Last September I impulse-booked a trip to London and Paris. I had been wanting to go to those cities for awhile and I found a way to travel there that fit my budget and lifestyle. I booked the trip through EF Ultimate Break (formerly EF College Break) over a year ago and this September went on the trip of a lifetime.
I chose to go abroad with EF Ultimate Break for 3 main reasons:
- Flights and lodging are included in the price (as the largest cost associated with travel this was a must for me)
- It’s with a group around my age (To go on this semi-guided trip you had to be from 18-28 years old and since at the time of booking none of my friends were joining me, this was perfect. I also liked the idea of having a tour director who I could always go to with questions about how to navigate the city, where to eat, etc.)
- They offer a payment plan (This was a huge part of my decision. I absolutely hate spending money so seeing a multi-thousand dollar price tag on a trip was shocking but spending ~$200/month was much more appealing to me.)
After I booked my London and Paris Escape my friend, Lea, decided to join too!
I won’t go over the entire itinerary for the trip because you can see that here. However, our tour director did have additional activities not on the itinerary planned for us, some of which are mentioned below under “Extras.” Highlights from my trip are below.
London
Accommodations: The hotel was in North London and was a lot nicer than I expected. I was in a huge double room with Lea as my roommate. Breakfast was buffet style and complimentary every morning. There was a metro stop down the street from the hotel so it was easy to navigate to all the sights in my free time.
Things to see: I saw and visited the bulk of the popular sights (Westminster, Big Ben, Abbey Road, Buckingham Palace – Changing of the Guard) on the sightseeing bus tour that’s on the itinerary. In my free time I visited The British Museum, The Tower of London, The London Eye, Shakespeare’s Globe Theater, and The Tate Modern.
Extras: Jack the Ripper Walking Tour, Pub Crawl
Paris
Accommodations: The hotel was in the middle of Paris and right next to a metro stop which made navigating fairly easy.
Things to see: The same as with London, I saw and visited the bulk of the popular sights (Notre Dame, Eiffel Tower, The Louvre, The Obelisk, Arc de Triomphe) on the Seine cruise and sightseeing bus tour that’s on the itinerary.
Extras: On the first night our Tour Director took us to a French Bistro where we had escargot, frog legs, wine, champagne, and chocolate mousse along with a main dish. I also went on the Palace of Versailles excursion which I highly recommend. For our last full day in Paris our tour director planned an interactive tour at a perfume museum and walked us from the perfume museum to the Louvre. From the Lourve, I took the metro to the Eiffel Tower and stayed there until the farewell dinner.
EF Ultimate Break made this an affordable trip to remember!
The Comments
Jennifer Ortiz
Do you know anyone who did the Oxford tour? I am dying to see how that goes/if it is worth it. Also, do you see things during the day? Like the Eiffel Tower (because I know it is on the night time/evening tour.) can I reach out with any additional questions?
Kayla Ivey
> Jennifer OrtizHi Jennifer,
For London, I chose to have a full free day of sightseeing with my friend instead of the Oxford tour. The people who went to Oxford LOVED their tour. So I suggest deciding what you feel you must see and making sure you see those things before the tour.
For Paris, I did every excursion and still had almost most of a day to do some sightseeing with my friend during the day. On the trip I saw the Eiffel Tower from the cruise, on a separate night, and during the day I stood under it. I also saw the Louvre, Notre Dame, and much of the city by navigating the metro system.
I hope this helps!! If you have any other questions you can DM me on instagram @kigraphics and I’ll answer anything else that you want to ask.
Have FUN!
– Kayla