Coach trips/tours

Yes. An ad in The Lady advertised for a companion to accompany a woman on a 8 day coach trip to Waterford (Ire) from Beaconsfield.
After interview I got the job and met a few weeks later at the brother's home where I was given £350 spends and £500 for my 'wage'.
I had a fantastic time although I would normally have shied away from that kind of thing.
Met a young couple (19&20) who left a bar of chocolate on my seat at breakfast every day, a guy who was on the trip to get away from wife and kids (he bought a gun and a shillelagh) a husband who whistled constantly (until I threatened him) and sundry other characters who were, for the most part, delightful especially the driver who kept us all interested and in stitches but was quiet much of the time.
We stopped at the Holiday Inn in Newport for the first night and Southampton FC were staying there so I got all their autographs on a menu at breakfast.
We (my companion and I) took a pony and trap to see the Blue Church and the driver kept getting down to scoop up the horse droppings into a bucket, otherwise they get fined. It really was fun and I am still in touch with the young couple and went to their wedding. He's a well known chef now but was only starting out when we met.
It all depends on the company. I wouldn't want to go with just older people.

Have done several coach holidays here and abroad . We have found hotels on some week long holidays dire very tired hotels weekend breaks are slightly better because a lot of travel type hotels are used . We usually meet some lovely people and food is usually ok nothing fancy but you won't starve . You usually get some free days .

Sorry did not delete the lower sentance

Like others, I’ve been on quite a few coach holidays, some good others some best forgotten.
I always read Tripadvisor reviews about the hotel we will be staying at before I book, and this my main deciding factor on whether I go or not.
Last October I went to Cornwall with Sherrings and although the hotel was excellent.
I found the 6 hour journey with just one short “comfort stop” extremely tiring To cap it all, three days later I’d caught the worst cold I’d had in years?

journey with just one short stops

Jordana.I believe a coach trip all inclusive might be to organised for you as you appear to have enjoyed doing your own thing in the past. If you don't want the bother of driving then by all means book a coach plus hotel to the place of your choice. Outings can be booked through hotels so this gives you the advantage of doing what you want and when.

I have been on a lot of coach holidays , with my husband before he became ill and more recently with friends or on my own. I have enjoyed them all and the only downside is being the first pick up and the last drop off! I usually travel with Daish's but my sister always travels with Shearings. The holidays are only for 5 days as a rule so why not try a short trip to the seaside or the mountains and see if you like it. I generally give a review on Tripadvisor and agree it is sensible to check the reviews before travelling.

I'm not over keen on total holiday travel by coach. Some of the disadvantages are:
* irritating music over loud speaker
*long time sitting
*sitting next to/in front/behind people you don't like or smell bad ( sorry smoke lingers on them as well as BO)
* other noise
*disputes over seats
* thoughtless people being late for coach
* multiple pick ups
* no flexibility/strict timetable

I did Monet's Garden by coach years ago and vowed never again. I was first pick up and it was hours of stop/start and deviations of route before we even got to Dover. Then other coaches we were liaising with were late and we missed our ferry. Total travel time was 3am till midnight the following day but I see you are only interested in UK destinations.

The advantages are:
* can be less stress way of travel
* can sleep while travelling
* companionship
* all in price for tours

How about rail travel as an alternative? Bit more room to move around. And there are some good organised tours, particularly up to Scotland.

We enjoyed a guided coach trip to the WW1 battle fields and I've been on UK tours related to art on my own which I've enjoyed but I wouldn't do as a holiday in itself where you are staying in different places each night. It would drive me nuts

I was reluctant to go on a coach holiday however last year we did our first one and I loved it! We used a local company who picked us up from home in a feeder bus to meet the main coach which avoided lots of pick up points. I had thought it would be full of old people so was surprised to find most of the people were our age!!! We had lots of comfort breaks and tea coffee etc could be purchased on the coach much cheaper than the service stations so we only needed to use the toilets there. It is amazing how even local scenery looks different from the height of a coach. We travelled to Holland first crossing on p&o ferry which was so stress free. The driver collected all passports and came back with the tickets all we had to do was walk straight on the ferry and go to our cabin much better than queues at airport check ins. We have since been to Skye and also took 6yr old DGS to Longleat which I would not have attempted in the car as we live in Scotland.

I took my then teenage son, on a Leger trip to the WW2 Dunkerque sites. We had people on board who had been there duing the battle. He loved it!! He was Call of Duty player and very interested in war history.

I loved being able to sit and read, didn't have to think about anything much at all and had plenty to talk to him about.

For the mixed ages we were, it was a good holiday. Not a choice I would have made for myself but where else can 50+ mum go with teenage son and not have to amuse him all the time, or spalsh out loads of cash????

He was home schooled so it gave us plenty of topics to persue and at 26 now he retains an avid interest in war time history.

I have serious spinal problems, was able to adjust the seat a little and they can lower the coach for you to get on and off. Drivers very helpful and knowledgeable. It reminded me a lot of my childhood because of all the old war films my parents watched, and the privations of occupation that my old (French) granny spoke of.

Some have wi fi now too.

