Hi My name is Telisha Speranza and i am 24 years old from Queensland Australia, i am heading to LA on October 19 to start my LA Scene tour on the 21st and then the Wild Western on the 24th October, this will be my second tour with Contiki as i did New Zealand in 2005 and was wanting to know if anybody else is thinking of doing this tour around this time? Also wanted to know what the weather is like at that time of year? Would also like to hear if anyone has done this tour before to get some advice off them.

You can drop me a line at tsperanza@powertynan.com.au

Telisha

I did the LA to the Bay in August 06. This is part of the Wild Western tour (only difference is LA to the Bay finishes in San Fran and the Wild Western goes back to LA - an extra 2 nights is all). The tour is fantastic. It will be quite cool. My tour was really hot as it was August and boy was it warm. I have also done the Grand Southern and we start on 22nd October. It was quite warm in LA but in Vegas we needed a jumper, in the Grand Canyon it was already snowing and we needed gloves jumpers etc. San Fran will be cold. It was cold when we were there in August and we needed jumpers and closed in shoes. I would just pack a couple of warm things. Maybe one or two 3/4 sleeve tops, a couple of cardigans and a mid weight jacket (nothing big, bulky or heavy) and you will be fine. As far as anything else goes i would only pack one pair of jeans. Remember you are going to some of the best shopping places (vegas....) and if you need something you can always go and buy it!

As for the optionals. I did SeaWorld in San Diego, the "surprise" the boat tour in San Diego, I did not do the jeep tour in Sedona, was not interested and shopped instead, did not do anything in Vegas as the show they offer is boring and we just did our own thing as we were going back after the tour anyway, did not go to Yosemite national park as we stayed at bass lake to swim and sunbake but at the time of year you are there that wont be an option. In San Fran we did the boat cruise. Oh yeah in the Grand Canyon we did the 45 min helicopter ride and that was enough. We did not do the imax show either (by we i mean the friend i made on the tour who i was speaking to prior on this board and my brother and his mate (they did the jeep and not the helicopter ride)). Hope this helps want to know anymore just let me know.

Thanks for you reply Rebecca. Just with Spending money i have been reading some of the other messages and what was your daily budget like would $100 be enough a day? Is the shopping expensive over there or is it just the same prices as in Australia? Also did you fly with Qantas or with another airline? as i think i am going to fly with Qantas as contiki has a special with them and they have direct flights to LA. Also with going out at night did you have to get dressed up or could you just wear a pair of jeans and a nice shirt? Thanks for your advice on the optionals as i wasn't sure if i really wanted to do the Jeep tour or not. What was the hotel like in LA that you stay at the night before the tour do they have like a group dinner that night? Was there many people on your tour?? Thank you Telisha

Hi Telisha

I am not a good one to advise on daily budgets. I dont do daily budgets, never have. I have a problem with shopping, I see it and I buy it. Then again until we got to Vegas and that was about 2 weeks after I arrived in the States I had only spent $700 Aussie. Then again I managed to dump $1200 Aussie in 5 mins in Vegas in Louis Vuitton and Jimmy Choo so I am not a good example. I would say budget around $150 Aussie a day and this will include souvenir shopping and also optionals.

I flew with Qantas. Very begrundginly as I dont like Qantas as an international airline but hey I got it for free on frequent flyer points so I dont complain. The shopping prices vary. Clothes are cheaper as are certain shoes etc. I paid $40 US for a pair of reebok cross trainers and they are fantastic. Clothes I bought a fair bit from Zara and Banana Republic but there is really nothing to compare them with.

Going out just jeans and a top will do you. I wore jeans, top and heels each time we got dressed up to go out and that was 3 times on the LA to the Bay. The rest of the time you probably end up going in what you have had on all day or you might get changed into something casual if you have the time. Dont take too many dressy things because remember you can always buy new nice stuff you might not find at home.

I am not sure about the hotel you are staying at in Anaheim. I have seen the hotel from the front and know its exact location. It would probably take you about 20 - 25mins to walk to the front entrance of disneyland. There is a tram that costs $3 a day that goes from the front of your hotel to the park, take it believe me. On my contiki we stayed at the holiday inn but they have changed hotels.

