Building tours that go beyond expectationTaking a modern approach to educational travel means we design each and every one of our class trips with one thing in mind: To go beyond the same-old highlights you could see with anyone else. No matter where you go, or how subject-specific you want to get, our tours go beyond the textbooks, beyond the monuments. We’re driven to build incredible experiences that resonate with today’s students and provide lessons that will stick with them—wherever they go next.We empower educators to do their best workMore specifically, we help teachers change their students’ lives through educational travel. We have the experience needed to make sure your trip is both immersive and educational, and we’ll support you before, during, and long after your tour.Let's get startedFor over 55 years, EF has helped people see new places, experience new cultures, and learn new things about the world and about themselves. EF Education First is a family owned and operated company, founded in Sweden in 1965 with the mission of opening the world through education. As a result of our culturally immersive programs, over 15 million students have learned a language, discovered the world, or earned a degree with EF. Teachers are our people, literally: We employ close to 30,000 of them worldwide.
Written by the business, not verified by us.EF Explore America (efexploreamerica.com) has a 4.6 out of 5 rating on OK.one, based on 195 user reviews collected here. It is listed under Travel & Vacation and its reputation is excellent. Praise is nearly unanimous, with 91% rating it 4 stars or higher; The business has replied to 89% of negative reviews. Last updated 2026-09-03.
Reviewers overwhelmingly had a great experience with this company. Customers frequently mention that the professional tour guides and local staff are extremely helpful, friendly, and well-organized throughout the entire multi-day journey. Travelers truly appreciate the smooth trip planning, clear checklists, and supportive resources that make the overall preparation completely stress-free for all participating families. Though some reviewers were not happy with unexpected schedule changes, exceptionally long travel days, or missing meal arrangements experienced during the tour. A few other consumers also felt that certain itinerary stops felt rushed, poorly coordinated, or lacked adequate safety supervision during free time.
Auto-generated from all reviews of this business. For reference only.My daughter had an amazing, priceless experiences in Canada! Huge thanks to her teacher who was willing to help her students to have hands on experiences outside the classroom and I’m sure that couldn’t have happened if the both sides: teacher and EF, didn’t work closely. My daughter is still a minor and in freshman (at that time), and they made sure students who joined the tour without adult companies, will be able to enjoy the trip safely!
Our tour guide, Kelley, was experienced and created a tour that involved more walking at the beginning of the week and less walking later. She added a stop because our kids were so excited for the national archives. We felt safe at every location in dc and ny. Our bus driver, Melissa, was amazing. She could get us to any place Kelley asked, and also pick us up any place. Both ladies stayed cool and calm even driving through Times Square New York World Cup traffic to the airport. The first hotel near DC was spectacular and I really appreciated having a security guard outside so I could sleep easy. The whole group liked traveling the first day and going straight to the hotel and swimming - definitly a highlight. The second hotel in Jersey was really run down - light fixtures falling out of the ceiling, baseboard not attached, wall paper peeling, drywall splattered on the walls, multiple bathroom tubs were clogged and we had to shower with water to our ankles. Overall an awesome experience and I’m looking forward to going back with my next 3 kids.
The tour guide and the tour were very unorganized! The tour guide kept adding sights to the tour because of certain people. We had to return to the airport 3-4 hours early because the tour bus ran out of hours. The plane was inadequate for a $2000-3000 trip. The tour guide (Amy) had to Google alot of the information she told us. The bus driver and the bus was very nice!! We were combined with another group and their group leader was rude and the tour guide let her take over the agenda. Everything seemed rushed & a last minute after thought. I wish I would have never went on this trip! They even left people at the hotel a time or two & had to return. We could have gone with the smart & rude attitudes and comments at times! We were "late" everywhere. Some of the sights were nice!
Thank you for sharing your feedback. We're glad that some sights were enjoyable and that the bus driver made such a positive impression! We hear your frustration around the pacing, organization, and group dynamics on this trip, and your comments will be passed on to our teams for review. When groups are consolidated, we do our best to ensure the experience remains cohesive and well-managed for everyone, and we recognize that wasn't always the case here. Regarding the early airport return, bus hour limitations can sometimes be a factor in group travel logistics, and we understand that can be frustrating when it impacts time at sights. We hope that despite the challenges, there were still moments from the trip that stay with you and the students, and we appreciate you taking the time to help us improve the experience for future travelers.
Tour over all was well planned with plenty of activities, food choices and nice hotels. Tour guide was lacking in the actual guiding portion. Many days of “free time” with little information and lots of walking with little history about what we were seeing in both Boston and New York. Also had a bit of an arrogant personality and no interest in discussing other options that kids might have enjoyed during tour. Overall good trip but very disappointed with guide.
Thank you for sharing your experience, and we're glad to hear the overall trip was well planned with great activities, food, and hotels! We do hear your frustration around the tour guide experience. We expect our Tour Directors to be engaging, informative, and open to the needs of the group. We'll be sure your feedback is passed on to our Tour Director Team for follow-up. Thank you!
