Not very knowledgeable, misinformed us of several details about our Japan group tour and not very organized. This agency surely have a lot of work to do! Flight was not included in the tour, we were told to secure our own flight arrangement! This is rather bizarre, people use travel agencies to make the whole process, easy and cohesive. That's just the beginning! Here's more: 1) Luggage transfer: We were told no worries, our luggage was going to be checked in through our final destination to Akita. However, the moment we checked in at LAX we were told differently. We actually had to pick them up and take it to the terminal for the connecting flight. 2) Ritz made it sound easy, told us that upon arriving in Tokyo, the gate to the connecting flight to Akita is just "a few steps away" from terminal 3 to terminal 1. Wrong again. To get from terminal 3 to 1, we had to take a shuttle bus, which was about a 5 to 10 minute ride. Keep in mind, we had our check in luggage with us, take it up to the bus and back down to the next terminal. 3) Currency: Ritz's representative told us "don't worry about it just use your credit cards". This was very misleading, because a lot of places in Japan accepted cash payment only. Needless to say, those who did not exchange currency prior to the trip had to scramble to exchange cash while in Japan. 4) The guide seemed green - can use better crowd management skills. While leading the group towards the bullet train station, she did not make sure that everybody is following and accounted for. One got separated from our group and until we told her that somebody was missing, she had no clue! We had to suggest to her to please occasionally stop and make sure everybody was still together. Navigating through a sea of people getting on the bullet train is not easy and keeping the group together should be top of a tour guide's mind. 5) the boat ride to Lake Tazawa was canceled due to inclement weather. The agency was not thoroughly prepared for a Plan B. We were brought to a samurai town to "visit" 3 Samurai houses - but as it turned out, we were only going to see the houses from the outside. Entrance fee to the houses were not included. A few of us who chose to go in paid for our own entrance fees. The rest went back to the bus to wait. As of this writing, we are waiting to hear if the group will be refunded for the cancellation of the boat trip. The group's overall sentiment is disappointment and to never use this agency going forward. If you choose to, we recommend you ask a lot of questions and doublecheck the information they give you. read more

Wow! What happened to this tour agency? When I took a tour with them in 2008 they were great! Our tour guide was James and he was very organized, very knowledgeable, and really accommodated us when we had problems. He even gave us money to use the toilet when we hadn't exchanged any of our money into Euros/Pounds yet! (They make you pay to use the loo in Europe!) We took the 17 day tour of Europe. The countries we visited during this tour were Italy, France, Britain, Netherlands, Liechtenstein, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and Belgium! The tour was awesome and its a shame they don't offer it anymore (at least not what I can see on their website). They might offer it though because I remember the tour was only advertised in their brochures but not on their website. So make sure to call them to double check! The tour was approximately $3000 for all those countries and included many meals! It was such a deal! Our main transportation to Europe was by plane, but travel to the adjacent countries were by bus or high speed train (Eurorail). The tour was mostly an Asian tour and our guide spoke Mandarin and English, so I did not have any trouble understanding what was said. The only thing I would have changed were the many meals at Chinese restaurants. Unless we did their optional tours, where an ethnic meal of the country we were visiting was offered, all other meals were at Chinese restaurants! This was mostly because many of the people on our tour were Chinese/Asian elderly people (and I guess they like what they are accustomed to?) Thankfully I did not get sick from eating any of the food which is an indication that the restaurants Ritz Tours took us to were clean and sanitary! (I have a sensitive stomach) Overall (in 2008), I thought Ritz Tour offered a very organized and well planned tour! I'm so grateful I got to visit all those countries! Quick update: Just read the filtered reviews for this business and Kelly C indicated that there are two types of tours with Ritz. One tour is for the Chinese speaking Americans (the one I went on apparently...) going to Asia and Europe (ritztours.net) and the other is towards English speaking Americans going to Asia (ritztours.com). Check out her review. It was flagged (dunno why?) but very thorough on how the tours are like. read more

