Welcome to Ritz Tours.Your perfect vacation at heart.At Ritz Tours, we have been handcrafting escorted vacations for more than 40 years. Wherever you want to explore, we are experts in guided tours that show you the iconic sights of a destination while immersing you in its history and culture.A family-run business with an enduring passion for travel, our tours offer a variety of travel styles. We specialize in everything from escorted group tours through to custom-designed private tours for families, couples and friends, together with special interest journeys for groups of like-minded guests.Our destinations span the globe: jetting you to the world’s unmissable capitals or its most far-flung corners. Soak up the history of great cities like Rome or Paris on one of our tours to Europe. Witness the UNESCO-listed sites of ancient lands such as Egypt or Jordan. Or book one of our luxury tours to laze on a Bali or Maldives white-sand beach or enjoy a guided tour around the wonders of Brazil or the wildlife reserves of Kenya.Family values and personal service Wherever you travel with us, your tour reflects the traditional family values we have honored since our launch in 1980. We treat you as part of our Ritz family: providing personalized service from the start to the end of your vacation. Along with our attention to detail, professional integrity and first-hand knowledge of the destinations we offer, it means you can be confident of exploring and traveling without any stress or worry.Every one of our tours is designed with affordability and comfort in mind, too. As well as flexible booking, our vacations include international flights, luxury hotel accommodation and comprehensive sightseeing itineraries with expert guides—giving you excellent value and enabling you to explore at an unrushed pace. Each also comes with enriching cultural encounters and optional tours, letting you delve deeper into your destination than the average traveler.Whether it’s a thrilling safari
Ritz Tours (ritztours.com) has 284 customer reviews on Five Star Index, with an average rating of 4.4 out of 5.
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ritztours.com
Website
ritztours.com
Category
Activities & Tours
Location
Alhambra, California
Listed on Five Star Index
2026
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Hotel in Tokyo was the only one meeting Ritz Tours standards, but not hotels in Kyoto and Osaka situated next to railroad stations, overcrowded and below *** rating.
The only purpose of the tour guide was to be on schedule with transportation - he rushed through the shrines and temples without giving a chance to read the posted information and observe ancient treasures - to be at the train station hour before departure.
He was continiously distributing handouts describing routes and places we were supposed to visit, but did not provide any narrative during the site visits as he was running ahead with the Ritz Tours flag.
Various multi-course lunches and dinners included were very interesting, but not educational as our tour guide failed again to give an introduction to the different food that was offered and the way it supposed to be consumed.
Response from Ritz ToursOct 10, 2019
Dear David,
Thank you for sharing your feedback about your recent trip to Japan.
We sincerely apologize that some of the hotels did not live up to your expectations. We assure you this isn’t a typical situation. Most of our travelers are pleasantly surprised by the quality of their tours and accommodations. Regarding the hotel locations, we selected these hotels (Kyoto New Miyako and Osaka Granvia) for their quality, service and their central location. They are located close to department stores, restaurants and shops, as we have found that our guests like to stay in the heart of the city. As you mentioned they are located next to the rail stations which are crowded at times, however these are bustling cities and we have found that our guests take this in stride as part of a new cultural experience.
Concerning the rushed pace of your tour guide, we are sorry if it was not explained why the pace of your tour felt rushed. We requested a report on this matter and were informed that unfortunately there were typhoon warnings. The tour guide and local agents were in contact every hour in order to ensure the safety of all travelers while visiting sites and transferring from destination to destination. Once again, we are sorry that this adversely affected your overall trip.
We apologize that the tour guide did not provide an enriching and enjoyable tour. It’s important to us that our tour guides are professional and passionate about providing a quality experience. Please be assured that we are not taking this lightly, and we have relayed your feedback to the management team of our partners in Japan to ensure that this is addressed and corrected for future tours.
RP
ROY PALAGANAS A.
The country tour was very good
The country tour was very good. The guide was very knowledgeable, very friendly, helpful, and amazing. My only problem was the flights. We had a lay over in Hong Kong going to Japan which for me doesn't make sense. We pass Japan going to Hong Kong. Then coming back to USA a lay over at Taipei. The lay overs make the flights very long. Why not going direct flight. That's my only concern in our tour. That's the reason why I am giving 3 stars only
Response from Ritz ToursAug 8, 2019
Dear Roy,
We are happy to hear that you truly enjoyed this tour and the guide for it. We do see that you are unhappy about the flights and the layovers in both Hong Kong and in Taipei. Please let us explain this situation.
We always aim to provide the lowest airfare for our customers, which at the time was through Eva Air with one layover stop. We are sorry that we were not aware of your desire to have a direct flight, for if we had known we would have provided that option. But, we do inform all travelers and travel agents that there are no guarantees of a direct flight prior to booking.
The reason for the flight change prior to departure was due to the cabin crew strike at Eva Air. Eva Air endorsed a new flight through Cathay Pacific Airways with one layover stop in Hong Kong. The reason why your return flight though had a layover in Taipei was because we were able to still operate that original booked return flight.
We do sincerely apologize that these incidences negatively affected your travel experience, but are happy that overall you enjoyed yourself.
