ef student travel reviews

EF Tours Review: The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

Is EF Tours right for you?   

So your kid just came home from school with a gorgeous full color brochure about an upcoming trip to Europe with EF Tours that one of their teachers is leading.  He or she is super excited about all the cool things they get to do and is just begging you to let them go.  

It sounds great, but as a responsible parent, you want to know exactly what you’d be sending your child off to do, and how things would actually work on this trip.  

Well, lucky for you we took a 12 day visit to Europe with EF Tours, and have all the details to decide if taking an international trip with this company is right for you or your teenager.  

We’re going to start with the breakdown of how things work with EF and what to expect as a participant or a parent, and then move on to our specific experience with our tour.  

I always like to start my reviews by reminding you that I was not compensated in any way to write this post.  All opinions are my own, and all costs were paid out of our pocket for this experience.

What is EF Tours? 

EF Tours is a travel company that specializes in international tours for students.   

According to their website , EF Tours has been in operation since 1965 and offers trips for students and teachers designed to “provide immersive, life-changing education.”

Basically, EF Tours organizes international trips for students to a wide variety of destinations, promising “compelling itineraries” full of “experiential learning.”

They also promise to have the “lowest price on the market” for this type of travel.  

EF, as a company, offers may types of tours ranging from group trips for adults to organized gap years for high school graduates.  While these options are available, the bread and butter of the company is the basic high school student tour which is what we took.  

How do EF Tours work?

EF Tours have a pretty straightforward process during the sign up period, prior to departure and during your trip. 

Before we get into that, it must be said that EF Tours operate fully independently of the local school district, and are not endorsed or supported by them whatsoever.  

While this may seem like a school trip, it is not.  It is a trip run by a business who just happens to recruit participants through the school system.  Your local principals, school boards, etc. have zero control or influence on these trips.  The school is only involved in the process as far as whether they allow teachers to hand out information in schools or not. 

The EF in EF Tours stands for Education First.  According to their website, EF claims to “design tours to help educators teach, and so students can learn more—about tolerance, other perspectives, and themselves.”

The Sign Up Process

EF Tours are set up to be “hosted” by a local teacher who is then designated as the “group leader.”  Teachers are incentivized with free and reduced price travel to recruit students to join their tours.  

Tours are advertised by the group leader/teacher to students at their school and to their local community.  Interested students and parents are invited to attend informational meetings either in person or virtually where the group leader/teacher goes over the itinerary and any questions potential participants may have.  

Students and parents can then sign up directly through the EF Tours website, and submit all payments directly to the company.  

Trips are usually initially introduced about two years before the travel date so that participants can make smaller monthly payments to cover the cost of the trip.  Costs for these trips can range widely, depending on the destinations and length of the trip.  

EF has the group leader/teacher set up deadlines for signing up to go on the trip, sometimes including small discounts to encourage enrollment.  This tends to give a false sense of urgency to the sign up process. 

We found that participants can sign up just about any time before the trip departs.  We signed up about a year out from the trip, while another student who traveled with us signed up just a month or two before we left.  

Anyone was allowed to sign up for the trip.  We were encouraged to invite friends and family to join us on the tour, whether or not they were associated with our school or even local to our area.  

Adults did need to pass a background check in order to participate in the trip, since adult tour participants are traveling with minors.  

We were not given specific dates for our trip, but instead we were given a window of time during which the trip would occur.   Our dates were finally confirmed about two months before our departure.  

There are usually two or three optional excursions that can be added to any tour.  These usually include some special activity or visit to an additional landmark.  

Tour participants may also choose to upgrade the insurance for the tour. 

Before Your EF Tour

Once you’ve signed up for your EF Tour, you’ll be given access to a tour portal on the EF website where you can track your payments and what steps you need take next to participate in the trip.  They also provide a fundraising page, where friends and family can pay EF directly to offset the cost of your trip.  

Our group had a few in person meetings at a local restaurant prior to our trip where we discussed issues ranging from passports to packing for our trip to Europe , and got a chance to meet our fellow travelers.  This may or may not be true or all groups that are traveling with EF.  

Each participant in our tour was required to submit a copy of our passport to EF to insure that we had the proper documentation to travel.  

Information about our flights was not available until about a month before our departure, and information about our hotels was not available until we were about three weeks out from leaving.  

EF Tours uses a wide range of airlines, and travelers do not get to indicate a preference.  EF books all travelers in economy class seats for all transportation methods.  EF will book with whatever airline has space available for the lowest price for the group.  

As for hotels, travelers know very little about where they are staying ahead of time.  Per the website, tour participants are assured that “travelers can count on safe, clean and comfortable hotels with private bathrooms” but much beyond that the info is sparse.  

Students can expect to room with one to three other students, and possibly have to share beds.  Adults can expect to share a room with one other person.  For a fee, a single room can be requested for the tour. 

EF does indicate up front that hotels may have small rooms without air conditioning, television, or elevators, and that WiFi may not always be available.  

During an EF Tour

All transportation arrangements are made by EF Tours, including flights, buses, trains, etc.  They book all accommodations and attraction admissions for tour participants. 

Two meals a day are included in the cost of a trip with EF Tours.  Breakfast is provided each day at the hotel, usually continental style, but sometimes with hot offerings just depending on your hotel.  Dinners are are pre-arranged with a preset menu by EF at local restaurants.  EF will make accomodations for those with specific dietary needs, such as gluten free or dairy free meals.

While the teacher recruiting students is designated as your group leader, they don’t actually lead the tour once you start traveling.  EF provides a Tour Director to accompany your group through the entire trip.  

This Tour Director is supposed to handle just about everything on your tour, including all your pre-booked accommodations, meals, excursions, tickets, and transfers.  This person is there to direct the group and handle any problems with logistics you may encounter along the way.  

During the tour, your group will meet up with various local guides who will give you some sort of tour of the city or historic site that you’re visiting.  These tours are usually walking tours, but sometimes are bus tours, depending on the location.  

Tour participants are also given access to an EF Tours App, that just lists your daily itinerary for your trip.  

Our EF Tour Review

Our specific tour featured quite a daunting itinerary.  We toured Europe for 12 days, visiting sites in London, Paris, Florence, Rome, Pompeii and Capri, with no more than two nights in any destination.  

Our tour consisted of 26 travelers from our high school: three teachers, seven adults and 16 students.  We were combined with a group from upstate New York consisting of 14 travelers: one teacher, one adult, one child and 11 students.  There were a total of 40 people on our tour.  

What EF Tours Promised

Before our tour, the group leaded made sure every person who showed an interest in going on the trip got the glossy, full color brochure that outlined our itinerary and told us what to expect on the tour.  

The brochure promised that participants would be “surrounded by the people, the language, the food, and the way of life” of the destinations on our itinerary.  We were assured that our tour director would be “with us around the clock, handling local transportation, hotels, and meals while also providing their own insight into the local history and culture.”  

We would be spending time in three different countries, seeing some of the most beautiful and historic cities in Europe.

The brochure also claimed that students could earn educational credit while on tour, and that all tours feature “experiential learning activities.”

Our tour left some of these promises unfulfilled, but did give us a glimpse at some fantastic destinations in Europe and some amazing memories.  

Our hotels along the trip started out stellar but seemed to go downhill from there, unfortunately ending in truly unacceptable accommodations.  

Even though this wasn’t guaranteed, all of our accommodations had some sort of air conditioning, with some that functioned better than others, and all of them had WiFi.  

For the first four nights during our stays in London and Paris, we were sent to Hilton Hotels .  They both were on the higher end of what I expected based on the descriptions provided by EF Tours of what our hotels would be like.  

The rooms at these Hiltons were very new, immaculately clean and extremely comfortable.  They were both located about an hour outside of the city center, but that wasn’t too much of a problem.  

When we reached Italy, things changed a bit.  

For a quick overnight in Milan on our way to Florence, we stayed at and AS Hotel in Limbiate.  This hotel was a bit older than the Hiltons we’d stayed in, but it was clean, spacious, and comfortable.  

Between Florence and Rome, we spent the night at the Hotel Villa Ricci (not pictured).  This hotel was significantly older than the other three we had stayed at, but it was still clean and comfortable.  While the room wasn’t much to write home about, some members of our group lucked out and got spectacular balconies. 

Once we arrived in Rome, the Villa Aurelia was our home base for two nights.  We learned that this hotel had once housed men studying to join a monastery, which explained the doritory feel of the place.  Again, we found these rooms to be clean and pretty comfortable.  

On our way to Southern Italy, we spent the night in Sorrento at Sisters Hostel .  This was the only true hostel on our trip.  While they still stuck with four students to a room, several of the student rooms had enough beds to sleep up to 12 people. 

Though not quite as refined as the Hiltons, and a little slap-shot with the furniture, we found this place to be clean and welcoming.  While it wasn’t quite as comfortable as some of the other places we’d stayed, it was completely acceptable and had a spectacular view of the Gulf of Naples from the rooftop terrace. 

Things took a turn for the worse on our last night of the tour, when we stayed at Hotel La Pergola in Rome.  This place was truly one of the worst hotels I’ve ever had the misfortune to stay at (and as a travel blogger, I’ve stayed at a LOT of hotels).  

Things started off badly when we discovered that the lights in all the hallways were not on, and that we had to hunt around with our cell phone flashlights to find our way to our rooms.  I asked the front desk to remedy this, but it was never addressed, and we had to repeat the blind search for our rooms every time we went up.  

Upon arrival in my room, I found it to be extremely dirty.  There was a layer of dusty film all over my bathroom and my pillow had an unidentified crusty stain on it.  My daughter’s room had the same layer of dirt in the bathroom, plus a shoe print from where someone killed a bug on the wall.  I checked our beds for bedbugs and thankfully did not find any. 

The front desk did not seem to care and we were told no one was available to come clean the bathrooms.

But the worst experience in this hotel went to a dad on our trip, who’s single room contained only a sofa.   Not a sleeper sofa, but just a hard couch.  There were no linens or towels available to him whatsoever. 

When he asked for these items at the front desk, he was told that we should have called earlier to request them since they were all locked up in a cabinet by the time we arrived at the hotel.   He ended up sleeping on a towel laid out on the sofa with a travel neck pillow, that had been provided to him by his daughter from her room.

The front desk attendant seemed more than annoyed anytime someone from our group would approach them, and insisted that we all leave our keys at the front desk when leaving the hotel for dinner that night.    

We weren’t left with much recourse, since this was a group trip and we were on our last night, so we decided to just grin and bear it, and did our best to get some sleep.  

Overall, I’d say that the hotels provided were quite good, with the exception of Hotel La Pergola.  For ten of the eleven nights of our trip, we were provided with clean, safe accommodations that lived up to what the EF Tours website told us to expect.  

At the time of this publication, EF Tours has been notified of this unacceptable hotel and has yet to respond.  

Meals on the tour ran the gamut from weird to stellar, but overall were not to bad.  Breakfast and dinner every day were included in what we paid for our tour.  

All breakfasts were served at our hotels.  Sometimes they were just continental breakfasts with cold offerings, and sometimes we were given hot breakfasts with eggs, bacon, and such.  Sometimes it was quite obvious where our group was supposed to go, and sometimes it wasn’t. 

Overall, breakfasts were adequate throughout the trip.  

