What's New for 2012
 |
| You won't all fit into a phone booth (we've tried), but as part of an "extra-small" group of just 20-24, you'll go places that larger groups can only dream about. |
Tour groups keep on shrinkin'
For years we've limited Rick Steves' tour groups to just 28 people — about half the size of typical mainstream tours. But for a few of our tours, even a "small" 28 was a skosh too many to enjoy some of the places and restaurants we like most. So, for half of our 2011 tours (even at the risk of turning some people away), we shrunk the group size down to an "extra-small" 24.
And our tour members have loved it!
So, for 2012, we've taken another five itineraries down to just 24 travelers: Athens & Heart of Greece in 14 Days tour; Best of Eastern Europe in 16 Days tour; Best of Ireland in 14 Days tour; Best of Italy in 17 Days tour; and our best-selling Venice, Florence & Rome in 10 Days tour. These tours were already great — now they'll be even better. This means that, for 2012 even more of our tour members will enjoy the added bonus of traveling in an extra-small group. If having 24 or 28 people on your tour doesn't really matter to you, you can ignore this. But if it does make a difference to you, then your travel choices for 2012 just got even better.
Free Civita Day Pack
For years we've been tossing-in useful extras with every Rick Steves tour, like a helpful guidebook, phrase book (where applicable), and moneybelt. By popular demand, for 2012 each tour member will also get a free Rick Steves Civita Day Pack — the same day pack Rick uses when he's traveling in Europe.
Five ways to save
We've designed every one of our 2012 tours to be a great travel value — and we give you a bunch of ways to save some more...
- Early Booking Discount: Save $100 per person when you reserve your 2012 seat by 11/30/11. Change your mind? Cancel before 12/31/11, and you'll get 100% of your deposit back.
- Cash Discount: We happily accept credit cards, but if you pay your final tour balance with a check, you'll save another 2.5%.
- No Passport? No Problem! If you've never been overseas and need to order your first passport to take a Rick Steves tour, we'll deduct the $135 cost from your tour price.
- Tour Alum Discount: Save in the future, too. For every Rick Steves tour you've taken, we'll knock $50 off the price of your next one. This adds up!
- Trip Advice Half Price: Traveling before or after? Book your tour, then save 50% on an in-person or phone appointment with one of Rick's expert travel consultants.
Note: For specifics and limitations on the benefits listed above, see Rick Steves' 2012 Tour Conditions Agreement.