Z E R O stars if allowed‼I took the Best of Japan trip in April 2023, what a nightmare! Before leaving to Japan we had issues with the travel agent & the agency manager. #1 they purchased the wrong insurance package, #2 - I was overcharged for the flight, #3 the refund was not returned to me because the owner was on vacation, so I would get it then. #4 they booked a 9 hr. layover flight, #5 they misspelled my companions name on the travel ticket and we were delayed at the airport. #6 The Agency does not answer the emergency numbers, #7 the tour guide was inexperienced, who spent more time arguing with the driver during the trip, she also had very limited knowledge of sceneries, barely explained the sceneries or history. #8 last day in Japan and the agency didn't take care of the ticket situation. The agency does not apologize nor expresses any sincerity for correcting any issues. DO NOT HIRE THEM TO MESS YOUR VACATION‼ read more

Public Safety! It's all about public safety! August 26,2009 was a disastrous trip we ever had. I do not recommend Ritz Tours to anyone. Among many issues, the short version of the comments are: the tour guide was under influence of alcohol on our first night out for a NY night tour. The tour guide insulted American culture while introducing the Lincoln Memorial and The Bell in Philadelphia. The hotel rooms were dirty for our first two nights... I felt so helpless when no one answered my phone call to the emergency numbers, which were provided in the tourist's handouts, for the tour guide became combative after my husband had asked him to re-adjust his standing position for his waiving left arm/hands had hit him. Spoke up unapologetically,, he said that that is his way when he talks, and told my husband that he should be courteous when he talks to him. - -- Yeah! Just unbelievable! and incomprehensible! At the end of the trip, we gave back the company's Q&A survey sheets with all these issues. Furthermore when we got back home, we immediately contacted Ritz Tours at Alhambra office and were instructed to mail a detailed letter to the Ritz Tours at 208 S. First Street, Alhambra, CA 91801, so we did. For the PUBLIC SAFETY issues and concerns, we followed up by several mails, emails but failed to receive immediate attention from anyone - from top management to service agent. After more than 30 days the Ritz Tours responded us. Sadly, the Ritz Tours simply said, they've done according to what they had advertised for the Hotels, and neither apologized nor expressed any sincerity for correcting those issues. I wonder if they are ever going to improve the quality of service. So, NEVER RITZ TOURS! read more

I just returned 09/24/2019 from the 13 day Yangtze Essence tour in China. I am giving 5 stars to our tour guide Jenny and the hotel accomodations were exceptional. The tours were informative ,food was great( I was concerned due to a sensitive stomach and MSG allergy) Jenny was attentive at each restaurant that all 13 of us were ok with the food selections, had enough of our favorites and spice level to our liking. The Victoria Jenny was comfortable , rooms a good size and loved the balcony. My only complaint was the mustiness of the boat and boarding at night. We took a cable car down to dock which was extremely wet and smelled funky. Unfortunately the Yangtze isn't the cleanest river but I knew that ahead of time. Overall my experience was fantastic and a trip to remember. read more

I actually went on my Ritz tour to China a couple of years back, but based off another review on this page (John), things seem to be pretty similar. The wife and I did a 2 week tour around China. Pros: -tour guide was very friendly and knowledgeable. Spoke English well (although he usually spoke for around 5min in Mandarin, and then 1min in English, so obviously the English was an abbreviated version). Fortunately my wife speaks Mandarin, and could give me the extra details. -visit a lot of places, pretty full itinerary (this can be a pro or a con) -everything is basically covered, so no need to take too much yuan (exclusions are the tip to the tour guide at end, and some optional activities which at that time included a martial arts show, in room massage, etc) -very nice hotels, most of which had free wifi and complimentary bfast (which was also nice) -guide does a good job of making sure that everyone keeps up with the group (in contrast to another locally run Chinese tour that I just came back from which actually lost a person!) -dinners come with complimentary beer -the price: awesome value, considering the nice hotels, all meals included, transport etc Cons (all of these apply to tours in general, as opposed to specifically Ritz): -the mandatory stop at various shops. There are a lot of these, and they do take time (at least an hr per stop). The tour company is definately getting a cut of sales, which explains why they can offer the tour at such a good price... I guess they do the job though, since I ended up buying a few things, including a couple of hundred dollars worth of green tea -the lunches/ dinners are not the best/ totally authentic. You can find better Chinese in Socal. These restaurants are designed only for tour groups. So you don't really get the authentic Chinese dining experience. The food quality was okay. I ended up staying in Shanghai an extra week after the tour ended so I got to experience the proper food - I would highly recommend this -you are basically forced to run at the tour company's pace. This means that you are going to be spending insufficient time at things you may like a lot (for me the Forbidden City for eg), and way too much time at more boring places (gardens, etc). Tour consists of a diverse group of people (it is kid friend and old person friendly). read more

