I'm taking the Essential Europe tour leaving in 2 weeks and just went over the various "extra" tours that are available for purchase. We are traveling as a family with two children, ages 10 and 13. I know that some of the excursions have been discussed in the past, but none recently. If anyone has experience with any of these excursions, good or bad, I'd appreciate your feedback. Thank you in advance for any information.

Gondola YES!! Mt Titlis YES!! Swissfloklore Lunch YES.. .

London Dinner & show YES only if you want a real fancy meal & want to see Phanton.. . otherwise u can get halfprice show tickets for same night or next night in Hamley square in London eccommnd Wicked, Lion King, Mary Poppins.. .

Luve YES however, Ive been told you can do it yourself for much less $$ Howvere you do have the guide but by that time we were Museumed Out with the guides!!

Cant even remember the optionals in Italy.. . U can do Spanish steps & TREVI fountain on your own!!

Have a great time & bring comfortable walking shoes!! Be ready for very early wake ups & bus rides!!

Disagree on the swissfolklore show. I would not do it again.

Agree on the others. You can do the London show,Thames cruise and The Louvre much cheaper on your own. Instead of the Louvre consider the Museum D'Orsay on your own. I really suggest you try to skip some of the optionals and use the time to sit in a sidewalk cafe and watch the world go by. Or be like us and go back 5 times!!!

we loved the Swiss Folklore lunch.. . kids (teens) loved it , singing, drinking beer,, cute little show & historic restaurant.. . everyone on our tour thought it was great fun & a change from walking around Lucerne and doing nothing but shop at the same stores i can go to in Miami.. .. . but I agree w Letsgo.. . dont do every optional so that u can just sit & watch the world go by!!

Well to each their own. I did not like it.Way to hokey.I am glad your kids enjoyed it. I was not traveling with kids.

When we went back to Lucerne we found it was fun to buy a ticket on the ferry boat and go to Weggis for lunch.The lake cruise was just beautiful.

On our tour last year, we tried to book the Phantom option but it was all booked. Worked out better anyway, since we were able to get good seats at cheaper prices for the same night. Instead of the fancy dinner, we found a nice small restaurant on a side street near the theater.. ..shared a table with a couple from northern England and had a good time. I perfer seeing the museums on my own as we did the Louvre.. ..I don't like being herded through with guides you can't hear anyway, talking about things that don't interest me! But that's just me.. ..like to set my own pace! Of all the cities we visited, Lucerne was our favorite.. ..just beautiful and a great place to relax!

Have fun and give us a report when you get back!!!!!!