Trips in your “go go” years?

All I can do is tell you what I did. To me there are two dimensions: the country and the nature of the trip (a tour company, a self-directed trip, or a cruise).

We chose first to go to a country that also spoke English and liked Americans. That took us to the UK and later to Ireland. Then we went to a country that didn’t speak English and also liked Americans. That took us to Italy. Those trips gave us the confidence to branch out further – to places with more difficult language barriers, like Hungary and Tunisia, and a few spots that pretty clearly didn’t like Americans, like a tour that included part of the Palestinian authority land outside Jerusalem, i.e., Bethlehem.

We started out with planned tours in Ireland and Italy. (I had done a little work in London, so we didn’t need any help with the UK trip.) Those tours involved buses or trains, and gave a broad sketch of each country. The tour companies do the logistical work – you just show up and enjoy. But you have to follow the tour agenda and may be dependent on the behavior of some others in your group, who might be chronically late or talk too much.

Cruises are unique. When you consider destinations, you can decide how long you want your cruise to be, and what package of stops is most attractive. The cruise companies come in all flavors. I am partial to Oceania. You only check in once but you might go to six or eight different stops, usually for a day at each one. The cruise ships mostly sail overnight, and you can disembark in the morning and return to the ship in the afternoon. As with land-based tours, you get an overview of the cities, and won’t get the depth of a self-directed tour, or a personalized tour with a professional guide.