After I came back for 10 days 8 nights China Discovery Tour from Ritz Tours on July 2017, I felt very disappointed and did not recommend at all. This tour was totally different than a few years ago that my co-worker came back and told us to join this tour. We did left voice mails and emails to complaint and did not get any response and result from Ritz tours. Unprofessional and inexperienced tour guide, who spent 90% of the time talking to driver during the trip, and did not interact with us, also she had very limited knowledge of sceneries, barely explained the sceneries and all she said was walked by ourselves and met us within the time flame. Lunches were inedible with a huge lack of meat and vegetables with an odd odor. All of us hardly touched the meals. We did complained to the tour guide and she said those foods were from country side. "But we joined the luxury tour and expected the good food." Suzhou excursion was completely ripped off ($380 for party of four). We spent about one and a half hours in the car ride each way, forty five minutes at The Master of the Net Garden. Eat early lunch around 11:30 in a local restaurant. We told her it was too early for us, we just had breakfast at 8:30am. She said that we had no choice. After lunch, we spent about twenty minutes at the Suzhou Canal River with little history of the canal. She did not provide any information about scenery. Suzhou often called the "Venice of the East" expecting the manual boat ride not the motor boat. Unfortunately we were in the motor boat ride. Once we reached the Entry of Suzhou Village, the boat turned around and we didn't have a chance to walk around. The purpose we chose the package was to walk the Village and discover its highlights on a guide tour. When we requested her to walk around inside the village, she told us that it was not part of the tour package. We drove back to Shanghai and were dropped off before 3:00 pm. We felt we were so foolish to join the Suzhou tour. read more

My husband and I traveled with Ritz Tours to Spain & Portugal, October 11th - October 22nd, 2014. The first day of our travels, I told the tour guide, Caro Hsu, I have dizziness & car sickness if I sit in the back of the bus. She then said in a sarcastic, impolite manner, "I'd like to see a Dr.'s note". I proceeded to show her my surgical incision from my prior open-heart surgery. And then she told everyone to let me sit in the front, "otherwise, she'll keep going" with negative implications toward my character, she had the audacity to insult me in front of the entire tour. She stated that she's "Caro Bank", and she said she would exchange our money from USD to Euro for .68 rate, if we could not finish these funds, then she could exchange it back for the exact same rate. The money I had remaining left from her exchange was 70 Euro, and she denied the exchange claiming that the money that I exchanged with her was already spent (which is untrue). Between all the days of travel, she treated everyone with disregard, and disrespect, always pushing us out of the way, or shoving us to the side. She was unfortunately a terrible guide and I WOULD NOT recommend her services. Caro asked for a tip of $5 for herself, and $3 for the bus driver per day. We traveled eleven days with this co. When Carol collected her tip at the end of the trip, if we didn't have $82 Euro, she asked for $120 USD per person according to her rate. I've traveled all over the world with different agencies, and this is the worst tour guide, we've ever had. The entire tour group complained about her unprofessionalism. This is our second time traveling with Ritz Tours, and we're shocked because we had such a wonderful time the very first experience on our 17 day Eastern & Western Europe holiday. read more

