From London: Shakespeare's Stratford-upon-Avon Day Trip by Coach

This is an unguided tour where the driver skillfully drives two hours and a half and drops you off snd picks up at the same location. Experiencing life with the renowned bard is a memorable experience but there should be better logistics and commentary. Anne Hathaway’s cottage is a 30 minute walk each way and frankly we spent more time walking than seeing much there. There is coach park on the premises which which could be a pick up point instead of making us walk all the way back. Second the Shakespeare’s new birth place is actually just viewing his garden with no house to see. It should be clearly indicated that we are only simply seeing the gardens on his property.

You are just dumped in the town with tickets to 3 places, one is 1.5 miles away and you have to get yourself there. No guide only a bus driver that tells you where to go to get the ticket and when to be back.

Do not use this company. We are currently on the way to Stratford and it’s been a disaster before arriving. When we arrived they said our bus was the one outside the waiting area but the driver had not arrived. They then directed us to another bus, where we found driver saying he was headed to Oxford. Eventually a staff person came to alert the driver of the change in itinerary. AFTER we are seated on the bus and ready to go, the driver tells us that at the end of our tour he will be dropping us off at a different location than our meeting place. This is completely contrary to what our booking details indicated. We told him that our itinerary indicated otherwise and he disregarded our concerns. When I contacted the customer service number, they stated that they can drop off at a different location. I explained that the booking receipt in my possession said we would be dropped off at the meeting place, however he cited the fine print in their contract. We purposely made plans near the meeting/drop off spot to coincide with our tour. Now we’re scrambling to figure things out, while in a foreign country, instead of enjoying the bus ride over. Additionally, prior to our leaving the station, my husband asked a tour rep if our driver was sure of our destination, given the earlier confusion. The tour was was dismissive and condescending, stating that their drivers were experienced and knew what they were doing. Lastly, the tour we booked was listed as lasting 11 hours. Something we found appealing as it would give us plenty of time at the location. Upon boarding the bus, our driver stated we would be back within 9 hours. I do not believe in spending my money on a company that provides false advertising, does not honor it’s commitments, and treats it’s customers with condescension. I will spend the next two hours of this bus ride cancelling future tours and making alternative plans.

Wonderful trip Stratford upon Avon, Oxford, Warwick Castle and cotswold. This trip was perfect because of the guide - Oliver and driver-Kien.

We had an amazing day in Stratford-upon-Avon with Armando, who handled everything with ease in the middle of a heat wave! He kindly drove us directly to Anne Hathaway’s cottage and then to Stratford-upon-Avon so we didn’t have to walk too far in the 90+ temps. Armando did it all—driving the bus while narrating the sights in London and in Stratford, and arranging our tickets. We had plenty of time to see the main attractions as well. Definitely recommend!

Armando was very accommodating and attentive (my mother is in a wheelchair and he took wonderful care of her). He was funny, too, and we enjoyed his commentary on the drive. The coach itself was comfortable. Stratford-upon-Avon was delightful and all we had hoped for.

Arnando was very knowledgeable and very helpful

Our tour went to Warwick Castle, Stratford on the Avon, through the Cotswold area, finishing up in Oxford. The places were all very lovely and interesting. Our tour guide, Oscar, was excellent, giving us clear direction. He was pleasant, and was amazing in fluency in English and Spanish. He did an excellent job with our walking tour through Oxford and was very knowledgeable. The bus was comfortable too.

This tour was a disappointment. I probably won't even call it a tour. No tour guide at all and a bus driver who wasn't very social. The only information he shared with us was where Harrods was and the National History Mueseum. Personally, I go on a tour to learn about the area and the history. Especially with this being a Shakespeare tour I was expecting some information about Shakespeare. But nothing. We were a small group travelling today (8 people). When arriving in Stratford-Upon-Avon, the bus driver took us to Shakespeare's Birthplace then left leaving everyone very confused. We weren't aware of directions to recommended places and we weren't even told the places we were able to visit with our tickets. We only had a short 3 1/2 hours stay in Stratford-Upon-Avon. In total it was only an 8 1/2 hour tour (two hours short of what the tour time was advertised to be). The bus driver also was trying to kick us all off the bus at Gloucester Road and became agitated when asked if we were being taken back to Victoria where as advertised the 'tour' was due to finish I would say this 'tour' was more a taxi service than a tour. I would not recommend this tour to anyone. Very unreasonable for price for what we got. Don't waste your money.

I doubt that Golden Tours ever really provides this tour. In January, I booked it for Saturday, 2 May. Weeks later they sent a message saying that it was canceled due to "unforeseen circumstances." They offered a different tour on that day, which would visit Oxford, Stratford-upon-Avon, the Cotswolds, and Warwick Castle, or to reschedule the original tour on a different day. I really didn't want to do the former, because I am sure that it entails a lot of time on the bus and not much at the sites, especially Stratford-upon-Avon. After a bit of back-and-forth with Golden Tours, and some reshuffling of the rest of our travel plans, we rescheduled the original tour to Tuesday, 5 May. Then on Friday, 1 May, they notified me that the tour was canceled for a SECOND time. Again they offered the rush-through-everyplace tour in its stead, and this time they didn't even suggest the possibility of rescheduling on a different day. This time I have chosen the final option: I am canceling. It's fine, though, because they forced me to find a simple, cheaper alternative: I easily booked a trip with Chiltern Railways and bought my tickets to all of the Stratford-upon-Avon attractions (including Shakespeare's Schoolhouse, which Golden Tours oddly leaves out) directly from shakespeare.org.uk. I expect to spend a wonderful afternoon in the town that produced the Immortal Bard.