Hi Joppa: I've been in communication with another couple that reserved a trip with GoAhead and they told me that they also have had slow response, small problems etc. from them. I guess I was lucky because my contact person at GAT was excellent. They did have to use an overnight carrier to get my final papers to me before I left. It did not bother me a bit.

Yes, I was on the exact same tour as you are on. I am in the same hotels also. I did a hotel review at Trip Ad. for both hotels. Just go to the hotel reviews and you'll find it.

We traveled to Paris and really had only 2 1/2 days in Paris. We did not know about the extension, in Paris, and never had time to visit the Eiffel Tower. You can PM me at TA with any questions.

Brudda

I loved Go Ahead Tours. We went to Egypt with them. Everything was perfect from pickup through the entire tour of Egypt and the cruise down the Nile. Food was very good. The tour instructor was excellent and knew Egyptian history because he was an Egyptologist. Very informative. The only part that frustrated us was the return the airport. We were pretty much dropped off with no instructions and it was very confusing. Other than that, no complaints. I would travel with them again.

Hi.. I am actually looking at this particular london and paris tour for september. I am glad to see that you enjoyed it. Can you give me an idea of the age groups that are on the tour? I just spoke with a rep and price is actually higher than advertised online so have to reconsider a bit. She did tell me that the hotel for the trip on the 27th is the Marriot Maida Vale in london and said it is very nice. Is there any more that you can say about the trip and touring around on your own if you don't do all of the excursion type activities? I am in mid age and traveling with son in younger 20's. thanks

Hi Skylar, I went on the London /Paris tour and it was great. If you go to the GoAhead site, you will see my review of my trip. I only did one extra tour in each city. I went to Stonehenge and Versailles. Both hotels were near the subway and we took public transportation all over. They provide an excellent tour of each city and it is included in the tour. Two dinners are also included, along with daily breakfast.

Due to the fact that my tour was in July, we had some multi-generation families, on the tour. The ages went from nine year old children, their parents and grand-parents. There were young couples, maybe 25-35 years old. With such a large group, you will get people of all ages. There was a spry gentleman from, Long Island and he was 90 years old. You and your son will not have a problem fitting in. The group doesn't hang

out together much. Just for the orientation, two dinners and two tours and EuroStar to Paris.. You are mostly independent and the tour director will help you map out your travels.

You can PM me at TA if you need more info.

Brudda

I used Go Ahead tours in October 2012 for a trip to Peru that included Lima, Cusco, and Machu Picchu and very much enjoyed the experience. The group consisted of about 20 people and the majority of the travelers were in their 50's or retired though there were about 6 people in 30-40 age bracket. The trip was well organized and we used a comfortable coach and then 2 vans to travel the narrow streets of some areas. The rail trip to and from Machu Picchu was fun with lots of scenery, snacks, and a lovely fashion show on the trip back. Hotels were OK though sometimes noisy. But that wasn't the fault of the tour vs. the luck of being booked into a hotel with some very rude guests playing in the halls at 2 AM. Provided meals were plentiful and offered a wide variety of foods. In Peru you will likely incur a small expense for additional water even though bottled water was provided by hotels.

What impressed me most about the tour was the tour leader, Edwin. Edwin proved to be very friendly and knowledgeable and was available 24/7.

But his ability to handle stress and emergencies really won me over. Waiting in the airport for a flight from Lima to Cusco, one of the ladies just fainted away. He was on the spot immediately and helped direct air port personnel to get her some water and privacy. She recovered after a few minutes and was able to continue the journey. On the next to last day of the trip another lady had her passport stolen and again Edwin stepped up to act as a liaison with the local police as well as an individual who claimed to have "found" the passport but wanted a reward. Resolution came just hours before our departure from Peru but the passport was returned to the owner with a small "reward."

Many of my fellow travelers had used Go Ahead Tours several times and they all remarked that the vast majority of tour leaders were exceptional.

Travel to a foreign country can always be difficult but I felt very much at ease in Peru primarily because of a very professional tour leader.

As a sidebar, I never buy the travel insurance offered by the tour company. There are several web sites that let you search multiple insurance carriers based on price and your specific needs. I travel to Africa and always make sure my travel insurance includes evacuation for medical emergencies and/or political upheaval.

Thanks so much for you reviews....very helpful. Possibly looking at the London city tour as well rather than spending so much time with traveling between the two places in that it is only a week. We don't have the availability to do the add on days so want to make the most of the time.

Yes, only London may be a better choice. We only had 2 1/2 days in Paris because half a day was used for travel between London & Paris. The Marriott was an excellent hotel and near transportation. We used both the subway and bus to travel around London. There is a supermarket near the hotel.

I have used go ahead for the past four years in Europe and found their hotel choices to be just fine. I will travel with them again, no questions asked.

Thank you for this post, as I am looking into traveling with them next year. Good to know about the insurance issues, too.

I traveled with Go Ahead on two trips. My first was the National Parks tour in the US. It was fast paced. but we saw a lot and it was a lot of fun! It was a bus tour. My tour guide was excellent.. he really went out of his way to make our trip fun and even found other little excursions for us. He treated everyone on the bus to ice cream one day. My second trip was the 7 day stay in Paris. I extended my stay to 9 days, and that one was also wonderful. My guide was very good and helped with the Metro and advice of seeing the city. I loved that trip, too! As far as accommodations, you get the basic hotel/motel. For the most part, they're similar to your usual chain hotels, like Marriott, etc. Some were not as nice, but most were good. As long as they are clean and not in a dangerous area, I'm happy. There were a couple of places that were really nice.. they looked like a step above the usual chains. My hotel in Paris was very good.. good room, clean and the breakfasts were extensive and tasty. I would definitely recommend Go Ahead to anyone, and I'm looking to book more trips through them.