Caravans

Tequila wrote:

John & Angela wrote:
We are independent travelers and have seen the majority of Mexico US and Canada on our own BUT we had a great time on the Caravan we took thru the Baja. It was our first time in Mexico, didn't speak the language or the culture and wanted to get our feet wet a litle at a time. It was a fantastic experience and although we are now experienced Mexican travelers on our own having done 27 of the 31 Mexican states in our RV, we wouldn't hesitate to do the Caravan again just because IT WAS A BLAST. We made great friends and saw so much more than what we would have done by ourselves. Always something to do and we learned how to adapt to the Mexican Culture under the tutelage of our guides. We went with BAJA WINTERS. Becky and John are awesome and you will have a great time.

Have a good time.


John

My preference for Baja caravan would be Baja Amigos out of Vancouver. Not that Baja winters is not good, the issue is they do not have their own RV, so head off to a hotel for the night. (Unless that has changed) Baja Amigos runs small groups of 6 rigs down there. I know the owner Dan Goy well, we often do joint seminars at RV shows on RVing in Mexico. Another cheaper alternative for Baja is Vagabundos del Mar who run more bare bone trips down there. You have to join that club (you also do for Caravanas de Mexico's Mainland trips as they are loosely associated with them).

Whatever company is used, you have to be careful and check closely. Some use pretty deceptive advertising. If they advertise "events" rather than tours, you can bet they are counting 3 stops on one tour as separate tours to make it sound like a better deal. Make sure you know what you are getting and ask if any stuff is optional, or if you can even opt out of things you may have already done, like Copper Canyon for a cheaper price. (That is a very expensive portion of some trips). Also make sure RV park fees are included. There are caravans out there that make you pay your own parking for some longer stays, you can get blindsided by that. Figure out the average per day cost, keeping in mind that tours that involve hotels & special transport, like Copper Canyon will raise the average. What currency are they charging in, US or Can, or Pesos?. If you are Canadian,that is a big factor. You may have to pay the price up front, if you don't want to take a chance on the Can dollar tanking, and you have to remember you will be paying an extra 3% on buy/sell rates. Another question to ask is can you go down with day a Fall trip & return with a later trip in Spring. Some companies may allow that, if they are not full up, or even allow a one way caravan. Ask them what they do if you break down. That one is a big potential problem. Do they have an infrastructure in place to stay back with you and assist you in gettign the problem dealt with and helping you catch up later? You might also consider taking out some sort of cancelation or trip interuption insurance. You can buy that from 3rd party's.

Here are 2 incidents I have encountered on Caravans I have led.

1) A participant had his home invaded while on a caravan & had to return in a hurry 1/2 way through. No insurance, no rebate

2) Somebody decided to polish his RV the day before departure. He fell off a ladder & broke his heeel in 4 places. Had to cancel. No refund but the company generously offered to apply 90% of it to the following season. They did not have to.

As you get older, stuff happens.

This is what I find with tours, it is not allways up front what your expenses will be. Like if camping fees are not included, it is hard to figure out what they are. I try to put everything on a Excel Spread sheet and stuff adds up pretty fast. Some offer reduced insurance cost, some include many meals paid for or bus tours included. Caravan Soleil, a french one, have been doing caravan for many years, their price seems to be well explained in their information page, toll, camping, tours, meal, tips while on tours, ect.