Half-Day Oxford Day Trip from London

William was wonderful. He was extremely knowledgeable and very pleasant.

The Oxford Excursion was a long but wonderful day. However, the language on your web site -- since changed!!! -- raised expectations that were inaccurate and created an awkward situation. The original duration of the tour was 5 hours and the price was higher to reflect that longer activity. Now, we've taken other Context Excursions (e.g. to Paestum from Naples) and we will be taking excursions next year (e.g. to Chartres from Paris) so the higher price did not surprise us. However, Federico Poole accompanied us on the train ride to Paestum and a similar situation is clearly explained for all the Paris excursions we're considering. The Oxford Excursion language, made it clear that we needed to get ourselves down/back to Oxford. No problem. However, that raised the expectation that the tour in Oxford would last five hours. Not so. The Oxford tour lasts the same 3 hours as the majority of your tours. Isabella politely explained that London-based guides used to handle the excursion, accompanying the participants on the train, which meant the five-hour description was accurate. However, since she and her husband are Oxford-based guides, the situation has changed. I assume you changed the duration on the web site in response to the earlier email I sent. However, unless there are issues that I don't understand about your pricing, you might want to change the price, too. If you end up changing the price, please do not send us a refund, and I mean this sincerely. Context is very, very good to us! You add tours to the public calendar to meet our convenience. You confirm -- and deliver -- the tours that we want whether or not you get the usual minimum number of participants. We're well aware of the incredible service Context gives us. Context has changed the quality of our trips and we're very, very, very appreciative of your organization. I've responded by talking about Context as often as I can on internet sites. (Note: I'm careful to indicate that a minimum number of participants is needed for a group walk added to the public calendar to actually take place. I'm not about to cause problems for you! Context is too treasured a resource in our travel plans!). I just think you need to look at the way the Oxford Excursion is described on the web site and make sure you're comfortable with the results. The Paris excursions, in contrast, are notable for their specificity. Chartres: "Starting from the Montparnasse station, your docent will recount the cathedral's riveting history on the train... Our tour with your docent ends with the guided visit of the Cathedral, however, we encourage you to have lunch or spend the rest of the afternoon visiting the charming town and all of its attractions on your own." D-Day: "This is actually a full- day 12 hour excursion. Clients depart by themselves from the Paris St-Lazare station at 8:45 am and arrive in Caen around 11:00 am, where the docent and driver will be waiting. Clients will return to the Caen station around 7 pm, arriving in Paris around 9pm. " Giverny: Our excursion begins in Paris, our discussion beginning on the short train ride to Giverny... At the end of the visit you may either stay alone on in Giverny to visit the Musee des Impressionismes and enjoy lunch in the town, or return directly to Paris with your docent.

The weather did not co-operate and Philippa was thoughtful and creative in organizing our day. We had a marvelous and informative time with her. She is knowledgeable, informative and charming. In our opinion she is a great asset for your organization