Specific Atlas Trip Info and Recommendations

Each trip will have advance general information that is specific to that tour posted on our web site for clients, and then a much more detailed and specific information package will be emailed (or snail-mailed if preferred) to booked clients at their address. When you are on an Atlas tour you will be given daily itinerary sheets each morning that will contain information about our route and what we will visit that day (including background historical information for the sites visited), as well as contact information for scheduled restaurants, markets, and culinary destinations. Each trip will also have a bibliography posted that will give great suggestions for further study if you so desire.

Transportation

Atlas will cover all ground transportation at the destination. In some locales this might include inter-regional flights within the country, occasionally water transport, and rarely, trains. Most of our travel inside a foreign country and within domestic destinations will be in luxury vans or minibuses, depending upon the size of the group.

One of our goals in select locales, such as Bangkok , San Francisco , and Barcelona , will be to show you how to get around the city most easily on your own using the Skytrain, Muni, or the Metro, in order to save time and to avoid traffic. In Bangkok , for example a jaunt to dinner in our bus could take several hours to go a few miles if the traffic gods are particularly angry (it’s known for having some of the worst traffic in the world), while riding the Skytrain or the new subway to the same destination could take a few minutes, regardless of the traffic. Sometimes public transport is the most sensible option. 

Once you’ve got the most efficient and modern forms of public transportation figured out you’ll be ready to tackle the city on your own during free periods, and have no apprehensions about coming back sans Atlas on a return trip of your own. Most of these modes will require a small degree of stair climbing and short distance walking.

Flights to and from the destination from your home location will be your responsibility. Most clients have expressed a desire to book their own travel, using award miles to upgrade or get free flights, while others use certain credit cards to get free companion travel. Listed later on this web site (under “Links: Discount Airline Ticket Sources/Searches”) is a comprehensive guide to the major ticket discounters should you chose to book your own flights. We can also make arrangements for you through our travel agent partners if you desire, and we can always provide information to clients about our recommendations for carriers to a particular destination. 

You will be given a deadline time to appear at our hotel prior to the start of the tour, and the introductory orientation sessions will be scheduled in a manner that will make it easy for you to join the group, whether you arrive at night or during the day.   

Hotels/Rooms

Comparative hotel star ratings can be rather arbitrary, depending on the destination. What is considered a 5 star hotel in one country might be equal to a 4 star hotel in another, and very rarely, a 3 star somewhere else. Atlas clients will be booked into what we consider to be very nice hotels…hotels which are considered 4 or more stars in their respective regions. To avoid any confusion, we will always provide a link in the itinerary information section for the hotels at which we will be staying, so that clients and prospective clients will know exactly where we plan on plopping down for the night. There will be no surprises when it comes to your hotel stay.  

What We Provide

Generally we cover everything except the airfare to the destination: all travel within the destination (including occasional flights within the country as well as luxurious charter busses and vans), almost all meals, some alcoholic drinks, all lodging, fees for venues, transfers, etc. There will be several periods of free time scheduled into the itinerary where you will have the opportunity to roam and explore on your own if desired, and you will be liable for meals and expenses incurred during your free time periods.

You are responsible for your shopping expenses, any medical expenses, required immunizations, excess baggage fees, additional costs for any optional side trips, some alcoholic drinks, laundry expenses, tips for drivers and any interpreters, any incidental room charges: minibar/ movies/ room service (and tips for same), airport departure taxes (where applicable), and the cost of shipping any purchases back to your country of origin. On some international trips we will add the cost for comprehensive travel insurance (with no mark-up) to include automatic coverage.