Lunches were not included in the initial price of our trip and were paid out of pocket each day.   

Lunches were always a gamble.   It all depended on where we were and what was going on whether or not we’d get to select a restaurant on our own or if the group would be directed to eat at somewhere specific, and if we’d have lots of great choices or really limited options.  

For example, on our first full day of the trip, we visited the Tower of London.  We told to make sure we ate lunch after our tour, before rejoining the group to get on the bus.  The only options available to us were food trucks along the river right next to the Tower complex.  

It was the worst during our travel days.  We were frequently told we could just grab a bite to eat at the train station or the airport, only to be left with minimal time and very limited options.  

But some days lunch was great.  During our time in Rome, lunch came with some free time to wander, so we were able to go out and select the restaurant of our choice.  

Some days our tour guide would set up a lunch option for us, having arranged a preset menu and price with a local restaurant.  Those options were usually something like a burger, pizza or a cold sandwich.  

I’m not sure if the lunch situations were like this because of our tour guide or because of EF itself.  Sometimes it seemed inevitable, like when we were stuck in an airport or train station.  Other times it seemed like our guide might be creating these situations by not fully informing us what was available near by.  

All dinners were set up at local restaurants before our arrival.  We did not get to select from a menu and were all served the same thing each night, with the exception of those who had special dietary needs.  Each meal came with water, but we were allowed to order additional drinks at our own expense if we choose to do so.  

The worst dinners EF provided happened during the first few days of our trip.  During our entire time in London, we were not once served any traditional English food.  Our Tour Director said it was because “London is a melting pot of cultures,” but our group didn’t buy that.  

Our first group dinner in London was at a Korean restaurant where the group was served a hot stone bibimbap with chicken.  I’m normally a big fan of Korean food, but this wasn’t great. 

The next group dinner was at a Polish restaurant where the group was served a fried chicken patty and french fries.  

When it became apparent on the second night that we weren’t going to be getting any traditional English food, my daughter and I made arrangements to go get dinner on our own, and pay for it out of pocket.  Four other members of our group chose to join us.  

We simply got information from our Tour Guide when and where to meet up with the group after dinner and selected a nearby local pub so we could have a traditional English dining experience.  

Dinners seemed to improve when we got to France. During our first night there we had a lovely traditional French meal of chicken with mushroom sauce in the back room of a small picturesque cafe with a ton of ambiance.   On the second night we had a traditional Alsatian dish called Flammekueche, which was sort of like a pizza with a creamy sauce.  

In Italy, the dinners were quite good.  Of course we were served a lot of pasta, but we also had braised beef in tomato sauce, gnocchi, and pizza.  

According to the folks on our trip who had special dietary needs, the dinners were pretty good for the most part.  Although it did seem that everywhere we went in Italy, anyone who was gluten free or dairy free was served watermelon for dessert.  

Before we left on our trip, we were told by our group leader that we shouldn’t need more that $25 US dollars per person per day for lunches and snacks.  We found that that number was not quite accurate for us, especially if we ever wanted to stray from the planned meals that EF Tours had set up for us.  

We also found that we frequently needed to buy water to stay hydrated in the high temperatures of Italy during the summer, and at most of the locations we visited, water was marked up quite a bit.  

Overall, the meals on our trip were pretty good, but could definitely have been better.  

Our Itinerary

We knew going into this tour that our itinerary would be extremely hectic.  With no more than 48 hours in any location, we expected it to be jam packed.  It was kind of like a tasting menu, where you got a little bit of each destination.  

What we didn’t expect was the significant amount of wasted time and changes to our itinerary that happened on our tour.  

Things started off poorly when our tour guide was an hour late to meet us at baggage claim and then our bus was over another hour late to pick us up at the airport.  

While our tour guide was a very sweet, personable woman, she didn’t seem to understand how to manage the timing logistics for a group of 40 travelers.  

Our group was quite good about being on time to meet up locations with a couple of small exceptions that could not be helped.  No one wanted to be the person that made us late.  

Our tour guide didn’t seem to have this mentality.  She was frequently the last person downstairs at our hotels to meet our bus 15 to 20 minutes after the time she told us to meet her, and did not budget in adequate travel time to most of our destinations. 

For example, while we were driving across Italy, she had our driver stop at a large gas station for a bathroom stop.   She told us we only had five minutes to use the restroom and get back on the bus.  It’s completely impossible for 40 people to make use of just a handful of bathroom stalls in five minutes. 

We were late to our tours in London, Florence, and the Vatican.  We were late to our tour of the Colosseum in Rome.  We were late to our appointment at the Louvre.  We were so late to our tour of Pompeii.  This significantly hindered what we were able to see at our destinations, and made the whole tour seemed very rushed every day.  

Things like this happened over and over again throughout the trip.  This resulted in our group being habitually late to most of the tours we went on, and significantly cut into our time at some really important places.

The only times it seemed like we weren’t late was when we had to catch a flight, a train, or a ferry.  

There were also some pretty significant changes to our itinerary. 

Several items listed on our initial brochure were changed before the trip due to pandemic restrictions and travel challenges, which was fine.  We had ample notice and knew what to expect.    

But there were several instances where visits to certain locations were dropped off our itinerary completely, and visits to other non-advertised locations were added.  

Sometimes this was a good thing, but sometimes it was incredibly frustrating.  

In London, a walking tour of Piccadilly Circus, Covent Garden and Leicester Square was replaced with “free time” at the British Museum, which we really didn’t mind. 

But in Florence, visits to San Miniato al Monte and Piazzale Michelangelo were dropped off the itinerary with no explanation.  

On our way to Rome, our guide added a stop in Ovierto, a beautiful small town with picturesque views, wonderful dining and great little shops which we enjoyed immensely. 

But in Paris, a visit to Montmartre was abandoned, even though our dinner restaurant was within a mile of the historic location.  

The best unexpected addition to our trip in my opinion was the opportunity to see a musical in the West End of London.  Our guide was able to secure tickets (for an extra fee) for those who wanted them to a performance of Wicked during our free evening.  It was absolutely fantastic.  

But in the most frustrating example, during our time in Paris a visit to the Frogonard Perfume Museum was added to our itinerary.   No one asked to go there, and most of us seemed annoyed that we were stopping.  We were assured that the stop there would only last 30 minutes, but it ended up taking three times that, leaving us only an hour and a half to visit the Louvre before we had to be back on the bus to catch a flight to Italy.  

These added stops almost always involved additional costs as well, which we were not informed of before leaving for our trip.  This caused problems for a few kids on our trip who weren’t expecting these costs, and they unfortunately had to miss out on some of the better additions. 

There also seemed to be major sites in some of these cities that were not ever even an option to visit or see, due to our limited time in each city.   We didn’t go to Westminster Abbey or St. Paul’s Cathedral while we were in London, and there were too many things to count in Paris that we didn’t even glimpse.  While we were aware of this upfront before the tour, it really did feel like they didn’t allow enough time in any location to really see the cities we were in.  

Despite these frustrations, the itinerary did take us to some fantastic places and we had some absolutely unforgettable experiences.  We had a fantastic time seeing the Crown Jewels at the Tower of London.  We enjoyed a truly magical and unexpected sunset under the Eiffel Tower in Paris.  We got to listen to an orchestra perform in Piazza della Signoria in Florence.  We were able to marvel at the unparalleled artwork inside St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican.  We saw the stunningly beautiful sites of Capri from a private boat tour.  Those memories are truly priceless.  

During our trip there were extra excursions offered in any city we stayed in more than one night. 

In London, the excursion was a visit to the London Eye, a giant ferris wheel type ride that gives riders a birds eye view of the city.  In Paris, it was a trip to Versaille to tour the palace and the gardens.  In Rome, it was a tiramisu cooking class.  

We choose not to participate in the excursion in London because I’m not the biggest fan of heights, and in Paris because my daughter wanted the opportunity to spend some extra free time in the city.  

I’m extremely glad we made those decisions.   

While the London Eye excursion seemed to go well for those who went on it, it was over priced.  EF Tours charged each participant $60.  Tickets can be purchased individually at the ticket booth for just $42 USD or for groups ahead of time for just $24 USD.  I’m not sure what EF added to the experience to warrant that upcharge.  

By skipping the London Eye, we were able to have a bit more time to explore and plenty of time to enjoy our pub dinner that we mentioned earlier since the London Eye excursion was timed to happen right before dinner.  

In Paris, those who went to Versaille told us the experience was underwhelming because of the limited time available inside the palace, and the lack of lunch options available to those who went.  

The Versailles excursion seemed overpriced as well.  EF Tours charged $114 USD to each participant.  Tickets to the entire estate are free for those under 18 years old and cost under $30 USD for anyone else, and that’s without a group discount.  Even if every single person had to buy a ticket,  I can’t imagine that the cost for a group tour and the transportation to get the group there cost an additional $84 USD per person.  

The tiramisu cooking class in Rome was not optional for our group for some reason.  I think our group leader made that choice when she set up our trip.  We paid an extra $85 USD above and beyond the base tour price to experience it.  While I could not find information about individual class pricing, I highly doubt that EF paid that much per person for us to spend an hour making tiramisu. 

I will say that the class was a fun experience at a great location, and we all enjoyed the desserts we made together.  

Overall, unless an excursion is of special interest to you, I wouldn’t recommend participating in them, simply because they seem overpriced.  Having extra free time to see the sites of your choice seemed to be the best option during our tour.  

Education on an EF Tour

EF Tours makes a big deal out of their tours being focused on education.  We were promised “experiential learning activities” during the trip.  They even claim you can earn credit for going on these tour.  

We found that there wasn’t that much education attached to our tour.  

The local tour guides who showed us the sights of each city were the most informative folks on this trip, with extensive knowledge of the history and culture at each stop, but we were forced to use amplifying devices called Whispers in order to hear the guides.  These Whispers often had glitches or were garbled, making it very hard to understand our guides.  

Other than the local tour guides and maybe the tiramisu class, I wouldn’t call just visiting these historic places an “experiential learning activity.”  

We also learned that our high school would not give any credit to students who participated in these trips, even though much was made of the educational credit during the pitch to get us to join the tour.  

This isn’t to say that we didn’t learn anything on our trip.  We did have some great cultural experiences while we traveled.  But learning seemed to take a back seat to just being in another country in most circumstances.  

Safety with EF Tours

As a parent considering an EF Tour for my teenager, I know safety was a big concern for me.  

When my husband and I decided to send our daughter, we felt like one of us should go with her since she was only 15 at the time we went on the trip, and had not traveled internationally like this before.  

For the most part, I felt quite safe during our trip.  

Before our trip, our group leader did make sure to advise us about pickpocketing and theft at major tourist sites in Europe, and advised us to be prepared.  She did make sure we were always wary of our passports and where we were keeping them during our travels.  

While on tour, there was only one time that I felt like our group was taken to an unsafe area.  That was during our terrible last night in Rome when we had to walk from our hotel to our dinner restaurant through some pretty sketchy areas of the city.  

Although student were allowed to go out on their own during our free time, they were asked to go in groups of three or four and were left in pretty safe areas to spend their free time.  

The biggest problem I saw with safety was when our Tour Guide would take off walking at a breakneck speed, frequently leaving half our group stuck at crosswalks or a few turns behind.  She usually did a count to make sure everyone was there when we were ready to leave, but she did leave people behind at least twice during our trip and have to go back and get them.  

