As I’ve become a more experienced traveler over the decades, I like to believe I’ve evolved into a more graceful tourist. For instance, I’ve learned to pack much more thoughtfully to avoid feeling laden by luggage after deservedly being teased over the outrageous weight (50+ lbs?) of my bag on my first trip to Europe.
While I may be carrying less stuff when I travel, I most certainly am bringing more disposable income on my trips. It wasn’t until the last 10 or 12 years when I at last felt comfortable spending part of my travel budget on formal tours and excursions. Prior to that, those expenditures were unaffordable luxuries.
Double decker bus rides with on/off privileges, I’ve discovered, are a wonderful way to orient one’s self to a new city. Generally, one gets some history, sights and transportation all for one price. Terrific. In Amsterdam, swap a bus for a boat and you can get a fantastic canal trip which affords one an awesome perspective on a beautiful old city. Great!
As we planned our Pacific Northwest (PNW) summer trip, Mt Rainier loomed large (ha!) as a must see destination. At the end of our time in Seattle, we’ll have a car and the original thought was to drive to Rainier on Sunday morning. However, everything I read and heard made me hesitant to approach the national park on what is likely the busiest day of the week. I was concerned about traffic and parking and crowds of people and the trek there started to feel less and less fun.
It occurred to me that perhaps we might find a tour to go on. Something low key, not hyper organized and fairly priced. After a quick search, I settled on Tours Northwest which offered a full day excursion with transportation for what I thought was a reasonable price.
From the moment I bought the tickets, I was able to relax about accomplishing one of our few vacation goals. Communication was good and we were able to meet our group a mere three minute walk from our condo. Our driver, Andreas, was informative and made the day one which was exceedingly pleasant and very chill. I never felt rushed, nor did I feel impatient, a feat for certain.
I lost count of the number of stops we made within the park, but am certain that I never would have seen the sights I did had my son and I been on our own in this majestically beautiful place. There were numerous waterfalls, magnificent old growth forests and snow topped mountains, including Mt Adams. Rainier himself, played peek-a-boo for much of the earlier part of the day, but in the afternoon he popped out as if posing for our cameras. It was magical.
Other sights within the park we enjoyed were the beginnings of the spring wildflower riot, particularly around Paradise, natch. The colors were lovely – white, yellow, red and numerous shades of indigo. Gorgeous.
The excursion we enjoyed was found doing a basic Google search, but don’t neglect Airbandb Experiences or recommendations from travel sites such as Expedia, Travelocity, or Fodor’s. Happy trails!
