Have you ever wondered what going on a package tour of Europe is like? I went on a Western European tour for 17 days from September 16th to October 2nd. This is a day by day photo diary of that trip. This tour was organized by Fun Travel World of San Francisco. (415) 788-7244. They organize tours for chinese Americans. What this means is that everyone on the trip speaks Chinese! Unfortunately, I don't speak Chinese. But my Mom accompanied me on this trip so she could translate. Let's start our tour of Europe!
One of the great things about going to Europe on a package tour is that you don't have to do much planning at all. In fact, I decided to go to Europe only 2 weeks before I left. As a software consultant (temp job), my job can end at any time. I had planned with my Mom that we would travel to Europe if I ever got the time. My job ended at the end of August and so I said "let's go!". All you need to do is call the travel agency and say I'm coming and pay for the trip. The cost of this trip was around $2200. This includes $1100 airfare to Europe and $1100 for the land package. The only planning you need to do is simply choosing what trip you're going on.
There is one legal detail you have to take care of. You must get a passport to leave the country. I live in Seattle, so it was easy for me to go to the passport office. To avoid the lines, I went early in the morning before the office opened up so there were only a few people ahead of me. It usually takes a few weeks to get a passport, but if you pay an extra $40, you can get your passport in 3 days. So I paid about $100 for my passport and 3 days later I got my passport in the mail.
The other detail you need to take care of is packing for the trip. I opted to buy a large duffle bag with wheels that I found at Costco. It only cost $30. It is important to get something with wheels because you need to drag your luggage around some times. I stuffed 7 shirts/pants and all the underwear that I had. You will find it practically impossible to do your laundry during the trip, so bring all that you will need. My Mom brought along some laundry detergent, so I did my laundry in the hotel sinks.
If you are interested in travelling in the US, check out the big RV adventure. This is a 2 month cross country trip I took in my RV.