Is Independent Travel Better than Escorted Tour?

張貼日期：Apr 05, 2017 12:18:25 PM

Felicia Cheng

With the advances in global communication, more and more people go abroad to travel. Traveling can be divided into two main categories-- independent travel and escorted tour. I prefer independent travel. Although some people think it is inconvenient to travel alone, I prefer this way of traveling because of the opportunity of experiencing local culture, the autonomy in arranging the journey, and the lower cost of the trip.

The first reason I like to travel by myself is I can experience the local culture more deeply. Take the communication for example. Joining a tourist group, we usually move by taking a tourist coach so we just get on the bus, sleep and get off the bus. It is nothing special and we can't experience the local culture such as appreciating street view or having cultural exchange with local people. Traveling by ourselves, we can choose the convenient way and enjoy the local atmosphere. For example, going to Japan, we can experience the tram cultures. Although it was very uncomfortable and crowded, I enjoyed this special way of transportation the most, for I could mingle with the local people, experiencing their everyday life. I might even get the chance to talk with them in some simple Japanese.

Traveling alone, I can arrange the journey by myself and go to the place where I really want to be. If I join a tourist group, the travel agency will plan the itinerary and decide the tourist attractions. In the journey, the agent may arrange travel sites where we do not want to visit. Traveling by ourselves, we can decide our destination and the time for the sojourn according to our preference and schedule. We can plan the journey and include all the attractions we want to visit by ourselves.

The cost of traveling independently is cheaper than that of joining a tourist group. In the independent travel, I can choose the cheaper hotel to cut the budget and do not need to leave tips to the tour guide and the driver. What’s more, joining a tourist group, we need to pay for the tickets for the places we do not want to visit, and eat in the restaurants where the food is not delicious to us.

Compared with escorted tour, traveling independently is a better choice for me. I want to arrange the entire journey by myself, including making hotel reservations and planning tourist attractions. I think traveling independently suits young and energetic people like me.