Other Options...

[AdamEfimoff]

which one?

 

[calypso726]

Sorry Adam, but I don't quite understand the question. Maybe I'm not the only one that doesn't. What is ONY? I Google'd it but didn't come up with anything that related to group tours or that helped clarify the question. I'd be happy to help try and answer the question except I'm just not sure what you are asking.

 

[tgeorge]

Totally off topic,but I'm glad to hear that others have to Google things to see what they are.

Perhaps he meant 'On Your Own' or group??

 

[sayhello]

Sorry Adam, but I don't quite understand the question. Maybe I'm not the only one that doesn't. What is ONY? I Google'd it but didn't come up with anything that related to group tours or that helped clarify the question. I'd be happy to help try and answer the question except I'm just not sure what you are asking.

You're not the only one confused...

Sayhello

 

[AdamEfimoff]

Can the @ADMIN change it to OMO On my own. I know this is a little off topic. But I am guessing some have been to SA.
I am looking at Kruger and Cape Town and Stellnbouch


ps. I plan many trips

 

[sayhello]

Totally off topic,but I'm glad to hear that others have to Google things to see what they are.

Perhaps he meant 'On Your Own' or group??

ALL THE TIME!!! I actually have freinds who get mad at me if I ask them what something they mention is instead of Googling it.

Can the @ADMIN change it to OMO On my own

You can edit it yourself. You should see "Thread tools" at the top of the thread, and if you hit that, "Edit Title" is one of the options.

But I still don't know what an OMO is, either.

Sayhello

 

[calypso726]

Ah gotcha! So the question is whether South Africa is better to do on your own vs a group tour. Well, I know there are several who post here that have been to South Africa, some with Adventures by Disney and some with a different tour operator. I imagine anyone that frequents this forum and has done it on their own, will chime in.

I haven't done South Africa yet but it is on my short list of Adventures by Disney trips for 2019. Personally, I'd rather avoid the planning and this is coming from someone who likes to plan out trips. There are 3 internal flights that are part of the itinerary which means more logistics that I don't have to figure out and plan. The ABD itinerary seems great except I wish they'd add Victoria Falls to it but I can always do that as post trip add-on. Even if I chose to not go with ABD, which is highly unlikely, as I've been very happy with ABD, I'd sooner explore another tour operator than do it on my own. So that's my two cents

 

[calypso726]

Totally off topic,but I'm glad to hear that others have to Google things to see what they are.

Perhaps he meant 'On Your Own' or group??

Yup, all the time. No kids to help keep me updated with all the latest colloquialisms and internet shorthand, so Google it is.

 

[Rapunzellover]

The Thomson Azores looks cool too

THE AZORES!!!!!???? My dream vacay. I hate Thompson for not allowing solos!

 

[sayhello]

THE AZORES!!!!!???? My dream vacay. I hate Thompson for not allowing solos!

Join the club. For some reason, I got contacted by them a few days ago by email, and the guy asked where I was looking to go, and how old my kids were. When I said I had no kids, he wrote back:

"We generally don't do singles travel. We specialize in family travel and have for 18 years. Occasionally one of our trips ends up being only adults, but it's rare and unplanned.

Let me ask you this:
Would it just be you or would you have some friends/family to join?
Do you have a budget in mind?

If you have a group I can let our sister company Thomson Collections know and they can help you plan a more adult friendly adventure."

I replied:

"So you discriminate against singles? I've traveled as a solo traveler with other family travel companies, and while there was always a single supplement, I was never turned away, either for Adult only or family trips. I'm signed up for a family trip to China for this summer, and am traveling solo. There was no question of not allowing me to travel with them. I've heard good things about your company, but obviously it's not going to work traveling with you.

If I had a group of family/friends to travel with, I wouldn't be traveling solo. I think that's rather a silly question.

I can't afford a custom trip just for myself. "

That got his attention. I'm still contemplating my response to his latest reply.

