Staff Adventures: America’s Magnificent National Parks With Insight Vacations

Santiago Cortez
Help Desk Support
Toll Free: (800) 935-2620 x 165
Direct: (281) 269-2665
Fax: (281) 269 -2690
Email: [email protected]

After purchasing a National Parks Passport, a new journey in my life had begun. The goal: to fill the pages of this new chapter in life with visits to all the national parks, monuments, and trails that I can get to. According to the passport, there are a total of 410 destinations to visit nationwide and more are being added. I knew right away the only way to begin this journey was to go on Insight Vacation’s tour, America’s Magnificent National Parks.

Our adventure started in Scottsdale, Arizona with an informative get together. We got to know our fellow companions, had some appetizers and drinks, and got a general idea of what was in store for us the next couple of days. Our group was asked, “Who here wants to see the Grand Canyon?”, and pretty much everyone raised their hand. They then asked if we wanted to see Bryce or Zion, and the majority of us just looked around not knowing what they where asking us. As we explored each canyon, they told us that at the end of the trip they would ask us which one was our favorite. I thought that would be very difficult to answer!

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Our days began at 5 AM just about every day, since we wanted to see the sunrise. Breakfast was usually buffet style and began at 6:30. We had to have our bags outside our rooms by 7AM so they could begin loading them onto the coach to be on the road at 8 AM sharp. One thing they made sure to remind us every chance they had was to always be on time. We were on a very time sensitive schedule, if we got too behind then there was a chance we could miss out on a sight seeing stop in order to make up time. Luckily it got drilled into our brains, so we did not miss a single adventure.

An escorted tour with Insight Vacations is the only way to enjoy the true depth of North America.

Most of the optional excursions are worth the price since they offer the wow factor. We did two of them and they were an experience of a lifetime, since in one of them we got to see six bald eagles just a couple of feet away from us. The prices ranged from $30 up to $110 but where worth every penny.

Our sleeping arrangements where magnificent due to their locations. When ever we stayed at a national park the quality was very rustic which was amazing. The best part was that we where just a couple of feet away from the main attraction. When we stayed at the Grand Canyon we where about 20 paces from the rim. At Yellowstone, Old Faithful was in our back yard, and at Zion we where surrounded by the canyon and a lot of the wildlife. Most of those hotels did not have A/C or a TV but honestly you where not in your room until the end of the night just to go to sleep. Our location meant that we had very fresh nights so all you had to do was  open a window and use nature’s A/C.

Overall we had an amazing time; our tour director, Sheri, was one of the nicest people I have ever met. She made sure we were comfortable and were having an awesome time. Our driver, Lane, was always in a good mood and was very knowledgeable of the wildlife and was always on the look out for us. To top that, I have never seen a person so dedicated and proud of their job as much as Lane, keeping his coach spotless and ready to go all the time. Thanks to Insight Vacations, I got to scratch a couple of the national parks off my list and met new friends in the adventure. Towards the end of the trip, we were asked which one of the canyons was our favorite. I can honestly say I couldn’t just pick one since they are completely different. You really can’t classify them in the same category, so my answer was, “All of them!”

Santiago Cortez
Help Desk Support
Toll Free: (800) 935-2620 x 165
Direct: (281) 269-2665
Fax: (281) 269 -2690
Email: [email protected]