Best Resources to Book Travel Guides/Tours/Activities Ahead of Time

The best trips are often a combination of pre-planned activities alongside those that you stumble upon. Book a few meals ahead, but leave room for when the person you struck up a conversation with recommends an incredible hole in the wall local restaurant. Book a tour of the city to get your bearings, and then have a free afternoon to get lost in your new surroundings. But what are the best resources to find out about and book your pre-planned activities? There is an incredible array of choices available to travelers. Here are a few of my ‘go-to’ sites and sources for booking activities ahead of time. I am recommending only the ones I have tried and used myself, and I’ve also included a list of those that I have heard good things about, but have not personally used. In-Person Tour Guides: Context Travel: Context offers high end private and small group tours (as well as custom travel options) in over 60 major cities around the world. Their guides are experts in their fields (architects, art historians, ecologists, chefs and more), allowing you to learn from highly educated and engaging experts. From general (Paris in a day, on foot) to very specific (Taste of Old Shanghai: A Curated Meal) these half-day tours to 7+ day curated trips, do not disappoint. They offer special tours for families with younger children as well. Online Sites/Apps: Airbnb Experiences (and Airbnb Adventures): From horse whispering with an equine therapist in Spain to a graffiti tour in Mexico City to a desert adventure with a guide in Oman, Airbnb Experiences offers thousands of local adventures from which to choose. Airbnb Adventures offers multi-day trips led by locals. Be sure to do a thorough search of the city you are visiting rather than go in with a particular activity in mind, as one may catch your eye that you had no idea existed (surf camp retreat in Malibu or overnight desert safari in Dubai perhaps?)! It’s also fun to look at what’s offered in your hometown for a unique activity or multi-day get-away adventure. Viator: With over 20,000 offerings, Viator (owned by TripAdvisor) can help you find an activity that suits your interests. The number of offerings can feel a bit overwhelming and less personal (over 2k tours and ticket options for Siem Reap alone….), but it will show you the breadth of activities offered in your destination, as well as reviews from past travelers. You can book things directly through them which offers an easy, free cancellation option should you change your mind or you can sometimes save money by booking directly through the operator itself. Trip Advisor: Trip Advisor is the granddaddy of the travel review sites that offer activities. Despite the fact that in recent times the site seems to have become more and more about monetizing tours and activities than actually instead of gathering information about destinations/hotels/restaurants etc, it is a great source for viewing and booking activities (although the actual bookings go via Viator). Lots of crossover with Viator but see which site works best for you. Go to the ‘things to do’ tab and enter your destination and then you can browse activities by category (art, nature, outdoor activities, etc). They don’t tend to offer the smaller, more personal and more ‘unusual’ ones that Airbnb does but if you are looking for a ‘skip the line’ access ticket to the Louvre or a walking tour of Kyoto then this is the spot for you! Untapped New York: Yes this is New York specific, but if you are traveling to the Big Apple be sure to check out their unique tour offerings. The site also has a list of things going on in the city (not just their tours) that’s good to check out as well. Their tours cover a wide array of interests (art, architecture, landmarks, history, etc) and offer lots of hidden gems of the city, from an underground tour of the subway to a speak-easy tour to a backstage tour of the Met Opera house. Grasshopper Adventures/Bike Tours: Although Grasshopper does multi-day bike tours (Asia focused) they also offer half-day tours which are a great way to get outside and explore a new city. TodayTix: TodayTix lets you book discounted tickets to 16 cities in the US and abroad. Unlike some other discount ticket sites/apps, with TodayTix you can book tickets ahead of time (vs same-day purchases for shows) so you don’t have to leave it up to chance on the day of the event. Hard Copy/App Guide ‘Books’: LUXE City Guides: These little ‘pocket-sized’ books (and apps) have been my go-to for curated luxury hotels, restaurants, shopping and activities for years. Instead of wading through a giant travel guidebook or site, LUXE guides provide you a curated version of the best of the best for the 30 cities they cover. They make you feel like you have a cool, hip BFF who’s ‘in the know’ on the best things in town. So, even though it’s not really a place to ‘book’ an activity, I had to put it on the list because it has never let me down in a place or activity it recommends. Plus it fits in your pocket (but you’ll need your reading glasses for the tiny type – or just use the app instead). Lonely Planet: I have relied on these books, and now the site/app, since I was backpacking through Europe and Asia many moons ago. They are still a terrific resource for great things to do, as well as places to stay and eat, and you can book directly via their site. Fodors/Frommers/DK Eyewitness/Rick Steves/Rough Guides etc: Each of these travel book/app companies has been around for years and many people seem to be loyal to one vs another (like me to Lonely Planet). So pick whichever you are comfortable with and check out their books/sites/apps for activities recommended and how to book them. Concierge: Depending on where you are staying, you can contact the concierge of your hotel ahead of time and ask what they recommend for activities to book ahead of time. They can often assist in helping you secure activities as well as restaurants or theater reservations, or at a minimum make recommendations as to what to do and how to book. Also recommended but I have not personally used: GetYourGuide Peek Headout Musement Tiqets Happy Planning!

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Chrissie Kremer

I am a mixed bag traveler - I go the budget route on some things and splurge on others. I love family adventure travel, trips with girlfriends, or solo trips with my kids. I like urban exploration but prefer it coupled with outdoor activity (and when traveling with my kids it's more outdoor activity coupled with a dose of urban). I have been to 62 countries... and counting.