I love how structured this tour was. Being a first-time traveler to Europe, this was helpful and beneficial because I was able to see all of the things that the tour director thought was worthwhile and didn't waste any time wondering what to do. Will definitely be doing more trips with EF! show less

The England and France trip was beyond anything we could have expected. Our tour guide in St. Malo was amazing! The change of pace from bustling cities like London and Paris, to the humbling beaches of Normandy and the memorials are so amazing it is almost impossible to put into words. The hotels and food were exactly as described. The thing to remember is the portion sizes are normal not super sized so if you are a big eater you will learn some moderation on this trip. Also bring comfortable shoes and be prepared to be amazed. I would recommend this tour to anyone. show less

I am writing this review in the perspective of a student who went on this trip. This was an amazing experience to go on this trip as a sophomore. I met a bunch of new amazing people and went to France, which was my dream. The only thing I didn’t like was that we didn’t get to choose what we got to eat. The meals were reoccurring, and sometimes not very good. I would definitely do another trip, but I don’t know if the prices are fair. show less

So much to say but at the same time in speechless. Our flights were good, tour guide was phenomenal! Seen so much and loved every minute! Thank you!! show less

We had an amazing experience. The itinerary was an unexpected gift of learning, not just about history, but of the evolving human spirit (lots of wars, memorials, etc.). It was a rigorous agenda that often just gave us just a taste of a place, and a likely yearning to return. More time was needed to explore and some more in-depth guide information (perhaps an opportunity to use the headsets? I would not have expected the tour director to have all this info or to have even been able to share it with the whole group) would have been excellent.
Our tour Director was AMAZING!! We loved her spirit and sense of humor. She made the most of many challenging situations and handled them with diplomacy and composure.
As for the tour being something accessible for students with disabilities, namely physical limitations, there is much work to be done. While EF cannot make other countries create ADA-like improvements, they can and should do more to prepare their staff and tours to address the needs of disabled students, simply better understanding the accommodations needed and what options are or are not possible. Much more is possible than you think if you are not even trying. show less

This trip was very nice. Going to England, Normandy and France was a great experience. The tour director knew what she was doing. They were always knowledgeable about each site and where to go find things. They knew how to operate the metro an get us tickets. On long bus rides you had nice buses. During site seeing it was fun learning about historical areas and monuments. The food was kind of boring unless you count the night we had muscles. It could have been better. Although choosing lunch was fun. The hotels we went to were nice. Overall the trip was fun, but a bit exhausting. show less

First of all, our family has traveled to Europe for over 30 years. My husband was a bicycle tour leader in France before going to graduate school, so we offer these thoughts with that background.

1. The tour should have non-stop flights. With a group of teenagers, it is ridiculous to risk a stop over in the interest in saving money. I am sure that the families would gladly have paid another $100-$200 per student for a non stop flight. During our tour, weather delayed the trip from Atlanta to Toronto by 6 hours. Even with a quick transition to the next flight in Toronto, one of the student's wallet was stolen or lost. It is just safer to have a non-stop flight.

2. Food. The kids' evening meal was always at 5:30 p.m. This is just too early for dinner. The group meals only offered one choice to eat. In St. Malo, the choice was mussels. Two of the kids were sickened by that choice. Surely there could be a choice of entrée at these dinners, even if it were a less expensive option like pasta.

Also, the tour director should never, ever offer an American fast food restaurant as an option for a group meal. The students' first meal in France was at Pizza Hut. There are so many options for food in France that are reasonable and convenient - even the highway restaurants are able to accommodate large groups and they offer many choices to eat.


Hotels.

Although the quality of the hotels was fine, the locations were so far away from the cities the kids were to visit, so much time was lost commuting that could have been spent touring the city. For example, in London, the students stayed in Barking, and in Paris, they stayed in Maison Lafitte - past CDG airport! There are so many choices of hotels in London and Paris, in particular, that the far afield hotels were not necessary. Also, we went to great expense to send a card to our son at the Maison Lafitte Hotel, and they never gave it to him. He asked twice at the front desk.


Tour guide

The tour guide on our son's tour was very unprofessional. First of all, she wore revealing clothes (where her breasts were visible. Secondly, we question her ability to lead a tour effectively. Setting up dinners at 5:30 pm was poor planning. Everyone spent much more on food than we had budgeted simply because they were having a second dinner.


All in all, I would not recommend this tour because we had the distinct feeling the planning was intentionally lowest of the low budget, so EF tours or the tour guide could keep as much money that was not spent on the students. That is a terrible feeling to have when you have entrusted your child to a tour company that is supposedly reputable. show less

This trip was truly incredible and was super educational and fun. It balanced being able to see things as a tourist while also providing so much opportunity to learn about the different places, particularly because of the amazing guide, Doniel! show less

This was an amazing trip to places I have heard & read about since I was in grade school. To actually be there was truly an unforgettable experience. Our tour guide was extremely knowledgeable, personable, and very attentive to our well-being. We had separate tour guide for specific parts of the trip who gave us a more in-depth perspective and history, which added to the overall experience. Current events mixed with ancient history as we saw people going about their business surrounded by breath-taking architecture and scenery.
We sampled local cuisine on our own each day, which gave us a break from the fixed menu of the tour meals, some of which were quite good, but others not so good.
The accommodations were quite satisfactory and comfortable. They were farther outside the cities which made them quieter, but required extra time to travel back in to see the sights.
Having some free time was really nice, especially when you have the time constraints of the tour. It has its pros and cons...you see a lot but not always enough of some things.
Overall, it's well-worth it and makes you want to return for more. show less

I loved all the tours, even though our time in Normandy was really depressing with all the WW2 stuff. I wish EF tours planned the dinner when we got off the ferry from London into France. It was a long day and it wast fair that we were given money and had to find dinner when we were hungry and were plopped into a new country with a new language. The hotels were ok though most of them had wifi that didnt work. The last hotel was in an obscure town and kids yelled racial slurs at us near the hotel. The tour guides though were great, though one if them said that he didnt care to talk about womens history because it wasnt important. show less