The Mountains are calling, and I must go...
Mountains, Valleys, Wildflowers, Castles and Cowbells! Throw in some Swiss chocolate (OK, a bunch of Swiss chocolate) and the Sound of Music and this trip was everything we'd hoped for, and much more! If you are active and adventurous, love the outdoors and don't mind running out of superlatives on a daily basis, then My Way - Alpine Europe might be just the ticket!
Hello! Thanks for joining us!
We are Susan & Doug Croft. That's us at the top, and this was our second "My Way" trip. The picture at the right was taken as we were flying to Venice to begin the Italy My Way tour (highly recommended) in 2012. As we looked down on the Alps from 30,000 ft we knew we had to come back to see them up close. When we saw that the good people at Rick Steves had developed this itinerary, it was a no-brainer! We love the outdoors. We love the mountains. We love chocolate. What could be better?
Why "My Way"? Quite simply, for us, it is the best of both worlds: Being part of a group without being in a group. Having transportation and lodging taken care of and our Tour Escort, Martin Minich, to help with plans, last minute changes, and time management was huge!
We love planning what to do and see and where to eat. That's a big part of our travel experience. With this tour, that was completely up to us. We could stick to well laid plans or play it by ear depending on what new friends in the group might be doing, what the weather dictated, or how we felt. A perfect example of this principle was on our Italy My Way trip. We spent the last day literally running to see everything we could in Rome while another couple took a picnic lunch to the steps of the Pantheon and spent the day watching the world go by. That is the beauty of "My Way".
Why "My Way"? Quite simply, for us, it is the best of both worlds: Being part of a group without being in a group. Having transportation and lodging taken care of and our Tour Escort, Martin Minich, to help with plans, last minute changes, and time management was huge!
We love planning what to do and see and where to eat. That's a big part of our travel experience. With this tour, that was completely up to us. We could stick to well laid plans or play it by ear depending on what new friends in the group might be doing, what the weather dictated, or how we felt. A perfect example of this principle was on our Italy My Way trip. We spent the last day literally running to see everything we could in Rome while another couple took a picnic lunch to the steps of the Pantheon and spent the day watching the world go by. That is the beauty of "My Way".
About this "scrapbook"
First and foremost, this is an overview, not a diary, journal or encyclopedia. We will not cover everything we did, everything we saw, or everywhere we ate. We don't want to bore you with detail. We want to whet your appetite for travel to (or re-kindle memories of) these incredible destinations!
The Pre-Trip page -
This page is our attempt at being guide book writers. Have no fear, Rick Steves personnel, your jobs are safe! We've included general information about our preparation and planning, as well as links and tips that we hope will be useful if you're thinking about going on this Tour or traveling on your own.
Destination pages -
Impressions - Each Destination page will start with a short narrative and slide show.
These are a few of my favorite things - Since we're in Sound of Music country, it is required that you hum the song while viewing.
You Should Know - This will include things like links, photo ops, things we liked/or not, and our WOW!
The In Between page -
This page is a gallery of photos taken along the way. The bus rides can be long but are seldom boring.
For the Photo galleries, you can either play as a slideshow or click on the thumbnails individually.
Anything Blue Underlined is a link to a related web-site. (except for this example).
And finally, a button like the one below can take you to the next page or you can use the menu at the top.
The Pre-Trip page -
This page is our attempt at being guide book writers. Have no fear, Rick Steves personnel, your jobs are safe! We've included general information about our preparation and planning, as well as links and tips that we hope will be useful if you're thinking about going on this Tour or traveling on your own.
Destination pages -
Impressions - Each Destination page will start with a short narrative and slide show.
These are a few of my favorite things - Since we're in Sound of Music country, it is required that you hum the song while viewing.
You Should Know - This will include things like links, photo ops, things we liked/or not, and our WOW!
The In Between page -
This page is a gallery of photos taken along the way. The bus rides can be long but are seldom boring.
For the Photo galleries, you can either play as a slideshow or click on the thumbnails individually.
Anything Blue Underlined is a link to a related web-site. (except for this example).
And finally, a button like the one below can take you to the next page or you can use the menu at the top.