really need ankle support for existing issues. Now if you are trekking, this advice is not for you.

7. Everything really is included (except drinks, tips, and souvenirs). There were not any surprises; admissions, fees, etc are included in your package price.  However, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages are not included, though all water is–even when ordered at lunch, etc. Souvenirs obviously aren’t included. If you desire, you can leave a small amount (20 ngultrum or similar, approximately $.50) in temples as an offering. We never felt pressured to do so, and sometimes did and sometimes didn’t.

8. Tipping your guide and driver is customary. I am a big proponent of tipping on the level of services received. The general guidelines that seem to be pretty universal, which we followed, were $8-$10 per day, per person for the guide and $5-$8 per day, per person for the driver. This can add a significant chunk of change to your budget, so be aware and be prepared. We carried, and paid them, in US dollars as this was easiest.