Before the tour
Group travel
Group travel is a great opportunity for you to make friends from other cities and provinces. Unless your group leader has chosen to be a private group, you will be travelling with other students and teachers from Canada and the United States. It’s important to keep in mind that our tours are fast-paced and that travelling with others requires thoughtfulness, a good attitude and flexibility.
Tour and departure date flexibility
Your exact tour itinerary and travel dates will not be confirmed until around 95-85 days prior to departure. Although we will make our best effort to comply with your group leader’s first choice of tour, we occasionally have to offer a comparable tour, based on availability. EF defines a comparable tour as having 50% of the same overnight destinations of your requested tour. Also, based on your group leader’s requested tour date, we ask for a date range. This range is within two days of the originally requested date for tours departing October through April, and within four days for tours departing May through September. Talk to your group leader about departure date choices that he or she requested.
Passports
We recommend that you apply for your passport as soon as you enrol on your tour, as it can sometimes take six to eight weeks to process. Canadian citizens travelling abroad must bring a passport that is valid for at least six months after the tour’s return and has at least three blank pages. You can find out all you need to know about passports at the Canadian government passport website,
passport.gc.ca.
Airlines will not permit you to travel if the name on your ticket does not match your passport exactly. Make sure your first, middle and last names on the ticket match your passport exactly or you may be denied boarding by the airlines.
Visas
Depending on where you’re travelling, you may need a visa for your tour. Consult your destination countries’ and layover countries’ consulates for more information and specific
requirements. For contact information, visit
travel.gc.ca or
cic.gc.ca (for non Canadian citizens).
Because visa applications must be personally completed by the applicants, we require that you obtain your own visa. Visa information is subject to change. Check your destination country’s
website for the most up-to-date requirements.
Parental authorization forms
For tours going to most Central and South American countries, children under the age of 18 require a parental authorization form to be signed and notarized within 30 days of the tour departure date. If this applies to your tour, EF will send you the form a few months prior to the departure date. Contact your group leader if you are travelling to this region and have not received this form. Students under 18 must bring the form on tour because it is required to get through customs in some countries in this region.
Tipping
It’s customary to tip your tour director and bus driver as a token of appreciation at the end of the tour. We suggest that each student tip the tour director $5 per day on tour and $3 per day for the bus driver. Many groups also tip local guides. Giving a small tip of $1 to $2 per person to both the professional local guide and the day’s driver is typical. If your tour includes a cruise, we require that travellers also tip $10 per person per day for the cruise staff.
Money abroad
Money always brings up a lot of questions – how much to bring, how to bring it, how to exchange it. We recommend bringing the equivalent of $50 in the currency of the initial destination. You should familiarize yourself with the exchange rates for Canadian dollars
to the local currency of the destinations on your tour. We advise against traveller’s cheques since they can be difficult to cash. ATM’s are the most convenient for cash withdrawals since they accept a wide number of bank and credit cards. You should alert your bank to let them know that you will be travelling out of the country and to make sure your debit and credit cards will work abroad.
Spending money
We recommend planning on $25 to $60 per day for spending money. Here’s a helpful guide for you to estimate approximate spending based on different regions. The lower amount covers enough for lunches, soft drinks, postcards and stamps, while the higher amount covers some museum entrances during free time and souvenirs. These recommendations do not cover optional excursions or gratuities.
|
Europe
|
Australia, New Zealand, Africa
|
Costa Rica
|
|
$45-65
|
$50-75
|
$20-30
|
|
Japan
|
China and rest of Asia
|
Egypt
|
|
$50-75
|
$30-40
|
$30-40
|
|
Mexico and rest of Central/South America
|
|
$30-40
|
Rooming
Student rooming
If you are a student under 20 years of age, you will share rooms with two or three other travellers of the same gender, either from your own group or from other groups with whom you are travelling. Hotel styles and room configurations vary among destinations, so students who share a room in one city may not do so in the next. Students under the age of 20 who wish to have twin rooms will be charged an additional fee.
Adult rooming
Adults (travellers 20 years or older at the time of the tour) will be roomed in twin rooms (with two single beds) with another adult of the same gender either from your own group or from another group with whom you are travelling. Double accommodations (one large bed or two single beds pushed together) are also available. If any adults wish to have a single room, a single room supplement will be added to their account.
Any non-standard student requests should be submitted to your group leader and to EF’s customer service department by 70 days prior to departure.
Rooming on night trains and ferries (if applicable)
Sleeping compartments on trains are very small and there are no single or double rooms. Adults and students will room in couchettes of up to six shelf-like beds that fold down from the wall. Couchettes may not be exclusive to EF travellers and may be co-ed. Bathrooms are located outside the compartments in the corridor. Single rooms are not available on overnight ferries, overnight trains or tours to Africa.
Dietetary needs
If you have any specific dietary needs or restrictions, please let your group leader know prior to the tour. Your group leader will then pass that information along to EF.
Optional excursions
You can also choose to join optional excursions with your group during free time. These are activities that supplement what’s already included on your itinerary. Examples include visiting Stonehenge during your tour to London, participating in a Flamenco Evening in Barcelona or taking an excursion to Versailles in Paris.
Log in to your personalized website to find out which optional excursions are available for your tour.
Tour pace
You should bring comfortable footwear. Many sightseeing tours are on foot, so travellers will do a lot of walking. In addition, the use of public transportation often involves a lot of stairs and walking to and from the train platforms.
Packing
You will be carrying your own luggage, so you should pack light. We recommend one suitcase and one small carry-on per person. You will be responsible for taking luggage on and off buses and into hotels, so make sure you can easily carry your luggage up stairs. See our packing list for specific suggestions.