Travelling abroad can be overwhelming. From arranging visas, bringing the essentials and mapping out your itinerary, there is no shortage of details to consider when you leave for vacation. Oftentimes, the added stress of planning a trip can impact your travel experience and lead you into common tourist traps. Namely, paying above market rate for tours on location.

While a tour guide helps you experience the rich culture every destination has to offer, it shouldn’t be a hassle and cost you thousands of dollars. The solution? GetYourGuide.

GetYourGuide is an online booking platform connecting tourists with booking tours, excursions, and other travel activities to help them make the most of their trip. Initially started as a platform to connect travellers with amateur tourist guides, the company developed into offering an online marketplace for major cities. The company arranges over 60,000 guided tours across the globe.

GetYourGuide works essentially as the middleman between customers and providers. With how difficult it can be to scour the internet for information on travel services, the process can be very confusing. GetYourGuide curates all of the different bits of information on their online marketplace. This is because agencies promote their services on the platform in return for a percentage of their income. This service is free for customers and in the process, you save time and have access to much better deals.

The platform works hard to give you a positive online experience. Offered as both a website and app, the customizations make it easy to find, analyze and compare tours with its user-friendly interface.

If you change your mind, GetYourGuide offers a free cancellation with a full refund. The catch is that it has to be completed within 24 hours before your event.

GetYourGuide has a robust rating system on its platform to ensure that customers are given the best-rated tours. Every tour has a review based on previous travellers’ experiences. GetYourGuide also makes it a priority to allow only the best agencies to provide services. If they have a large number of negative reviews, they get kicked off from selling.

While the app has some great benefits, nothing is ever perfect. Below is a list of some things that could be better with the service.

While GetYourGuide works great for coverage of activities in regions of Europe, it does have an issue with tours and activities in other regions, particularly Asia. This is because European tours require pre-booking whereas Asian countries do not.

With numerous suppliers, the platform can list multiple tours for one location. This is in large part because different suppliers offer different tours. This can be good to compare offers but can be very confusing.

In addition to multiple tours for one location, finding a meeting point can be a challenge. Because GetYourGuide is a middleman, they do not control how companies set their meeting locations. The description can be very vague at times.

Ready to book your tour? Discover your destination with the following steps:

The search process is designed to be straightforward for any traveller. Simply type your destination in the search bar and you will have a list of different activities and tours to choose from.

Once you have gone through the list of tours and activities available, you can make a selection of the one you want. You can do that by clicking the book now button and filling out your billing information and correct email. You will receive a confirmation notice and will be able to pay for your tour. As an international company, GetYourGuide has secure payment options available. Please note that you cannot pay on arrival so it is best to book in advance.

There may be some hesitation to book a tour with a company halfway across the world. We get it. GetYourGuide is a legit company that can give you a great travel experience. You may need to ask whether or not it is worth it among the list of alternatives. Because they are a middleman, they are not responsible for any third-party errors. You have to do your due diligence before booking a tour.

GetYourGuide has some strong competitors in the online booking space. Looking for some alternatives? Here is a couple to consider:

• Viator: Owned by the online travel agency, TripAdvisor, Viator offers tours around the world at competitive prices. It has built a reputation internationally, but its strength is in the United States. From what we can gather, this is a great site to do bookings as they have a large number of tours. Just be careful of some miscommunication that may occur when dealing with vendors.
• Klook: Klook is an online booking platform with more than 60,000 activities across several destinations around the world. Klook is a major player in Asia and you can enjoy their affordable prices as you plan your trips. Some great features include excellent customer service, instant confirmation and incredible deals.
• Tiqets: While similar, each alternative offers something different for its customers. Instant delivery and booking come to mind when we think of Tiqets. With Tiqets, you can skip queues for tours and activities at top destinations. A possible downside is that Tiqets does not oblige you to change or refund your ticket. Please exercise caution knowing this.

GetYourGuide is a reliable service that will help you discover your next destination with ease. Travelling should be fun and online booking platforms certainly aid in that goal. Make sure to read your plan details carefully, and always check reviews and your trip will be worthwhile.

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