Trip to London, Paris Casts New Light on Packaged Tours

By ED PERKINS

Over the years, I’ve strongly favored independent travel over packaged tours. I’ve railed against the regimentation of those tours, the mandatory stops at schlocky souvenir shops that give rebates to the driver or guide, the schedules determined by the pokiest member of the group, and the senior-unfriendly design of the typical tour bus.

But on my recent quick trip to London and Paris for the Eurostar’s completion, I experienced why many senior travelers would find tours a preferred solution.

The main problem is, of course, getting around on public transportation. In both London and Paris as well as most U.S. cities using the subway and elevated systems requires that you schlep up and down lots of stairs.

That can be an annoyance when you’re just running around the city, but it’s a major challenge with baggage. A few recently modernized stations provide escalators; some even provide elevators (maybe limited to travelers in wheelchairs). But most stations don’t.

Once inside the stations, you may find escalators or moving walkways, but almost never to/from street level.

You also face very long walks. “Correspondence” from one Paris Metro route to another may require such a long hike through assorted tunnels that you think you’d be better off walking the entire trip instead of just most of it. Changing train lines in London can also involve a combination of stairs and long walks.

Airport access, too, can be daunting if you aren’t fully spry. At Heathrow, for example, the Heathrow Express is a great trip after you finally get to the train station from Terminal Three, where you’re likely to arrive.

In Paris, access to/from the RER rail service to downtown is fine (although you may have a bit of a walk), but access at Terminal One requires a shuttle bus and other miseries.

Fighting for space

These problems aren’t confined to London and Paris you find them on most systems around the world, including those in the States. And although many U.S. transit systems offer senior discounts, half off the fare doesn’t help much when you’re climbing a two-story flight of stairs, lugging a suitcase and fighting for space with commuters.

Many tours short-circuit these access problems both to and from airports and rail stations, and in local sightseeing excursions. Your worst physical challenge is getting on and off a tour bus.

Otherwise, you have little difficulty, provided you accept the challenges I mentioned above: lack of flexibility, lack of control over your own itinerary and general lack of personal freedom.

The older you get, the more the tradeoff can tilt in favor of the tour. I’m still able to cope on my own, and did so in London and Paris. That was despite the Metro and rail strike that paralyzed most of Paris and required that I walk more than a mile with my suitcase to get from hotel to rail station.

Although I didn’t enjoy the stroll very much, I could do it. But lots of seniors I know could not, unfortunately including my wife: This was one of the very few trips I’ve ever taken where I was glad she wasn’t traveling with me.

Of course, you have other alternatives:

* Visiting a city, you can throw money at the problem by taking taxis everywhere. That works pretty well, except in heavy commute periods or at isolated locations when cabs may be hard to find.

* Visiting the countryside, you can rent a car at the airport and head directly to your hotel or vacation rental. That’s a fine solution provided you have no interest in major cities.

Overall, I don’t intend this as self-pitying kvetching. But the sad fact is that as I get older I see a somewhat different balance between convenience and flexibility.

And if you’re getting tired of schlepping, take a good look at a tour package that includes internal transportation within your destination.

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E-mail: eperkins@mind.net

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