"I am so sorry you misunderstood. Our itineraries are all designed for families traveling with children. We have in the past allowed adults without children to join our groups but we have learned their travel goals are different than adults traveling with children. We want you to be on the right trip and in general we don’t think that’s with us. We do not discriminate against anybody and we are more than willing to talk about this via phone"

Sayhello

 

[Rapunzellover]

Sayhello- ugh. Just ugh. But whatever. I'm Azorean American and I've been to a couple of the islands before. I'll go back eventually with another company. Their loss. Another company's gain.

 

[AdamEfimoff]

Ah gotcha! So the question is whether South Africa is better to do on your own vs a group tour. Well, I know there are several who post here that have been to South Africa, some with Adventures by Disney and some with a different tour operator. I imagine anyone that frequents this forum and has done it on their own, will chime in.

I haven't done South Africa yet but it is on my short list of Adventures by Disney trips for 2019. Personally, I'd rather avoid the planning and this is coming from someone who likes to plan out trips. There are 3 internal flights that are part of the itinerary which means more logistics that I don't have to figure out and plan. The ABD itinerary seems great except I wish they'd add Victoria Falls to it but I can always do that as post trip add-on. Even if I chose to not go with ABD, which is highly unlikely, as I've been very happy with ABD, I'd sooner explore another tour operator than do it on my own. So that's my two cents

I am thinking of maybe using a dmc worried about safety

 

[calypso726]

I am thinking of maybe using a dmc worried about safety

Safety is one of the reasons we book with Adventures By Disney. China is on our list for 2018 and I feel much safer with ABD, same with South Africa. I know there are some South Africa trip reports in the trip reports sticky.

 

[AdamEfimoff]

Looking for some more high end than abd. I am never going to china I think its safe but the pollution the pollution the pollution

 

[calypso726]

Looking for some more high end than abd. I am never going to china I think its safe but the pollution the pollution the pollution

You know the pollution was one of my concerns. However, reports from previous travelers to China with ABD have not shown the awful pollution that we see from China on social media. So, maybe it is in certain areas. Mainland China is bigger than the lower 48 here. Thinking back to the 70's as a child I can remember smog and air pollution, severe smog, being a huge concern in Los Angeles. It was bad. You'd see the news and think to yourself, geez how is anyone still alive? Meanwhile here in Florida the air was fine. So, maybe China is like the USA in 70's when it comes to air pollution. I'd like to go before it gets worse.

I am fairly certain some here have done Africa with other tour operators. If memory serves @familygoboston did an Africa tour with a higher end company based in Minnesota called Travel Beyond and was very pleased with what they were able to provide.

 

[Burgundy Rose]

Sayhello, their response is ludicrous. 'No we're not discriminating against single travellers, we just don't think single travellers are a good fit for us so we're turning them away', in other words - ''We're not saying no because you're alone, we're saying no because you're alone.' Thanks for posting about this, I don't have any plans to travel solo in the near future but I might at some point and it's good to know which companies to avoid.

 

[sayhello]

You know the pollution was one of my concerns. However, reports from previous travelers to China with ABD have not shown the awful pollution that we see from China on social media. So, maybe it is in certain areas. Mainland China is bigger than the lower 48 here. Thinking back to the 70's as a child I can remember smog and air pollution, severe smog, being a huge concern in Los Angeles. It was bad. You'd see the news and think to yourself, geez how is anyone still alive? Meanwhile here in Florida the air was fine. So, maybe China is like the USA in 70's when it comes to air pollution. I'd like to go before it gets worse.

I sure hope you're right! That's been my hope, too!

Sayhello

 

[*WDW*Groupie*]

I'm going on my own in June. I can let you know how it goes when we get back. I researched all the parks in excruciating detail and made the decision about where I wanted to go. Then I had to work that in with my travel from Amsterdam (which flight would work best).