Just got back from a 14 day tour of China. Was run very well, hotels were all top notch 5 star except the last night in Hong Kong which was an older place and not up to the quality of the others. Good deal for the money, but need to mention the little known "forced shopping" that goes with China tours. Apparently, tour groups get very good deals by incorporating stops along the way at government sanctioned "musuems" and "factories" which are thin facades for souvenir shops. This gets pretty old quickly. When your guide says that you will be stopping at a jade musuem, you can expect a brief tour of a small area where jade is cut and polished and then an hour or so let loose in a giant jade store. So, we have all the main Chinese famous exports and their shops added to the tour itinerary- jade, silk, tea, jewelry, etc. useful if you need to pick up some gifts, but very artificial feeling. The government sanctioned dinners and lunches (the Chinese government doesn't want tourists running around getting sick at unregulated local restaurants of their own choosing) are dumbed down for large groups of people, so you miss out on the extremes of local cuisine...no spicy stuff, nothing really scary or exotic. My wife and I skipped these on occasion and foraged REAL food for ourselves, but note that the tour guide may not let you do that. Hotels were fantastic, as I mentioned before, but we had the top end package which has all five star accomodations. Another thing to note is that you will need cash for driver and guide "tips", maybe $10 per day per driver and guide. On a Europe tour we did this before, so it wasn't a surprise, just be aware of it. Days are long- usually from 8am to 8pm or so...would be nice to have more time for yourself, but I suspect this is the group's way of keeping tabs on people and not letting them get lost or in trouble. We had some great local guides and two bum ones (they lacked enthusiasm). Definitely would go back to see more of China with the same agency. My wife is Chinese and our group was mostly Chinese, but a mix of Mandarin and Cantonese, so all of the guides spoke both English and Mandarin. read more

My husband and I just got back from an 11-day tour of China with Ritz Tours. Overall, it was a good experience, however, there are certainly some red flags you should know in advance before booking. As everyone else has mentioned, there are obligatory stops at a Jade Factory, a Pearl Factory, a Silk Factory, and a place that creates Terra Cotta soldier replicas. While we felt somewhat pressured into buying something, we didn't give in and found similar items at the airport and various other shops at similar prices- they weren't the 'best price' as the sales people would suggest. All of the hotel accommodations were fine, except in Beijing. The New Otani Hotel is outdated- the rooms all smell of smoke and ours had moldy carpet, but they could not change our room because they were 'completely booked'. The breakfast at the New Otani also lacked, but the other hotels more than made up for it. The domestic flights were not on Air China, as the tour advertised. Most of the flights were fine, but just be aware that you'll be flying smaller, lesser known airlines. The cruise was nice. We were sequestered to the 'executive level' dining room on the top floor with the other Americans. It was somewhat odd how they kept us separate, but overall, the cruising experience was positive. The food was terrible. We learned (the last day of our tour!), that tour guide is given an allowance and can take you anywhere he/she chooses. Had we known this earlier on, we would have asked to look at the menu as opposed to simply being served random fried items that were sitting in oil. The best food was the breakfast buffet at the hotels. The Sheraton in Xi'an was brand new when we stayed there- we were one of their first guests, which was good and bad. They hadn't worked out all the kinks (i.e. the internet didn't work and the gym/spa was still under construction), but the rooms were very nice. The guides were hit or miss. We got stuck with a young kid in Shanghai who didn't know much about the city- and he was a bit too shy to be giving tours, but most of the other guides were fine. Overall, China itself is amazing- and the convenience of having someone plan all the transfers and meals is helpful, but be warned that it comes with a price tag. read more

Lilian did a great job in organizing this tour for us. Through her patience with our requests and changes, it was well organized and planned out. Just returned from the Beijing-Xian-Shanghai-Hong Kong tour. Nina greeted us at the airport and gave us an intro on what to expect. The real tour starts when she introduces the other guide the next day. Ocean and Nina formed a perfect team. We learned about single and married life in China through them. Nina only stayed with us in Beijing and we learned so much about Beijing, will have to come back to learn the rest. Ocean helped us throught the maze at the Beijing airport, in his spare time while we were waiting, he even helped other tour guides get their acts together at the airport so we would not have to wait so long. Lucy teamed with Ocean in Xian and she was very knowledgeable about Xian and shared with us her life in Xian, very impressive. We hope to learn more from her next time also. Ocean kept the group together the whole time. The tour group became family, it was fun getting to know each other as well as experience China together. Ocean stayed with us in Shanghai. He was very knowledgeable about ALL the places we went. He gave us practical information we needed and prepared us well for each of the places visited. He was also accommodating in helpful to make this tour one to remember and one to come back to. He organized us at the airport as we departed our separate ways. +Hope to learn more from him next time. In Hong Kong, we were greeted by Alan at the airport and he stayed with us for the short half day tour of HK. The rest of the time was on our own. We enjoyed HK so much we stayed an extra 2 days. Two and a half days in HK is not enough, but that is what we planned in the beginning, so ends our tour. Too bad there was no direct flight from HK to US. We had to endure the flight back to Beijing then transfer to US. read more