Most of the time we had no idea where we were headed when we were walking to different locations.  We were never given the names of the restaurants or addresses of where they would be unless we specifically asked for them.  I think communicating with the group more about where we’re going could have avoided some sticky situations that a few of our travelers found themselves in when they were left behind.  

We also didn’t have a way to contact our Tour Guide directly.  Only a couple of people were given her contact information, which made communication confusing and difficult during our free time, especially when she got delayed during our free evening in Paris and our meeting time had to be pushed back significantly.

Curfews and group rules were left up to our group leader, who didn’t set many boundaries for our students.  

Since the legal drinking age in the areas we visited was 18, student who met this requirement were allowed to drink alcohol on our trip, but were asked to limit it to one drink with dinner.  By and large, our students respected this request and did not take advantage of the lowered drinking age to go and party it up.  

Trips like this EF Tour require students to be pretty mature when it comes to safety.  We had a wonderful group of kids who took their personal safety pretty seriously, and didn’t take unnecessary risks that would put them in jeopardy.  Had it been a different group of personalities, I’m not sure how it would have gone.  

EF Tours:  Our Final Verdict

Would I travel with EF Tours again?  That seems to be the question at hand here.  

My EF Tours experience definitely taught me a lot about group travel.  As someone who travels pretty frequently , I usually make most of my own travel arrangements, from flights to hotel reservations to activities.  It was quite nice not to have to worry about any of that.  It really did take a lot of pressure off to just let someone else do all that work. 

But relinquishing that control does require a certain amount of trust.  There were some areas that I would definitely trust EF to arrange again, and other areas where I really think they could do better.  

For this trip it really came down to adjusting expectations once we were traveling.  I really did expect there to be more education involved in what we did while on our tour.  I really did expect to spend some quality time at these major historic sites. 

Once I realized that time would be much more limited at every destination than I expected it to be, the trip went much more smoothly.  

I think our experience would have been better with a more seasoned Tour Guide.  Ours just didn’t seem quite ready to handle all the pressures and logistics that are required for managing a group of 40 people for 12 days.  

EF Tours is definitely a budget tour company, and for the price, you do get a good experience.  

Did EF Tours create the trip of my dreams?  Not by a long shot. 

Did they create a good experience for students who haven’t done a lot of international traveling?  I’d say yes.  

Do I regret going on an EF Tour?  Absolutely not.  I had some incredible experiences in some amazing locations with my only daughter, and I wouldn’t trade that for the world.  

Would I go on another EF Tour?  I think I would, but I would definitely choose a slower paced itinerary with more time in each destination.  

Do you have any questions about EF Tours that I didn’t answer?  Feel free to ask me in the comments!!

EF Tours Review: The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

Thursday 14th of March 2024

Thank you so much for your insightful review! My daughter is headed to S. Korea in a few weeks and reading all these comments & your review...I'm just hoping for the best at this point. I wanted to ask about the tipping. Our group leader has requested $145 paid to her in cash, which I was completely caught off guard, considering the financial commitment of the trip itself, but reading this, it seems that it is quite normal. I contacted EF and the representative said that according to the tour itinerary, the total suggested guideline should be significantly less. Do you know what happens if there is a surplus or shortage with the tipping amount? I'm just wary about giving someone I don't even know (group leader) cash.

Louise Emery

Tuesday 2nd of April 2024

I really am not sure what would be done with a surplus. I would definitely ask the group leader about the discrepancy between their request and the recommendation of EF.

Melissa Levy

The parent in charge of the tour I’m about to go on is asking for $200 for tips from each parent going on the trip and $120 for each kid. Based on what I’ve read, this seems like a lot. What do you think?

I think it depends on where you're going and what you're doing. We paid somewhere in the neighborhood of $150 per person. We had a LOT of tours and there were many people to tip. My only concern is the different amount for parent vs student. I wonder why they are breaking it down that way.

Wednesday 21st of February 2024

Expectations make a difference!

Thanks for taking the time to go through all these details. My son did go on one of these trips in his junior year of HS and loved it. I can understand the concerns you mentioned and makes those points something to think about when scheduling a group tour. As an adult, I have been to Europe twice with groups (travel award from workd) I know EF Tours has groups for that as well, and have been apprehensive to just 'jump in". Trying to analyze what is the best option to finally get to the Grand Canyon. Thanks for your perspectives

1concerned Mama

Monday 29th of January 2024

Hi, daughter is going through EF summer of 2024 to Europe, she has been told by a teacher that students will have "free time" to walk around and do as they please. Do you know is this a Supervised free time? I am kind of weary about letting her go as it is, let alone being unsupervised in another country without me. I'm honestly leaning towards just canceling her trip after reading some of these comments.

I'm not sure how it will be handled on your trip, but on ours students were allowed to go out unsupervised. The teacher from our school asked that they stay in groups of at least 2. Most of our students chose to be in groups of 3 or 4, some with an adult and some without. We were given specific instructions on where and what time to meet up again. Most of the time, we only had a couple of hours. But my daughter and I did skip one of the optional excursions (the one to Versailles) which gave us an entire afternoon in Paris to ourselves. Our students handled this freedom quite responsibly, and we didn't have any issues. The only time we ever had someone not show up at our pick up spot, it was one of the adults on the trip who didn't plan accordingly. The group we were paired with from another school did not allow their students to do this. They all stayed together for their entire trip. I would get specifics from the the lead teacher organizing your trip as to how your group is going to handle this.

EF Educational Tours   Reviews

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Reviews 4.4.

13,962 total

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As a parent there were many check ins…

As a parent there were many check ins throughout the whole process. Reminders to complete forms, passports and were available to answer questions. They held a pre meeting which also helped with anxieties and used Whats App as a means of communication when they were away First thing my son said to me was that it was "a life altering experience!"

Date of experience : April 21, 2024

Not quite what we were expecting.

Room assignments every other night should be organized prior to arrival. Waisted 2 hours at every new hotel. Hotels should be located closer to cities limits. 3 hours lost round trip every evening. Tourist's need more than 3 hours of sleep. Dinner menu NEVER matched itinerary. Dinner quality/locations were sub par.

Date of experience : April 14, 2024

Great experience

Anytime there is an issue with payment or I had a payment question or a question in general, there is always someone there to answer it and to go into detail and make sure I understood. That my question was thoroughly answered. As far as the trip, they had everything set up in their app that I can see what my child was doing and seeing each day. My child said that they loved the experiences That the tour provided I felt safe that Child was being taken care of attention to detail was met, their safety was a big priority. The tour guides were very knowledgeable.

Date of experience : April 18, 2024

Worth every penny!

Very well organized, good busses - but do wish they had charger outlets, awesome guide, and hotels were really nice I would've liked more free time or optional type excursions The whisper system was terrible- nearly impossible to hear the guide on it.

Date of experience : April 01, 2024

Great EF Experience!

Our tour guide (Claudia) was amazing and so was our bus driver (Maurizio)! The locations we visited were very interesting, the hotels were very nice, the meals were good, and the extra excursions were very fun. EF Tours is a well organized company with a website that has a lot of excellent information to prepare you for your trip. Thank you so much for making our trip so memorable and enjoyable!

Date of experience : March 29, 2024

Great experiences, awful food

The experiences and organization were wonderful! The tour director was wonderful (we requested him again after a tour 2 years ago)! The food was awful!! We pay a lot to go on these tours and we felt very much like cattle being fed at a trough. They made our group too big (50 total) by combining 2 groups, so every restaurant and hotel had to mass produce food. We had pasta, a mystery meat and a veggie/potatoes every single night of our trip. In Italy! It got old and it wasn’t good food. Disappointed. ☹️

Date of experience : March 30, 2024

NOT Bella Italia

Dislike- breakfast and dinner offered by your company, did not reflect the cuisine of the country and did not feel student got money's worth at meals. Also, feel that students should have been provided hydration/ water bottles during coach tours which were long and in high temperatures..a lot of walking and they should not have been required to buy water on tour. Several hotels on tour were less that sanitary. My daughter was in a triple on tour in Rome and the sheets int he room were dirty and there was some sort of stain on med and walls. There were insects found in bed too. She did report this to supervising staff as well. In Rome as well, several of the supervising adults were not able to experience the Colisuem sightseeing as EF did not purchase enough entry tickets.

Amazing Ireland, Wales, and London experience!

EF did a fantastic job with coordinating our travel across Ireland, Wales, and London. We saw so many beautiful places and were welcomed with open arms by all hotels, tour guides, and experiences. Our Guide, Jayne, was unbelievable. She was so warm, welcoming, and organized. We're very impressed and will definitely do another EF tour!

Date of experience : April 12, 2024

Life changing experience!

My son and I had the time of our lives! We visited many villages and historic sites. Had plenty of time to immerse ourselves in the culture. The tour guides were knowledgeable and entertaining. Our tour director, Nilton, was kind, personable, and very competent. We felt comfortable and cared for. The Peruvian people were welcoming and friendly. While the pace was sometimes fast and there was a lot of travel involved, every minute of the trip was exciting and memorable!

Date of experience : March 22, 2024

My experience as a parent was amazing …

My experience as a parent was exceptional. We were informed about everything. No question left unanswered and our daughter had the experience of a lifetime! We are grateful she had the opportunity and one of the best spring breaks ever!!!!

Date of experience : April 20, 2024

Great opportunity for these kids

Great opportunity for these kids. Everything was smooth from the initial offer to travel, paying and meetings all the way up to the date of the trip. All our questions were answered and the group leader kept us informed everyday they were gone with updates and pictures of the kids enjoying themselves. Our oldest went this time and we’ll definitely sign our younger daughter up when it’s she’s older.

Date of experience : April 13, 2024

Obtuse EF Tours HQ Staff

My kids had a great experience, but it's the EF Tours HQ staff that earn 3 out of 5 stars. When a problem developed, the EF HQ staff was less than cooperative and not geared toward working together to solve the problem. The first name of the escalated staff member had to be pried out of her and she refused to give her last name. Obtuse describes their approach to customer satisfaction. Our school will recommend to look for other tour partners next year.

Date of experience : April 17, 2024

Our tour was amazing

Our tour was amazing, our tour guide Laura was kind, interesting, and very knowledgeable about traveling between the different countries. She was flexible and understood our needs. Our guides in each city were so much fun and knew so much history we were able to learn amazing things about each country.

Scheduled tours never happened

Poorly planned. Tours that were scheduled,listed in the itinerary, and included in cost were canceled once in Paris. The explanation for these disappointments were "couldn't get tickets" and "the Olympics". Both are poor excuses as this trip was planned and being paid for more than a year in advance. No apologies or refunds were extended by EF Tours. In addition, I believe a trip planned for high school students should included three meals a day. Teenagers do not have the means and resources to navigate a foreign city independently to search for a meal. They were forced to find restaurants, usually unhealthy fast food, that was within walking distance of the hotel. Very disappointed with 1/3 of the trip that didn't happen...waiting for the refund equivalent to 1/3 of the cost for EF Tours failings.

Wonderful Experience

Linda Moon was a fantastic Tour Director. The sites we visited and the things we did were super fun - like glacier walking! Good food, excellent bus and driver. Nice balance between formal events and free time. Good locations for hotels.

