Why We Booked a Pre-Organised Tour to Canada

Marcus Leach and family setting off on their first pre-organised tour, destination Canada. 

After two years of living full-time in our motorhome it’s time to try something different. After all, as the saying goes, variety is the spice of life. Which is why we are heading to Canada to follow one of the Caravan and Motorhome Club’s self-guided tours. 

If there has been one element of our life of continual travel that we have enjoyed more than any other it’s been the freedom it affords us. The freedom to go where we want, when we want, to take our time and never have to move on until we are ready, to decide where we stay and what we see. However, that freedom comes at a cost. Eventually the need to constantly make daily decisions on everything from activities, where to stay, what to eat and so much more becomes tiring. 

Despite having what we called ‘decision fatigue’ we didn’t want to stop travelling, and so we began exploring various options and ideas. It was at this time I was at the Caravan and Motorhome Show sharing a series of talks when I picked up a Worldwide Tours brochure on the Caravan and Motorhome Club stand. Flicking through not only did the destinations catch my imagination, the likes of South Africa, New Zealand and Canada, but the fact that the tours were pre-organised for you. 

Standing there in the middle of the NEC, with a river of people flowing past me, the seed was sown. I wasn’t sure what Kim would think of having a set itinerary, despite being mentally drained from the continual planning of our own travels, but I for one was sold on the idea. As it turned out she was too and so we began looking at the various options. In the end we settled on Canada as a destination, and The Maritimes - Canada's Hidden Gem tour. 

There were a few reasons for this. One is that despite having always wanted to go to New Zealand, we didn’t want to fly long haul with the children, with the bonus that flying to Halifax on Canada's east coast is just over five hours. The obvious choice for Canada would have been the Rockies, but we have spent a lot of time in various mountain ranges on our travels and wanted to see and experience something totally different, which is exactly what the Maritimes tour will offer us. 

What has impressed us so much in the build-up to setting off is just how easy and professional the process has been in terms of booking everything and ensuring we are fully prepared for the trip. We have had a dedicated assistant, the wonderful Jo at Worldwide Caravan and Motorhome Holidays with Alan Rogers, who has taken care of everything, such as booking campsites, organising the motorhome rental, adding a few extra nights in a hotel upon arrival and being on hand to answer every question we have had. It couldn’t have been a better experience. 

With everything booked we were then sent an email asking us to download the Vamoos app, where we had to put in our personal trip code. This opened up the app into a portal just for us where every last document and detail of the trip was in one place. Not only things such as the day-by-day logistics itinerary, but a second one with in-depth information about each day, the driving route, suggested places to see, activities to do and places to eat. This means we have everything in one place without having to print loads of stuff in advance.

As amazing as all of that is, the highlights of the app for us is that there is a built in travel journal specific to our trip, where we can upload photos and keep a daily diary of all we have seen and done. Then, at the end of the trip, with a click of the button you can have this turned into a physical journal printed and sent to you, which is such a great idea and will mean we have a keepsake of our time away. 

If we are being honest, had someone told us six months ago that we would be going on a pre-organised tour, following someone else’s itinerary, we would have probably laughed. But, with departure just a few days away now, we are all excited to embark on this next chapter of our travels. We will, as always, be sharing our adventures in real time, so if you want to follow along it’s @MarcusLeachGlobal and @Our.Roaming.Odyssey on Instagram and @MarcusGLeach on Twitter.