Why Is a Tour Holiday More Special Than a DIY Holiday?

Back in the 60s and 70s, a holiday abroad automatically meant an all-needs-catered-for sightseeing tour. Fifty years on and our holiday choices have evolved enormously. As the trend has turned from package tours to independent travel, people have been taking advantage of budget airlines and the ability to organise everything at the click of a mouse, relying on guide books for advice on local attractions.

There is a belief that package tours take away much of the freedom to do your own thing. As tourists we often feel herded around to fit into pre-arranged schedules, when many of us would prefer to think of a holiday as a journey into the unknown. So has the traditional guided tour had its day?

Life is short and our holidays are precious. But those people who appreciate this can rely on tour guides to ensure their holiday is 100% quality time. Organising excursions independently often wastes valuable time as we make phone calls, plough through our options, make bookings and wait in line.

This can prove particularly stressful if time in a resort is limited before moving on to the next destination. It's liberating to rely on a guide to take care of all the background work so that you're always ready to go. This also applies to the time it takes to organise a trip. Decide to go it alone and you'll find yourself researching months in advance. With an organised package, simply choose what suits and make your booking, which is great when you're looking for a last minute deal. When you arrive, proud though you may be of the knowledge imparted by your guide books, there's no substitute for a local expert who specialises in local information for a living and can speak the language.

But isn't it cheaper to go it alone? Interestingly enough, it could actually be much worse for our pocket than we think. Whilst it may initially appear cheaper to do so, the fact is that most travel companies are in an excellent bargaining position. Due to their ability to block-book, they are able to negotiate huge wholesale discounts with both airlines and hotels and a proportion of these savings is passed on to customers. Tour companies also treat your safety as a priority at all times and their own travel insurance is tailored to cover all eventualities. Organising your own independent tour could see you in situations you didn't foresee, which may not be covered by your insurance.

The travel industry may have taken a beating from the rise in independent travel, but recent reports show that trends may in fact now be in reverse, with online bookings for package deals with some companies rising by almost 20% last year. Thankfully the clipboard and travel uniform image of package tours is now largely confined to the vintage holiday brochures. These days we can expect a lot less of the sales pitch and inflexible itineraries and more of an emphasis on responding to guests' individual needs. Travel firms are realising that people still want freedom and flexibility to feature in their itineraries and are responding accordingly with wider choices and options. So choose the right guided tour and you're sure to agree in hindsight that you couldn't have organised it better yourself.

This article was written by Geeta Dighe, e-marketing manager at Trafalgar Tours, for more information please visit Trafalgar.com.