Date of experience : April 19, 2024

Great Experience - Costa Rica

Great Experience! My son loved meeting new people, opening up to new culture, exploring, ziplining, time on the beach and dancing! I am so glad that we were able for him to have this chance to try something new.

Date of experience : April 10, 2024

This was my daughter’s second time traveling with her school along with EF Tours and she has a third trip coming in June! The first time sending her alone because me or her dad couldn’t go was scary and a lot of nervousness. However, I appreciate the great measures that are taken to keep her safe during travel. Everything is laid out that you can think of from flights, hotel, daily intinerary, tips, food, etc. and she had plenty of things to see and experience. I love the payment plan option as well to allow children to explore the world and other cultures. This is such a wonderful opportunity and she will be going on every trip offered going forward.

Overall, I feel my twin daughters' experience was excellent. However, I would have liked to know their flight information sooner than when I received it. I was also not happy with the hotel selection in Florence, Italy. My daughters expressed that it was not clean and that they did not feel safe. They also expressed the meals in the evenings, for the most part were just ok.

I recently took 45 students on the…

I recently took 45 students on the Paris, French Riviera, & Rome tour, which was wonderful. For sure, it was a lot to see in a short time but this is a wonderful way to get students excited about traveling. The hotels were good, sometimes a bit of a hike, but understandable. I had a challenging situation on the trip. The people at EF were perfect in helping us manage to resolve the problem. I will continue to use, and to recommend, EF as the tour group to use for student travel.

Best guide best experience ever!

Our guide was the best! He worked so hard to be sure everyone had a wonderful experience. Having a translator was extra helpful so we could fully understand everything. It was amazing and truly one of the best trips I’ve ever had. Gave me a deeper appreciation for Japanese culture. We were truly sad to leave. Can’t wait to return again one day!

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Ef education first, explorica us, passports travel.

EF Educational Tours   Reviews

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Reviews 4.4.

13,962 total

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EF gave us a wonderful experience

EF gave us a wonderful experience! Our TD was amazing, we had a good amount of both structured and free time, and we felt secure the whole time knowing our safety was priority with EF.

Date of experience : April 13, 2024

What a great well organized trip

What a great well organized trip. My son had so much fun. They stayed in quality hotels, saw many sites and transportation was executed without a hitch. He would do it again!

Date of experience : April 20, 2024

An ideal school trip!

Central America was the perfect place for my middle schoolers. Shorter flights, friendly Spanish speakers, and an overall warm welcoming country to visit. Itinerary started off slow (which may have been for the better, considering how wore out everyone is in the end). Food tour, and La Fortuna were a few highlights for my students. Great experience! Great taste of Costa Rica.

Date of experience : April 11, 2024

Trustworthy School Trip company

Easy to use EF app and very responsive site representative.Most of all, the trip is super organized and safe. My son keep praise the tour director

Date of experience : April 07, 2024

European Carousel

Above all, I enjoyed the trip; though I was frustrated with some aspects. We were in Amsterdam during tulip season and didn't get to see them. We were also in Munich, Germany on Easter Sunday and everything was closed. We should have been told that the day before. Most of us thought that should have been a travel day. The hotel in Switzerland had an interesting owner who yelled at the kids because his hotel has thin walls.

Date of experience : April 18, 2024

Vietnam trip

Once we were in Vietnam with my 15 students, everything went well and our guide Dee was wonderful. However, it was a stressful process before the trip. There were a lot miscommunications with the agency. Getting the flights 2 months before and hotels one month before were stressful for me and parents. At the airport, the driver of the shuttle was sent to a different hotel at 4am. We had a great trip but the process was not smooth. Very stressfull!

Date of experience : April 19, 2024

EF ensures success for Group Leaders

From choosing a tour, to organizing information sessions for families, from keeping the enthusiasm and momentum going to preparing travelers for the trip, my Tour Consultant was there every step of the way! The whole process was seamless! There's a reason why EF is the name you know! They've got a great recipe! I traveled with EF as a student in 10th and 12th grade and loved both of those experiences. Now as a Group Leader I was able to help facilitate creating unforgettable experiences for my students and their family members who traveled with us! The portal was user-friendly, the checklists kept me on point, and my first tour was a success! I am already planning my second!

A magical experience!

This is my second time joining one of my kids on an EF Tours vacation. EF Tours planned out everything from the start of the preparation, air travel, tour locations, the best tour guides, hotels, meals, museums, castles, churches, river boat rides, and even going to the Eye of London "ferris wheel". Any glitches, such as having me rooming with a male I never met before, was taken care of immediately. There was a mix up with one of our bus drivers on the last day, but that was seamlessly taken care of as well. We even had an extra tour guide with us who was in training - a nice bonus for everyone. It was magical to say the least!

Date of experience : March 28, 2024

An experience that's worth it

The experience was truly wonderful. I learned many new things and saw new sights every second during my travel experience. Would recommend.

Date of experience : April 15, 2024

London and Paris STEM Tour

This tour exceeded my expectations. Our tour director was knowledgeable, helpful and engaging. I enjoyed all the dinners at the restaurants. The hotels rooms were nice. One thing I would change is the breakfasts: Although good, we had the same exact breakfast for 7 days.

Date of experience : April 17, 2024

Won't Repeat an EF Tour

Firsr,, Customer service was hideous. Once the package was paid in full, the double-talk began. Second, Our Tour Guide in Paris (Joel) was simply obnoxious. We had several students nearly get hit by vehicles because they were unable to keep up with the fast walking pace. Joel had to be reminded several times DAILY to slow down to wait for the entire group (38 people).

Could be better

I liked being in Italy, the payment plan set up, the itinerary and I loved the tour guide - Kent! I did not think the dinners provided by EF were good and I thought combining with another group that we did not know took away from our experience. It made our group too big to navigate busy cities, and we constantly had to wait for members of their group - 1 time for more than an hour, cutting into our time.

Date of experience : March 31, 2024

Wonderful tour

Wonderful tour. As always would love more time at some attractions but know due to time constraints that’s not always possible. But overall a great tour and experience.

great experience for everyone

My son went with his school to Japan and he was truly given a once in a life time experience. They traveled all over Japan learned a lot about the culture, saw different landmarks, got to experience many different Japanese meals.

Date of experience : April 02, 2024

Best Tour Guide Ever!

Our tour guide, Yoyo (pronounced Jojo), was absolutely amazing. I travel internationally often, and this was by far one of the best tours I have ever had. My daughter, 13, also enjoyed herself and eagerly asked her teacher, "When is the next trip?!" If I could give more than 5 stars, I would!

Date of experience : April 12, 2024

Every was just awesome and great just…

Every was just awesome and great just two inconveniences. First was that I had told the chaparons that my son is allergic to shellfish and he eat shrimp in one of the meals. Nothing happen to him. Things like this must be watched extra careful. Second the experience my kids had with the bus catching on fire. My daughter has PTSD from a fire she was in as a toddler. Other than that everything was great.

The day in Lucerne

The day in Lucerne, Switzerland was the highlight of the trip for me!! The Swiss Alps had a fresh layer of snow from rain/snow the day before. A bucket list check for sure! All the history, architecture, ornate churches, buildings, throughout the trip, just so beautiful!!

Very organized

Overall the experience was a lot of fun. It peaked my interest in Japan and I'd like to go back. My criticisms are that 1)There were too many things on the itinerary. We went places and only spent short amounts of time. I felt rushed through things. Also, I don't feel like we got a good taste of local food. I understand that we had to eat in places that could accommodate a large group but I was really hoping for a better food experience. Other than that, the organization was great, our hotels were great, our guide was great and the choices of things to see were great. Thank you!

Date of experience : March 29, 2024

Our tour guide Giordano is extremely…

Our tour guide Giordano is extremely knowledgeable and helpful. We happy with his tour. The bus service e was good. The paces we went was very diverse and not places I would normally go.

No evening activity in Paris

My daughter's tour wasn't able to do their Paris evening activity. It was supposed to be a boat tour on the Seine, but the recent rains have made the water level too high for boats to be able to pass under the bridges. Our Tour Director, Helen, said we should get some money back for this.

EF Educational Tours   Reviews

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Reviews 4.4.

13,962 total

Most relevant

As a parent there were many check ins…

As a parent there were many check ins throughout the whole process. Reminders to complete forms, passports and were available to answer questions. They held a pre meeting which also helped with anxieties and used Whats App as a means of communication when they were away First thing my son said to me was that it was "a life altering experience!"

Date of experience : 21 April 2024

Not quite what we were expecting.

Room assignments every other night should be organized prior to arrival. Waisted 2 hours at every new hotel. Hotels should be located closer to cities limits. 3 hours lost round trip every evening. Tourist's need more than 3 hours of sleep. Dinner menu NEVER matched itinerary. Dinner quality/locations were sub par.

Date of experience : 14 April 2024

Great experience

Anytime there is an issue with payment or I had a payment question or a question in general, there is always someone there to answer it and to go into detail and make sure I understood. That my question was thoroughly answered. As far as the trip, they had everything set up in their app that I can see what my child was doing and seeing each day. My child said that they loved the experiences That the tour provided I felt safe that Child was being taken care of attention to detail was met, their safety was a big priority. The tour guides were very knowledgeable.

Date of experience : 18 April 2024

Worth every penny!

Very well organized, good busses - but do wish they had charger outlets, awesome guide, and hotels were really nice I would've liked more free time or optional type excursions The whisper system was terrible- nearly impossible to hear the guide on it.

Date of experience : 01 April 2024

Great EF Experience!

Our tour guide (Claudia) was amazing and so was our bus driver (Maurizio)! The locations we visited were very interesting, the hotels were very nice, the meals were good, and the extra excursions were very fun. EF Tours is a well organized company with a website that has a lot of excellent information to prepare you for your trip. Thank you so much for making our trip so memorable and enjoyable!

Date of experience : 29 March 2024

Great experiences, awful food

The experiences and organization were wonderful! The tour director was wonderful (we requested him again after a tour 2 years ago)! The food was awful!! We pay a lot to go on these tours and we felt very much like cattle being fed at a trough. They made our group too big (50 total) by combining 2 groups, so every restaurant and hotel had to mass produce food. We had pasta, a mystery meat and a veggie/potatoes every single night of our trip. In Italy! It got old and it wasn’t good food. Disappointed. ☹️

Date of experience : 30 March 2024

NOT Bella Italia

Dislike- breakfast and dinner offered by your company, did not reflect the cuisine of the country and did not feel student got money's worth at meals. Also, feel that students should have been provided hydration/ water bottles during coach tours which were long and in high temperatures..a lot of walking and they should not have been required to buy water on tour. Several hotels on tour were less that sanitary. My daughter was in a triple on tour in Rome and the sheets int he room were dirty and there was some sort of stain on med and walls. There were insects found in bed too. She did report this to supervising staff as well. In Rome as well, several of the supervising adults were not able to experience the Colisuem sightseeing as EF did not purchase enough entry tickets.

Amazing Ireland, Wales, and London experience!

EF did a fantastic job with coordinating our travel across Ireland, Wales, and London. We saw so many beautiful places and were welcomed with open arms by all hotels, tour guides, and experiences. Our Guide, Jayne, was unbelievable. She was so warm, welcoming, and organized. We're very impressed and will definitely do another EF tour!