We booked the Premiere Majestic China & Yangtze River 15 day Tour (Oct 5-19, 2014) and were told if we had 10 people we'd have our own guide. So we got ten people who wanted to go. When we arrived in Beijing we were met by our guide who informed us 8 more people would be joining us. What were we to do? While it worked out OK, we were unable to request private activities due to the now larger group. They got us on this one. All of the accommodations were wonderful, the flights were on time with new aircraft and airports. The Li river tour was interesting but we could have missed that one. The Yangtze was impressive if you could see the banks. The smog is terrible all over China, not just Beijing. You must get to 20,000 feet in a plane before you come out of it. We couldn't see the Three Gorges dam due to the smog. The absolute highlight of our tour was our guide Ocean (not his given name) He was very knowledgeable, witty and made the tour. He took care of everything, tours, flights, luggage. You name it he took care of it. We're all glad we made the trip when we did but you realize that China has made tremendous progress since Mao died but at a tremendous price. You can't breathe the air or drink the water. So sad. read more

Just finished our Europe Delight tour and I had the best time. I want to keep this review short and succinct: PROS: -Very knowledgeable tour guides! Our tour guide was Steven and he's the wittiest and most cosmopolitan! Our other French guides were equally great! Some of the Italian ones though are a little bit hard to understand -Great hotels! Clean and all 4-star! My favorite was the one in France because of the rainshower (or whatever you call it). -We got to see a lot of places in the short amount of time ( which can be hectic for some but I already knew what I signed up for so I was game!) -We almost didn't get to go in the St. Peter's Basilica (as the Pope made a last min decision to say a mass for the youth) but the Steven, local tour guide Maria and bus driver Vincenzo made it all possible by switching up our itinerary and maneuvering our way around the Vatican. -Some dinners are already provided in trip so that was awesome -The last dinner we had on the tour was in Italy and both tour groups (RItz and Peony) had wine, dinner and free entertainment courtesy of a soprano and tenor! We had a lot of fun! CONS: -Can be hectic - sometimes you don't get to the hotel until 9pm and wake up call is 6am -Time at tourist spots can be limited -There is a lot of walking so make sure to wear sturdy and comfortable shoes! Tips: -Make sure to bring a universal adapter! We had to borrow one from the hotel lobby -and sometimes they're out! London, Paris, and Italy are all different! Wifi is NOT free in the continent (in the hotel lobby it is) -Make sure to pay the optional trips and tour guide and driver tips first before you run out of shopping money! -Change money beforehand. We had ours exchanged in Chase. Looking for a money changer can be problematic -Sometimes you have to pay for restrooms (1 euro or 50 cents) -Watch out for pickpockets! read more

