This is very much a "how long is a piece of string?" question. The package cost depends on many factors, which vary significantly from one destination to another:
a) Length of trip
b) Number of ballet performances
c) Cost of ballet tickets
d) Number of extra activities
e) Number of meals
f) Whether or not coach charter is required, and if so what kind of coach
g) Hotel prices, which vary dramatically depending on the time of year and destination
h) Exchange rate
Bear in mind that all prices are quoted in CANADIAN dollars, which as of January 2016 are worth only about 70 cents US (i.e. multiply the price by 70% to get the price in US dollars).
2) What size are Tours en l'air groups?
The maximum number depends on the destination, and how comfortable the participants feel with the destination (because of language issues or previous familiarity with the city, for instance).
Minimum group size is typically 10 people, though for some destinations this is 15 or 20.
In English-speaking countries, where participants feel comfortable being more independent to do and see what they want outside of the group ballet-themed activities, there can be as many as 30 or 35 people (although this is rare).
In non-English speaking destinations that participants are less likely to have visited before (e.g. Stuttgart, Hamburg, Copenhagen, Antwerp), I organize more group sightseeing activities, and I like to be available to everyone to help with the language if needed. For this reason, and because it is easier to arrange visits to ballet companies in their studios with a smaller group, I usually limit the group size to 20 or 25.
3) What is the ratio of planned group activity to free time?
I always allow quite a bit of independent time. As mentioned above, in destinations that are less familiar I do organize more walking tours, museum visits, and day trips. In places like New York, London, and Paris, the group activities are anything ballet-related (backstage tours, visits to companies, performances) and the rest of the time is available for participants to explore on their own.
4) Do you go to the same destinations every year?
Say I'm offering a trip to Copenhagen this year and you think you'd rather go next year. There is no guarantee there will be a trip to Copenhagen next year. Every year I compile a master calendar of what all the ballet companies are doing, and from that I carefully select trips that offer the best combination of repertoire, time of year, "most ballet for your buck" and other factors. Since ballet company seasons change every year, so do Tours en l'air trips.
5) Do you accept solo travellers?
As a frequent solo traveller myself, I am very happy to welcome solo travellers. In fact, the majority of the participants in most Tours en l'air trips are solo travellers. If you like the privacy of having a room to yourself, this is always possible on payment of the single supplement. The single supplement reflects only the extra cost of paying for a hotel room on one's own rather than sharing it with someone else. Tours en l'air does not add any other surcharges to solo travellers. We put participants who would like to save money by sharing with someone else in touch with one another. We have been very successful in finding roommates for people so far.
6) How much ballet is there on a trip?
Each Tours en l'air trip is unique, and I cater to different levels of enthusiasm for ballet. For some people, there is no such thing as "too much ballet". For them, a trip like the Munich ballet week (8 performances in 10 days) or London (6 performances in 10 days) or a weekend in New York (3 performances in 3 days) is ideal. Other people like ballet but don't want to spend every evening at a performance. For them, a trip like Paris-Amsterdam (3 or 4 performances in 10 days) or even my Toulouse-Bordeaux trip (2 performances in 12 days, lots more sightseeing) is just the ticket. Be sure to look at every trip on my "Upcoming Ballet Trips" page to see which one would suit you.
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