Date of experience : 12 April 2024

Life changing experience!

My son and I had the time of our lives! We visited many villages and historic sites. Had plenty of time to immerse ourselves in the culture. The tour guides were knowledgeable and entertaining. Our tour director, Nilton, was kind, personable, and very competent. We felt comfortable and cared for. The Peruvian people were welcoming and friendly. While the pace was sometimes fast and there was a lot of travel involved, every minute of the trip was exciting and memorable!

Date of experience : 22 March 2024

My experience as a parent was amazing …

My experience as a parent was exceptional. We were informed about everything. No question left unanswered and our daughter had the experience of a lifetime! We are grateful she had the opportunity and one of the best spring breaks ever!!!!

Date of experience : 20 April 2024

Great opportunity for these kids

Great opportunity for these kids. Everything was smooth from the initial offer to travel, paying and meetings all the way up to the date of the trip. All our questions were answered and the group leader kept us informed everyday they were gone with updates and pictures of the kids enjoying themselves. Our oldest went this time and we’ll definitely sign our younger daughter up when it’s she’s older.

Date of experience : 13 April 2024

Obtuse EF Tours HQ Staff

My kids had a great experience, but it's the EF Tours HQ staff that earn 3 out of 5 stars. When a problem developed, the EF HQ staff was less than cooperative and not geared toward working together to solve the problem. The first name of the escalated staff member had to be pried out of her and she refused to give her last name. Obtuse describes their approach to customer satisfaction. Our school will recommend to look for other tour partners next year.

Date of experience : 17 April 2024

Our tour was amazing

Our tour was amazing, our tour guide Laura was kind, interesting, and very knowledgeable about traveling between the different countries. She was flexible and understood our needs. Our guides in each city were so much fun and knew so much history we were able to learn amazing things about each country.

Scheduled tours never happened

Poorly planned. Tours that were scheduled,listed in the itinerary, and included in cost were canceled once in Paris. The explanation for these disappointments were "couldn't get tickets" and "the Olympics". Both are poor excuses as this trip was planned and being paid for more than a year in advance. No apologies or refunds were extended by EF Tours. In addition, I believe a trip planned for high school students should included three meals a day. Teenagers do not have the means and resources to navigate a foreign city independently to search for a meal. They were forced to find restaurants, usually unhealthy fast food, that was within walking distance of the hotel. Very disappointed with 1/3 of the trip that didn't happen...waiting for the refund equivalent to 1/3 of the cost for EF Tours failings.

Wonderful Experience

Linda Moon was a fantastic Tour Director. The sites we visited and the things we did were super fun - like glacier walking! Good food, excellent bus and driver. Nice balance between formal events and free time. Good locations for hotels.

Date of experience : 19 April 2024

Great Experience - Costa Rica

Great Experience! My son loved meeting new people, opening up to new culture, exploring, ziplining, time on the beach and dancing! I am so glad that we were able for him to have this chance to try something new.

Date of experience : 10 April 2024

This was my daughter’s second time traveling with her school along with EF Tours and she has a third trip coming in June! The first time sending her alone because me or her dad couldn’t go was scary and a lot of nervousness. However, I appreciate the great measures that are taken to keep her safe during travel. Everything is laid out that you can think of from flights, hotel, daily intinerary, tips, food, etc. and she had plenty of things to see and experience. I love the payment plan option as well to allow children to explore the world and other cultures. This is such a wonderful opportunity and she will be going on every trip offered going forward.

Overall, I feel my twin daughters' experience was excellent. However, I would have liked to know their flight information sooner than when I received it. I was also not happy with the hotel selection in Florence, Italy. My daughters expressed that it was not clean and that they did not feel safe. They also expressed the meals in the evenings, for the most part were just ok.

I recently took 45 students on the…

I recently took 45 students on the Paris, French Riviera, & Rome tour, which was wonderful. For sure, it was a lot to see in a short time but this is a wonderful way to get students excited about traveling. The hotels were good, sometimes a bit of a hike, but understandable. I had a challenging situation on the trip. The people at EF were perfect in helping us manage to resolve the problem. I will continue to use, and to recommend, EF as the tour group to use for student travel.

Best guide best experience ever!

Our guide was the best! He worked so hard to be sure everyone had a wonderful experience. Having a translator was extra helpful so we could fully understand everything. It was amazing and truly one of the best trips I’ve ever had. Gave me a deeper appreciation for Japanese culture. We were truly sad to leave. Can’t wait to return again one day!

EF Education First Reviews

Who are we.

EF Education First is a global leader of international education . With nearly 60 years of experience, we have sent millions of students to over 50 destinations worldwide to develop their language skills, discover the world beyond their culture, and grow both professionally and personally.

Explore our collection of EF reviews

For almost 60 years, we have asked all our students to review their experience abroad with EF, in order for us to:

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Discover what our students have to say about their experiences traveling abroad with EF and get ready to embark on your study abroad journey with confidence.

Here's why you should choose EF to study abroad:

World leader in international education

State-of-the-art schools in over 50 destinations worldwide

60 years of expertise

All-inclusive package including a language course, accommodation and food

24/7 support by EF staff, from pre-booking until after you return home

Reviews by destination

United kingdom, united states, new zealand, south africa, read over 1,000 of reviews by destination, laura-line, ef nice.

Belgium, 18 years old

The overall experience was the best. I learned so much (how to live on my own, how to get by without my parents at the age of 17, and appreciate what I have, etc). I was able to blossom in ways I could never have imagined. My French has also improved a lot! Thank you for the best year of my life!

Gary, EF Tokyo

USA, 68 years old

I began a Japanese program at home, but I decided it was time for an intensive language course and chose EF. I was very satisfied. The teachers and facilities are excellent, as is the location in Shibuya. The approach to learning is fun. I strongly recommend this program.

Yasmine, EF London

Netherlands, 18 years old

When I look back at this experience, I cannot help but smile. Every day was so special to me. The people I met back then are still my friends now and I truly think that this EF certificate has helped me getting accepted at my dream University! I have not regretted any second of being part of EF London.

Giovanni, EF Miami

Italy, 18 years old

I have been in EF Miami for more than 1 month now. I have always been a guy who likes to travel and this experience has changed my life for the better. Sun, sea, beaches and most of all a lot of fun. Here at EF school I have met not only friends, but real life companions, here we are like one big family.

Javiera, EF San Diego

Chile, 20 years old

I can't describe my experience in San Diego because there are no words. It was one of the best decisions I've ever made. I had the best time there, the place is perfect and also I met really good people there, friends who became family and we keep in touch since then. EF gave me one of the best experiences of my life!

Ramon, EF Bristol

Spain, 23 years old

EF has been the best experience of my life. I travelled to Bristol for three months and made so many friends from different cultures. Also, my English has improved and I can now speak with people from England or other countries. I recommend this experience to everyone.

Emeline, EF Seoul

France, 18 years old

EF is a unique opportunity that nobody should miss! For me it was a memorable experience, the staff and the professors were super kind and always trying to help us through our curriculum. I had the best time of my life, I met a new culture, saw new places and made new friends, it was an incredible experience!

Shinnosuke, EF Sydney

Japan, 21 years old

My teacher was amazing because she knew how to talk to young people and her lessons are wonderful. The best thing about her was that she loved students. My classmates and I could see that she gave us lots of love. Thanks to her, I had a great time at EF. I really appreciate it. I hope to see you again, absolutely.

Benoît, EF Dublin

France, 36 years old

The EF program is useful to improve quickly from beginners to upper intermediate even to advanced. But once you have reached advanced level is hard to jump to proficiency and in my opinion EF isn't really helpful if you're already advanced. For lower levels, it's really good.

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EF accreditations and partners

Since its establishment in 1965 , EF Education First has maintained an unwavering commitment to fostering excellence in language proficiency, cross-cultural comprehension, and personal, professional, and academic growth.

All EF International Language Campuses across the globe hold certifications from the highest national and international regulatory bodies , further affirming our dedication to upholding exceptional standards in language travel experiences.

The Independent Schools Inspectorate is the approved education oversight body authorized by the UK Home Office to enroll international students under Student Visa Route.

All EF International Language Campuses in the UK are accredited by the British Council.

The EF International Language Campus in Dublin is recognized by ACELS, as service of quality and qualifications in Ireland for English language teaching.

The EF International Language Campuses in the USA are accredited by ACCET.

All EF International Languages Campuses in Canada are accredited by Languages Canada.

The EF International Language Campuses in Australia are accredited by the Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA)

The EF International Language Campuses in Malta, South Africa, France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Japan and Korea are accredited by Eaquals.

The EF International Language Campus in Auckland is accredited by NZQA and is a member of English New Zealand, exceeding their quality assurance standards over and above regulatory requirements.

The EF International Language Campuses in the UK and USA are respectively members of English UK and English USA.

EF Education First is on TrustPilot

"Amazing overall experience in San Diego!!"

I’m currently a student at EF San Diego. The acitivities offered by EF are amazing!! They also got good teachers and interesting lessons every day. The activities offered on campus are free, fun and you can make new friends quick as well! 10/10

"My booking experience"

My booking experience alone was even perfect. They carefully asked about all my wishes, and they send some emails with extra information and an app you can download so you got all your own information, like the flight, at one place. I’m very pleased with the way they contacted me and helped me booking my adventure.

" Wonderful EF Seoul! "

All the staff of EF Seoul is amazing! They're always here whenever we need, and the teachers are so professional and funny! It was a huge pleasure to spend 6 months by their sides. I recommend without hesitation! 정말 감사합니다!!

"EF Singapore"

The staff at EF is very friendly, quick and reliable. He explains things carefully until the students understand. The class teachers always care about each student, and I think it's a very good school. There are also a lot of activities, so I don't think you will get bored even if you study abroad for a long time.

"Great experience at EF Dublin"

All teachers are really passionate about teaching, and I made a progress in listening and speaking skills after 2 weeks. I’d like to thank you to especially Emma for her great lessons! EF organizes also various activities in free time, which help students discover nature, culture and history of Ireland. Thank you!

"High school exchange year"

I did an exchange year in the united states, for ten months, with EF. I would always choose EF again, because of their great support system. Pre-departure they prepared me with all the information I needed and were really helpful with all my questions. They also offer great opportunities and tours during the year.

Frequently asked questions

How does ef work.

EF Education First offers a wide range of language, academic, and professional training programs , including language courses, high school exchange programs, overseas univeristies and internship and volunteer opportunities. The programs are designed for students, professionals and adults interested in improving their linguistic, cultural and work-related skills.

To book a program with EF , you can request a free brochure or consult our online program guide . You can also contact an EF counselor directly for personalized assistance in choosing the program that best suits your needs. We're here to assist you every step of the way.

Why study abroad with EF?

Here's why you should choose EF for your study abroad program:

• EF-owned schools in over 50 destinations around the world.
• Guaranteed progress with the EF Method , established in 1965.
• Round-the-clock support from both your home country's team and the local school staff, from the pre-departure period until your return home.
• An all-inclusive package including the course, accommodation, and meal plans.
• 60 years of experience in teaching languages.

What type of support can I expect from EF?

EF Education First offers extensive support to its students , which includes one-on-one consultations, pre-departure assistance, in-program support, language assistance, and 24-hour emergency support.

What is the most popular EF destination?