There is no welcome dinner the first night. You just meet in the hotel bar, give your your manager your passport details as well as travel insurance and your next of kin. You can then either hang around for a drink or maybe get a bite to eat with your new friends. For ours last year I flew in with 2 mins to spare, filled out the paperwork for myself, my brother and his mate, had a quick chat to the tour manager about us staying at the Luxor in Vegas instead of the contiki dive and then ran back to disneyland to meet back up with my friends who I had been bridesmaid for as we were all spending the day together in disneyland before they took off for their honeymoon to bora bora the next day.

My tour bus was completely full. There were no spare seats at all. It was pretty full on with the younger end crowd. I think there was 9 people over the age of 28 and the three of us plus the girl i became friends with made up all most half of that group. There was about another third in the 22 - 27 age group but the majority were 18 -21 as they had all been at summer camps. Your time will be different as you are going in October, summer camps are long over so you will probably have a bit older crowd due to the 21 year old age limit on drinking. Hope this helps, anymore info just let me know.

Hey Telisha,
my name is Britta and I am from Germany. I am planning to do the Wild Western starting on October 4th. It is also my 2nd tour as I did the Grand Canadian last year. The husband of my mothers cousin is from California and he said it is warm enough to go out in T-Shirt in October. In summer it is supposed to be unbearably hot, so it should be better in fall. And he told me that there's always rain in San Fran, so I guess summer clothes should do it more or less, maybe some sweaters for evenings.
By the way, do you know if there are many tours cancelled because there aren't enough people to take part? I heard that a Wild Western tour is cancelled in May, hope it is going to take place in October.
I would love to hear from you

HI Britta,
Thanks for your reply. So will it be like shorts and 3/4 pants weather in october?? So Pack t-shirts and some long sleeve ones?? I am heading to canada after my tour for 6 nights and it is meant to be freezing over there, sincee you did the Grand Canadian last year is it cold over there in November?? I have never heard of an October Tour cancelling, well i hope that mine doesn't either. Are you doing the LA Scene before the Wild Western?? What Part of Germany are you from? Are you going to be taking part in all of the optionals on the Wild Western? I have had a quick look and they all look great. I don't know if this is right but one of the posts on here was saying that the US doesn't accept your Drivers Licence to proove your age do you know if this correct?? And if so what can i take over to proove that i am over 21? I am so looking foward to the tours as i am now all booked and ready to go only like 8 months to go. Would love to hear all about your trip. C U Telisha

Hi Telisha,
Nice to hear from you. I think I'll take some 3/4 pants, 1 or 2 jeans and some skirts with me. Hope, it'll do fine. Canada in November...this can be pretty cold I guess. Which part of Canada are you going to visit. I really love the West. Especially Banff, Vancouver was quite nice as well.
I don't do the L.A. Scene before. Will be in Anaheim one whole day before the tour starts and 2 or 3 days after it. I gonna book a L.A. sightseeing tour then, cause my time off from work is limited to 3 weeks and I guess I'll need about 3 days to recover from time difference after comin' home. Don't know yet which optionals I am going to choose, SeaWorld was recommended to me, I guess I'll decide while being on the tour. Concerning your drivers licence, I am not for sure but probably an ID card will be enough to prove your age. What I don't get: People in the US are allowed to drive when they're 16, why then do you need to prove you're 24? Guess you don't look like 15...
I am from the middle of Germany, 80 km north of Frankfurt. Where are you from in Queensland? Somewhere near the ocean? Must be great there. At first I considered about travelling to Australia, but 3 weeks are quite short, as a whole day is just for flying. Maybe next year or the year after...
I can't wait for the trip either...but first I'll go to Spain for 10 weeks in summer. So this year should become very excited. What about you? Are you just going to the US for the Wild Western and some days Canada, or do you spend the summer there as well. Cause I read about many, who are on Summercamp first and then join Contiki. See ya, Britta

Hi Britta,
I am actually off to Toronto in Canada for 6 nights to visit some people i met on my New Zealand Contiki tour i did in November 2005 so looking foward to seeign them again.