SM
SM
Eastern Europe
The tour was 12 day Eastern Europe. I was disappointed because we had to drag our luggages to/from the bus every morning and evening. Unlike on other tours I have been, someone picked up our luggage and all we had to do was put our luggage outside our hotel room door. After walking all day, it was quite tiring! Regarding the optional tours... the tour guide pushed it too much, it did not sound optional! He announced the names or number of folks (multiple times) that did not sign up on the tours and he made it sound like you have no other option but sit on the bus if you don’t sign up on the tour. Found out you can actually purchase a ticket for some tours at a lot less than what Ritz charged like for example, the 1 hr river tour in Prague. 11 vs 20 Euros/pp. Some days some just don’t feel like doing another tour. I can say maybe 2 good meals the most. I see some of us hurry to get the food like it would run out sometimes. In some of the dinners, to refill water is an extra charge. One time, there was only 1 choice of entree on the menu. It so happened that half of the group don’t eat the pork knuckle and ended up eating only mashed potato for dinner. Someone complained and Ritz ended up offering refund for the meal. I actually did not expect that. There is a recommended gratuity for the tour guide, driver and local tour guides. The tour guide strongly emphasized it and IMO, he did not deserve it but I gave the recommended anyway. I have been to several tours and cruises. The driver on the other hand was very good! You can tell he has 25 yrs of experience like he said and he deserved extra tip. The included excursions are good especially the amazing cave in Slovenia, the wonderful waterfalls/lake in Croatia and the castles in Munich and Czechs republic. A lot of walking on uneven and sometimes wet pavements so make sure you have on comfortable walking shoes. Sometimes it’s like walking 5-7 miles a day when you convert the # of steps registered on a pedometer. I especially enjoyed the company of old and new friends, which made this tour extra special for me even though I have been to 4 of the 6 countries we visited just last year 2018. When the tour was introduced to me, I was told that there was an extra $50 discount paying on a certain date with a certain # of people signed up. That didn’t happen! It was brought up on the emails but it didn’t really matter that much.
Response from Ritz ToursJun 6, 2019
Hi,
We are sorry to hear that your experience on your recent Eastern Europe tour did not meet all of your expectations. We always aim to provide an awesome experience; we are disappointed that we have missed the mark this time.
We apologize that you had to transport your luggage yourself, we can understand how that can be frustrating. Not all of our tours provide porter service for our guests; we are sorry that this information was not clearer and we have taken this feedback to better communicate this for future tours.
We are sorry for your experience you had with your tour guide in Europe. His approach in offering and suggesting optional tours, should not feel pushy in any way. Please be assured that we do take this serious and have spoken with our partners in Europe to address this with him and be fixed going forward.
In regards to the pricing of optional tours, we are sorry if this adversely affected your overall experience. We offer the lowest prices provided to us by our local partners and offer them as optional excursions for one to decide if they would like to purchase through us ahead of their departure date.
We sincerely apologize for the cuisine not living up to your expectations. With not having enough food available during meals, we have brought that up with our colleagues to see how we can better provide sufficient portions. Typically, with beverages they provide one complimentary with the meal and additional beverages are at the travelers expense. As far as the pork knuckle dinner in Munich, we apologize for this unfortunate situation. As we have mentioned to others in your group, if we had known about the dietary requirements of the group we would have notified our partners in Europe in order to accommodate this request.
We regret to hear how tipping in certain places was not handled appropriately. Tipping is customary and something we do recommend to show your gratitude towards the service provided. Tipping is not mandatory, but we do ask all of our travelers to keep in mind that tipping, in most of the destinations, is a necessary means to the guide’s/driver’s overall monthly income. We do not ever want to have our travelers feel pressured in any way, so we do allow this choice to be of your own will.
It pleases us to hear that your driver provided great service, and we will pass that along to him and our partners!
We are happy to know that you truly enjoyed the included excursions! We always aim to provide a fulfilling experience, our goal is to pick the best excursions possible during your trip.
We apologize that there was more walking involved than expected. We will take your valuable feedback and use this information as we continue to improve our services.
One of the best features is having the opportunity to strengthen old friendships and to create new ones, so we are excited that this trip allowed you to do that!
Concerning the $50 discount when booking, yes this was an offered promotion for your group, but the requirement for all to receive the discount was for your group to reach a certain number; however this group size was not met. We would have gladly honored our offer had the conditions been met.
Once again, we thank you for taking the time to share your experience. We are sorry that not everything on your trip was as expected, but we do appreciate your feedback and will use it to better our services for future tours.
CW
CAROLYN W.
Excellent Tour Marred By Logistical Issues
The actual tour was very good. The guide, Joji, was knowledgeable, warm and patient and had a great sense of humor. The locations we toured were outstanding. The cities we went to; Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Hiroshima and Nara, were wonderful places to see. The hotels were excellent, but some were far from the city center. The restaurants were generally also excellent. We could have used another day in Tokyo, though.
However, all of that was marred by unjustified changes to the itinerary, one of which, a change to the start date, cost us hundreds of dollars in airline change fees and huge inconvenience. We missed out on a highly rated show due to another late change.