EF Education First's popular destinations include London, Tokyo, Paris and Barcelona. These cities provide a distinctive blend of educational opportunities, vibrant cultures, and unforgettable experiences. With EF Education First, you have the chance to indulge in an exceptional educational journey across over 50 of the world's most sought-after destinations. Learn more here .

EF Explore America

Review Highlights

“ A group of around 25 students from her 8th grade class visited Boston and New York City over 6 days. ” in 2 reviews

“ He enjoyed the tour guide and loved the bus driver . ” in 2 reviews

“ My students, many of which will not travel in their lifetime soaked up every moment. ” in 2 reviews

Location & Hours

Suggest an edit

2 Education Cir

Cambridge, MA 02141

East Cambridge

Serving Cambridge Area

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About the Business

For over 50 years, we've proudly partnered with educators like you to open your students' eyes to the world, inspiring confidence and the infinite possibilities that come with it. That passion has grown our family-owned company to more than 1 million students experiencing our programs every year. …

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Overall rating

140 reviews

This is the second child of mine to go on a trip with EF Explore America and I would definitely recommend them to anyone! The sign up and payment process is easy. Everything seemed very organized and all the information necessary is made available to the parents ahead of time. As far as the trip itself, both of my kids had a great time!

If organized tours are all like this, then the majority of people are morons to pay money for them. We went on a school tour back in 2018 to New York. We had to stay at a hotel in New Jersey that didn't even have a pool for the kids. Plus, it took us forever to get to NY every morning because of traffic. That was my first inkling that this trip was going to be bad. Our included meals were at the typical tourist traps that had horrible food. The last day we only had 45 minutes to spend at the MOMA because our very liberal and tone deaf tour guide just had to take us to the park where Stonewall Inn was. She then proceeded to tell us all about the LGBTQ history and also showed us a demonstration where sex workers were protesting. Then, she took us to a gay owned ice cream parlor to end things with a bang. The group of kids we took were 10-11 years old. Irresponsible doesn't even begin to describe the tour guide or EF tours. So yes.....I will never endorse this company because they are inadequate from start to finish.

BEWARE of this company! I booked an international trip for my son and a domestic trip for my daughter to DC and NYC. My son's trip went well and as planned. My daughter's trip was cancelled out of the blue for no given reason in April 2023 and no one informed me. I've been waiting for a refund for 5 months for over $2K and the kicker is they are not refunding me for the fees and insurance of a trip they cancelled. I didn't cancel the trip so why am I on the line for $514 for a trip that no one is taking. It's FRAUD! I could have taken my whole family on that same trip for that same amount of money.

If I could give them no stars I would. I am surprised that the school district is still doing business with this company. They seem to be only in it for the money. I reserved a spot for a DC/Gettysburg trip that will take place in 2025. Well my daughter decided that she didn't want to go 24 hours after I have put down money to hold her spot. Called the company to cancel her spot and was informed that I could cancel but not receive the deposit back. WHY the charge hadn't even cleared the bank yet. I could see if I had waited months to cancel but it was 24 hours. This company is a rip off. Every school district out there should think long and hard before doing business with this company.

EF tours won't ever see another cent from me, and I hope my honest review will save you from making the same mistake. My sons middle school booked a trip to Washington DC from Las Vegas in June of 2022. Prior to departure I found out my son would be in a room with 3 other boys. I asked them how that was possible and was told two boys to a bed. What? In 2020 putting teenagers in the same bed is ok? Whether they be two boys or two girls or boy girl it is simply not acceptable. They did offer a $150 charge per night to put him in a room with only 1 other boy, but i would have to find someone else to accept that offer as well. $3000 trip and my son has to share a double bed? You wouldn't put a boy in the same bed as a girl, for obvious reasons, those reasons now also apply to two teenagers of the same sex. Second point Prior to the trip we had to provide Covid documentation and being we have at risk people in the family this was a determining factor in allowing him to go on the trip. Required documents: Covid 19 Vaccination negative covid test within 72 hours of departure. Upon return from the trip we were notified that one parent and one student tested positive for Covid. My son got sick and we tested him and he was positive. All four of us living in the house got sick and tested positive. When I asked about the test and vaccines I was informed that NO ONE asked to see the documents prior to leaving. So in my eye this was simply FALSE ADVERTISING! Why list required documents that weren't required? How do i know that no one on this trip was positive when they left? EF Tours took NO steps toward ensuring the safety of my child and my family. Please stay away from this predatory tour company that cares nothing for our children's health and safety.

I needed to cancel my kids trip, over a year in advance, they kept all of my money, $340. They had never once contacted me about the trip. The organizer got fired from the school and no one from the school contacted us. It took weeks to figure out who was taking over. Bad experience from EF and the school.

EF Explore America cancelled my son's trip twice and now refuses to refund the full amount we paid. How can they justify keeping $550??? What a rip! Nothing but greed!

Cancelled my son's trip and offered a alternative" sometime in the future". refuses to offer a full refund, due to expenses, for a trip they don't have scheduled. Do a google search for more information.

Failed to return calls and emails regarding questions about accommodating a change in flight after they represented that a trip would be from April3-7 and then changed the dates to April 10-15 last minute. Further, they took over $2500 from me and would not refund even though they provided the wrong dates of the trip. Do NOT use this company!

This company is NOT following CDC Guidelines. This company has you sign a contract and then does not follow it. They state "no additional cost to traveler" if you get covid, but require you pay your food, transportation to airport, transportation home and even for water. This company states they will provide you with Telehealth and DO NOT, prefer to send you home on an airplane day 3 into your quarantine, and are sure not to ask how you are doing.... They state if you get covid you will be refunded for the days not able to participate. They refuse to give you back anything. And ignore emails. I tested positive for Covid while on tour with a group of 43. When I tested their tour guide Erin texted me and let me know she can not make anyone test - contract states everyone will be tested and quarantined to prevent the spread to those who can not get sick. Our group was reduced to 23 people, because most did not want to test and they continued the tour. To places with Federal Employees - I have emailed one working on the rest. They do NOT clean the tour bus daily, do not even have wet wipes for the passengers too as we asked. They do not offer masks or hand sanitizer, and even think of using them after half the group starts testing positive. What they will do is put you in a room alone, and ignore you from that point on. Tell your 14 yr old child to not even look at your door or they are being sent home courtesy of the parents. When I ran out of seizure medication, instead of getting me the telehealth appt they state on their website and in their contract they placed me on a plane for 10 hours, day three into my quarantine, and I was one of those rare ones who fully vaccinated did get very sick. All I want is a refund for my tour, I am not asking for my daughters I am asking for mine. My trip was destroyed. I was denied WATER and Toilet Paper, and had to Door Dash them. I am beginning to contact groups after us as the tour guide joined one the day after. I am going to let everyone I possibly can know about this because the company has decided to just ignore me. Not even offer the refund they guarantee of the days I missed, the room fee I overpaid for and my costs lost. I am not even asking for the 10 days of PAY from my work I missed. Their employee was in the HOSPITAL the day she met up with us, atleast we all know where we got Covid From. Pictures: Erin our EF Tour Guide with the Employee from USS Constitution the morning we tested positive. Some screen shots of text messages back and forth with Erin and the EF Tours employee to get me home. Including one with the threat that my daughter could not stay back (even exposed) or it would force me to stay longer. A photo on Tuesday of the full group, and Friday the day we all tested positive in the morning. I have many more text conversations, emails etc.. showing the complexity of how this company is not following their contract, and failing to provide the basics of what we PAID FOR. If anyone is interested in a class action lawsuit please contact me, I am reaching out to lawyers and have been told we have a case after they reviewed the contract.

See all photos from Nicole S. for EF Explore America

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EF Education First Reviews

Reviews: ef san francisco.

(696 reviews)

Looking for an English school in San Francisco?

EF San Francisco stands as an esteemed English language school in the heart of "The Golden Gate City", providing high-quality language education in a central, modern campus shared with Hult Internatinal Business School.

Every year, students from around the world choose EF San Francisco to master the English language. The program not only includes a high-quality language course but also offers an array of accommodation and meal plans, and a diverse range of engaging activities. These activities are carefully designed to help you uncover the hidden gems of San Francisco, forge connections with fellow students, and enhance your English skills.

Browse through the numerous reviews shared by EF San Francisco students from various corners of the globe, and feel ready to embark on your exciting study abroad adventure with confidence.

Why study in San Francisco with EF?

Here's why you should study in San Francisco with EF.

Global leader in international education

State-of-the-art campus shared with Hult International Business School

60 years of experience in teaching English

All-inclusive package: language course, accomodation and meal plan

24/7 support, from the pre-booking stage until after you return home

EF San Francisco Reviews

Matis, ef san francisco.

France, 18 years old

My trip with EF last summer was like a dream. It was like in American film with the Amercican breakfast and yellow bus and a lot of other things. Without lying, it was the best summer of my entire life. A lot of new friends with whom I shared good memories. And of course my host family was so sweet with me during all t

Yannick, EF San Francisco

Germany, 25 years old

My intention was to improve my English skills. For me, I think I definitely succeded. The second goal was meeting many good people from the whole world, and I have now made a lot of new friendships. Traveling with EF to San Francisco changed my personality and my mindset.

Gianluca, EF San Francisco

Italy, 47 years old

I took a week off work for New Year's Eve to study and improve my English. I had a very good time and was satisfied with the experience. I highly recommend to anyone with the same goals as me, and especially to young people.

Elisangela, EF San Francisco

Brazil, 42 years old

I felt much more motivated to learn and to develop the language, for all the positive experiences that I lived in the school. I was very well received at EF San Francisco, as well as at the Student Residence (The Hub), in the end, everything favored for my learning and well-being. Thanks for everything!

Paola, EF San Francisco

Italy, 33 years old

All things strictly related to school (teachers, staff, lessons, premises, teaching materials) are great and very well prepared. EF cares a lot about students and I really appreciated this. Every member of the staff is always ready to help in any case of doubt. There is a very high commitment in this.

Yasemin, EF San Francisco

Germany, 21 years old

An impressive city. The school is top-notch. Friendly, open, helpful. Even I enjoyed learning English. I would have liked a few more activities, but I was only here for a few weeks. The necessary "push" to speak English definitely worked. I will definitely do it again.

EF San Francisco: in-depth reviews

Ef stories: britt from the netherlands at ef san francisco.

"I had lessons from Richard in my 4 weeks, he was one of the best teachers I ever had! He made the classes very fun and I was always laughing in his class , it was definitely no punishment to go to his classes and it was even a shame if you missed one."

EF Stories: Kotona from Japan at EF San Francisco

"I went to San Francisco to study abroad for 4 weeks, because I want to brush up my English speaking skills, and it is also a great place for both study and sightseeing ."

EF Stories: Alexandre from France at EF San Francisco

From a personal and professional standpoint, my current level of English is no longer a hindrance in my life ; quite the opposite. I regularly travel to meet my former EF friends, and of course, we all communicate in English (Colombia, Italy, Asia, etc.).

Read more in-depth reviews

Inspire a new perspective on the world

Student or parent? Join your teacher’s tour.

Experience the modern approach to educational travel.

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With EF Explore America, students are bound for an incredible experience that will exceed their (and your) expectations. That’s because our compelling itineraries are rooted in human connection—and crafted specifically for you.

