General Practical Information
Cost Includes
Eastern Approaches aims to make your tour as hassle free as possible and one way we can do this is by removing any hidden costs. The price is all inclusive and this means all airfares from London; current government airport taxes; all transfers; full board; mineral water; all travel and stated excursions; all site and museum entries; all tips, including tips to drivers and guides; the services of an English speaking guide and a lecturer/manager; detailed practical notes and historical notes.
Not included: We don’t cover personal expenditures such as travel insurance, alcoholic drinks and laundry. We also do not include the cost and procurement of visas where the visa application has to be made by the individual, although of course we are happy to advise. In countries where entry permission for the whole group is needed, the costs of the visa procurement and fees will be covered.
Group Size
Our tours are costed out on a minimum of 10 passengers travelling, although in practice we can go ahead with numbers as low as 6 or 5 – we do not like to cancel a tour if at all possible. Maximum group size is 20.
Accomodation
We do our best to match accommodation appropriate to the tour. This mainly means best available throughout, but consideration is given to location, quietness, character, compatibility with the culture whilst maintaining comfort and quality of services – we like to avoid where possible the bland, international style or resort style hotels. In practice this usually means good 4 & 5 star hotels in the main cities but more modest 2-3 star elsewhere. With regard to the latter, we ensure that these are clean and adequate with private facilities. In some countries we visit, the infrastructure and accommodation facilities are not as high or as reliable as we might expect in western Europe. Where possible we will describe the facilities as best as we can, although at no point could one be described as travelling “rough”! It must also be observed that in many places the simplicity of the accommodation is often out-weighed by the extraordinary hospitality of the people.
Travel
All on 29 or 49 seater air-conditioned coach, depending on group size. If groups are very small, comfortable minibuses will be provided.
Local Conditions
Whilst some people’s strenuous hike is another person’s stroll, we try and give an indication of what physical effort a tour involves. Eastern Approaches tours are not adventure or activity tours, there is no trekking, there is no camping (except in very rare circumstances where there is no alternative, in which case it will be emphasised in the tour details), the effort lies in the amount of walking and in the length of journeys. Walking around cities can be surprisingly tiring, as can a twelve-hour coach journey. Where there is a strenuous day in an itinerary, this is usually followed by a more relaxing day. If you are uncertain of the physical demands of a tour, please do not hesitate to enquire.
Weather
It is as well to be prepared, especially as unpredictable climate changes are increasingly common all over the world. There is very good weather information online at
The Met Office World Weather Forecasts
If you do not have access to the internet, we do provide an indication of the expected weather in the practical information we supply.
Security
It is not a good policy for a tour operator to “mislay” their clients, or to give them an uncomfortable time! We do remember that this is your holiday and that you do not want to be worried in anyway. Our policy is that we do not travel to anywhere that is advised against by the Foreign & Commonwealth Office. In addition to this, prior to a tour going ahead we are in regular communication with our ground agents, and for most countries we inform the British Embassy of our travel arrangements.
Whilst all efforts will be made to cover the itinerary as advertised, local conditions might entail minor modifications. This is usually arranged between the lecturer and the local guide and you will be informed in advance. More detailed Practical Information is sent out on receipt of a booking, together with a detailed itinerary and a recommended reading list.