All of the tour members thought that there was too much use of public transportation. Navigating crowded and confusing subway stations was difficult with a large group of people, and we felt bad for Joji San. Tour buses should have been used more. In addition, we transferred between cities on the bus, but it was too small to accommodate our luggage. That was a lapse in judgement on Ritz' part.
Ritz is more experienced with China tours. They might do better in Japan with more experience.
Response from Ritz ToursJun 7, 2019
Hi Carolyn,
We are happy to hear that your overall trip was enjoyable, but saddened to hear that not everything lived up to your expectations.
Thank you for acknowledging Joji for her outstanding service, she truly is a valuable asset to our team! We will pass along your gracious compliments to Joji, and the management team of our partners in Japan.
We are pleased that you found the quality of the tours and accommodations to be exceptional; we pride ourselves in providing top notch service.
We do apologize for the change in the itinerary, and understand how this was an inconvenience to you. We know that because the departure date changed it affected the cost of the trip; in addition we added some other inclusions (meals and a show) in order to improve the overall itinerary. We are sorry if these costs were not thoroughly explained when booking but we do hope you enjoyed the updated itinerary.
In regards to the show that was missed, we are sorry that you did not get to experience it. As the Samurai Cafe show was cancelled by the cafe on March 11, we replaced it with the Samurai Experience and we do hope that you found it enjoyable and just as entertaining.
Concerning the usage of public transportation, we are sorry if it was more than expected. We do state in our Features tab of this tour package that ground transportation is used in each city. We will take your feedback and use it to improve our communication about this for future bookings.
We are sorry if the bus size during times of transfer between cities seemed a bit small, we can understand how this could be uncomfortable. We are in contact with our partners in Japan to better this service.
Once again, we would like to say thank you for sharing your experience with us and the world. We do value your feedback and are taking all of it into consideration when improving our overall services.
ME
MICHAEL E S.
Total confusion in Greece
Total confusion in Greece . There were 5 of us basically on our own . We had no steady guide . Best guide we had was a last minute trip to OIA . We lost out on boat ride with dinner because of winds but got a ride to oia but no food . Ferries where like cattle getting on and off . Santorini was worst , pickup was not ready and guide was terrible / pickup to santorini airport was an hour or more late !! Driver made us pull our bags across busy street. Hotels were very nice . We basically ran the trip ourselves with no guidance. We never were informed of a earlier caldera trip. We were in the lobby and had a capable phone and never received any news of this and neither did our fellow travelers
Response from Ritz ToursOct 4, 2018
Hi Mr Steckel
Thank you for taking the time to leave us a review. We appreciate your feedback as it helps us improve in our operations and tour programs. This is a relatively new itinerary for us, and while we are happy we that you enjoyed the hotels and the guide in Oia, we are sorry to have let you down in other aspects of the tour. We have already spoken to our ground operators in Greece regarding the Caldera cruise, which was cancelled due to the unusual Mediterranean hurricane that affected Greece with extremely high winds. They mentioned that they tried to contact you at the hotel to operate the tour one day earlier but were unable to reach you; however they offered a private walking tour of Oia, which we are glad to hear you enjoyed. We will be in touch with you shortly to follow up and see how we can make this up to you. Thank you for your business.
EP
EP
GREECE TOUR
I thought the trip was good one, but I have to give it 3 stars because the hotel in Santorini was a dump and marred the experience. In addition, the transfers to and from Delos did not occur and we had to figure out how to get to and from Delos on our own.
Response from Ritz ToursSep 6, 2018
Hello,
We appreciate your feedback about your tour to Greece.
We are surprised to hear about your negative experience at the Santorini Aressana Spa Hotel and Suites as we have only received glowing reviews of this hotel. It is centrally located in Fira and when viewing and staying at this property we have had only positive experiences. We would love to hear more about what marred the experience for you as it will help us to improve our programs in the future.
Regarding the transfers - one of our customer services reps has reached out to you to get some more information about this, so if you could kindly get in touch with our team we would love to chance to make things right.
We're happy to hear that the rest of your trip was enjoyable. Thank you
PE
PETER
The bus rides are long (and often…
The bus rides are long (and often boring) commuting between countries. It may be more practical to spend more time exploring fewer countries and reduce the number of countries on the itinerary. The bus's video system could have been used to introduce the background of each country prior to our arrival. Our tour group members did not have an initial introduction session (from our guide) with each other, therefore we had to take initiative to introduce ourselves to other tour members during the trip.
Response from Ritz ToursAug 22, 2018
Hi Peter,
I will definitely pass along the information you've provided about the commute and request for more formal introductions. You might be happy to hear that we do provide other, more localized, tours to fewer countries. We hope you try us out again. Please contact our helpful associates to book a tour that's right for you and are happy to offer specialized options. Happy travels!
MW
MS.WOO
The hotel we stayed is good
The hotel we stayed is good, but I think it’s should have little more tourist
Response from Ritz ToursJun 26, 2018
Hi Ms. Woo,
Thank you for taking the time to leave us feedback on your experience. We will be investigating this concern and someone will be in contact with you shortly. We do hope that the rest of your tour was enjoyable. Thank you.