Yeah i was thinking of 3/4 pants and some t shirts and jeans and some nice shirts for going out in. Yeah i am unsure on the Optionals as well not sure which ones i will do but will decide when i get there as well. I am from a little Country town in Queensland which is about 4 hours from the ocean but it would be nice to live at the beach. I am just going to LA & Canada for a holiday not for the summer just for 26 days. So what do you do in Spain for the 10 weeks??? Sounds like a lot of fun do you do it every summer? Yeah i am looking forward to it to. Anyway must be off Chat Later Telisha

Hi Telisha,
have recognized that you plan the Wild Western in the end of October. I wouldn't have thought that there are already in Feb so many entries from people who have booked yet or are sure to go on a definite date. Wild WEstern tours must be very popular...
I am doing a training in the foreign trade here in Germany for 3 years and between the 2nd and 3rd there's a 10 week training in a foreign country included. Hope it'll be fun. My spanish isn't very good, but you learn the language best if you are in the country where it is spoken. What do you do in Australia? Going to university? Already working?
Britta

Hi Britta,

There are a few people i have noticed on the website that are booked and are going later in the yeaer, i suppose it gives them a chance to start paying it off.

Wow Spain sounds unreal i can't wait to do Europe that is my next Holiday.

I work in an accountancy firm i am in the finance department i am studying to become a finance broker through a college here.
So do you get to pick which country you want to do your training in??

what other countries have you travelled to??

Catch you Telisha

Hi Telisha,
Haven't travelled that much so far. Last year Canada and the US, Paris, London, Mediterranean Sea, and some cities in Germany. But I love travelling, especially with people from all over the world.
I couldn't choose the country for my training, not really. We have a distribution agency in Barcelona, some more in Western Europe but there work only 2 or 3 people and Barcelona is a bit larger, so it was more or less out of question that I go there. And I can practice my Spanish that I started learning 1 1/2 years ago.
I am quite interested in the Australian education system. Is working in an accountancy firm part of your studies or do you just do it to earn money? Or do you go to work only in your semester holidays as kind of a practical training?
Where do you want to go in Europe? As well with Contiki?
CU Britta

Hey Britta,

I am working in an accountancy firm and studying to become a Financial Mortgage Broker through a college about 2 hours from here, so then i can do loans and etc for people. I work 5 days a week from 8.30 -5pm so it's a full time job and i really enjoy it, only two years until i have been there for 10 years and can get long service yay 13 weeks off which will be awesome. I want to visit Italy as that is where my family is from and since i am a citizen of Europe i can travel anywhere for as long as i like and don't need a VISA which is also pretty great. I would like to live in Europe not sure where for about 2 years and do something different to what i am doing here!

So do you work full time or are you studying??
Are you arriving in LA a few days b4 your tour starts?

Anyway must be off see you Telisha

Hey everyone,
I'm NOT going on this tour but am from the States & have travelled with Contiki so i've got some advice:

If you plan on taking a credit card to Europe, you may want to call your credit card company to let them know you'll be travelling so they don't think the card has been stolen and cut you off.

Another thing I recommend is carrying your cash in a money belt, I find it safer.

Plan on spending $100-$150 USD per day. You'll have to buy lunches daily, souveneirs, some dinners and going out at night. You should try exchanging money before you leave. You'll have to chance to do so on the tour, but easier to get that part out of the way and have one less thing to worry about.


When you pack, throw some clothing into your carry-on to lighten the weight of the suitcase and in case your luggage gets lost. Leave room for souveneirs & carry with you an extra copy of your pasport and hotel address list.

In terms of weight of luggage, it's the airlines that are more strict than Contiki. Each airline has their own weight threshold & will only be too glad to charge you extra for going over. You can find out the limit/rules by going on the airline's website.

I have lots of other advice which I think will be useful, so don't hesitate to ask on here or email me.

Brian (from New York)
brij75@yahoo.com

Southern Ireland '97
Grand Explorer '00
Rainbow Nation '01 (no longer offered by Contiki)
Beaches & Reefs '02-'03