Group Tours VS Independent Trip – How To Decide Which One Is Best

Do you wonder if you should take a group tour or travel on your own? Let me help you make this decision.

Trying different travel experiences throughout your travel life is definitely a good way to start, so you can test what they are like. Consider also where you are going as this could determine which way you want to go. Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of both options to help you make a decision.

Here there are 5 pros of Group Tours:

1. No planning involved

All the work is done for you. You just have to slap down that credit card and you are good to go.

2. Information 

When taking group tours, you are provided with tour guides. This means you won’t have to wonder what that building over there is, or what year that monument was built. They’re going to give you all of this information and more.

3. Company

You’ll find yourself in a situation where meeting like-minded people is easier. Striking up a conversation will be less stressful since you all want to experience the same places.

4. Decision free

No more decisions to make. Including where you should eat or what hotel you should book. All of these things are done for you. You just tootle along with the tour.

5. Group booking perks

There are often great advantages when it comes to popular attractions as when booked as a group, they reward you with “skip the line” powers. This translates to no more waiting in line to buy a ticket to then wait again to the actual attraction itself. Skipping past everyone and being ahead of the game is definitely a great advantage of group tours.

What about their cons?

1. Cost

Group tours are usually much more costly. Along with that, you also don’t get to decide where your money is being spent.

2. Travel Companions

You can’t choose who you’re traveling with. In other words, if you don’t like some of the people on your tour, you’re stuck with them for the remainder of the trip. 

3. Choice

You can’t choose who your tour guide is. There are some amazing tour guides out there, but there are also some that just don’t mesh with you. You won’t be sure, necessarily, who that’s going to be and if you’re going to mesh with them until you’re actually on the trip.

4. Strict schedule

A strict schedule is essential when on a group tour. It normally involves getting up early almost every morning. So if you’re not a morning person or you want some relaxation time, this may not be the best option for you. 

You also may find yourself not having enough time in each place. Being on a schedule often means it can be like boom, boom, boom.

Some tours will have some free time here and there, but then you’re moving on to the next place.

5. Crowded places

You’re going to be there with all the other tourists. There’s no way around it because you’re all going to arrive pretty much around the same time as other tours.

Let’s now take a look at Independent trips and their pros:

1. Customize your trip

You have freedom of choice. You can decide when and where you want to go. You can also decide if you want to stay around a city longer or you can just sit and relax and sleep in and explore more areas.

2. Diversifying as you please

You can go off and veer into different cities that are near each other. You can explore and see different things since the time is yours.

3. The chance to avoid crowds

You can avoid crowds in popular locations. Tour groups all arrive at attractions probably around 9:00 or 10:00 am and usually leave around 4:00 pm. You can pick and choose when you go either early or later in the day depending on what time that attraction is open.

But let’s check their cons:

1. Trip Planning 

Yes, you need to do the trip planning. You can also hire people to do this for you, but you will have to have some input into this planning session.

2. Socialising

It’s not as easy to meet other people as on group tours. When traveling on your own, it is a bit more difficult. You simply don’t have a group of built-in friends already with you so it will be up to you to meet people.

3. Getting around

Getting around is up to you. If you don’t know how to get around a new city or the tools to help you with this, it will be a little bit more difficult being on your own.

4. Fear

Fears may come into play. There are a lot of fears that pop up when you travel on your own. Some triggers can be getting around, language barriers, where to eat and so on. 

5. Decision fatigue

This can happen when you are making decisions all the time. Unlike the daily decisions that you make at home, these are brand new decisions, like, “should I turn left or right, should I go down this street, should I go into this cafe, where’s the bathroom?” Making all these decisions on your own all the time easily becomes exhausting and annoying.

Depending on where you want to go can impact your choice too. Places like  Europe can be easy to get around independently but something more exotic and challenging like India can be more intimidating on your own. If it’s a little more challenging and you’re not use to it, a group tour might be better. On the other hand, if you prefer to go somewhere more remote, something like Mongolia, you might have to take group tours to get around. You want to make sure you decide where you’re going and what that entails.  

My favourite thing to do is do the best of both worlds. I will travel independently and then I will sprinkle in half and day trips and tours throughout my trip. Alternatively, you can take a smaller, shorter tour when you first get to your destination and then travel on your own after that tour.

I hope this helps you decide what is best for you for your next trip. Remember, you don’t have to take the same type of trip every single time. I recommend doing both trips at some point in your travel life to experience a broad range of things.