| Please
see below for more comparison points. |
|
RV
Caravan Tours:
Tour Type Comparisons
Your
Road Trip to Outdoor Adventure TM
Why
Our Tours Are Better!
Thought
you'd never take a tour?
Thought you'd never drive an RV?
We're not like most tour companies!
*
We think you'd rather be in control
by driving, rather than riding in a bus.
* We think you'd prefer camping
in nature, rather than being stuck in a chain hotel along the
freeway.
* We
think you'd rather experience the Pacific Northwest
by golfing, hiking, swimming, fishing, or renting a canoe, rather than
ride past it in a bus.
* We think you'd enjoy the unique
Oregon experiences that people travel here for, like Ashland's
Shakespeare Festival, a boat cruise inside the volcano at Crater Lake
National Park, or winery and microbrewery tours, among other activities.
Check
out these comparison points for yourself:
| |
RV
Caravan Tours |
Other
RV Touring Companies |
Regular
"Bus-Type" Tours |
| Tour
size: |
6
Vehicles only. Limited to 16 people max. |
Up
to 80 people. Typically 15-40 vehicles. |
48
people on a bus. |
| People
who take this tour: |
Active
baby-boomers and young-minded healthy retirees.
Working folks with only one or two weeks available for vacation. |
Retired
folks with lots of time. Many trips last 30, 40, or even 60 days!
|
Serious
shoppers and souvenir hunters.
Working folks with one to two weeks available for vacation, and sedentary
retired folks. |
| How
close can you get to nature?: |
Touch
it, smell it, taste it, hear it, hike it, swim it, float it, fish
it.
|
Camera
distance and highway rest stops. |
If
it rains you will get
wet. |
|
| |
RV
Caravan Tours |
Other
RV Touring Companies |
Regular
Tours |
| Where
you'll stay: |
National
& state parks, and smaller campgrounds in the heart of nature. Most
campsites have hook-ups, but not all. None have cable TV.
|
Large
RV parks which promise full hook-ups for electrical, water, sewer, and even
cable TV. |
Large
chain hotels; either in cities, or along freeways. |
| How
you'll travel: |
Together
in a pack of 6 vehicles, with your guides' vehicle leading the way.
All are communicating with CB radios, which we provide if your vehicle
is not equipped.
You
can leave the pack and travel separately if you wish. Please see our About
Caravanning page for more information.
|
Typically
with the guides' vehicle departing first (alone) in order to arrive ahead
and prepare the next RV Park for the onslaught.
Some of the participants will be roped into being volunteer flaggers, who
will flag vehicles on to the road in groups of five every 15 minutes. (Everyone's
lined up in advance.) If there are 40 RV's, it will take two hours for everyone
to depart, and if there are stragglers, even more time for all to arrive
at the next RV Park.
You will communicate via CB radio, which you must provide. |
Bored
or asleep in an air conditioned motor coach with a restroom in the rear. |
| Guides: |
Two
guides for up to 14 people, for a ratio of 1 to 7.
|
2-4
guides for the whole group, for a ratio of about 1 to 15, or 1 to 20. |
One
guide, for a ratio of 1 to 48. |
| Access
to Guides: |
We
drive with you, cook with you, eat with you; we're camped next to you, we
sit around the campfire and tell jokes with you, we shuttle you to hiking
trailheads; geez, you can hardly get rid of us.
|
If
you were herding 40 RV's with 80 people aboard, you'd want some privacy
too! |
Most
tour company's guides eat separately from the group, and they'll never tell
you their hotel room number, so good luck if you have a problem at night. |
| Meals: |
All
breakfasts, and a few lunches and dinners are provided. See each tour for
detailed itinerary.
Most lunches are make-your-own picnics.
In the evening we provide a nightly community campfire and charcoal grill
to make dinner preparation easy.
|
Some
meals are provided. Most meals will be in restaurants. |
Some
meals will be provided. All meals will be in restaurants.
|
| Sightseeing: |
Tour
price includes all sightseeing and scheduled activities.
There are opportunities to rent boats and buy one-day fishing licenses at
various stops. There are no hidden fees or extra charges.
|
Tour
price includes most sightseeing and scheduled activities. There may be additional
costs for "side-trips". Be sure to ask. |
Tour
price may not include sightseeing, which may be sold as an additional "add-on"
or "side-trip" for up to $50 each. This adds up quickly if there
are several side-trips each day. |
| How
to get there: |
Participants
may either fly or take a train to the rendezvous destination, or drive there
in their own RV.
|
Participants
must drive to the rendezvous destination in their own RV. |
Participants
must fly to the rendezvous destination. |
| Ease
of renting an RV: |
All
full-length tours are loop trips, designed around our preferred RV rental
company's pick-up and drop-off schedule.
|
Most
tours are one-way, requiring an expensive drop-off charge if you choose
to fly in and rent an RV. |
A
what? |
| Guide
tips and kickbacks: |
Tips
are not allowed. It is our pleasure to provide you with the ultimate adventure
vacation experience.
There isn't much time for shopping when you're exploring nature or hiking!
When you are on your own in a small town, you may shop or art gallery-hop
as you wish. We don't care if you buy anything because we don't take kickbacks.
|
Some
do, some don't. You'll have to ask.
|
Guides
make most of their salary from "under-the-table" kickbacks from
the factory tours and merchants where you are taken to go shopping. Thus
many regular tours turn into big shopping trips for trinkets, woolens, and
other local goods.
Perpetual shopping takes time away from sightseeing. You can forget about
nature experiences like hiking and fishing. |
