"Australia trip with Beacon College"

Lee, the tour guide was great.Other than that, this was the worse tour I have ever been on. First of all our Quantas flight to Australia was delayed by 27 hours, About 20 of which we spent at the airport hoping it would fly. Once we were actually on our way to Australia, the flight was good, but on the way back they lost my checked bag and it has not yet been found. While in Australia, the tour guide tried very hard to make the most of our experience, but we ended up going to Uluruh and sleeping in a campsite for two nights. Apparently there were no hotels. There were only 6:00 breakfasts and I think by the end of our trip going back to MCO was about 30 hours as we were routed through Sydney. We spent two nights in Uluruh and most of it was riding on a bus. The days in Sydney were a waste for me as I could not master the hills that Sydney was built on. The was a trip arranged for the school which specialized in disabled people and I would have thought some handicapped accommodations would be available, but they weren't . The food provided was good. The highlight of the trip was a visit to the Koala Sanctuary and that almost made up for the rest of the trip. I would never book with Explorica again. Next year I am going to UK and Ireland, but it won't be with you.

"The students learned a ton and enjoyed…"

The students learned a ton and enjoyed learning history, swimming in the sea, making connections with people from other places in the world, speaking different languages, and traveling with finesse. Explorica could have done better in some areas, though. The first hotel we stayed at was too far away from the transportation center. We ended up walking for over three hours in 100 degree heat the day we arrived. The students didn't appreciate the museum visit like they could have because they were so hot and tired by the time they got there, they needed to buy a drink and sit and cool down first. While I normally would push students to use their time wisely at a museum, even a chaperone was feeling dizzy. It was just too much on the night that we arrived. If the hotel was closer, everyone would have been okay. However, after walking for an hour and a half and then resting for a brief moment, we only had 25 minutes to actually see the museum– which was not enough time. I have never had so many people absolutely discussed with the first day of in-country touring. Also, our tour guide was very sweet and knowledgable in certain areas, but he had a hard time navigating. We walked miles extra on various days of the trip because he wasn't sure where he was going. We eventually found out he was following MAPS but didn't install the application. Therefore, he took us the wrong way many, many times. Eventually, my students started asking him where we were going and putting it into their phones, so they could use the MAPS application on their phones. They would watch the blue dot and let our tour guide know if he was going the wrong way. Honestly, having to tell the tour guide where to go upset so many people on the trip. I didn't know what to say to them, either. They paid a lot for a guide who could lead them. Eventually, the people on the trip decided they couldn't trust the tour guide to get them where they were supposed to go or in the time frame that the guide gave them. The problem with the time factor was that the guide never clicked the walk button, so all of his times were for drivers– not walkers. The extra hours we spent walking should have been spent in learning. Also, one night that we went the wrong way, we ended up walking next to a beach. That could have been cool if it didn't add an extra hour and 20 minutes on to our walk to supper. Also, some of the people at the beach were naked. While I realize that happens in parts of the world, I did not see it coming. I had no time to get my students ready for what they might potentially see. With all of this said, I do want to let you know that we thoroughly enjoyed our tour guide and driver. They were funny, sweet, and wanted to make us happy. Also, Greece was a lot better than Spain!!!! While the guide asked for directions a couple of times, we never got lost or went way out of our way. One day we were on the verge of walking way too much, but the bus driver found us and picked us up. We were so appreciative. Both the guide and the driver shared many important tips about traveling, personal favorite places to eat, and we even saved a turtle together one day. By the end of the trip, everyone was so grateful for our tour guide and director!!!!! We just had a rough time in Spain. Overall, what I want you to know from me is that I need reassurance that any tour guide my groups have in the future will know exactly where we are going at all times. It feels really bad to think that Explorica might send any guide out who doesn't know where the places we are touring are. Please work on this part of your tour operation. Thanks for the memories!!! We loved every place we went. The tour guide was also very flexible, which made the trip even better. Thank you for all of the memories, well, most of them anyway. : )

"A very disappointing experience"

Our trip was truly a horrific travel experience for my group and the other groups we have traveled with. I make this statement not as a novice, but one with many international and domestic trips as a student, individual traveler, and leader under my belt. The last three days of our trip we were without our tour director as our bus driver “kicked him off” the bus after a disagreement the first day in Ireland and refused to let him back on. Another group leader and myself attempt to coordinate with the driver our plans, and communicate the history, facts, and stories of the cities and country we are visiting to our travelers. This is what we PAID to be here to learn, and my searches on Google were a poor substitute for what should have been a once in a lifetime experience for our travelers. This was just the icing on the cake, though, for what has been change after change, cancelation after cancelation to our set itinerary that we agreed to when coming on this trip. As a seasoned traveler (and teacher), I’m very good at flexibility and ingenuity. I understand, as does my group, how plans are always subject to unforeseen circumstances, like weather or illness. We’ve rolled with this through two years of postponement due to COVID. However, from the start, there were issues with not having our scheduled charter bus in Edinburg and drive to the Highlands. This is not an unforeseen circumstance and was within the power of Explorica/World Strides to remedy. Our expectations on this trip were for tour buses, and to instead have to continually accommodate taxies, buses, and trains has been extremely frustrating and exhausting, not to mention time consuming. Due to the lack of a tour bus, we were forced to miss much of our schedule. I don’t even know where to start with expressing my true frustration with Explorica/World Strides in regards to our trip. Some groups with us have had it way worse: luggage lost with no assistance from airlines or the emergency number for Explorica/World Strides, canceled excursions and no communication prior, and all around general failure to communicate in a timely manner. I can say with all certainty I will not travel with Explorica or World Strides again. I strongly discourage any of colleagues from using them.

"Our trip to costa rica was simply…"

Our trip to costa rica was simply amazing. Our guide was wonderful and knowledgeable and made our students feel very comfortable. I am looking forward to another journey.

"Our guide in Italy did an excellent…"

Our guide in Italy did an excellent job.
Always friendly and knowledgeable about her work however the shine of the trip was marred by Explorica's lack of creativity in choosing the variety and quality of the meals.
The name of the tour is the Best of Italy and in terms of art and historical places we did see the best but the restaurants we ate in were not like that.
Explorica should in my opinion make a better selection of the food and restaurants they take their customers to.
The trip to Pisa needs to be longer, you can't visit/learn if you only have 1 hour and 30 minutes.
In general, I think that Explorica should evaluate the creativity with which it organizes this tour because there is material to use, as well as the desire to work on the part of its workers in Italy.

"We had the best tour director ever!"

We had the best tour director ever!! It was a good trip. However, I bought the trip insurance and for the first time in several tours, I will need to make a claim on some expenses. I would have to see how the company takes care of this before I rate them a 5 star.

"Excellent trip"

Excellent trip, skillfully planned and there were amazing guides/bus drivers provided to us. My main criticism is 18 year olds aren’t permitted to drink even if they are in a country that allows it.

"Switzerland & The Mediterranean 2022 Trip"

Normally I would give a 5 score but the hotel in Italy was not good at all and the food they served was awful for the 2 days there.

Over all the trip was awesome. I enjoyed the lead tour guide and the individual guides per country. I would like to go back and hopefully experience a better hotel in Italy.

"Great locations & memories, but Explorica could have done better"

Very nice tour director, great locations but the timing, food and hotels could have been better. The hotels were overall too far away from where we needed to be. Great trip nonetheless because I love my students and they made the trip awesome and we are all coming back with great memories in spite of all the issues that arose on the trip.

"I loved Europe"

I loved Europe and our Tour guide/Translator Alex, the only reason I wouldn't do this again is that I couldn't take my family with me