Etiquette on excursion coaches.

[SHAZA0208]

When booked on a coach excursion that it involves a long journey, what do you/would you do when others decide to take your seat for the return journey especially if you were sitting with a young child for the outward journey?

 

I witnessed this dilemma quite a few times on the Breeze excursions last year and for every trip on the Caribbean excursions.

 

The swapping of the seats especially seem to happen when couples who had to sit apart for the outward journey either because they arrived late to board the coach or just luck of the draw decide to occupy someone else's seat for the return journey instead of keeping to their original seats.

 

Others seem to swap seats believing that the view will be better.

 

They then decided to take those seats leaving the original occupants to hunt for other ones, who in turn put out the other travellers!

[Liverpoollovely]

When booked on a coach excursion that it involves a long journey, what do you/would you do when others decide to take your seat for the return journey especially if you were sitting with a young child for the outward journey?

 

I witnessed this dilemma quite a few times on the Breeze excursions last year and for every trip on the Caribbean excursions.

 

The swapping of the seats especially seem to happen when couples who had to sit apart for the outward journey either because they arrived late to board the coach or just luck of the draw decide to occupy someone else's seat for the return journey instead of keeping to their original seats.

 

Others seem to swap seats believing that the view will be better.

 

They then decided to take those seats leaving the original occupants to hunt for other ones, who in turn put out the other travellers!

 

 

Haha this made me smile because this exact situations occurred on my previous cruise my sister at every stop ended up sitting in a vacant chair each time because people were sitting in her seat it annoyed her but she just moved each time .... Because there's three of us as long as me or my sister are sitting by my dad ( who is deaf in one ear and loosing gradually what hearing he has in his other ear) we don't mind yes it's rude and iratating but I don't think there is much u can do

[yogimax]

Were the seats reserved???

 

If not, it's first come, first served each time.

Edited April 2, 2013 by yogimax

[mikenhe]

Haha this made me smile because this exact situations occurred on my previous cruise my sister at every stop ended up sitting in a vacant chair each time because people were sitting in her seat it annoyed her but she just moved each time .... Because there's three of us as long as me or my sister are sitting by my dad ( who is deaf in one ear and loosing gradually what hearing he has in his other ear) we don't mind yes it's rude and iratating but I don't think there is much u can do

should try happy al's coaches - then you'd have a reason to worry :D

[Elaine5715]

Yep, first come, first served each trip segment. With the exception of areas reserved for individuals with physical disabilities, no one gets to call "shotgun" either, So, window seas are not reserved for your children.

[ShanteS]

Were the seats reserved???

 

If not, it's first come, first served each time.

 

This! It's not really a big deal to me. I know when I get off a bus or tender that I most likely won't have that seat when I return because I didn't reserve or rent it. Honestly, after an excursion I'm tired and hungry and just glad I have somewhere to sit. Don't sweat it!

[paul929207]

Never had this problem. On private tours in smaller buses/vans, we usually switch around during the day.

[SHAZA0208]

Point taken.

 

The seats are not reserved... but even so...:mad:

[FlaGrl4Evr]

On our long bus ride to Altun-Ha in Belize, the tour guide told us to leave any personal belongings, that we didn't want to tote along, in our seat and they would lock the doors and the driver would stay with the bus. They encouraged us to take the same seats for the return drives. We left a small bag with granola bars and water on the seat. Everyone listened to the driver and, to my knowledge, there were no incidents.

 

For our Mayan Ruin and beach break tour in Progreso, we were told the same thing. Perhpas the tours have had situations in the past and this is their remedy.

 

:)

 

 

 

.

Edited April 2, 2013 by Hoosiercouple

[cello56]

Here is another point of view. We took a bus tour of St. Marten. The bus driver told us that everyone was to remain in their seat for the entire tour - no switching of seats even after we got off at several locations. We had a seat on the mountain side of the bus. We could not see anything at all on the scenic side. We were not allowed to stand up to look - at all. We thought, ok, on the return trip WE will be on the scenic side. Nope! The bus did a big circle around the island. WE SAW NOTHING! It was a huge waste of money and we were very disappointed. Very unfair that half the passengers got to see the sights and half did not.

[Nebr.cruiser]

I think this is a 'it just depends' question. Most of the time, on bus tours, people seem to go back to the same seat, but I don't think that it is necessarily bad manners if they don't, especially if no one's belongings are in the seat or if someone gets back earlier than others.

 

In fact, I think it's questionable to grab one of the best seats and then stay there for the whole trip. On one tour, a woman 'asked' (it was more like insisted) that she and her husband needed the front two seats, near the driver, because he wanted to take pictures. Huh? It was a trip to Florence through Tuscany; did she think no one else wanted to take pictures? And they took those seats on the way back, too.

 

Of course there are legitimate reasons to need certain seats, like disabilities. Children needing a window seat, not so much. Most kids don't care for sightseeing anyway.

 

It really isn't usual for a one-day tour, but when we've gone on longer bus tours the guides often have everyone move seats each day, so that everyone gets a chance to sit in the front, and then gradually move back and around back to the front. And I agree, for scenic drives, some seats are much better than others and on the way back it's only fair to switch, if that means everyone gets a view.

Edited April 2, 2013 by Nebr.cruiser

[Kamloops50]

On our last excursion . The driver very forcefully made the comment "Everyone is to return to their ORIGINAL SEATS"

[cruisemom42]

I've taken a lot of bus tours through the years.

 

It seems like up until the past few years, the etiquette was always that you took a seat and that seat was yours for the duration of the tour (or for the day, if it was a multi-day tour).

 

Many times I've heard tour guides reiterate this philosophy, and I believe it is to help them keep track of people. In other words, they can "eyeball" the coach and see if someone is missing more easily if people return to the same seats each time.