Our child Rylee has a blast, Steve the tour guide was fantastic. The only thing I would say that was not so good is the hotel in New York, but that is it. Great experience.
It was a great tour. I saw and learned alot. And our tour guide Jim was awesome and very knowledgeable
Service was phenomenal, great communication and with no problems to report. My child had a great time!
It was amazing to have the same tour guide be with us the entire trip. No handing off to others was a plus! Hotels were terrific and breakfast was filling and tasty at all locations.
It was a great experience! The tour director was caring and organized, she took everyone wishes and thoughts into the events. I would highly recommend this tour!
From what my son told me he really liked Antonia & Jonathan. Our group got sick in New York and I was told Jonathan went above and beyond to sterilize the bus 4 times to help our group get healthy. Let him know that he was much appreciated!
Saw a lot, it was exhausting. Not a vacation, they fill up your time pretty efficiently. Our guide really knew his way around NY and DC so I feel like we got a lot of bonuses in those cities. Learned a lot too.
Thank you for sharing! It's great to hear that your Tour Director's expertise in New York and DC added some fun bonus moments along the way. We do pack a lot into each day to make the most of every destination, and we're glad so much learning happened along the way!
Our tour guide, Adriana, and bus driver, Miguel, were the most amazing, welcoming, and, fun people ever. Every excursion and experience was made better by their presence.
I actually had 2 kids on this trip. A boy and a girl. Both had a great time. It sounds and looks like they did a ton of stuff during the trip. Both loved the tour guide and bus driver. Both had a great experience. The payment plan is super helpful. Would definitely send my kids on another trip.
Carolyn's guidance helped our kids have a magical trip. Although we were tired, we had the best time when she was learding us. She gave us freedom to explore, though we did get lost at one point. Still, we have coice and voice in what we did or didn't do. She tried to fit all of what we wanted in. She has a voice for equity, which I truly appreciated. We had 6 days with memories that will last a lifetime.
Everything is great from the planning of the trip to the execution of the trip. All staff was friendly and very helpful and made the experience worthwhile.
Shamir was absolutely amazing! So attentive, fun and engaging! The experiences we loved the most were the Bio Bay, Cooking Lesson, The Caves and El Morro and Old San Juan. The hotels were just ok. The hotel in Ponce was better but San Juan rooms were small and the pool closed early. We night swam but the beach wasn’t the cleanest or safest with some homeless people on the beach at night and the hotel in general wasn’t in the best area. The walking tour in Old San Juan was long and hot and you couldn’t hear the guide at all but all the places we visited were interesting and beautiful. Snorkeling was disappointing didn’t get to see much at all. My biggest complaint however was the food. Way too much fried food and nothing was fresh! The hotel had the same thing every single day for breakfast. Very little fruit or vegetables were offered for lunch and dinner and would’ve been nice to have our meals on our own more with cash so we could try different things. I actually bought my own ceviche tacos so I could have fresh fish. Luquillo beach was our only beach day and it was dirty and overcrowded. Overall the kids had a wonderful time exploring and experiencing new things. I would rate it and 8/10 for experiences and a 4/10 for food and accommodations and a 10/10 guide.
Thank you for sharing! A 10/10 for Shamir is wonderful to hear, and we will absolutely pass along those kind words. Puerto Rico is amazing, and we're glad it left such an impression! We hear your feedback around meals and accommodations. We understand that food variety is important. We'll pass your comments on to our suppliers as we continue to evaluate our dining and hotel partners and improve those experiences. We also appreciate your notes on the beach conditions and walking tour. That feedback is helpful as we look to refine those elements for future tours. Thank you for your feedback!
My son had an absolutely amazing and educational trip. The tour guide was great, friendly and knowledgeable. The overnight security was a relief and kept my mind at ease knowing the kids are safe. My son only wished it lasted longer 😂
The tour guide that was provided on our trip barely taught us anything about Puerto Rico, while riding around on the tour bus, she would not mention anything historical or important about the areas we were driving by neither would she participate in the activities that we’ve done. When traveling to a museum she left us to explore the area for ourselves making us figure out everything with no help and also sitting by the entrance on her phone not engaging. I have been on a EF Tour before and my tour guide was amazing and everywhere we went he would tell us what we were looking at and how it is important to the area, while also participating in activities that we did. The dinners that we had most of the nights were not very authentic to Puerto Rico which made me very disappointed in the arrangement that was given. Please reprimand this tour guide.
Thank you for sharing your experience. We're sorry to hear that this tour fell short of what you've come to expect from an EF tour. We expect our Tour Directors to be engaged, informative, and present throughout every trip. Your feedback around the level of engagement, commentary, as well as meal authenticity will be passed on to our internal teams for review. We appreciate you taking the time to share this, and we want you to know that feedback like yours plays an important role in helping us uphold the quality of experience our travelers expect. Thank you for your feedback.
My son had a blast going on his 8th grade promotion trip. EF Explore took such great care of all of our students and made sure everything was running smoothly.
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