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Investigate the most important elements of society by walking the streets where history happened and today’s culture is created.

Show your students the real-world importance of STEM through hands-on experiences and collaborations with experts in the field.

Our people are your people

Joining the EF family means you’ll have the support of our community of educators, tour architects, operations wizards, and ever-curious explorers. We’ve experienced the transformative power of travel firsthand—and we can’t wait to explore the opportunities that are out there for you and your students.

Meet your people

What’s important to you is important to us

We believe travel is for everyone. When students go beyond the classroom it brings education to life, unlocks new potential, and opens a world of possibilities. That’s why we prioritize safety, value, and the kind of learning that prepares students for the future and their futures.

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For over 55 years, we’ve dedicated ourselves to one global mission: Opening the World Through Education .

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EF Educational Tours   Reviews

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Reviews 4.4.

13,962 total

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As a parent there were many check ins…

As a parent there were many check ins throughout the whole process. Reminders to complete forms, passports and were available to answer questions. They held a pre meeting which also helped with anxieties and used Whats App as a means of communication when they were away First thing my son said to me was that it was "a life altering experience!"

Date of experience : 21 April 2024

Not quite what we were expecting.

Room assignments every other night should be organized prior to arrival. Waisted 2 hours at every new hotel. Hotels should be located closer to cities limits. 3 hours lost round trip every evening. Tourist's need more than 3 hours of sleep. Dinner menu NEVER matched itinerary. Dinner quality/locations were sub par.

Date of experience : 14 April 2024

Great experience

Anytime there is an issue with payment or I had a payment question or a question in general, there is always someone there to answer it and to go into detail and make sure I understood. That my question was thoroughly answered. As far as the trip, they had everything set up in their app that I can see what my child was doing and seeing each day. My child said that they loved the experiences That the tour provided I felt safe that Child was being taken care of attention to detail was met, their safety was a big priority. The tour guides were very knowledgeable.

Date of experience : 18 April 2024

Worth every penny!

Very well organized, good busses - but do wish they had charger outlets, awesome guide, and hotels were really nice I would've liked more free time or optional type excursions The whisper system was terrible- nearly impossible to hear the guide on it.

Date of experience : 01 April 2024

Great EF Experience!

Our tour guide (Claudia) was amazing and so was our bus driver (Maurizio)! The locations we visited were very interesting, the hotels were very nice, the meals were good, and the extra excursions were very fun. EF Tours is a well organized company with a website that has a lot of excellent information to prepare you for your trip. Thank you so much for making our trip so memorable and enjoyable!

Date of experience : 29 March 2024

Great experiences, awful food

The experiences and organization were wonderful! The tour director was wonderful (we requested him again after a tour 2 years ago)! The food was awful!! We pay a lot to go on these tours and we felt very much like cattle being fed at a trough. They made our group too big (50 total) by combining 2 groups, so every restaurant and hotel had to mass produce food. We had pasta, a mystery meat and a veggie/potatoes every single night of our trip. In Italy! It got old and it wasn’t good food. Disappointed. ☹️

Date of experience : 30 March 2024

NOT Bella Italia

Dislike- breakfast and dinner offered by your company, did not reflect the cuisine of the country and did not feel student got money's worth at meals. Also, feel that students should have been provided hydration/ water bottles during coach tours which were long and in high temperatures..a lot of walking and they should not have been required to buy water on tour. Several hotels on tour were less that sanitary. My daughter was in a triple on tour in Rome and the sheets int he room were dirty and there was some sort of stain on med and walls. There were insects found in bed too. She did report this to supervising staff as well. In Rome as well, several of the supervising adults were not able to experience the Colisuem sightseeing as EF did not purchase enough entry tickets.

Amazing Ireland, Wales, and London experience!

EF did a fantastic job with coordinating our travel across Ireland, Wales, and London. We saw so many beautiful places and were welcomed with open arms by all hotels, tour guides, and experiences. Our Guide, Jayne, was unbelievable. She was so warm, welcoming, and organized. We're very impressed and will definitely do another EF tour!

Date of experience : 12 April 2024

Life changing experience!

My son and I had the time of our lives! We visited many villages and historic sites. Had plenty of time to immerse ourselves in the culture. The tour guides were knowledgeable and entertaining. Our tour director, Nilton, was kind, personable, and very competent. We felt comfortable and cared for. The Peruvian people were welcoming and friendly. While the pace was sometimes fast and there was a lot of travel involved, every minute of the trip was exciting and memorable!

Date of experience : 22 March 2024

My experience as a parent was amazing …

My experience as a parent was exceptional. We were informed about everything. No question left unanswered and our daughter had the experience of a lifetime! We are grateful she had the opportunity and one of the best spring breaks ever!!!!

Date of experience : 20 April 2024

Great opportunity for these kids

Great opportunity for these kids. Everything was smooth from the initial offer to travel, paying and meetings all the way up to the date of the trip. All our questions were answered and the group leader kept us informed everyday they were gone with updates and pictures of the kids enjoying themselves. Our oldest went this time and we’ll definitely sign our younger daughter up when it’s she’s older.

Date of experience : 13 April 2024

Obtuse EF Tours HQ Staff

My kids had a great experience, but it's the EF Tours HQ staff that earn 3 out of 5 stars. When a problem developed, the EF HQ staff was less than cooperative and not geared toward working together to solve the problem. The first name of the escalated staff member had to be pried out of her and she refused to give her last name. Obtuse describes their approach to customer satisfaction. Our school will recommend to look for other tour partners next year.

Date of experience : 17 April 2024

Our tour was amazing

Our tour was amazing, our tour guide Laura was kind, interesting, and very knowledgeable about traveling between the different countries. She was flexible and understood our needs. Our guides in each city were so much fun and knew so much history we were able to learn amazing things about each country.

Scheduled tours never happened

Poorly planned. Tours that were scheduled,listed in the itinerary, and included in cost were canceled once in Paris. The explanation for these disappointments were "couldn't get tickets" and "the Olympics". Both are poor excuses as this trip was planned and being paid for more than a year in advance. No apologies or refunds were extended by EF Tours. In addition, I believe a trip planned for high school students should included three meals a day. Teenagers do not have the means and resources to navigate a foreign city independently to search for a meal. They were forced to find restaurants, usually unhealthy fast food, that was within walking distance of the hotel. Very disappointed with 1/3 of the trip that didn't happen...waiting for the refund equivalent to 1/3 of the cost for EF Tours failings.

Wonderful Experience

Linda Moon was a fantastic Tour Director. The sites we visited and the things we did were super fun - like glacier walking! Good food, excellent bus and driver. Nice balance between formal events and free time. Good locations for hotels.

Date of experience : 19 April 2024

Great Experience - Costa Rica

Great Experience! My son loved meeting new people, opening up to new culture, exploring, ziplining, time on the beach and dancing! I am so glad that we were able for him to have this chance to try something new.

Date of experience : 10 April 2024

This was my daughter’s second time traveling with her school along with EF Tours and she has a third trip coming in June! The first time sending her alone because me or her dad couldn’t go was scary and a lot of nervousness. However, I appreciate the great measures that are taken to keep her safe during travel. Everything is laid out that you can think of from flights, hotel, daily intinerary, tips, food, etc. and she had plenty of things to see and experience. I love the payment plan option as well to allow children to explore the world and other cultures. This is such a wonderful opportunity and she will be going on every trip offered going forward.

Overall, I feel my twin daughters' experience was excellent. However, I would have liked to know their flight information sooner than when I received it. I was also not happy with the hotel selection in Florence, Italy. My daughters expressed that it was not clean and that they did not feel safe. They also expressed the meals in the evenings, for the most part were just ok.

I recently took 45 students on the…

I recently took 45 students on the Paris, French Riviera, & Rome tour, which was wonderful. For sure, it was a lot to see in a short time but this is a wonderful way to get students excited about traveling. The hotels were good, sometimes a bit of a hike, but understandable. I had a challenging situation on the trip. The people at EF were perfect in helping us manage to resolve the problem. I will continue to use, and to recommend, EF as the tour group to use for student travel.

Best guide best experience ever!

Our guide was the best! He worked so hard to be sure everyone had a wonderful experience. Having a translator was extra helpful so we could fully understand everything. It was amazing and truly one of the best trips I’ve ever had. Gave me a deeper appreciation for Japanese culture. We were truly sad to leave. Can’t wait to return again one day!

Save on beach escapes, city trips, and more when you book by 4/25. Best. Summer. Ever.

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Friends = benefits.

Get your crew on a trip to earn a free spot or share sweet group discounts.

3,500+ reviews

“An amazing trip, from the views and the food to the wonderful people I met on the trip. Everything was thought out so well that I didn’t spend any of my time stressing like I would have if I had gone by myself!”

—Savannah D., traveled to Germany, Italy & Switzerland

2024 federal budget's key takeaways: Housing and carbon rebates, students and sin taxes

Budget sees nearly $53b in new spending over the next 5 years.

What's in the new federal budget?

Social sharing.

Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland today tabled a 400-page-plus budget her government is pitching as a balm for anxious millennials and Generation Z.

The budget proposes $52.9 billion in new spending over five years, including $8.5 billion in new spending for housing. To offset some of that new spending, Ottawa is pitching policy changes to bring in new revenue.

Here are some of the notable funding initiatives and legislative commitments in budget 2024.

Ottawa unloading unused offices to meet housing targets

One of the biggest pillars of the budget is its housing commitments. Before releasing the budget, the government laid out what it's calling Canada's Housing Plan — a pledge to "unlock" nearly 3.9 million homes by 2031.

The government says two million of those would be net new homes and it believes it can contribute to more than half of them. 

It plans to do that by:

• Converting underused federal offices into homes. The budget promises $1.1 billion over ten years to transform 50 per cent of the federal office portfolio into housing.
• Building homes on Canada Post properties. The government says the 1,700-plus Canada Post offices across the country can be used to build new homes while maintaining postal services. The federal government says it's assessing six Canada Post properties in Quebec, Alberta and British Columbia for development potential "as a start."
• Rethinking National Defence properties. The government is promising to look at redeveloping properties and buildings on National Defence lands for military and civilian use.
• Building apartments. Ottawa is pledging a $15 billion top-up to the Apartment Construction Loan Program, which says it will build 30,000 new homes across Canada.

Taxing vacant land?

As part of its push on housing, the federal government also says it's looking at vacant land that could be used to build homes.

It's not yet committing to new measures but the budget says the government will consider introducing a new tax on residentially zoned vacant land. 

• Freeland's new federal budget hikes taxes on the rich to cover billions in new spending
• Are you renting with no plans to buy? Here's what the federal budget has for you

The government said it plans to launch consultations on the measure later this year.

Help for students 

There's also something in the budget for students hunting for housing.

The government says it will update the formula used by the Canada Student Financial Assistance Program to calculate housing costs when determining financial need, to better reflect the cost of housing in the current climate.

The government estimates this could deliver more aid for rent to approximately 79,000 students each year, at an estimated cost of $154.6 million over five years.

• Updated Federal budget's funding boost for defence spread out over multiple years
• Liberals pledge $9B in new money for Indigenous communities in 2024 budget

The government is also promising to extend increased student grants and interest-free loans, at an estimated total cost of $1.1 billion this year.