Not much to add that others have not already stated. Guides were good in China. It would be very difficult to do intercity travel in China without some Mandarin or a lot of free time. However, suggestions: If you are well travelled and are comfortable riding subways, go two days early and see cultural stuff. Museums are not on their tour. Dine on your own but be careful. Don't start your trip with fountains of barf and the runs. Don't exceed 20 bucks of purchasing at the hostage shopping places. The brass horse I liked for 3k is available online for 300 bucks. Caveat Emptor. Once your stomach is settled in, ask for the non round eye menu and pay for local flavor at the approved meal stops. Note that your guides will get local food at the same place you get sweet and sour chicken(every meal!). Ten bucks for fiery Szechuan soup is worth it! Know the price of tea. Their tourist packaged stuff works out to 100 bucks a pound. Don't exceed 20 bucks unless you know what you are doing. Do go as high as you can afford for hotels as the air and water is brutal, and you really need clean and comfy at the end of the day. 5 stars in China is like 4 stars elsewhere, but they are trying to do well. Skip a day and go on your own if the destination is not of interest. Don't order drinks on the Victoria Anna river cruise. The hard stuff is fake or diluted, the wine might even be a recork. Happy Hour does not include Tsingdao, just Chongqing beer. Nasty stuff, worse than Lucky Lager from the 1970's! Bring devices/chargers that are 110/220 internally convertible and an adaptor that has multiprongs. You can run into 3 plug variations. Bring a 10 foot extension cord if you use a CPAP as outlet locations are erratic. You might wish to bring a spare camera battery if you use a lot digital cameras. Also, be sure you at least 10GB cards as you will burn a lot of photos. Consider renting a mobile wifi hotspot and check the data limits offered! Wifi is rare and 15-20 a day at hotels. Note that internet is censored, so don't rely on it the way you do here. No news services, no Facebook, no blogs, etc. if you are foolish enough to use politically sensitive words in your email, your service will grind to a halt quickly. Not a joke. China is tough to travel in. Ritz did well moving us around. But this is tour, and not meant for independant teavellers so accept that up front. If you want a hybrid, pick a shorter tour and add days before and after for self touring. read more

My husband and I took Ritz Tours for the first time for the 8 day package to Beijing, Xi'an, and Shanghai from mid to late March. We also added on the Hong Kong 3 day extension ($950/person) at the end. It was our first time to China and while we're usually use to traveling independently around Central America or Europe, we were SO glad that we took an experienced tour guide for this trip especially since it's hard to navigate the logistics (transportation, tickets, etc) without speaking Mandarin. Our tour guide, Jevons, was very friendly and knowledgeable. He traveled with us for the entire trip (except Hong Kong, since that was an additional cost/extension). He spoke English well. There was also a local tour guide who gave us the history and more specifics in each of the cities. Glad to have van transportation to all the big sites so our time was used wisely. Covered lots of sites in the itinerary (check out the website for specifics)-we saw the Forbidden City, Great Wall, Terracotta warriors, and so much more. We were fortunate since we only had 11 people on our tour so we weren't overwhelmed by too many people. Nice hotels (although the Shanghai and Hong Kong hotels were probably the best of all of them) and big buffet breakfasts included so it was great to eat a lot in preparation for all the day's walking. If you're a big fan of massages like we are, highly recommend getting massages when you can squeeze in time (Hong Kong or Beijing) since it's much cheaper (approx $25/hour) there than in the States. The price: awesome value, considering the nice hotels, all meals included, transport, tour guides, tickets to show/sites, etc Enjoy your trip! read more

I took a Ritz tour to China several years ago so I did not hesitate to book my November 2018 vacation to Thailand with them. Their single supplement rate has increased substantially and they wouldn't budge on the pricing. I was not happy with the air arrangement they offered so I booked that on my own and was then charged an additional airport transfer fee, even though I was included in the same bus with the rest of the group for the flights home But the worst issue was that I was forced to spend my entire vacation with a group of 19 family members having a reunion. The family spoke in their language all the time even with me sitting at their table during meals. I was made to feel I was intruding on a private trip when in fact it was a public tour. Ritz never had the decency to notify me ahead of my leaving from New York to see if I wanted to reschedule. It was so uncomfortable for me that I asked each of the tour guides to seat me alone during meals, which they went out of their way to accommodate me When I returned and emailed a complaint, Olga tried to say Ritz didn't know it was one family, which wasn't true because one of the family members mentioned that one of them made all their arrangements and also the tour guide in Bankgkok knew before they arrived they were a family group I was only offered $200 credit on a 2019 trip Absolute appalling customer service read more

The overall experiences for the past 10 years , I will always treasure. It has always been one of the most interesting and beautiful experiences with all their tours, they are always well planned and no one could have shown more pleasure to accomodate their clients. Their tour guides well trained and very accomodating. Looking forward to another one of their tours in the coming future. read more

