A nice article explaining travellers why it is the best way to discover somewhere new with a local.
“When you’re with a local guide, he won’t take you to the ‘rip off’ restaurants and tourist traps alike simply because they know where they are. They will know what products are worth what value and they will know where to get the best value goods.”
There are a lot of reasons why it’s better to avoid big International tour operators and take a private tour with a local private guide:
- Avoid unnecessary queues
- Discover random new places
- It can save you a LOT of money!
- Value for money
- Knowledge of the best times to go visit places
- Locals are all friends with each other and exchange services
- You are less likely to get into trouble
- You are less likely to fall into a tourist trap
Well, the article about travelling to South-East Asia, but it is truth the same reasons works in any other country, including Tenerife and Canary Islands. Working as a private guide and doing private VIP tours I can highlight most common mistakes people do here in Tenerife:
Going to a “jeep tour” is not the best experience.
We have just one company offering “jeep tours”here in Tenerife. Try to guess why other companies cannot get licence? 🙂 So, first of all you should realize you deal with a monopoly and then try to imagine what kind of tour will you have! That would not be a nice jeep tour you can have somewhere in South America. No. They will pack 8 people in a jeep with hard seats, so you will feel as a fish in a barrel along the tour and it is even worse than a cheap coach tour. At least, along the bus tours in Tenerife you have air condition and comfortable seats, even travelling with a bigger group. Then… along the “jeep tour” you are ON road all the time, you’re going the same routes what coaches going, with guides, used to treat their job as drivers. With a “jeep tour” you pay nearly the same money you can pay for a private VIP tour in Tenerife! So, why to not pay just a bit of extra to have the best possible experience? And finally, if you really want to have an off-road tour in Tenerife, I suggest to take Off-Road Jeep VIP Tour in Tenerife – you will have your own Jeep Wrangler to drive, you can take up to 3 other family members or friends with you and you will have really unique experience.
Visiting only Teide have nothing with exploring real Tenerife
Most of tourists take tours to Teide only and stop. Teide is must see, but it not all what the island offers! You have to see Anaga, you must to see the beautiful West of teh island with Masca, Icod de Los Vinos, La Orotava, Garachico. You can do a private trekking or hiking tour in Tenerife, if you want to be really in touch with the nature and feel the atmosphere of each place.
Taking a boat trip with a big catamaran instead of smaller boat or private charter
No doubt, Whale & Dolphin watching, swimming and snorkelling in lagoons is the other way to enjoy your stay in Tenerife. But WHY??? most of people book boat trips with big catamarans and ships. It probably because they do not understand they will share the boat trip with a hundred of other people on board. Why don’t take a regular boat trip in Tenerife with a yacht (it doestn’t cost much more) or even private charter, if you are group of friends or a family?
Well, there are a lot of other mistakes people do, like going to wrong restaurants, going to amusement parks on wrong days, etc… so this subject will be continued soon.