Rick Steves Profile [2024] - 23 reviews, 35 trips
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# of trips

35

Type

Regional operator

Service level

standard

Travelers age

36 — 65

Trip prices

$1,795 — 4,995

Tour languages

English

What they’re known for
Deep expertise in European travel for older Americans, which includes guided group tours, guidebooks, and TV and radio programs.

Trips other travelers liked

See all 35 trips

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Overview

Tour Types

Regions

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Rick Steves Reviews & Ratings

4.2/5  Great
23  Reviews
See all Rick Steves tour reviews
Excellent
18
Great
0
Average
1
Disappointing
0
Terrible
4
W

Wendy

Apr 2023

Provided byRick Steves

This is about the store not the tours

We purchased two backpacks from Rick Steves Europe. One of them arrived damaged and unusable. Their website says that you must contact them if you receive damaged me...

A

A Perfect 10

Jan 2023

Provided byRick Steves

Sicily is Pure Eye Candy :: Will Leave You Wanting More :: Seamless Way To Travel The Island

A perfect "10" for the Rick Steves' Best of Sicily 11-Day Tour. My 1st tour with any company. This was a perfect combination of scheduled time and free time .. with ...

L

Longtime Travelers

Jun 2022

Provided byRick Steves

Terrible Covid Experience

We are in Ireland now, traveling with Rick Steves Tours and a group of 27. Two days ago a member of the group tested positive for Covid, and we had all been exposed....

L

Longtime Travelers

Jun 2022

Provided byRick Steves

Terrible Covid Experience

We are in Ireland now, traveling with Rick Steves Tours and a group of 27. Two days ago a member of the group tested positive for Covid, and we had all been exposed....

J

Joanne

Feb 2021

Provided byRick Steves

the best tips

All Steve’s travel books are the best tips.

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Editoral Review of Rick Steves

What Makes Rick Steves Stand Out?

Rick Steves is the new Arthur Frommer, the current-day guru of European travel. Steves has parlayed a successful series of well-produced public TV and radio shows and guidebooks into a European tour business that thrives on his personal brand.

His folksy, easy-going manner and easily digested practical advice breed trust, and the public has responded. (Don’t expect Steves himself to be leading the tours, however.)

Who Will Enjoy Traveling with Rick Steves?

The general customer tends to skew older, but not in an exclusionary sense. Families, solo travelers, and multi-gen groups are all welcome and will all enjoy a trip with Rick Steves.

The tours generally involve walking however; hotels are centrally located and are often the kind of “quirky, family-run” places that Steves himself prefers.

He advises that many do not have elevators, and you may have to climb several flights of stairs -- so those who pack light and “stay in shape,” as Steves puts it, will be the happiest campers.

Top Destinations

Steves’ tours are concentrated mostly in Western Europe, though he does offer some Eastern European trips as well. You can also book special family trips. And along with single country and regional tours, you can choose to stay an entire week in Rome, Paris, London, or Istanbul, for a more intensive single city experience.

Rick Steves Travel Style

In keeping with the perspective of his famous and well read guide books, the Rick Steves travel style is about having fun, steeping yourself in rich history, and relishing in good food and wine.

Rick Steves made a name for himself bringing accessible European travel to America’s living room. Traveling on a Rick Steves tour brings the well known brand and personality to life as you experience Europe how Steves does.

You’ll probably do a lot of walking, so make sure your feet are up to the task!

Why Choose a Tour with Rick Steves?

For the peace of mind that you’re traveling with an experienced guide who knows Europe inside and out. This provides a fun, informative, enjoyable experience with little to no worry about logistical headaches - you’re free to just have a splendid vacation.

Steves offers two types of tours to Europe: fully guided, which include hotels, sightseeing and admissions, bus transport, and some meals (breakfasts and half of the dinners), and unguided “My Way” tours that appeal to more independent travelers.

The latter are less expensive and include hotels and bus transport between destinations but don’t include lunch, dinner, or sightseeing -- though escorts are available to offer advice. In both cases, groups are limited to 24-28 travelers.

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About the company

What they’re known for
Deep expertise in European travel for older Americans, which includes guided group tours, guidebooks, and TV and radio programs.

Our mission is to inspire, inform and equip Americans to have European trips that are fun, affordable and culturally broadening. We value travel as a powerful way to better understand and contribute to the world in which we live. We strive to keep our own travel style, our world outlook and our business practices consistent with these values.

About Rick Steves

Guidebook author and travel TV host Rick Steves is America's most respected authority on European travel. Rick took his first trip to Europe in 1969, visiting piano factories with his father, a piano importer. As an 18-year-old, Rick began traveling on his own, funding his trips by teaching piano lessons. In 1976, he started his business, Rick Steves' Europe, which has grown from a one-man operation to a company with a staff of 80 full-time, well-travelled employees at his headquarters in Washington state. There he produces more than 50 guidebooks on European travel, America's most popular travel series on public television, a weekly hour-long national public radio show, a weekly syndicated column, and free travel information available through his travel center and website. Rick Steves' Europe also runs a successful European tour program. Rick Steves lives and works in his hometown of Edmonds, Washington. His office window overlooks his old junior high school.

What we do

--We research and write European guidebooks, produce a public television series and a public radio show

--We organize and lead energetic tours throughout Europe

--We sell select travel bags, guidebooks, maps, DVDs, and other travelers' supplies

--We offer travel consulting and trip planning services

--We teach do-it-yourself travel seminars

--We provide a wealth of free information about travel in Europe via our Travel Center and Website

--We travel a lot

What we don't do

--We are not travel agents, so we don't book flights, hotels, or rental cars

Rick Steves Trips & Specials

See all 8 trips

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