I am staying at 2 Singita lodges (Ebony and Lebombo). From Ebony we are flying via Nelspruit to Cape Town for 4 days. There we have 4 nights and 3 days -- 2 of the days we have private guides booked (one day wine country and the other a coastal tour) and the the third day I booked a private walk with cheetah cubs at a cheetah rescue sanctuary just outside of Cape Town. Then we will tour some of the markets.

From Cape Town we are flying to Livingstone via Jo'Burg to see Victoria Falls. We will stay at the Tongabezi Lodge for 3 nights. During our time there we will take a helicopter flight over the falls, go on a Zambezi River Cruise and experience an authentic BOMA dinner.

I am so happy that I booked on our own. We will be coming from the ABD Rhine River Cruise and that is enough time with a group for me. My teenage daughter is not excited that we won't be with other families in S. Africa but I really, really wanted to experience Kruger NP. Plus Singita is supposed to be quite luxurious and that really appealed to me. Also Victoria Falls is a must for me -- if I'm going all the way to S. Africa then I'm going to make the effort to get to Zambia to see the falls.

Singita has some excellent promos if you travel in off season. We got 1 night free (stay 7 nights and pay for 6) and our internal flight between the 2 lodges was free as well. Also since my daughter is under 16 she was half price. So that made it more affordable for us. Singita is located in the highly-regarded Sabi Sands game reserve and I believe has the largest traversing rights in Kruger. If not the largest, then right up there.

Our trip is costing significantly more than ABD, but some of that is attributed to our extra time in Livingstone. I just as easily could've booked a tour that was half the cost of ABD. It just depends on your travel preferences and budget.

The agent at Singita ended up booking everything for us, including Cape Town and Livingstone and all of our internal flights. She is excellent.

Planning the trip was exhausting as I researched for a very long time to get everything just right. My current plan is to go to Tanzania in June, 2018 and we will do a private tour. I definitely want to see the great migration and the only way to be guaranteed that is to book a stay with a mobile camp. The mobile lodges are too small to accommodate tour groups. But my plans are fluid until I have paid a deposit!

Good luck with your planning!

 

[sayhello]

Sayhello- ugh. Just ugh. But whatever. I'm Azorean American and I've been to a couple of the islands before. I'll go back eventually with another company. Their loss. Another company's gain.

Totally their loss! I like some of their itineraries, but I've lost all interest in traveling with a company that is so non-inclusive and obviously doesn't want me there or want my business. I may still call him, just to see what he says, but I don't expect much.

Sayhello, their response is ludicrous. 'No we're not discriminating against single travellers, we just don't think single travellers are a good fit for us so we're turning them away', in other words - ''We're not saying no because you're alone, we're saying no because you're alone.' Thanks for posting about this, I don't have any plans to travel solo in the near future but I might at some point and it's good to know which companies to avoid.

Ludicrous is a very good word for it. I think if people without children are uncomfortable on their trips, it says way more about them and the way they run their trips than it does about adults who travel without children...

Sayhello

 

[Calfan]

Sayhello- ugh. Just ugh. But whatever. I'm Azorean American and I've been to a couple of the islands before. I'll go back eventually with another company. Their loss. Another company's gain.

Sayhello, their response is ludicrous. 'No we're not discriminating against single travellers, we just don't think single travellers are a good fit for us so we're turning them away', in other words - ''We're not saying no because you're alone, we're saying no because you're alone.' Thanks for posting about this, I don't have any plans to travel solo in the near future but I might at some point and it's good to know which companies to avoid.

Totally their loss! I like some of their itineraries, but I've lost all interest in traveling with a company that is so non-inclusive and obviously doesn't want me there or want my business. I may still call him, just to see what he says, but I don't expect much.

Ludicrous is a very good word for it. I think if people without children are uncomfortable on their trips, it says way more about them and the way they run their trips than it does about adults who travel without children...

Sayhello

I'm disappointed about Thomson's attitude on this. Our China trip with them was just fantastic, and I don't think an adult solo traveler would have felt out of place or would not have enjoyed any of the activities we did. They definitely weren't geared toward young children at all.