Fitness guidelines

We want everyone who travels with us to have a wonderful time – a little advance thinking about fitness will help ensure that this happens. Our tours are active by nature: walking, stair-climbing, and standing for extended periods are simply part of the experience. Our itineraries are carefully planned to make the most of every day, so a reasonable level of physical and mental fitness, mobility and stamina is essential.

Here’s what you can typically expect:

• A full programme each day – with several visits or activities, so the pace is purposeful throughout.

• Walking on varied terrain – streets that may be steep or uneven, and some tours include visits to archaeological sites which may be rough or uneven underfoot.

• Steps, ascents and descents – many visits involve navigating these, sometimes repeatedly.

• Getting on and off transport – coaches, trains, boats and occasionally cruise vessels, several times a day on most tours.

• Long coach journeys – some tours involve extended travel days between destinations, as well as early starts and late finishes.

• Managing your own luggage – you should be able to carry your own luggage.

• Sustained walking – you should comfortably manage a brisk pace for at least 30 minutes at a stretch, without stopping.

• Standing for periods – being on your feet, unsupported, for 30 minutes or more at a time.

• Walking tours require a higher level of fitness and agility, with walks and hikes of up to four hours, often through hilly countryside – please read the descriptions and our walking grading system carefully.

Because these are group experiences, the pace and enjoyment of the whole party depends on everyone being able to keep up. Unfortunately, even one person struggling can affect the experience for others – so please do reflect honestly on whether a particular tour is right for you. Each tour description includes a ‘How strenuous?’ section to help you decide.

A note on health and medical conditions: If you have a medical condition or disability that might affect your participation, or require special arrangements, please speak to us before booking. If anything changes after you've booked, please let us know as soon as possible before departure. Our booking conditions ask that you satisfy yourself that you’re fit enough to participate – for the enjoyment of everyone, including yourself.

Note: residential music weekends and symposia in the UK have no specific fitness requirements.

Tours which are billed as walking tours, with hikes through hilly countryside, require a different scale of fitness and agility. Please attend to the descriptions of these tours carefully. We use the following grading system to describe individual walks and also the tours as a whole:

Easy. A short and mostly flat walk lasting 1–2 hours, on well maintained footpaths or roads, perhaps with short periods of gentle ascent or descent. An ‘easy’ tour will consist of mostly ‘easy’ walks, perhaps with a couple of ‘moderate’ ones. There might not be a walk every day.

Moderate. A walk of 2–3 hours’ duration, with significant elevation gain, or stretches of rocky, gravelly or slippery paths. A ‘moderate’ tour will consist mostly of moderate walks, perhaps with a couple of easy or challenging ones too. There is likely to be a walk every day.

Challenging. A walk that is longer than 3 hours, has steeper, longer or more frequent episodes of ascent and descent, or is tricky under foot. Tours graded as ‘challenging’ will consist mostly or entirely of this level of walk, perhaps with some moderate or easier walks too.