After taking the 12 day European Tour, I was extremely disappointed. The tour guide charged extra above what was printed to be paid to the tour guide. The english speaking tour guide, Steven, was always upselling the optional tours and if you did not go, he would make you wait until the optional tour was finished.The hotel staff in one Italian city was rude and one of our travel mates was robbed of their passports and I-phone in the lobby. The optional vistis were too expensive. I will NEVER use Ritz tours again!! read more

I was at the Monterey Park office yesterday and try to get a plane ticket to Washington DC and open for tours to the East Coast, but the person who work there cannot give me any ticket prices for 20 mins and did not introduce me to any of the company tour. When I ask her what is going on, why does it take so long, she gives me all kinds of attitude and told me just to wait. what kind of service is this? read more

I would like to add my opinion of Ritz Tours. I have read the other comments and some of them are not as good as I'm sure Ritz would like. My experience is: I have been traveling with Ritz Tours for approximately 5 years. They are a very professional company, that is upfront with answers about your travel questions, but you do need to ask questions before you go, if you are not sure of things. I think because they are a Chinese company, many things are not explained that you might get from a AAA or Taulk or other tour company. With this company many people are individuals and don't have someone that sits down with them and tells them all about what they are going to experience like an above mentioned tour. The prices are extremely fair, and going through Asia, all hotels are 5 star and are beautiful. Going through Europe the hotels are 4 star and are very nice. Rooms in Asia hotels are much bigger and more luxe than Europe.....but Europe hotels very nice and charming. Food pretty good on both continents.....remember you are eating tour food, that most places prepare for large groups. They try hard on the food, and most of the time it's OK, but we don't travel for the tour food. You have to remember, visiting a foreign culture, part of that experience is eating the local food. You always have western breakfasts daily, and many of your evening meals that are provided are western. I always say....eat a big breakfast and bring power bars or snacks. We travel for the joy and excitement of visiting a different culture, and learning about the history, culture and seeing these World Heritage Sites. Ritz Tours provides the best- to good- tour leaders and guides that I have ever experienced. They really educate you on the local, culture and history of where ever you are. It could be overload for some, but no one says they didn't learn on these trips. Yes, there are obligatory stops at handicraft shops, but you are never pressured to buy. If you feel like you are, that's just you. Don't feel bad. They also fly on the most up to date aircraft through Asia and Europe. Always met at each stop by tour leaders. And I did call that emergency number one time at the LAX airport, and a lady answered right away. So,,,,everyone has different experiences, and some people are not open to change, especially different cultures. Go with an open mind, and having fun in your agenda. It will happen! Happy Trails. I recommend Ritz Tours. Christy Q......Orange Co. , CA. read more

This is the worst tour company ever. Customer service is very terrible. My family join their Europe tour. In the begining, they did not even get all the seat from the airline for us. When I call their customer service, they told me I have to call the airline to reserve my seat number. They said the hotel is 4 stars hotels. The hotel we stay is only like 1 or 2 star. Specially in Paris, it is very dirty. The cups they used looks like never been wash. For the mail include in the tour, it is terriable. They took us to a lousy chinese restaurant. Soup is like dish wash water. We had 4 hours shopping in a store only for tour group. They just want to make some more commission$ from us. This is a most terrible tour company I had join. Never go with them again. read more

We went on the China tour to Beijing, Xian and Shanghai a couple of years ago and had a great experience and am now in the process of booking another tour to Vietnam and Cambodia using Ritz tours. We enjoyed the personal service of the guides, all of whom spoke excellent English, and I agree that some of the required shopping venues could have been eliminated. However, I did find the silk worms for the silk comforter interesting. I guess that any group tour includes this "filler" activity because on a recent trip to Turkey, there were some silk worms again for the carpets! The quality of the hotels and food served were very good. We are hoping that our upcoming trip will meet our expectations and even exceed them. I'll be back to comment on the trip and the service. read more