 

Only in the past few years people seem to have become more aggressive about taking the seats of others during coach trips!

 

The seat-swapping doesn't really bother me much as a solo traveler, but one time I was on board a bus with a fairly good seat near the front and was asked point-blank by a couple to give up my seat because they wanted to sit together and the only seats left by that point were singles.

 

I don't think that's fair, and I said so. Not my fault they boarded the bus late.

[Aquahound]

So many people here are saying the seats are first come first serve and they are not saved. I could not disagree more.

 

When you are on a motor coach with multiple stops, people tend to leave belongings, bags, etc, at their seats so they don't have to carry them off every time. Proper etiquette is to return to the seat in which you originally sat. First come first serve is for the first time boarding only.

 

Of course, I know some will disagree. But the question was about proper etiquette.

[Keith1010]

Most people do stay in the seat that they began the journey in but some don't.

 

I would probably have said something in a nice way and if they wouldn't want to move it would be the end of the subject.

 

Keith

[Essiesmom]

Some seats are much less desirable than others, such as seats over the wheel well. Those can be very uncomfortable, even for short people. Also, on buses that have a rear door, the seat right behind it looks great, until you discover that there is less leg room. And I have been on buses in the islands where the a/c did not reach to the rear of the vehicle. In those cases, I think the company should require people to rotate seats.

If you have ridden the White Pass & Yukon Railway in Skagway, the sights are all on the left side of the train on the way up. The train does not turn around, the engine just changes locations. But the seat backs reverse, and people are told to reverse the seat backs, and move across the aisle so that those with no view on the way up can have the view on the way back. A very equitable arrangement. EM

[noobcruiser]

So many people here are saying the seats are first come first serve and they are not saved. I could not disagree more.

 

When you are on a motor coach with multiple stops, people tend to leave belongings, bags, etc, at their seats so they don't have to carry them off every time. Proper etiquette is to return to the seat in which you originally sat. First come first serve is for the first time boarding only.

 

Of course, I know some will disagree. But the question was about proper etiquette.

+1

 

More to the point....if you want the same seat, leave something on it that basically "stakes your claim". Not necessarily anything valuable, just something that clearly communicates that the seat is taken. Depending on the tour and amount of time..I would leave anything from my backpack to a hat to a bottle of water. By the way...it needs to be on the seat not in the seatback pocket or in the overhead.

[Scrapnana]

If things are not left on the seats some of us might forget which seat we were in and take another.

[paul929207]

I guess this is just another reason for private tours. Often the people in the good seats offer to switch seats with those in the poorer ones when we are at a stop. This can happen several times over the tour

[Warm Breezes]

My DS is 6' 7 1/2", DH 6'5", and DD 5'11 1/2". We try to find seats that give them some leg room. If we get them then we will leave an object in the seats to save them. For example in St. Martin we were on a tour bus that had seats all along the back. The 2 middle seats were open to the aisle way. We were able to get those seats so the guys had the aisle for for their legs. We would leave a bag or two in the seats to secure them for us on our return. Not trying to be seat hogs but some of those buses were not built for tall people:D:o;).

[Blondilu]

I agree that taking the same seats is great, but how many won't remember which seats were there's? This is, to me, a time when you need to do what the situation calls for. Full bus, busy tour, can't remember where you seat was or it's taken? Get on, find a seat and sit down. If you want a certain seat, get there early, or leave something to mark it as yours.

 

On the last tour I took, the bus was only half full (or was it half empty?). We had plenty of time and lots of room. Everyone could pretty much sit where they wanted. And we got to know each other a little bit so we remembered better where we were seated. It was almost like a private tour.

 

Either way it somehow all works out if you're flexible and ready to "go with the flow".

Edited April 2, 2013 by Blondilu

[AKman2495]

On our tours it was also "remain in the same seats". I guess these companies have had bad experience with seat switching.

 

My advice-if seats are REALLY important to you, make every effort to get on the bus early and select the ideal seat for you.

 

Late comers have to take what's left..IMHO...

[navybankerteacher]

It is certainly "first come first served" when you initially board the bus -- and without assigned seats, or clear instructions from driver or tour organizer, it seems that "first come first served" should remain the rule. Some seats are obviously more desirable, so having them permanently seems a bit unfair. If it is very important to get the desirable seat you nailed when you first boarded, you should re-board early, rather than expect that your seat for the first segment will be held for you throughout the day. Come on--- it's a bus!!!!!

[SHAZA0208]

I've taken a lot of bus tours through the years.

 

It seems like up until the past few years, the etiquette was always that you took a seat and that seat was yours for the duration of the tour (or for the day, if it was a multi-day tour).

 

Many times I've heard tour guides reiterate this philosophy, and I believe it is to help them keep track of people. In other words, they can "eyeball" the coach and see if someone is missing more easily if people return to the same seats each time.

 

Only in the past few years people seem to have become more aggressive about taking the seats of others during coach trips!

 

The seat-swapping doesn't really bother me much as a solo traveler, but one time I was on board a bus with a fairly good seat near the front and was asked point-blank by a couple to give up my seat because they wanted to sit together and the only seats left by that point were singles.

 

I don't think that's fair, and I said so. Not my fault they boarded the bus late.

 

Brilliant!

[sherryf]

When you are on a motor coach with multiple stops, people tend to leave belongings, bags, etc, at their seats so they don't have to carry them off every time. Proper etiquette is to return to the seat in which you originally sat. First come first serve is for the first time boarding only.

 

This has been my experience on tours, though I've only been to Alaska. Don't know if people are just naturally more polite there. ;) The exception would be a tour where the bus just takes you somewhere and drops you off, and you have to take all your belongings with you. When the bus returns to get you, you claim new seats. In this case, the bus is mainly transportation, not tour, and seats don't matter so much.