Who To Travel With?

I like to travel by myself. It allows me more freedom than having a travel partner. That said, I have traveled with my Mom (and will again), and with my counsin (that did not go so well).  As a solo traveler, and a female traveler, I feel it is sometimes better to travel with a tour company. This is not always the case-- I have traveled to England, California, and parts of New Zealand by myself. But when I do travel as part of a tour, I tend to like the companies that cater to small groups.

Here are a list of companies that I have traveled with or had help with booking my trip:

Canada
Moose Network www.moosenetwork.com

This backpacker company has two types of tours. In the West, travelers can hop-on or hop-off wherever they please and then book the next bus that has room available. In the East, tours are scheduled with specific stops and hostels. There are two options for the Moose East tours: Inclusive and non-inclusive. Inclusive is a bit more and all hostels and attractions are booked in advance; non-inclusive has a lower tour price and an extra fee to be paid for any attractions. Plus, hotels have to be paid when the traveler arrives at the hostel.

Travel Cuts/The Adventure Travel Company www.atcadventure.com

This company provides loads of information about adventure travel worldwide. I booked my trip to the South Pacific through them. They booked my flights, submitted my Visa applications for Australia and New Zealand, helped me with my YHA membership, and booked/helped me register for my Oz Experience tour.

gAdventures www.gadventures.com

This company used to be called Gap Adventures. That is what they were called when I traveled to Thailand. They have changed their name, but not the type or quality of thier product. This is a great company. They offer different types of adventure tours all over the world. You can choose the style of travel accommodations and transportation you want (gradings are classic, standard, yolo etc.) And how much physical activity you want (rated one to five, with five being most active). This is a great company due to the variety of tour options available. Check them out!

Australia
Oz Experience www.ozexperience.com

This is a hop-on, hop-off style of backpacker tour. It provides a login link where you can book your buses for your trip across Australia. There are options for hostels where the bus picks up and drops off passengers, so you can book your trip based on that. I booked all my hostels and buses in advance of leaving Canada because I only had a specific number of days there. However, travelers can choose to book only one leg of the journey at a time, if they want.

New Zealand
Stray Travel www.straytravel.com

I traveled in New Zealand both by myself and on a tour. The tour company I chose was Stray Travel because it offered more adventure, an authentic Maori experience, and a smaller group. Group sizes are 25 passenger maximum. Travelers can hop-on, hop-off wherever they choose. This company also provides a login link where the passenger can book available buses as they choose. It is a great way to see New Zealand, as lots of highlights are offered on various lengths of tours. You can choose to tour all of New Zealand, only one island at a time, or small tours of only specific parts of New Zealand. It was a great way to see the country!

 Kiwi Experience www.kiwiexperience.co.nz

This backpacker tour company offers tours similar to those offered by Oz Experience in Australia. The clientele tends to be the younger, party crowd. Passengers can hop-on, hop-off where they please and book their buses online. Tour sizes tend to be a bit larger.

~Angie