I just returned from a three city tour of China run by Ritz Tours; we visited Beijing, Xian, and Shanghai. Simply stated, it was a wonderful experience due in no small part to Ritz Tours. The 9 tour participants were all English speaking Americans and we were very well taken care of by our tour guides. Our three guides (two city guides and a tour manager) were Chinese nationals who were extremely fluent in English. They were informative, watchful, quite humorous, and displayed impeccable hospitality. One of our group had trouble keeping up with the group (there is a lot of walking), but the tour manager always stayed with her while the rest of us moved at a faster pace, so we were not held back. In an earlier review, the unexpected tipping of guides and drivers was mentioned, but in the written paperwork I received more than a month before departing, it is clearly stated that you should be prepared to tip $7/day. Perhaps this is a change in the information provided, in which case Ritz Tours was responsive to the earlier review. In any case, tipping is voluntary, but we tip those in the service industry in the United States, so I don't understand the reluctance to tip. The tipping of the guides and bus drivers is the only tipping you will do; gratuities at restaurants and hotels are built in to your prepaid package. Stops are made the expected historical sites, but also at factories and shops where purchases can be made, as stated by an earlier reviewer. I was not interested in shopping (my money was spent on the tour itself), but I enjoyed these stops because it exposed us to modern China. Among other things we saw silk spun and made into blankets, a traditional tea ceremony, and jade carved. At each stop it was a pleasure the see the lovely products and the pride in workmanship displayed by the Chinese craftsmen we encountered. Also, I found their capitalistic desire to make a sale quite enjoyable and heartening. The accomodations provided by Ritz Tours were all five star hotels located in the center of each city, so it was easy to move around during time off. The organized tour days are quite busy, but included in the itenerary is time off to explore on your own. In addition, some of the planned activities are optional. One of our group even declined to participate on some days, and this was not a problem; tour participants actually have quite a bit of discretion if they so desire. My only complaint is with Air China; take an IPod and a book because there are not screens on the seat backs and the movies shown on the bulkhead screnes are in Chinese. This is an insignificant detail, however. I was highly satisfied with my trip and would definitely book with Ritz Tours again read more

I have traveled with Ritz Tours five times over 12 years; four times to Europe and once to China. My wife (who is Mandarin speaking) and I enjoyed all five trips very much. As the only non-Chinese participant in almost all of them, I felt especially welcome. I don't think I missed anything. We went to London and Paris for the first trip about 12 years ago and I still remember the pleasure we got from (James again) our tour guide, who, after so much time, we still remember as a friend. Our trip to Scandinavia was astonishing, never seen such beautiful scenery. As the commercial stops were a part of keeping the price low, we didn't resent them; in fact most were interesting in themselves. We have recommended Ritz Tours to many others, and will continue to do so. We also plan to travel with them again. Finally, our travel mates were always a pleasure, Ritz attracts experienced and considerate tourists. read more

Based upon a recommendation of a friend of my son's, I attempted to register for a tour of Xi'an at Ritz Tours. The web page indicates in red at top right that the "brochure price is $230" but the "discounted price" is $180-"call to book." On my first call, I was told that this would be good at either the Hyatt or the Sheraton. Then I was told there was a $50 late registration fee because this was "less than 30 days" (I wanted this for my son and myself for about 9 days from when I called). I said there was nothing on the page about this and I was referred to the "terms and conditions" link. Sure enough, down toward the last 1/3 of the page, it said this fee was imposed if the reservation was less than 60 days (not 30). I said no and ended the conversation. The more I thought about it I realized that, while this might make sense for a long and complicated tour with lots of arrangements, it made no sense for something as simple as this. I then sent a fax inviting them to call if they would agree to waive the fee. They called and said that the fee would be waived if I booked and paid today. I agreed. THEN, I was told the fee was now $230 for the Hyatt (which previously was quoted to me as the same as the Sheraton; and if one looks at their web page, the prices are the same for the two date ranges). I was told that the $180 was only good for the Sheraton which had been described as an "older" hotel but not the Hyatt -- even though the web page had the discount at the top that was not in any way restricted by date or hotel. So, I said that I obviously had been wasting my time and hung up. The facts speak for themselves and I have saved the web page in case it gets changed. read more