I turned my Kindly print up, so that people behind me could use it as an eye chart, made it easy got me to read while travelling.

My Husband and I have done quite a few of these since we retired 2 years ago. All have been in the uk, have used 3 different tour companies. We really enjoy them , had some really nice hotels and met lots of lovely people. We have only had 1 hotel we didn't feel was up to scratch, it was the only one I hadn't checked on trip advisor first. Last year we took my Mum 81 and our daughter 21 on a 5 day trip with us,they both really enjoyed it. It's very relaxing not driving and as others have said because you are higher up in the coach,the views are great. I would do your research and try a 3 or 4 day one to start.

We have done several coach tours, both in the UK and abroad. We've always had good hotels and good drivers. Some of the holidays have involved flying from the UK then touring around. On the longer journeys I enjoy audio books which enable me to look at the scenery and "read" a book at the same time.

We did a lot of these holidays in the past . My only complaint was that the driver played the most terrible music all the time . I enjoyed the company and the fact that you could relax and let the driver take the strain .

I took my elderly Mum on a 5-day Crusader coach holiday to Somerset. Accommodation was a Warners Hotel with half board. The journey to Somerset took the good part of a day but we had an hour or so's stop in Salisbury to get lunch.

We had two coach day trips within the package - one to Wells and Street Outlet Village (why? many of the passengers asked themselves) and the other to Bridport and Lyme Regis. Both rather nice trips with not too long on the coach.

For older people especially I found this to be quite a good holiday as there was a comfortable hotel base with good food, plus day trips.

I haven't been on a coach holiday where the coach stops at different hotels each night. I don't think I would enjoy a coach holiday abroad where you are stuck on a coach for hours on end day after day.

For European trips, a bonus is that you can get an interesting mix of people on the coach. We did a Danube tour, Prague, Budapest, Vienna, and most of the group were American and Canadian, great fun. It was interesting to see Europe through their eyes.

I did a coach trip to Scotland last year which was marvellous. I've also done Italy and Spain which can be a bit wearying, so it's best to do one which incorporates a night's stop over. Generally they are great as you can just sit back and relax.

We have been on a few Coach tours, our last, and one of the best was with saga round cuba. A friendly group where no one felt left out.
Have also had some good 4/5 day trips to the Rhine/Mosel.
Its easy having someone else doing the worrying, passengers just sit back and enjoy the scenery. Definitely worth a try.

We've done several coach trips both in the UK and abroad. For me, the biggest bugbear is the difference in the time it takes to get to wherever you're going. What takes about two hours by car can take anything up to four hours on a coach. Otherwise, as others have said, it's fine.

My friend and I have been on coach holidays to Scotland and Yorkshire. Both lovely . This was when I s still living in Wales so we had to get a taxi to take us to a pick up point at motorway services. However now I've relocated to the SE there is a local company who will pick you up by taxi at your home and transfer you to the coach. We had several excursions but you can opt out and stay at your base town if you want to. Some excursions were better than others. Hotels were fine and cost reasonable. Poor weather in Scotland but you can't do anything about that!

My DH hates driving and we decided to see Andalusia by coach a couple of years ago, especially as we had driven in Andalusia and remembered that the roads are bad and the distances excrutiatingly long.

The food at the hotels was not quite so good, as we were always served a menu for a large group rather than being able to choose and take our time, and we didn't always have as long to stop at some places as we may have liked.

But the advantages outweighed all that:

- you are not as tired from the travelling as you don't have to navigate/drive
- you sit mich higher up in a coach and can both of you enjoy the view from this vantage point
- time spent travelling is put to use whilst the tour guide tells you interesting facts about the area in general or the particular place you are stopping at next
- you don't have to worry about accommodation - it's all done for you, and you have the option of choosing a more, or less, expensive tour depending on the standard of hotel you would like
- and a very big PLUS for Andalusia: entrance fees and visits to places like the Alhambra and Cordoba cathedral are booked and paid for in advance and you sail past the long queues of individual tourists, and get straight off the coach, go straight in and a guide is waiting for you.

So, as naff as a coach tour sounds, it really is a very good option. And there were some young couples in our group, too - it wasn't all baby boomers and merry octegenarian widows.

We’ve done some very good coach holidays to Ireland, Scotland, the South West, Austria and Germany, all with good local companies. We only did one that was not a success. It was not a company we had used before, and the hotel was pretty dire, but fortunately it was only for two nights. Why not try a weekend before committing yourself to anything longer.

We've had some great coach holidays, here and abroad. They're such good value, and if, like me, you can read and snooze on the journey, so much the better! I always check out the hotels on Tripadvisor first though, as according to the reviews some are bad. One tip - if you're flexible on dates and can book at the last minute, prices often go down for the last few seats.

I would love to do something like a coach tour as I have to do all the driving but DH isn't really keen.

I keep telling him I would be able to actually SEE the scenery instead of it just flashing by and when you're sitting up high you can see a lot.

I'll keep working at it!

I'm hoping for a couple of day trips out during the summer holidays. Its the best way to see far flung places, which is virtually everywhere if you don't drive.