Increase in taxes on capital gains

To help cover some of its multi-billion dollar commitments, the government is proposing a tax hike on capital gains — the profit individuals make when assets like stocks and second properties are sold.

The government is proposing an increase in the taxable portion of capital gains, up from the current 50 per cent to two thirds for annual capital gains over $250,000. 

New investment to lead 'housing revolution in Canada,' Freeland says

Freeland said the change would impact the wealthiest 0.1 per cent.

There's still some protection for small businesses. There's been a lifetime capital gains exemption which allows Canadians to exempt up to $1,016,836 in capital gains tax-free on the sale of small business shares and farming and fishing property. This June the tax-free limit will be increased to $1.25 million and will continue to be indexed to inflation thereafter, according to the budget.

The federal government estimates this could bring in more than $19 billion over five years, although some analysts are not convinced.

Disability benefit amounts to $200 per month 

Parliament last year passed the Canada Disability Benefit Act, which promised to send a direct benefit to low-income, working-age people with disabilities. 

Budget 2024 proposes funding of $6.1 billion over six years, beginning this fiscal year, and $1.4 billion per year ongoing, for a new Canada Disability Benefit.

Advocates had been hoping for something along the lines of $1,000 per month per person . They'll be disappointed.

According to the budget document, the maximum benefit will amount to $2,400 per year for low income individuals with disabilities between the ages of 18 and 64 — about $200 a month.

• Federal government plans to lease public lands for construction through new housing strategy
• Alberta premier says she's prepared to take Ottawa to court over housing deals

The government said it plans for the Canada Disability Benefit Act to come into force in June 2024 and for payments to start in July 2025.

Carbon rebate for small businesses coming 

The federal government has heard an earful from small business advocates who accuse it of reneging on a promise to return a portion of carbon pricing revenues to small businesses to mitigate the tax's economic costs.

• What's behind the carbon tax, and does it work?
• Federal government scales back carbon tax rebates for small businesses

The budget proposes to return fuel charge proceeds from 2019-20 through 2023-24 to an estimated 600,000 businesses with 499 or fewer employees through a new refundable tax credit.

The government said this would deliver $2.5 billion directly to Canada's small- and medium-sized businesses.

Darts and vape pods will cost more 

Pitching it as a measure to cut the number of people smoking and vaping, the Liberals are promising to raise revenues on tobacco and smoking products.

• Just Asking  wants to know:   What questions do you have about quitting smoking or vaping? Do you think sin taxes will encourage smoking cessation?  Fill out the details on  this form  and send us your questions ahead of our show on April 20.

Starting Wednesday, the total tobacco excise duty will be $5.49 per carton. The government estimates this could increase federal revenue by $1.36 billion over five years starting in 2024-25.

The budget also proposes to increase the vaping excise duty rates by 12 per cent effective July 1. That means an increase of 12 to 24 cents per pod, depending on where you live. 

• 'Stay the hell away from our kids': Health minister vows to restrict nicotine pouches — but how?

Ottawa hopes this increase in sin taxes will bring in $310 million over five years, starting in 2024-25.

More money for CBC 

Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge has mused about redefining the role of the public broadcaster before the next federal election . But before that happens, CBC/Radio-Canada is getting a top-up this year. 

The budget promises $42 million more in 2024-25 for CBC/Radio-Canada for "news and entertainment programming." CBC/Radio-Canada received about $1.3 billion in total federal funding last year.

The government says it's doing this to ensure that Canadians across the country, including rural, remote, Indigenous and minority language communities, have access to independent journalism and entertainment.

Last year, the CBC announced a financial shortfall, cut 141 employees and eliminated 205 vacant positions. In a statement issued Tuesday, CBC spokesperson Leon Mar said the new funding means the corporation can balance its budget "without significant additional reductions this year."

Boost for Canada's spy agency 

As the government takes heat over how it has handled the threat of foreign election interference, it's promising more money to bolster its spy service.

The Canadian Security Intelligence Service is in line to receive $655.7 million over eight years, starting this fiscal year, to enhance its intelligence capabilities and its presence in Toronto.

• CSIS chief defends his spies' work after PM casts doubt on reliability of agency's reports
• Trudeau says it's his job to question CSIS intelligence, call out 'contradictions'

The budget also promises to guarantee up to $5 billion in loans for Indigenous communities to participate in natural resource development and energy projects in their territories.

These loans would be provided by financial institutions or other lenders and guaranteed by the federal government, meaning Indigenous borrowers who opt in could benefit from lower interest rates, the budget says. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Catharine Tunney is a reporter with CBC's Parliament Hill bureau, where she covers national security and the RCMP. She worked previously for CBC in Nova Scotia. You can reach her at [email protected]

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Far fewer young Americans now want to study in China. Both countries are trying to fix that

David Moser, an American and associate professor at Capital Normal University in Beijing, poses for a photo at the university, Friday, March 22, 2024 in Beijing, China. Only about 700 American students are studying at Chinese universities, while there are nearly 300,000 Chinese students are at U.S. schools. Without these U.S. students, “in the next decade, we won’t be able to exercise savvy, knowledgeable diplomacy in China,” warned Moser, an American linguist who went to China in the 1980s and is now tasked with establishing a new master’s program for international students at Beijing Capital Normal University. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)

David Moser, an American and associate professor at Capital Normal University in Beijing, poses for a photo at a restaurant in Beijing, China, Friday, March 22, 2024. Only about 700 American students are studying at Chinese universities, while there are nearly 300,000 Chinese students are at U.S. schools. Without these U.S. students, “in the next decade, we won’t be able to exercise savvy, knowledgeable diplomacy in China,” warned Moser, an American linguist who went to China in the 1980s and is now tasked with establishing a new master’s program for international students at Beijing Capital Normal University. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Stephen Garrett, a 27-year-old graduate student, always thought he would study in China, but the country’s restrictive COVID-19 policies made it nearly impossible and now he sees interest among fellow scholars wane even after China reopened.

Common concerns, he said, include restrictions on academic freedom and the risk of being stranded in China.

These days, only about 700 American students are studying at Chinese universities, down from a peak of close to 25,000 a decade ago, while there are nearly 300,000 Chinese students at U.S. schools.

Some young Americans are discouraged from investing their time in China by what they see as diminishing economic opportunities and strained relations between Washington and Beijing.

Whatever the reason for the imbalance, U.S. officials and scholars bemoan the lost opportunities for young people to experience life in China and gain insight into a formidable American adversary.

And officials from both countries agree that more should be done to encourage the student exchanges, at a time when Beijing and Washington can hardly agree on anything else.

“I do not believe the environment is as hospitable for educational exchange as it was in the past, and I think both sides are going to need to take steps,” said Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell.

The U.S. has advised its. citizens to “reconsider travel” to China over concerns of arbitrary detentions and widened use of exit bans to bar Americans from leaving the country. Campbell said this has hindered the rebuilding of the exchanges and easing the advisory is now under “active consideration.”

For its part, Beijing is rebuilding programs for international students that were shuttered during the pandemic, and Chinese President Xi Jinping has invited tens of thousands of U.S. high school students to visit.

The situation was far different after President Barack Obama started the 100,000 Strong initiative in 2009 to drastically increase the number of U.S. students studying in China.

By 2012, there were as many as 24,583 U.S. students in China, according to data by the Chinese education ministry. The Open Doors reports by the Institute of International Education, which only track students enrolled in U.S. schools and studying in China for credit, show the number peaked at 14,887 in the 2011-12 school year. But 10 years later, the number was down to only 211.

In late 2023, the number of American students stood at 700, according to Nicholas Burns, the U.S. ambassador to China, who said this was far too few in a country of such importance to the United States.

“We need young Americans to learn Mandarin. We need young Americans to have an experience of China,” Burns said.

Without these U.S. students, “in the next decade, we won’t be able to exercise savvy, knowledgeable diplomacy in China,” warned David Moser, an American linguist who went to China in the 1980s and is now tasked with establishing a new master’s program for international students at Beijing Capital Normal University.

Moser recalled the years when American students found China fascinating and thought an education there could lead to an interesting career. But he said the days of bustling trade and money deals are gone, while American students and their parents are watching China and the United States move away from each other. “So people think investment in China as a career is a dumb idea,” Moser said.

After 2012, the number of American students in China dipped but held steady at more than 11,000 for several years, according to Open Doors, until the pandemic hit, when China closed its borders and kept most foreigners out. Programs for overseas students that took years to build were shuttered, and staff were let go, Moser said.

Amy Gadsden, executive director of China Initiatives at the University of Pennsylvania, also attributed some of the declining interest to foreign businesses closing their offices in China. Beijing’s draconian governing style, laid bare by its response to the pandemic, also has given American students a pause, she said.

Garrett, who is on track to graduate this summer from Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, said he is ambivalent about working in China, citing the lack of access to information, restrictions on discussions of politically sensitive issues and China’s sweeping anti-spying law. He had lived in Hong Kong as a teenager and interned in mainland China, and said he is still interested in traveling to China, but not anytime soon.

Some American students remain committed to studying in China, said Andrew Mertha, director of the China Global Research Center at SAIS. “There are people who are interested in China for China’s sake,” he said. “I don’t think those numbers are affected at all.”

About 40 U.S. students are now studying at the Hopkins-Nanjing center in the eastern Chinese city, and the number is expected to go up in the fall to approach the pre-pandemic level of 50-60 students, said Adam Webb, the center’s American co-director.

Among them is Chris Hankin, 28, who said he believed time in China was irreplaceable because he could interact with ordinary people and travel to places outside the radar of international media. “As the relationship becomes more intense, it’s important to have that color, to have that granularity,” said Hankin, a master’s student of international relations with a focus on energy and the environment.

Jonathan Zhang, a Chinese American studying at the prestigious Schwarzman Scholars program at Tsinghua University in Beijing, said it was more important than ever to be in China at a time of tense relations. “It’s really hard to talk about China without being in China,” he said. “I think it’s truly a shame that so many people have never stepped foot in China.”

Zhang was met with concerns when he deferred an offer at a consulting firm to go Beijing. “They’re like, ‘oh, be safe,’ or like, ‘what do you mean, you’re going back to China?’” Zhang said. “I feel like the (Chinese) government is trying with an earnest effort, but I feel like a lot of this trust has been broken.”

Gadsden said U.S. universities need to do more to nudge students to consider China. “We need to be more intentional about creating the opportunities and about encouraging students to do this deeper work on China, because it’s going to be interesting for them, and it’s going to be valuable for the U.S.-China relationship and for the world,” she said.

In China, Jia Qingguo, a professor of international relations and a national political adviser, has suggested Beijing clarify its laws involving foreign nationals, introduce a separate system for political reviews of foreign students’ dissertations, and make it easier for foreign graduates to find internships and jobs in Chinese companies.

Meanwhile, China is hosting American high school students under a plan Xi unveiled in November to welcome 50,000 in the next five years.

In January, a group of 24 students from Iowa’s Muscatine High School became the first to travel to China. The all-expenses-paid, nine-day trip took them to the Beijing Zoo, Great Wall, Palace Museum, the Yu Garden and Shanghai Museum.

Sienna Stonking, one of the Muscatine students, now wants to return to China to study.

“If I had the opportunity, I would love to go to college in China,” she told China’s state broadcaster CGTN. “Honestly, I love it there.”

Kang reported from Beijing.