Tour Leader Tales: Travelling in 2022

It has now been a little over 2 months since we ran our long-awaited, first tour of 2022! As many of our brilliant guests, Tour Leaders, Drivers and Head Office staff will be aware, it had been a turbulent time waiting for trips to recommence. However, we are thrilled that so many guests have already booked onto a multitude of our award-winning tours for 2022 and beyond. 

Here are a few insights from our remarkable Tour Leaders about their Blue-Roads Touring experience, travelling in 2022.

Our Tour Leaders have been extraordinary in creating a safe space for passengers. Maura Cahill, who recently led our awe-inspiring Emerald Isle tour, communicates how she helped guests feel at ease:  

“I made a point at the start to make sure everyone felt comfortable and encouraged them to wear their masks wherever they felt they needed to. By mentioning it and telling people to do whatever made them feel safest gave them confidence to make their own decisions based on what their preferences were.  

I also bring an alcohol-based sanitiser and always have wipes on the coach for people to use if they would like. Everyone brought masks along with them and on the coach, we ensured everyone had plenty of space to feel safe...” 

We appreciate that each guest has their own preferences, and we strive to encourage our guests to do what makes them feel most content and safest whilst venturing to invigorating new destinations.  

We are passionate about providing tours that delve a bit deeper and go off the beaten path as opposed to stopping in congested locations. Ultimately, this ensures our guests have the space and freedom required to become engrossed by the surroundings of new locations in peace.  

“Most things we do are away from large crowds, however if we occasionally visit a spot that becomes crowded, some guests feel safer wearing masks. We also often have our own section of the dining room where we have meals which meant we never felt encroached upon and never had people on top of us.” - Maura Cahill. 

Imagine the uncertainty of being a Tour Leader over the past couple of years! We reached out and asked them about their emotions back on the road: 

“To be honest, I wasn’t sure if I would be a Tour Leader again after being off for so long... I was a bit concerned about how people would react. But as soon as I did it, it just felt great to be at the heart of it again. Just to see the face of people illuminate when they see new things, new places, new moments again. Such a great feeling.” - Maxime Giron, Tour Leader for Jewels of Southwest France and Paris to Nice through Vineyards & Mountains.

“I felt like I had two left hands and two left feet at the start remembering what to do! But it was a wonderful change, having the welcome dinner and meeting guests the evening before the tour began. From my perspective it felt very safe and comfortable... I felt confident and this had a ripple effect through to our guests.” - Maura Cahill.