Hope our comments go back to the right people. I put a lot in the questionnaire too.

Further to the local guides, we had a series of guides on a tour I was on, unfortunately they seemed to think they had to talk constantly and their knowledge was encyclopedic! Worse still they repeated information which previous guides had already imparted. There were mutterings around the coach, so I was not the only one who thought this way. It would have been good if the TM had had a quiet word, little and often would have been good, we were on holiday not studying for an exam.

Could I extend this topic to local tour guides.  As with tour managers, they can make or break a tour. The majority I have  met on JY tours, have been excellent, having a good command of English,  and being passionate about their countries.  It's their anocdotes and information  about everyday life that I  remember long after historical dates have been forgotten.  I appreciate that JY often employs local guides through local agents,  but  would like to think that when the odd one doesn't  perform well, JY has a policy  in place for not giving them further work.

I have I think done about 13 trips with JY and 3 with TS. Some TMs have been really good and some really bad. I think in general I prefer the male TMs. As Janib said Stephen on the USA trip was excellent. Paul O'Conner who was on a Tunisian TS tour was great. The very worst have been women. The key as several have said is the giving of information and ensuring that everyone knows what, where, and when. It is a very difficult task organizing 30/40 adults without treading on toes. Some people want to be sort of "looked after" and some like me do not. The bus seating is difficult. There are some people who really don't travel well and need to be at the front. I don't think I have ever been on a trip when it has become a real problem. I'm off again in May so heres hoping for a good TM

Hi All

Ive done 5 tours with JY (Italy Cilento Coast, Croatia Istrian Coast, Battlefields, 2 x Paris trips), I must admit that I have very few complaints about any of them as all were seasoned tours which had had all their kinks ironed out. My first 8 day trip was to Croatian Istrian Coast. It was a destination booked purely because the Plitvice National Park looked amazing and I thought it would be a fabulous experience. Indeed it was, but so was every other day. It was made more special by our wonderful TM Vladka who I know you still use. There aren't enough superlatives to describe her but I know many others rate her highly.

The other tour managers were all fun, exciting, but I think Vladka stands out because of the love for her a country and a part of Europe most people have probably never heard of.

Mark

I agree with the comments so far; having done 18 tours I have only had 2 totally rubbish tour managers (I gave my full feedback on those). I do like the welcome pack that some managers provide, whether its for the whole tour or just your instructions for the first day (things like where to meet at the other end etc, those small details make it so much easier and avoids people wandering off to exchange currency leaving everyone else waiting). I'm not a fan of seat rotation, in India the only rule was let everyone who wants to have a chance to sit in the front seat to get the full experience of the manic traffic and that worked well, only had one tour where there was strict enforcement of the seat rotation, but again it wasn't too bad as the coach was big enough for everyone to have a double seat. They key thing is the tour manager needs to get the feel of the group and every group is different and to adapt their style to the group, so whether that is being able to suggest additional activities in free time and making arrangements (Sarah Wrightson was brilliant at this on our Japan tour) or dealing with the occasional difficult member of the group that is annoying to all the other members of the group (Kim Clark wins the award for this in my book as we had a particularly annoying group member on our trip to Borneo). Finally a good sense of humour or sense of fun, quite often things don't go to plan so being able to deal with these problems is key to being a good tour manager.

From my point of view the tour manager can make or break a tour so if I know that a particular tour manager that I have travelled with before and enjoyed their style is running another tour that i am looking to do, I would certainly favour that tour over another when I'm planning for the year ahead.

I agree so much with what people have posted here already, but just a couple more things. 

Organisation and friendliness are key I think.  I've only had one TM who was not good, there is no need (in her case) to shout at people or to treat the travellers in her care like children.  Enough said. 

I do think that wherever possible TM's should accompany travellers back to the airport (realising that of course with regional departures this can be difficult).  At Costa de la Luz we were just dumped on the bus going back and left to it.  If that is the case JY should have some kind of representation at the airport for going back (unless that was just a one off with this holiday date). 

At the risk of making them blush I have 3 favourites. 

1.  "V" Croatia Istrian Coast.  I have been lucky enough to have "V" as my TM twice.  She's great.  Organisation and friendliness are top notch, and of course she is full of knowledge about her own country.  She is also very funny, and integrates with the group very well.  I haven't come across anyone in either of the 2 trips I have done with her that doesn't like her. 

2. Mark Harbidge (might have spelt it wrong).  TM for the first trip out to Slovenia May 2014.  Mark was wonderful, it was the first trip for JY, and he was juggling and adding things to the trip to make things more interesting for us.  He was constantly on the ball with not brilliant hotels (since changed), and was just excellent

3.  Rob Hay.  TM on my last trip to Cilento Coast.  Such a well organised, interesting guy who worked so hard for us.  He was always there to check that everyone was okay without being intrusive.

Julia,

I echo what has been said above re TMs. In my case I've had some excellent TMs, some OK and some hopeless. Best have good organisational skills, know their destination really well, like meeting people and have a sense of humour.

In addition, for JY, they have to understand that single traveller groups have different dynamics than, eg TS. They may need to work a bit harder initially, to get to know the group, ensure that everyone is included, has others to eat with in the evenings (unless they want to do their own thing) etc. My first JY experience was with a TM who had only done TS trips before and she just disappeared at the end of the day without making any suggestions of, eg where people wanting to go out could meet up and when, what options there were etc..

I think also that JY doesn't utilise the knowledge of TMs as much as they could - many know the countries we are visiting very well. What works in theory when planning an itinerary doesn't necessarily work so well on the ground and the best TMs are able to change things around (and JY should be receptive to this).

I couldn't do this job - there can be the odd person on a tour who is a real trial or someone with physical limitations that mean a particular tour really isn't suitable for them - and the TM has to deal with all this. I just wouldn't be able to keep my opinions to myself/be polite.

Katy

Hi Julia,

For me there are three things that I look for in a tour manager - in the order I find most valuable..

1. A good sense of Humour - a must with a touring group of total strangers all with their own list of demands. Laughter makes everything seem better, and I have seen a bad experience turn into a great experience when laughter is brought into the mix.

2. Organisation Skills - I need to know where to go, what time to be there, and when to put my case out, and I need it repeated lol

3. Enthusiasm for the country you are visiting - enthusiasm, generally means that they love or know well the country and they share their knowledge by telling us stories or sharing information along the way. Its these things that help make the holiday special, like recommending a restaurant or a place where you can buy something special to that country.

They should also have the negotiation skills to persuade those that always hog the first seats in the coach, to try life further back!!

Kezzer

Like Cindy, I have experienced some excellent tour managers, and some who shouldn't  have been in the job!  The first essential is good communication then good organisational skills and the ability the cope with the unexpected,  like delayed or cancelled flights or sickness.  The very best tour managers always ensure their clients have the best possible experiences and go the extra mile to make this happen. Being only human, tour managers will  have their favourite  clients, but should never show favouritism. On most tours, seat rotation is unnecessary, but managers should ensure that the same people don't  always hog the front seats. A sense of  humour  and good knowledge of the destination are essential.