我的加拿大东海岸巴士之旅

 

 

我最近一次参加“巴士之旅”是在15年前与全家人一起前往美国东部进行了四天游。但在通常情况下，我都会竭力避免参加这种声名狼藉的旅行团，更愿意充分享受自由旅行的乐趣。

 

The last time I took a “Bus Tour” was over 15 years ago when I travelled to the Eastern part of the United States. Back then, it was a 4-day trip with my entire family. Typically, I  tried to avoid taking these kinds of tours due to their notorious reputations. I preferred to travel by car to get full enjoyment out of the trips.

 

 

那么，为什么还会有人热衷于参加这种所谓的“小鸭旅行团”呢？跟团游有许多优势显而易见——主要景点都能玩到，食宿不用烦，也不要操心行车和泊车问题。其缺点为何？下面且听我细细道来。

 

So why would anyone want to join one of these so called “Ducklings Tour Groups”? There are a number of apparent advantages – Major attractions are covered,  accommodations are arranged, driving and parking issues are taken care of. Disadvantages? We will get into that in a minute.

 

 

最近，我参加了加拿大东海岸“巴士之旅”，并再次随行参加了小鸭旅行团。我也因此得以有机会将此次行程与我10多年前参加的那次“巴士之旅”作比较。

Recently, I took a trip down to the East Coast of Canada on a “Bus Tour” and experienced the life of a duckling once again. This gives me the opportunity to compare the trip to the one I took over a decade ago. 

 

 

旅行团的成员通常被称之为“小鸭”。在旅途中导游负责管理团内游客，并安排行程表以及餐饮和住宿。一般来说，旅行团的景点行程表都非常紧张，每个景点的停留时间通常都限制在一小时以内。而这种“赶场 ”式策略对于完成排得满满登登的景点行程表非常必要。很显然，有些游客也只是想在著名景点前留个影，以向其亲朋好友宣告“他们曾到此一游”。

 

“Ducklings” are members of the tour group. The Tour Guide rode herd on the flock of tourists under his charge and dictate the schedule, the eating facilities and the accommodations. Typically, attractions are crammed into a tight schedule and stoppages to explore each attraction is limited to under one hour. This type of “hurry-along” strategy is a necessity to over-stack the schedule with attractions. Apparently, some tourists only want to take a photo in front of the attractions to show their friends and relative that “they were there”.

 

 

对于第一次打算参加此类旅行团的游客来说，首先必须了解跟团游的固有特性。如果你想要在艺术馆和博物馆等需要耗时的景点进行参观游览，那就不适合参加此类旅行团。

 

For those who planned to take such tours for the first time, they must understand this inherent characteristic of the package. If you want to spend extra time on time-consuming attractions like Art Galleries and Museums, this is not the tour to join!

 

此类旅行团的行程通常是从每天早晨6点的自行解决的早餐开始。到了七点，所有团员都必需携带行李登上大巴。和海军陆战队行动不同的是，如果你未能按时赶到集合地点，那你就只好滞留原地！而在旅途中大巴通常要开上两到三个小时才会在前往下一个景点的途中或是抵达一个景点时停车让游客上厕所。虽然大巴上就有洗手间，但想要一上并非易事，大解更是被禁止。因此在这种长途旅行中强大的膀胱控制能力必不可少！

 

The routine starts every morning at 6 o'clock in the morning when breakfast is self-served. By seven o'clock, everyone and their luggage will get onto the coach. Unlike the Marines in action, you will be left behind if you cannot make it to the pick-up points! The coach will roll out and travel for two to three hours before stopping for public washrooms either en-route to the next attraction or arriving at one. While there is a washroom on the coach, the use of it was discouraged particularly for sit-down events. Strong bladders controls are required for these long distance travels!

 

 

由于绝大多数团员都是华裔，因此旅行团的大部分餐饮都是安排在自助餐厅，通常用餐时间为一个小时。但你千万不要以为这么长的用餐时间绰绰有余，我曾注意到有许多旅行团都会在同一间餐厅用餐，且为避免冲突而错开了用餐时间。而这也意味着用餐时间过半就不会再有食物供应，因此尽早尽快吃完才是上上策。

 

Since a majority of the group are of Chinese origins, most meals are arranged at buffet restaurants with a typical time allotment of one hour. Do not expect a relaxing meal in such a time frame. I notice that many tour groups use the same restaurant and that meal times are co-ordinated to avoid conflicts. This means that no additional food will be supplied half way through the meal. Eat early and fast is the only way to go.

 

 

在你报名参加旅行团时，其报价中并不包括餐饮及一些景点的费用。我们的七日游报名费原本不到$500元，但加上全餐费后费用就翻了一倍增至$1000元以上。但是由于自己前往附近的餐馆用餐然后再回来赶大巴需要花费很多时间，你几乎不可能放弃旅行团提供的餐饮安排。总的来说，旅行团安排的餐厅都勉强及格，而碰上个好餐厅就如同撞了大运。

 

When you sign up for the tour, the price quoted will not include meals and some of the attractions. Taking on the full meal plan doubled our package of just under $500 for 7  days to over $1000. it is almost impossible to opt out of the meal plan as it will take time for you to go to nearby restaurants and come back to catch the coach. Overall, the restaurants are of passing grades but encountering a good one becomes a bonus.

 

 

下一次，我们将继续了解这些“巴士之旅”的陷阱。

Next time, we will follow up on the pitfalls of these “Bus tours”.